On some Freudian level, what Helen is saying may be true but to most women reading this, ask yourself how you would feel being part of a jury in a rape case. No matter what the circumstances, the majority of women today are going to feel netural towards both parties or sympathy for the female.

Lorna, glasgow,

Innocent until proven guilty.

So, assuming both parties are drunk, no witnesses and he states there was consent, she states otherwise, the default position is innocent unless there are other variables.

There needs to be no doubt before ruining someone's life

Richard, London, England

I wonder how the same people would feel if women attacked men who are drunk or are wearing only a pair of shorts? Would they feel the man is asking for it?

Robin, SJ, USA

im afraid i agree with Helen Mirren in fact i think part of the kick for the rapist is knowing that on some primative anamalistic level his victim will also be excluded and reviled by other women ..its this loneliness isolation and rejection that haunts the genuine victims of sexual abuse

anne marie heelan, paris, france

As a woman who has served on the jury of a rape trial before, I was appalled by the attitudes of the other women that served with me. There are still many old fashioned attitudes with regards to sexual crimes, which if not proactive tackled will continue to detrimentally impact conviction rates.

KJ, Glasgow,

Women understand other women better, and aren't worried about condemnation if they do not sympathise with another woman as men are: accused of misogyny etc.

I suspect there's some truth in what Mirren says and its good to see because this subject gets packaged in a flawed, stupid, formulaic way.

Joe, Manchester,

I was impressed by how seriously the jury I was on this year took its duties. How would a member would express such a prejudice in a way which would convince all the other jurors? Might female jurors instead be better at detecting false accusers?

This needs serious, not anecdotal, investigation.

Ian Kemmish, Biggleswade, UK

"not with excessive violence" - so a little violence is ok?
"between a quarter and a third of Britons believe a rape victim is largely responsible for an attack if she is drunk or wearing revealing clothes" - why not just bring in Sharia law wholesale right away then and say goodbye to Great Britain

Marco, Kraków, Poland