The acclaimed British actress died at the age of 89
Dame Maggie Smith has died at the age of 89.
The acclaimed British actress, who was well known for her roles in ‘Downton Abbey’ and the ‘Harry Potter’ franchise, died in Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London on Friday morning, her two sons Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens revealed.
Maggie’s final moments came as she was surrounded by family and friends.
In a statement issued via their publicist, they said: “It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith.
“She passed away peacefully in hospital early this morning, Friday 27th September.
“An intensely private person, she was with friends and family at the end.
“She leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother.
“We would like to take this opportunity to thank the wonderful staff at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and unstinting kindness during her final days.
“We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time.”
Maggie was born Margaret Natalie Smith in December 1934 in Ilford, Essex, to pathologist dad Nathaniel Smith and Scottish secretary mother Margaret Hutton.
She moved to Oxford when she was four after her father got a job at Oxford university and later left school to study acting at the Oxford Playhouse.
Maggie was 17 when she was cast as Viola in ‘Twelfth Night’ at the Oxford Playhouse and she went on to land roles in ‘Cinderella’, ‘Rookery Nook’, ‘Cakes and Ale’ and ‘The Government Inspector’ through the early 1950s at the same English theatre.
She made her Broadway debut in 1956 portraying several roles in the review ‘New Faces of ’56’ at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.
From there, Maggie was cast opposite Kenneth Williams in the 1957 musical comedy ‘Share My Lettuce’ and that led to work in plays at London’s Old Vic theatre and ultimately a place in Laurence Olivier’s National Theatre Company. The two acting legends stared opposite one another in a production of William Shakespeare tragedy ‘Othello’.
Her film debut came in 1956 in an uncredited role of a party guest in the drama ‘Child in the House’, but it was in 1959 that she made her name on the screen thanks to her performance as Bridget Howard in the film ‘Nowhere to Go’ which earned Maggie the first of her five BAFTA trophies, while in 1996 she was honoured with the prestigious BAFTA Academy Fellowship.
In 1969, Smith won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the title role of the 1969 film ‘The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie’.
Her second and final Oscar came in 1978 when she was named Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Diana Barrie in Herbert Ross’ anthology film ‘California Suite’.
Maggie had roles in hit films such as ‘Sister Act’, ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’ and ‘Quartet’, but it was her casting in 2001 as Hogwarts deputy headmistress Professor McGonagall in the ‘Harry Potter’ films that made her beloved to multiple generations. It was a character she played for eight films until 2011.
Her role as Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, in period drama ‘Downton Abbey’ earned her three Emmys to go with the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Special Emmy she won in 2003 for her performance in ‘My House in Umbria’.
In her personal life, Maggie married actor Robert Stephens in June 1967, the father of her two sons Chris and Toby.
They divorced in 1975 and Smith then tied the knot with playwright Beverley Cross in 1975 and they stayed together until his death in 1998.
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