Maggie Smith

Dame Margaret Natalie Smith  (28 December 1934 – 27 September 2024) was a British actress. She made her stage debut in 1952 and her career lasted for over 70 years. She won many awards for acting, both for the stage and for movies, including seven BAFTA Awards (five competitive awards and two special awards including the Bafta Fellowship in 1996), two Academy Awards, two Golden Globes, two Emmy Awards, a Laurence Olivier Award, two SAG Awards and a Tony Award.

Career
Her award-winning movies included Othello (1965), The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969), Travels with My Aunt (1972), California Suite (1978), Clash of the Titans (1981), A Room with a View (1985) and Gosford Park (2001).

She has also been in a number of widely-popular movies, including Hook (1991), Sister Act (1992) and as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter movie series. Smith said that acting in the Harry Potter movies was not fully satisfying. However, she said she enjoyed being a part of the franchise because it allowed her to bond with her grandchildren. Smith underwent intensive chemotherapy for breast cancer while filming Half-Blood Prince. The treatment left her feeling "horribly sick", but she eventually made a full recovery.

She had a role in the drama Downton Abbey as Violet Crawley, the Dowager Countess of Grantham, for which she has won an Emmy.

Personal life
Smith was born in Ilford, Essex. She moved to Oxford at age four and went to Oxford High School.

Smith has been married twice. She married actor Robert Stephens on 29 June 1967 at Greenwich. The couple had two sons: actors Chris Larkin (born in 1967) and Toby Stephens (born in 1969). They divorced on 6 May 1974.Maggie Smith biography . Tiscali.film & TV.Maggie Smith. Film Reference.com.

She married playwright Beverley Cross on 23 August 1975 at Guildford. He died on 20 March 1998.

In 2007, The Sunday Telegraph reported that she had breast cancer. She has made a full recovery.

Smith died on 27 September 2024 at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London, at the age of 89.

Filmography
Television and cinema
 Year Title Role Notes 1958 Nowhere to Go Bridget Howard Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Newcomer 1962 Go to Blazes Chantal 1963  Miss Mead Nominated — Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress 1964  Philpot 1965 Othello Desdemona  Young Cassidy Nora Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role 1967  Sarah Watkins 1968 Hot Millions Patty Terwilliger Smith 1969  Jean Brodie  1969 Oh! What a Lovely War Music Hall Star 1972 Travels with My Aunt Aunt Augusta  1973 Love and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing Lila Fisher 1974  Gwendylspire Boughgrough 1975  Ms. Collins 1976 Murder by Death Dora Charleston 1978 Death on the Nile Miss Bowers Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role California Suite Diana Barrie 1981 Quartet Lois Heidler Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Clash of the Titans Thetis Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress1982 Evil Under the Sun Daphne Castle  Lady Isabel Ames Better Late Than Never Miss Anderson 1984  Joyce Chilvers BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Lily in Love Lily Wynn Nominated — British Academy Television Award for Best Actress 1985  Charlotte Bartlett  1987  Judith Hearne BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Talking Heads Susan Nominated — British Academy Television Award for Best Actress 1991 Hook Wendy Darling 1992 Sister Act Reverend Mother Memento Mori Mrs. Mabel Pettigrew Nominated — British Academy Television Award for Best Actress 1993 Suddenly, Last Summer Violet Venable Nominated — Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress – Miniseries or a Movie Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit Reverend Mother  Mrs. Medlock Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role 1995 Richard III Duchess of York 1996  Gunilla Garson Goldberg National Board of Review Award for Best Cast 1997 Washington Square Aunt Lavinia Penniman Nominated — Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress  1999 Curtain Call Lily Gale  Lady Myra Naylor Tea with Mussolini Lady Hester Random BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role All the King's Men Queen Alexandra David Copperfield Betsey Trotwood  2001 Gosford Park Constance, Countess of Trentham  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Professor Minerva McGonagall  2002 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Professor Minerva McGonagall Nominated — Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood Caro Eliza Bennett 2003 My House in Umbria Emily Delahunty  2004 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Professor Minerva McGonagall Ladies in Lavender Janet Widdington Nominated — European Film Award for Best Actress 2005 Keeping Mum Grace Hawkins Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Professor Minerva McGonagall 2007 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Professor Minerva McGonagall Becoming Jane Lady Gresham Capturing Mary Mary Gilbert Nominated — Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress – Miniseries or a Movie 2009 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Professor Minerva McGonagall From Time to Time Linnet Oldknow 2010 Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang Mrs. Docherty 2010–2022 Downton Abbey Violet Crawley, the Dowager Countess of Grantham Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a MovieTV Times Award for Best ActressNominated — BAFTA Award for Best Supporting ActressNominated — Broadcasting Press Guild Award for Best ActressNominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television FilmNominated — Monte Carlo Television Festival Award for Outstanding ActressNominated — Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television FilmNominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie 2011 Gnomeo & Juliet Lady Bluebury Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 Professor Minerva McGonagall2012 The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Muriel Donnelly Quartet Jean Horton post-production

