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Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

117

Gender

Female

Birthday

1934-12-28

Day of Death

2024-09-27 (90 years old)

Place of Birth

Ilford, Essex, England, UK

Also Known As

Margaret Natalie Smith

Dame Margaret Natalie Smith

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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

Acting

Hook

1991

Hook

as

Granny Wendy

A German Life

2022

A German Life

as

Brunhilde Pomsel

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

2005

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

as

Minerva McGonagall

Sister Act

1992

Sister Act

as

Mother Superior

Tea with Mussolini

1999

Tea with Mussolini

as

Lady Hester Random

Death on the Nile

1978

Death on the Nile

as

Miss Bowers

Evil Under the Sun

1982

Evil Under the Sun

as

Daphne Castle

The First Wives Club

1996

The First Wives Club

as

Gunilla Garson Goldberg

Becoming Jane

2007

Becoming Jane

as

Lady Gresham

Gosford Park

2001

Gosford Park

as

Constance Trentham

Oh! What a Lovely War

1969

Oh! What a Lovely War

as

Music Hall Star

Travels with My Aunt

1972

Travels with My Aunt

as

Augusta Bertram

The Secret Garden

1993

The Secret Garden

as

Mrs. Medlock

A Room with a View

1986

A Room with a View

as

Charlotte Bartlett

Murder by Death

1976

Murder by Death

as

Dora Charleston

Richard III

1995

Richard III

as

Duchess of York

Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit

1993

Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit

as

Mother Superior

California Suite

1978

California Suite

as

Diana Barrie

Hot Millions

1968

Hot Millions

as

Patty Terwilliger Smith

Keeping Mum

2005

Keeping Mum

as

Grace Hawkins

Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang

2010

Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang

as

Agatha Rose Doherty

My House in Umbria

2003

My House in Umbria

as

Mrs. Emily Delahunty

The Honey Pot

1967

The Honey Pot

as

Sarah Watkins

The V.I.P.s

1963

The V.I.P.s

as

Miss Mead

Othello

1965

Othello

as

Desdemona

Washington Square

1997

Washington Square

as

Aunt Lavinia Penniman

Gnomeo & Juliet

2011

Gnomeo & Juliet

as

Lady Bluebury (voice)

Quartet

1981

Quartet

as

Lois Heidler

The Last September

2000

The Last September

as

Lady Myra Naylor

From Time to Time

2009

From Time to Time

as

Linnet

Curtain Call

1998

Curtain Call

as

Lily Marlowe

Nowhere to Go

1958

Nowhere to Go

as

Bridget Howard

The Pumpkin Eater

1964

The Pumpkin Eater

as

Philpot

Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story

2023

Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story

as

Self (archive footage)

The Missionary

1982

The Missionary

as

Lady Isabel Ames

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

2012

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

as

Muriel Donnelly

A Private Function

1984

A Private Function

as

Joyce Chilvers

Quartet

2012

Quartet

as

Jean Horton

The Millionairess

1972

The Millionairess

as

Epifania

Mrs. Silly

1983

Mrs. Silly

as

Mrs Silly

Lily in Love

1984

Lily in Love

as

Lily Wynn

Young Cassidy

1965

Young Cassidy

as

Nora

Capturing Mary

2007

Capturing Mary

as

Mary Gilbert

Suddenly, Last Summer

1993

Suddenly, Last Summer

as

Violet Venable

Go to Blazes

1962

Go to Blazes

as

Chantal

My Old Lady

2014

My Old Lady

as

Mathilde Girard

Maggie Smith at the BBC: a portrait

2008

Maggie Smith at the BBC: a portrait

as

Self (archival footage)

Better Late Than Never

1983

Better Late Than Never

as

Miss Anderson

The Lady in the Van

2015

The Lady in the Van

as

Miss Shepherd

All the King's Men

1999

All the King's Men

as

Queen Alexandra

Dames of Classic Drama at the BBC

2015

Dames of Classic Drama at the BBC

as

Self (archive material)

Woolf Works

2017

Woolf Works

as

Reading (voice)

Child in the House

1956

Child in the House

as

Party Guest (uncredited)

Sherlock Gnomes

2018

Sherlock Gnomes

as

Lady Bluebury (voice)

Downton Abbey

2019

Downton Abbey

as

Violet Crawley

Romeo.Juliet

1990

Romeo.Juliet

as

Rosaline (voice)

The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays

2006

The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays

as

Lettice Douffet (segment "Lettice and Lovage")

Memento Mori

1992

Memento Mori

as

Mrs Mabel Pettigrew

A Boy Called Christmas

2021

A Boy Called Christmas

as

Aunt Ruth

Olivier Talks About Othello

1965

Olivier Talks About Othello

as

(archive footage)

The Making of 'Gosford Park'

2002

The Making of 'Gosford Park'

as

Self (uncredited)

Downton Abbey: A New Era

2022

Downton Abbey: A New Era

as

Violet Crawley

The Miracle Club

2023

The Miracle Club

as

Lily Fox

Dame Maggie Smith - A Celebration

2024

Dame Maggie Smith - A Celebration

as

Self / Various Roles (archive footage)

Downton Abbey

Downton Abbey

as

Violet Crawley

Talking Pictures

Talking Pictures

as

Self (archive footage)

David Copperfield

David Copperfield

as

Betsey Trotwood

Honest Trailers

Honest Trailers

as

Minerva McGonagall (archive footage)

Tony Awards

Tony Awards

as

Self - Presenter

Great Performances

Great Performances

as

Violet Venable

Tony Awards

Tony Awards

as

Self (archive footage)

Armchair Theatre

Armchair Theatre

as

Anna Carnot

Golden Globe Awards

Golden Globe Awards

as

Self - Nominee

Tony Awards

Tony Awards

as

Self - Performer/Winner

Tony Awards

Tony Awards

as

Self - Nominee

Screen Two

Screen Two

as

Mrs. Mabel Pettigrew

Dinah!

Dinah!

as

Self

Armchair Theatre

Armchair Theatre

as

Juliet Denise

Lilli Palmer Theatre

Lilli Palmer Theatre

as

Paula Benson

Creating the World of Harry Potter

Creating the World of Harry Potter

as

Self - 'Professor Minerva McGonagall'

Performance

Performance

as

Mrs Venable

BBC Play of the Month

BBC Play of the Month

as

Ann Whitefield

Production

Crew

Directing