Jane Fonda's climate change campaign arrests have brought her closer to her daughter.

The 82-year-old actress suffered from post-natal depression after the birth of Vanessa - who she had with first husband Roger Vadim - and the pair never bonded, but she admitted they have finally reconciled in the wake of her political activism.

Vanessa was waiting for her mother when she was released after a night in jail after being arrested during one of her weekly Fire Drill Friday protests in Washington DC.

Asked if this has resulted in a permanent reconciliation, Jane told The Times newspaper: ''Yes, it has.

''It was something that we could share. It was something we could do together and she's very good when we find ourselves in a corner.

''When I came out of jail I didn't know she was going to be there and we just looked at each other and burst into tears.''

The 'Barbarella' star was arrested five time for civil disobedience during her four months of protest rallies, but she found the experience empowering and ''transformative''.

She said: ''There's so few opportunities these days to put our whole bodies in alignment with our deepest values.

''I mean, it's counterintuitive because actually when you get arrested you're out of control.

''You're totally in the control of the police and I might add that when you're white and famous they treat you differently than they would if I was black or of colour, but in spite of the loss of control there's a feeling of empowerment.

''It wasn't just me. All the people I talked to who joined me in the civil disobedience commented on the same thing. It really was transformative.''

And Jane doesn't care if her arrests have changed people's opinion of her.

She said: ''Honey, at my age it doesn't matter. I've been there. I've done that. I've survived. They're all dead or in jail and I'm still going. You know, I don't care.

''There's nothing they can do to me any more that they haven't already tried to do, and I'm at the end of my life...

''I think older women tend to get braver. It's also a matter of hormones. Women's testosterone level rises in relationship to our oestrogen and a man's testosterone drops in relationship to his oestrogen.''