Maggie Smith

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

117

Gender

Female

Birthday

1934-12-28

Day of death

2024-09-27 (89 years old)

Place of Birth

Ilford, Essex, England, UK

Maggie Smith

Biography

Dame Margaret Natalie Smith CH DBE (December 28, 1934 − September 27, 2024) was a British actress. Known for her wit in comedic roles, she had an extensive career on stage and screen over seven decades and was one of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actresses. She received numerous accolades including two Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards, four Emmy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award as well as nominations for six Laurence Olivier Awards. Smith was one of the few performers to earn the Triple Crown of Acting. Smith began her stage career as a student, performing at the Oxford Playhouse in 1952, and made her professional debut on Broadway in New Faces of '56. Over the following decades Smith established herself alongside Judi Dench as one of the most significant British theatre performers, working for the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company. On Broadway, she received Tony Award nominations for Noël Coward's Private Lives (1975) and Tom Stoppard's Night and Day (1979), and won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for Lettice and Lovage (1990). She won Academy Awards for Best Actress for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) and Best Supporting Actress for California Suite (1978). She was Oscar-nominated for Othello (1965), Travels with My Aunt (1972), A Room with a View (1985) and Gosford Park (2001). She portrayed Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter film series (2001–2011). She also acted in Death on the Nile (1978), Hook (1991), Sister Act (1992), The Secret Garden (1993), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012), Quartet (2012) and The Lady in the Van (2015). Smith received newfound attention and international fame for her role as Violet Crawley in the British period drama Downton Abbey (2010–2015). The role earned her three Primetime Emmy Awards; she had previously won one for the HBO film My House in Umbria (2003). Over the course of her career she was the recipient of numerous honorary awards including the British Film Institute Fellowship in 1993, the BAFTA Fellowship in 1996 and the Society of London Theatre Special Award in 2010. Smith was made a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II in 1990. Description above from the Wikipedia article Maggie Smith, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

  • The Graham Norton Show

    The Graham Norton Show

  • The Carol Burnett Show

    The Carol Burnett Show

  • Great Performances

    Great Performances

  • Downton Abbey

    Downton Abbey

  • Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

    Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Golden Globe Awards

    Golden Globe Awards

  • Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

    Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

  • Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

    Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

  • Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

    Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

  • Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

    Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

  • Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

    Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

  • Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

    Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

  • BBC Play of the Month

    BBC Play of the Month

  • BBC Play of the Month

    BBC Play of the Month

  • BBC Play of the Month

    BBC Play of the Month

  • Dinah!

    Dinah!

  • Kraft Television Theatre

    Kraft Television Theatre

  • The Oscars

    The Oscars

  • Screen Two

    Screen Two

  • Entertainment Tonight

    Entertainment Tonight

  • Downton Abbey: A New Era

    Downton Abbey: A New Era

  • The First Wives Club

    The First Wives Club

  • Performance

    Performance

  • Hook

    Hook

  • Sunday Night Theatre

    Sunday Night Theatre

  • Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang

    Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang

  • Murder by Death

    Murder by Death

  • Quartet

    Quartet

  • Quartet

    Quartet

  • A Room with a View

    A Room with a View

  • Clash of the Titans

    Clash of the Titans

  • Creating the World of Harry Potter

    Creating the World of Harry Potter

  • Nowhere to Go

    Nowhere to Go

  • Death on the Nile

    Death on the Nile

  • Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

    Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

  • The Marvellous Maggie Smith: A Celebration

    The Marvellous Maggie Smith: A Celebration

  • Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story

    Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story

  • Downton Abbey

    Downton Abbey

  • From Time to Time

    From Time to Time

  • Young Cassidy

    Young Cassidy

  • The Lady in the Van

    The Lady in the Van

  • Becoming Jane

    Becoming Jane

  • Gnomeo & Juliet

    Gnomeo & Juliet

  • The Miracle Club

    The Miracle Club

  • Love and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing

    Love and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing

  • Robin And Mark And Richard III

    Robin And Mark And Richard III

  • The Secret Garden

    The Secret Garden

  • Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit

    Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit

  • My House in Umbria

    My House in Umbria

  • David Copperfield

    David Copperfield

  • Sister Act

    Sister Act

  • A Boy Called Christmas

    A Boy Called Christmas

  • The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

    The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

  • Capturing Mary

    Capturing Mary

  • Sherlock Gnomes

    Sherlock Gnomes

  • National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage

    National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage

  • Talking Pictures

    Talking Pictures

  • Evil Under the Sun

    Evil Under the Sun

  • The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

    The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

  • All the King's Men

    All the King's Men

  • Gosford Park

    Gosford Park

  • Dame Maggie Smith - A Celebration

    Dame Maggie Smith - A Celebration

  • Nothing Like a Dame

    Nothing Like a Dame

  • Much Ado About Nothing

    Much Ado About Nothing

  • The Last September

    The Last September

  • Richard III

    Richard III

  • The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

    The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

  • Romeo.Juliet

    Romeo.Juliet

  • Oh! What a Lovely War

    Oh! What a Lovely War

  • Tea with Mussolini

    Tea with Mussolini

  • Suddenly, Last Summer

    Suddenly, Last Summer

  • A Private Function

    A Private Function

  • The Magic Touch of Harry Potter

    The Magic Touch of Harry Potter

  • Lilli Palmer Theatre

    Lilli Palmer Theatre

  • The Millionairess

    The Millionairess

  • A German Life

    A German Life

  • Washington Square

    Washington Square

  • The Missionary

    The Missionary

  • The Merchant of Venice

    The Merchant of Venice

  • Talking Heads

    Talking Heads

  • The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne

    The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne

  • My Old Lady

    My Old Lady

  • The Making of 'Gosford Park'

    The Making of 'Gosford Park'

  • Harry Potter and the Deathly Weapons

    Harry Potter and the Deathly Weapons

  • The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays

    The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays

  • The Pumpkin Eater

    The Pumpkin Eater

  • Go to Blazes

    Go to Blazes

  • The Honey Pot

    The Honey Pot

  • Memento Mori

    Memento Mori

  • The Making of Agatha Christie's 'Evil Under the Sun'

    The Making of Agatha Christie's 'Evil Under the Sun'

  • Ladies in Lavender

    Ladies in Lavender

  • Keeping Mum

    Keeping Mum

  • The V.I.P.s

    The V.I.P.s

  • Lily in Love

    Lily in Love

  • Talking Heads

    Talking Heads

  • Better Late Than Never

    Better Late Than Never

  • Othello

    Othello

  • Maggie Smith at the BBC: a portrait

    Maggie Smith at the BBC: a portrait

  • Hot Millions

    Hot Millions

  • Armchair Theatre

    Armchair Theatre

  • Armchair Theatre

    Armchair Theatre

  • Armchair Theatre

    Armchair Theatre

  • California Suite

    California Suite

  • Travels with My Aunt

    Travels with My Aunt

  • Dames of Classic Drama at the BBC

    Dames of Classic Drama at the BBC

  • Rod Taylor: Pulling No Punches

    Rod Taylor: Pulling No Punches

  • Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe

    Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe

  • Return to Downton Abbey: A Grand Event

    Return to Downton Abbey: A Grand Event

  • Curtain Call

    Curtain Call

  • Woolf Works

    Woolf Works

  • Child in the House

    Child in the House

  • Olivier Talks About Othello

    Olivier Talks About Othello

  • Mrs. Silly

    Mrs. Silly