Theatre roles
 Twelfth Night, Oxford Playhouse, 1952
 He Who Gets Slapped, Clarendon Press Institute, 1952
 Cinderella, Oxford Playhouse, 1952
 Rookery Nook, Oxford Playhouse, 1953
 The Housemaster, Oxford Playhouse, 1953
 Cakes and Ale (revue), Edinburgh Festival, 1953
 The Love of Four Colonels, Oxford Playhouse, 1953
 The Ortolan, Maxton Hall, 1954
 Don’t Listen Ladies, Oxford Playhouse, 1954
 The Government Inspector, Oxford Playhouse, 1954
 The Letter, Oxford Playhouse, 1954
 A Man About The House, Oxford Playhouse, 1954
 On the Mile (revue), Edinburgh Festival, 1954
 Oxford Accents, New Watergate Theatre, London, 1954
 Theatre 1900, Oxford Playhouse, 1954
 Listen to the Wind, Oxford Playhouse, 1954
 The Magistrate, Oxford Playhouse, 1955
 The School For Scandal, Oxford Playhouse, 1955
 New Faces (revue), Ethel Barrymore Theatre, New York, 1956
 Share My Lettuce (revue), Lyric Hammersmith and Comedy Theatre, 1957
 The Stepmother, St. Martin's Theatre, 1958
 The Double Dealer, Old Vic, 1959
 As You Like It, Old Vic, 1959
 Richard II, Old Vic, 1959
 The Merry Wives of Windsor, Old Vic, 1959
 What Every Woman Knows, Old Vic, 1960
 Rhinoceros, Strand Theatre, 1960
 Strip the Willow, UK Tour, 1960
 The Rehearsal, Bristol Old Vic and Globe Theatre, 1961
 The Private Ear and The Public Eye, Globe Theatre, 1962
 Mary, Mary, Queen's Theatre, 1963
 The Recruiting Officer, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1963
 Othello, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1964
 The Master Builder, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1964
 Hay Fever, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1964
 Much Ado About Nothing, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1965
 Trelawney of the Wells, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1965
 Miss Julie, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1966
 Black Comedy, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1966
 A Bond Honoured, National Theatre/Old Vic, 1966
 The Country Wife, Chichester Festival Theatre, 1969
 The Beaux Stratagem, National Theatre/Old Vic and Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles, 1970
 Hedda Gabler, National Theatre/Cambridge Theatre, 1970
 Design For Living, Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles, 1971
 Private Lives, Queen's Theatre, 1972
 Peter Pan, London Coliseum, 1973
 Snap, Vaudeville Theatre, 1974
 Private Lives, US tour and 46th Street Theatre, New York, 1975 [Tony nomination]
 The Way of the World, Stratford, Canada, 1976
 Antony and Cleopatra, Stratford, Canada, 1976
 Three Sisters, Stratford, Canada, 1976
 The Guardsman, Stratford, Canada and Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles, 1976
 A Midsummer Night's Dream, Stratford, Canada and Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles, 1977
 Richard III, Stratford, Canada, 1977
 As You Like It, Stratford, Canada, 1977
 Hay Fever, Stratford, Canada, 1977
 Macbeth, Stratford, Canada, 1978
 Private Lives, Stratford, Canada, 1978
 Night and Day, Phoenix Theatre, Washington D.C. and ANTA Playhouse, New York, 1979 [Tony nomination]
 Much Ado About Nothing, Stratford, Canada, 1980
 The Seagull, Stratford, Canada, 1980
 Virginia, Stratford, Canada, 1980 and Theatre Royal Haymarket, 1981
 The Way of the World, Chichester Festival Theatre and Theatre Royal Haymarket, 1984
 The Interpreters, Queen's Theatre, 1985
 The Infernal Machine, Lyric Hammersmith, 1986
 Coming Into Land, National Theatre/Lyttelton, 1987
 Lettice and Lovage, Globe Theatre, 1987
 Lettice and Lovage, Ethel Barrymore Theatre, New York, 1990 [Tony win]
 The Importance of Being Earnest, Aldwych Theatre, 1993
 Three Tall Women, Wyndham's Theatre, 1994 and 1995
 Talking Heads, Chichester Festival Theatre and Comedy Theatre, 1996
 A Delicate Balance, Theatre Royal Haymarket, 1997
 The Lady in the Van, Queen's Theatre, 1999
 The Breath of Life, Theatre Royal Haymarket, 2002
 Talking Heads, Australian tour, 2004
 The Lady From Dubuque, Theatre Royal Haymarket, 2007

References

 Other websites 


Category:1934 births
Category:2024 deaths
Category:British Academy Award winning actors
Category:Actors from Essex
Category:Actors from Oxford
Category:BAFTA Award winning actors
Category:Emmy Award winning actors
Category:English movie actors
Category:English stage actors
Category:English television actors
Category:Golden Globe Award winning actors
Category:Knights and Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Category:Laurence Olivier Award winners
Category:People from Ilford
Category:Tony Award winning actors