Dame Maggie Smith, best known for her roles in 'Downton Abbey' and the 'Harry Potter' series has died. She was 89 years old.
"Harry Potter" and "Downtown Abbey" icon Maggie Smith has died at 89 years old. She won two Oscars, three Emmys and countless stage awards during her acclaimed career.https://t.co/XIGhEyVuvj
— Variety (@Variety) September 27, 2024
Her death was announced in a statement from her sons:
British stage and screen actress Maggie Smith, the “Downton Abbey” and “Harry Potter” star who numbers two Oscars, three Emmys and countless stage awards to her credit, died Friday in London. She was 89.
“It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith,” her sons Toby Stephens and Chris Larkin said in a statement provided to the BBC. “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.”
Her aforementioned roles as the Dowager Countess in 'Downton Abbey' and as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the 'Harry Potter' series endeared her to contemporary audiences, but Smith's career spans seven decades, starting in the 1950s with the BBC Sunday-Night Theatre and Lilli Palmer Theater.
In 1969, she won her first Academy Award:
Maggie Smith’s Oscar-winning portrayal of Jean Brodie in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) remains iconic. A true legend whose talent will always be remembered. pic.twitter.com/lpomIdezux
— Mr Sharma (@sharma_views) September 27, 2024
She won a second aware for 'California Suite' in 1979.
Everyone will be talking about Harry Potter and Downton, but early years Maggie Smith was so so good. pic.twitter.com/YC8YlP5nFp
— Tom Wilson 🇺🇦 (@feedthedrummer) September 27, 2024
Smith also starred as Grandma Wendy in 'Hook' (1991), Mother Superior in 'Sister Act' (1992), 'Death on the Nile' (1978) and as Desdemona in a 1965 production of 'Othello.'
Maggie Smith in Death on the Nile appreciation post pic.twitter.com/abP2DlEJda
— merritt k (@merrittk) September 27, 2024
She enjoyed a resurgence in her career with the 'Harry Potter' series:
RIP Maggie Smith, this was one of my favourite scenes from Harry Potter with professor mcgonagall 💔 pic.twitter.com/Qe61BS7u9w
— Aaron Paul - ImHybrid (@HYBRlD) September 27, 2024
It's this writer's favorite, too.
Maggie Smith was probably the greatest British actress of her lifetime--and began as a sketch comedian. She was able to do ANYTHING. How lucky we were to have her.
— John Podhoretz (@jpodhoretz) September 27, 2024
So very lucky.
If there is such a thing as a national treasure, Maggie Smith was one. Just wonderful. She was in so much that I watched from my earliest memories. Hard to imagine a world without her. https://t.co/hIRtlHc1zN
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) September 27, 2024
It really is.
rip maggie smith one of the undeniable greats of her time pic.twitter.com/6GGgwXCITJ
— george griffiths (@georgegriffiths) September 27, 2024
A legend.
There was nobody like Dame Maggie Smith pic.twitter.com/Dxk5G5fYt2
— Scott Bryan (@scottygb) September 27, 2024
She was very, very funny.
Magisterial. A true British icon.
— StudiocanalUK (@StudiocanalUK) September 27, 2024
There'll never be another like Dame Maggie Smith | 1934 - 2024 pic.twitter.com/1iaurGUONm
She was one of a kind.
Dame Maggie Smith is survived by her two sons, Toby Stephens and Chris Larkin, as well as five grandchildren and legions of fans.
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