Fresh from her Oscar victory for The Queen, Helen Mirren has proven that she can impress the world. Years of consistently working on stage, television and film had finally been recognised with one of the ultimate prizes.  Ivan Waterman's biography takes this career high as the starting point for his entertaining account of Mirren's long but varied career.

Whilst working through her career on stage and screen. Waterman takes time to focus on the significant moments - her stage debut as Cleopatra, the acclaim of Long Good Friday and The Cook, The Thief, His Wife And Her Lover, and well as her greatest triumph to date, The Queen, although the notoriety of Caligula seems to receive winder coverage than it merits. However, Waterman deservedly devotes much time to the success of the ground-breaking Prime Suspect, including interview with creater Lynda la Plante and the real-life policewoman who inspired the character of DCI Tennison.  It's a is a career-high that Mirren seems justly proud of and a character she has warm affection for.

Having fiercely protected her privacy over the years, Mirren is warmly candid about certain areas of her life.  She talks about her childhood with amusement, her family background and Russian heritage: her passion for acting and indeed her happy marriage to film director Taylor Hackford.  Her words populate the pages with frankness and warmth.  She confidently gives a well-rounded but guarded view of her professional and private lives, at ease talking about her triumphs and any personal anguish.  She comes across as someone with a great deal of vitality and inner contentment, a view which seems to be shared by many of her friends and colleagues.

Clearly the biography is meant to be a populist rather than a scholarly read as the rather tabloid-grabbing subtitle suggests  - The Biography of Britain's Greatess Actress - and whilst it might be amiing for an international readership, quotations taken from the British press are annoyingly prefixed with 'UK' and yet, other references to London or British culture don't seem to need such qualification. The book has been neatly timed to coincide with Helen's multi-award winning success with The Queen, but bizarrely , Waterman chooses it as a moment to become a fashion commentator for the various ceremonies.  Nevertheless, the heart of the book remains Helen Mirren herself and she inbues the book with charm and warmth, making it an enjoyable read.