Oscar winner DAME Helen Mirren can't live without her answer machine, because it means she doesn't have to face her fear of phones. THE QUEEN actress, 61, hates using the phone and goes out of her way to avoid using the communication devices. She says, "I never, ever return calls. "I'm definitely very frightened of the phone. It makes me so nervous. I always avoid picking it up if I can. "To me, the invention of the answering machine was amazing. But then, I never return the calls anyway, so it wasn't much use."