Alicia Vikander prefers to save rather than splurge.

She said: "For the first years while I was living in London, I had maybe £200 to live on each month after I had paid my share of the rent.

"That makes you very careful about spending money and I would rather stay that way. I don't want to live any differently."

Despite her success, the Oscar-winning actress - who is dating Michael Fassbender - can understand why her mother had reservations about her chosen career path and she admits even now she has periods of insecurity over her work.

She said: "When I was starting out, my mother would constantly ask me if I was sure about my career choice.

"Every time she did that, I would get annoyed but as I gain more experience, the more I understand why she kept asking me.

"When it comes to acting, not only to do you have to like it, you have to love it with all your heart.

"Otherwise you won't have the strength to survive in this profession.

"Even now I'm still constantly questioning the work I'm doing and going through moments where I feel insecure or uncomfortable. And I'm still very nervous every time I take on a new role."

And the 27-year-old star admits she's been much more successful than she ever expected.

She told LOOK magazine: "I thought that if I worked hard on my English that I would be able to find work in American movies and moving to London was an important step so that I could become comfortable working in another language.

"But I still have the feeling that I need to work very hard."