The secrets behind Helen Mirren’s red carpet style
The 76-year-old actress has mastered the art of breaking the rules just enough. Here, her ‘glam squad’ reveal how she does it…
‘Whether it’s a classic red carpet beauty look or catwalk couture, Helen knows how to work it’
Pick a red carpet, any red carpet, and if Dame Helen Mirren is on it, she’ll probably be best-dressed. Despite the fact that most premieres and awards shows are populated by a fair number of impeccably styled 20and 30-something starlets, Mirren, 76, always seems to come out on top.
She is elegant, without doubt, but with every look there’s an edge or interesting spin that prevents it from looking twee, too. Studded biker boots with a floral dress (on The Graham Norton Show recently), or a padded headband with a princessy pink Prada dress, which she wore to collect a lifetime achievement award at the SAGS last month (“I don’t like to say the word ‘SAG’ at my age,” she joked in her acceptance speech).
She doesn’t just look good for her age, she looks good full stop – but part of the appeal is that she’s not trying to hide it. Her hair is a silvery white, like many women of her vintage, and her skin hasn’t been ironed into a vague approximation of her younger self.
The secret to her success is in how she has jettisoned the traditional “rules” of how one is expected to dress, style their hair, or wear make-up in their 70s. She’ll wear her hair loose, or in a ponytail, for example. She’ll make a statement with a smokey eye or lip colour. She’ll show a little decolletage or ankle if the look calls for it. Mirren has mastered the art of breaking the rules just enough.
The best thing though? She makes it look easy. But despite the effortless attitude, some work goes into achieving this, and Dame Helen has one of the best glam squads in the business. Here, they share the secrets behind her look. Tamara Abraham
The fashion
If the art of fashion as you grow up is to master it – and not the other way around – then Helen Mirren is the woman we should all be emulating as we notch up another milestone birthday. So much of dressing well is wrapped up in looking confident – and she always appears utterly at ease in what she is wearing, whether that is a scarlet bikini on an Italian beach or a silver Jenny Packham ballgown on the red carpet.
“I’ve been dressing Helen since before [she starred in] The Queen and she has such a sense of fun,” says stylist Rachel Fanconi. “I’ve always believed that the easiest way to enjoy fashion is by being comfortable with who you are and how you look, and Helen embodies that.”
Mirren has a famously small waist, and while she experiments with wide-legged trousers, slinky skirts and an array of hourglass dresses, her midsection is nearly always the focal point of her outfits. “Finding your default look is key as you age,” says Fanconi. “If you know what shape you look good in, use that as your base to experiment and reference the trends from. That way you’ll feel great – and as a stylist it’s wonderful to dress someone who knows they look good.”
Mirren has looked particularly spectacular in recent weeks. Her appearance on The Graham Norton Show in a floral dress by Claire Mischevani – which was toughened up with fishnet tights and Russell & Bromley studded biker boots – was hailed as a fashion triumph. “Keep that sense of ease for dressier occasions,” says Fanconi. “I love sequins and sparkle but you need shoes and a design you can move in.”
This week, a figure-hugging silver dress by Dolce & Gabbana that Mirren has worn before showed off her wasp waist at a New York theatre event, while a candyfloss pink number by Prada was described as the look of the night at the SAG Awards. On a 20-something actress all that pink could have looked cutesy but with Mirren’s pale grey hair, diamond-encrusted Harry Winston earrings and irrepressible look of fun, the dress was sophisticated and head-turning. Much like Mirren herself. Melissa Twigg
The hair
“Helen isn’t afraid to change her hair; she has an understanding of how it’s pivotal to her mood and overall style,” says hairstylist Syd Hayes, one of Mirren’s inner circle. “A lot of women can be scared of having long hair when they get older but Helen embraces it; she came into the studio the other day with her hair up, wearing this amazing hairband that elevated her whole look.”
The condition of Mirren’s hair is key to her success in carrying off these looks. “When we age, the texture of our hair changes, so it’s crucial to concentrate on condition, making sure it always looks healthy – that’s why Helen’s hair always looks sophisticated,” Hayes says. As for the colour, “she has some subtle lowlights painted throughout her grey to add depth”.
This creates the perfect canvas on which she can have some fun, most notably with hairbands. It’s important to choose the right style though: “A thin Alice band can look twee and too schoolgirl, a wider band is more sophisticated.” Even the humble bun gets given a youthful edge: “It’s oversized, which makes it look modern, while pulling out some wispy bits prevents it from looking old-fashioned.”
Hayes hints that before the summer Mirren will have reinvented her hairstyle again – it’s gone from short to long, pink to blonde and back to grey over the past few years, always pushing boundaries, but “in an elegant way”.
Whatever they decide on, Mirren won’t hold back. “She really trusts the experts and never gets too attached – there’s a sense of youthfulness that comes from having the confidence to try new things.” Annabel Jones
The make-up
According to Mirren’s go-to make-up artist Val Garland, the actress has a “fearless approach” when it comes to make-up. As the global make-up director for L’oréal Paris, she has worked with Mirren on countless campaigns and red carpet events over the years. “Makeup is about attitude,” says Garland, “I’m confident Helen will rock any look I create, whether that’s a classic red carpet beauty look or if we go down the realm of catwalk couture. Either way, she knows how to work it.”
At 76, Mirren breaks all the conventions of what is deemed “appropriate” in make-up on mature skin, and will usually wear thick, heavy eyeliner or a bright, bold lipstick, or often both at the same time. One of her most daring looks was at a L’oréal event in Paris last October. With black eyeshadow swept diagonally under the eyes, lashings of mascara and a matte nude lip, “it was pretty sensational”, says Garland.
For that radiant glow, Garland uses the L’oréal Paris Age Perfect Serum Foundation. When it comes to red lipstick, Mirren’s favourite is the L’oréal Paris Rouge Brilliant Signature 311 Be Brilliant.
Is there anything that the actress refuses to wear? “She’s yet to say no to any of my ideas,” laughs Garland. And therein lies the secret to Mirren’s success in pushing the envelope in beauty; she’s up for anything. Sonia Haria
The skincare
Mirren has a refreshingly lowmaintenance approach to skincare, claiming to only spend five minutes a day on her regime. She’s diligent with make-up removal though, and always uses fresh flannels to cleanse.
You’re unlikely to find any products labelled with the words “anti-ageing” on her bathroom shelf either – it’s a term she rejects because “women have been being 50 for a very long time, or 60, or 70”. Instead, she is a fan of (and the face of) L’oréal’s Age Perfect line. She told Good Housekeeping in 2017: “You just want to look and feel as great as you can on a daily basis.”
This doesn’t mean she’s averse to a little help: before the SAGS, make-up artist Jo Strettell gave her a facial massage using Facegym tools – products designed to improve muscle tone and lymphatic drainage – while Val Garland always begins with a “relaxing deep facial” before applying make-up. Emilie Hill
The workout
They say consistency is key to reap any real benefit in life, and when it comes to Mirren’s daily 12-minute workout, you can understand why. She has been doing the “Royal Canadian Air Force Exercise Plan” on and off since the 1960s, a workout which was devised with the time-poor in mind and “very gently gets you fit” in as little as two weeks.
Created by physician Bill Orban in the 1950s, it was designed to keep new recruits of the Royal Canadian Air Force in fighting-fit shape. Prince Charles is also believed to be a fan.
Helen Mirren clearly doesn’t have the time or the inclination to slave away at the gym for hours, and it’s working.