Mirren stands by controversial remarks

LONDON, Sept. 3 (UPI) -- British actress Helen Mirren says one should read the whole GQ article before judging remarks she made about using cocaine and having been date-raped.

The Oscar-winning star of "The Queen" said in a recent interview she used cocaine in her younger days, but stopped in the early 1980s.

She also said she had been date-raped more than once when she was a student.

Mirren said a woman who engages in sexual activity with a man, but says "no" at the last moment and is still forced to have sex is a rape victim.

However, the actress added: "I don't think she can have that man into court under those circumstances. I guess it is one of the many subtle parts of the men/women relationship that has to be negotiated and worked out between them."

Quoted by media outlets all over the world this week, her words drew criticism from some advocates for rape victims, the BBC said.

While Mirren doesn't try to rescind the remarks, E! Online said the actress has issued a statement urging people to read the entire article before forming an opinion based on the salacious tidbits repeated in the media.

"Helen Mirren does not dispute the accuracy of statements attributed to her in an upcoming GQ article," Mirren's publicist, Stan Rosenfield, said in a statement issued to E! Online.

"She merely asks that people read the article in its entirety before drawing conclusions. If they do that, she says, their conclusions will likely be far less sweeping and sensational than those drawn by some in the popular press. She does not wish to qualify any of her remarks. She just wants to avoid having them presented in inflammatory language."