AceShowbiz - Dame Helen Mirren "doesn't want any criticism" from her husband.

The 76-year-old actress has been married to film director Taylor Hackford since 1997 and insists that the pair only give each other "unconditional praise."

She said, "I believe in unconditional praise from one's loved ones. I don't want any criticism from [Taylor]. And I give him unconditional praise likewise - more or less. We allow each other to do our own thing, and get on with it.."

The Oscar winning star, who met the man behind films such as "An Officer and a Gentleman" while auditioning for "White Nights" and ended up dating him for a decade before saying "I do", also revealed that the COVID-19 lockdown was the first time in her career that the pair were able to spend a considerable amount of time together.

She told PEOPLE, "I've worked every year since I was 20," she says. "COVID was the first time in the whole of my life I've not worked for six months. I know that people were suffering through that terrible, terrible time, but what was valuable for me was that I got to spend time with my husband and sit across the table from him every night for six months, which I've never done before, and not worry about or even think about work."

However, the "Calendar Girls" actress, who will celebrate her silver wedding anniversary with Taylor in December 2022, also claimed that a key part of a successful relationship is having a sense of individual identity.

She said, "A really important part of love is to maintain your own sense of identity. In a way, that's the most important thing of all, to not subsume yourself into someone else, far from it. Be honestly and authentically who you are."