British actress Maggie Smith dies at age 89, known for ‘Harry Potter’ & ‘Downton Abbey’

Maggie Smith passes away peacefully in hospital on 27 Sept

Dame Maggie Smith, a legendary British actress who starred in numerous plays, films and TV shows over eight decades, has died at the age of 89.

A statement from her sons quoted by the BBC said she passed away peacefully in hospital on Friday (27 Sept) morning.

Maggie Smith was with friends & family at the end

Her sons Toby Stephens and Chris Larkin announced her death with “great sadness”.

“She was with friends and family at the end,” they said.

Besides her sons, she also leaves behind five grandchildren “who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother”.

They thanked hospital staff for their care during her final days, and also the public for their kind messages and support.

The family also requested that their privacy be respected at this time.

Maggie Smith started acting in the 1950s

Born in 1934, Smith started acting in plays as young as 17 while living in Oxford in the 1950s.

She was soon acting in movies, gaining a British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA) nomination for 1958 film “Nowhere To Go”.

She was nominated for her first Oscar when she appeared in “Othello”, a 1965 film adaption of a National Theatre play that she also acted in two years before.

She gained another Oscar nomination and a BAFTA for 1985 film “A Room With a View”.

She ended up winning the Oscar twice — for “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie” in 1970 and “California Suite” in 1979 — though she was nominated a total of six times. She also won eight BAFTAs.

In 1990, she was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, becoming a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire for her services to the performing arts.

She was known for ‘Sister Act’, ‘Harry Potter’ & ‘Downton Abbey’

But younger viewers will probably remember her as the Reverend Mother in “Sister Act” (1992) and “Sister Act 2” (1993).

Even younger viewers will know her best as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter film franchise, famous for her witty barbs.

But fans of period drama series “Downton Abbey” would’ve loved her as Dowager Countess of Grantham Violet Crawley, the no-nonsense matriarch who, once again, had the best one-liners in the show.

She played the role in all five seasons of the series, as well as its two movies, the most recent of which was released in 2022.

Tributes pour in for Maggie Smith

Among the many tributes that poured in was one by King Charles III, who wrote in an Instagram Story on The Royal Family’s account that he and Queen Camilla were “deeply saddened” to learn of her death.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Facebook that Smith was a “national treasure” and “beloved by so many”.

She “introduced us to new worlds with the countless stories she acted over her long career”, he added.

Daniel Radcliffe, her co-star who played the lead in Harry Potter, said Smith’s death was “truly heartbreaking”. He also described her as “one of the most talented women to ever live” who will always be remembered.

Dan Stevens, who shared the screen with her on “Downton Abbey”, said via an Instagram Story that she was “truly one of the greats”.

Whoopi Goldberg, who was lounge singer Deloris Van Cartier in “Sister Act”, said on Instagram that Smith was “a great woman and a brilliant actress”.

“I still can’t believe I was lucky enough to work with the ‘one-of-a-kind’,” she added.

Also read: Veteran actress Cheng Pei-Pei dies aged 78, known for role in ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’

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Featured image adapted from @TheDailyHPotter on X and @ProductionGuild on X.