After claiming for years that she was not the marrying kind, Helen Mirren surprised her fans and delighted the town of Ardersier, Scotland when she stood before the altar in Ardersier Parish Church, New Year's Eve 1997. Surrounded by a small gathering of family and close friends, Helen and Taylor exchanged vows and then headed off down the road to a reception at the 400-year old Castle Stuart.
Up until the last minute, Helen has been quoted as saying that she did not believe in marriage. "I might get married," Helen stated in a recent interview, "but it would be a backward step. The reason I never wanted to marry is because I've never wanted to be divorced." Now, a year later, Helen says that the "best thing she had ever done in her life was to become a wife.
"All my life I hated the idea of getting married. I thought it would always be a massive mistake for me. Then one day almost exactly a year ago i just felt it would be the right thing for me to do. I had been with Taylor for 15 years. He'd given me respect and loyalty and I trusted him 100% but still I was terrified it would change our relationship. I told him I would marry him on the condition that nothing would change. But when I woke up on the morning after the wedding I realised everything had changed and I loved it. I felt totally and utterly different. I was his wife and he was my husband and it was such an enormous thing to me. It was wonderful. Even after almost a year I still feel a shiver when I hear him say 'my wife' and I get this enormous sense of pleasure when I say 'my husband'. "
