Dame Maggie Smith, ‘extraordinary mother and grandmother’, dies aged 89

Oscar-winning actress Dame Maggie Smith has been remembered by her sons as an “extraordinary mother and grandmother” following her death aged 89.

The British star, known for prominent roles in Harry Potter and Downton Abbey, as well as her Academy Award-winning performance in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie, died in hospital on Friday morning, her sons Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens said.

Actors Larkin and Stephens said in a statement: “An intensely private person, she was with friends and family at the end.

“She leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother.

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank the wonderful staff at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and unstinting kindness during her final days.

“We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time.”

Dame Maggie won over Harry Potter fans later in life, when she appeared in the film series as the quick-witted, kind and formidable Professor McGonagall.

“Somehow I thought she’d live forever,” Harry Potter author JK Rowling wrote on X.

On the small screen, in 2010 she was central to the success of ITV series Downton Abbey, in her Emmy-award winning role as the acerbic Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, which she continued to play in the films.

The King and Queen paid tribute to Dame Maggie, with a statement on X saying: “As the curtain comes down on a national treasure, we join all those around the world in remembering with the fondest admiration and affection for her many great performances and her warmth and wit that shone through both off and on the stage.”

She was also remembered as a “true British icon” in a post on the official Instagram account for Downton Abbey, with a message alongside a picture of her adding: “Thank you for everything, Dame Maggie Smith”.

Her former Downton co-stars Hugh Bonneville, who played Violet’s son Lord Grantham, and Dan Stevens, who played Matthew Crawley, also paid tribute to her.

Bonneville said in a statement she was a “true legend of her generation”, while Stevens echoed the sentiment saying she was “truly one of the greats” in an Instagram story.

Born in Ilford, east London, on December 28 1934, she was an internationally recognised actress for much of her life after playing the fanatical teacher Jean Brodie in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie.

Her career of more than half a century brought her recognition almost from the beginning, and she received an early Bafta nod for promising newcomer in 1959 for the crime film Nowhere To Go.

This was followed by Bafta nominations for Young Cassidy in 1966, Death On The Nile in 1979, California Suite in 1980, Quartet in 1982, The Secret Garden in 1994, Tea With Mussolini in 2000, Gosford Park in 2002, and The Lady In The Van in 2016.

She also won best actress gongs for The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie, A Private Function and The Lonely Passion Of Judith Hearne.

Her final roles included The Miracle Club, which follows a group of women from Dublin who go on a pilgrimage to the French town of Lourdes, and 2022’s Downton Abbey: A New Era, in which Violet dies.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer called her a “true national treasure”, and said she “introduced us to new worlds with the countless stories she acted over her long career”.

She was made a dame in 1990 and her array of accolades includes a fellowship and a special award from Bafta, as well as a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour in 2014.

She was treated for breast cancer and said in 2009 it had knocked her confidence to the extent that she became afraid of returning to the stage.

Despite this, she was in 2009’s Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince, and continued with 2010 adventure film From Time To Time, 2011’s The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and 2014 drama My Old Lady.

She was nominated for six Oscars, and also won an supporting actress Academy Award for 1978 comedy California Suite.

On the same day last year, September 27, Harry Potter co-star Sir Michael Gambon, who played her boss Professor Albus Dumbledore in the film series, died.

Dame Maggie also had multiple Olivier Award nods and appeared in the National Theatre’s debut season in 1963, with tributes from the world of theatre remembering her greatness on the stage.

British theatre owner and producer Sir Cameron Mackintosh said she was the “master of the zinger”, while the National Theatre’s Rufus Norris said her “sublime craft and sharp wit were simply legendary”.