Charles Dance has insisted "actors shouldn't retire"

Asked if stamina is an issue, he told the Metro newspaper's 60 Seconds column: "No, I mean, you have to work that much harder, the older you get.

"I just have to make sure that I take the right amount of exercise and look after myself.

"I don't want to retire. Actors shouldn't retire. If we retired there'd be nobody to play old, wrinkly people. You have to keep going!"

Despite some challenging moments on sets over the years - including battling the elements on the set of 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters', which he described as "not a great film" - Charles has never wanted to quit acting.

He explained: "No. One year we moved out of London. I went down to live in Somerset and saw spring, summer, autumn and winter - and that frightened me a bit.

"The first couple of months it was out of choice. And then after that nothing was happening. And I thought, 'Ooh, I don't like this at all.' "

He admitted that experiencing that down time convinced him he was "not going to say no very often".

Charles' first feature film was in 1981 James Bond movie 'For Your Eyes Only', while he's appeared in the likes of 'Gosford Park', 'The King's Man', 'Alien 3' and more over the years.

However, he acknowledged that at the moment, he's "probably" most recognised for playing Tywin Lannister in 'Game of Thrones'.

He said: "Probably, now. An actor's life is swings and roundabouts. You're flavour of the month one minute and not the next.

"Television gives one more exposure than feature films, especially a series like 'Game of Thrones', which was the most successful television series ever made, I believe."