Dame Helen Mirren has thrown her support behind an Italian politician by appearing in a pre-election campaign video.

In the promotional clip, the Queen actress and her director husband Taylor Hackford endorse Senator Dario Stefano, who hopes to become governor of Southern Italian region Puglia, where they own a holiday home.

Mirren praises his Left Ecology Freedom party for getting local wines and oils recognised worldwide, saying, "Dario Stefano has done extraordinary work for the promotion of agriculture here... When good politics gets behind the environment, gets behind the culture of a place and really promotes it, that's the end result. So that's been a very exciting development."

In the clip, Mirren and Hackford speak from their renovated farmhouse and are also seen driving to a local square in an environmentally friendly car. They have spent up to four months a year in their Italian home for the past ten years.

The primary election will be held on 30 November (14).