(December 28, 1934 – September 27, 2024)
Dame Maggie Smith, the British actress who starred in Harry Potter films, the wildly popular Downton Abbey series and scores of other movies, TV shows, West End and Broadway productions in a career that brought two Oscars, five BAFTAs, four Emmys and a Tony Award, died today. She was 89.
Smith was one of the finest British screen and stage stars of her generation and will be remembered for her performances in iconic films and TV shows, including Harry Potter and Downton Abbey. Her impressive body of work would include 1965’s Othello opposite Laurence Olivier, Sister Act, Gosford Park, and The Lady in the Van.
In Downton Abbey, she was the waspish Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, who often delivered some of the best lines in Julian Fellowes’ lavish period drama about English aristocrats. Hugh Bonneville, Smith’s Downton co-star, told the BBC that she was a “true legend” of the acting community. “Anyone who ever shared a scene with Maggie will attest to her sharp eye, sharp wit and formidable talent,” he said.
She featured as the formidable Professor McGonagall in the Potter movie series, heading the Gryffindor House and serving as deputy headmistress to Albus Dumbledore.
Smith won two Oscars during a career that spanned many decades. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie delivered her first Academy Award in 1970. Her second came nine years later for California Suite. Smith also won five BAFTA awards plus a British Academy Fellowship and Special Lifetime Achievement Award and four Emmys — three for Downton Abbey and one for the 2003 TV movie drama My House in Umbria.
