, the masterful, scene-stealing actor who won an Oscar for 1969 film 香蕉视频直播淭he Prime of Miss Jean Brodie香蕉视频直播� and gained new fans in the 21st century as the dowager Countess of Grantham in 香蕉视频直播� and Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter films, died Friday. She was 89.
Smith香蕉视频直播檚 sons, Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens, said in a statement that Smith died early Friday in a London hospital.
香蕉视频直播淪he leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother,香蕉视频直播� they said in a statement issued through publicist Clair Dobbs.
Smith was frequently rated the preeminent British female performer of a generation that included Vanessa Redgrave and Judi Dench, with a clutch of Academy Award nominations and a shelf full of acting trophies.
She remained in demand even in her later years, despite her lament that 香蕉视频直播渨hen you get into the granny era, you香蕉视频直播檙e lucky to get anything.香蕉视频直播�
Smith drily summarized her later roles as 香蕉视频直播渁 gallery of grotesques,香蕉视频直播� including Professor McGonagall. Asked why she took the role, she quipped: 香蕉视频直播淗arry Potter is my pension.香蕉视频直播�
Richard Eyre, who directed Smith in a television production of 香蕉视频直播淪uddenly Last Summer,香蕉视频直播� said she was 香蕉视频直播渋ntellectually the smartest actress I香蕉视频直播檝e ever worked with. You have to get up very, very early in the morning to outwit Maggie Smith.香蕉视频直播�
香蕉视频直播淛ean Brodie,香蕉视频直播� in which she played a dangerously charismatic Edinburgh schoolteacher, brought her the Academy Award for best actress, and the British Academy Film Award (BAFTA) as well.
Smith added a supporting actress Oscar for 香蕉视频直播淐alifornia Suite香蕉视频直播� in 1978, Golden Globes for 香蕉视频直播淐alifornia Suite香蕉视频直播� and 香蕉视频直播淩oom with a View,香蕉视频直播� and BAFTAs for lead actress in 香蕉视频直播淎 Private Function香蕉视频直播� in 1984, 香蕉视频直播淎 Room with a View香蕉视频直播� in 1986, and 香蕉视频直播淭he Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne香蕉视频直播� in 1988.
She also received Academy Award nominations as a supporting actress in 香蕉视频直播淥thello,香蕉视频直播� 香蕉视频直播淭ravels with My Aunt,香蕉视频直播� 香蕉视频直播淩oom with a View香蕉视频直播� and 香蕉视频直播淕osford Park,香蕉视频直播� and a BAFTA award for supporting actress in 香蕉视频直播淭ea with Mussolini.香蕉视频直播� On stage, she won a Tony in 1990 for 香蕉视频直播淟ettice and Lovage.香蕉视频直播�
From 2010, she was the acid-tongued Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, in hit TV period drama 香蕉视频直播� a role that won her legions of fans, three Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe and a host of other awards nominations.
She continued acting well into her 80s, in films such a 2022 big-screen spinoff 香蕉视频直播淒ownton Abbey: A New Era香蕉视频直播� and 2023 release 香蕉视频直播淭he Miracle Club.香蕉视频直播�
Smith had a reputation for being difficult, and sometimes upstaging others.
Richard Burton remarked that Smith didn香蕉视频直播檛 just take over a scene in 香蕉视频直播淭he VIPs香蕉视频直播� with him: 香蕉视频直播淪he commits grand larceny.香蕉视频直播� However, the director Peter Hall found that Smith wasn香蕉视频直播檛 香蕉视频直播渞emotely difficult unless she香蕉视频直播檚 among idiots. She香蕉视频直播檚 very hard on herself, and I don香蕉视频直播檛 think she sees any reason why she shouldn香蕉视频直播檛 be hard on other people, too.香蕉视频直播�
Smith conceded that she could be impatient at times.
香蕉视频直播淚t香蕉视频直播檚 true I don香蕉视频直播檛 tolerate fools, but then they don香蕉视频直播檛 tolerate me, so I am spiky,香蕉视频直播� Smith said. 香蕉视频直播淢aybe that香蕉视频直播檚 why I香蕉视频直播檓 quite good at playing spiky elderly ladies.香蕉视频直播�
Critic Frank Rich, in a New York Times review of 香蕉视频直播淟ettice and Lovage,香蕉视频直播� praised Smith as 香蕉视频直播渢he stylized classicist who can italicize a line as prosaic as 香蕉视频直播楬ave you no marmalade?香蕉视频直播� until it sounds like a freshly minted epigram by Coward or Wilde.香蕉视频直播�
Smith famously drew laughs from a prosaic line 香蕉视频直播� 香蕉视频直播淭his haddock is disgusting香蕉视频直播� 香蕉视频直播� in a 1964 revival of Noel Coward香蕉视频直播檚 香蕉视频直播淗ay Fever.香蕉视频直播�
香蕉视频直播淏ut unfortunately the critics mentioned it, and after that it never got a laugh,香蕉视频直播� she recalled. 香蕉视频直播淭he moment you say something is funny it香蕉视频直播檚 gossamer. It香蕉视频直播檚 gone, really.香蕉视频直播�
She repeated the gift for one-liners in 香蕉视频直播淒ownton Abbey,香蕉视频直播� when the tradition-bound Violet acidly asked, 香蕉视频直播淲hat is a weekend?香蕉视频直播�
Margaret Natalie Smith was born in Ilford, on the eastern edge of London, on Dec. 28, 1934. She summed up her life briefly: 香蕉视频直播淥ne went to school, one wanted to act, one started to act, one香蕉视频直播檚 still acting.香蕉视频直播�
Her father was assigned in 1939 to wartime duty in Oxford, where her theater studies at the Oxford Playhouse School led to a busy apprenticeship.
香蕉视频直播淚 did so many things, you know, round the universities there. 香蕉视频直播� If you were kind of clever enough and I suppose quick enough, you could almost do weekly rep because all the colleges were doing different productions at different times,香蕉视频直播� she said in a BBC interview.
She took Maggie as her stage name because another Margaret Smith was active in the theater.
Laurence Olivier spotted her talent, invited her to be part of his original National Theatre company and cast her as his co-star in a 1965 film adaptation of 香蕉视频直播淥thello.香蕉视频直播�
Smith said two directors, Ingmar Bergman and William Gaskill, both in National Theatre productions, were important influences.
Alan Bennett, preparing to film the monologue 香蕉视频直播淎 Bed Among the Lentils,香蕉视频直播� said he was wary of Smith香蕉视频直播檚 reputation for becoming bored. As the actor Jeremy Brett put it, 香蕉视频直播渟he starts divinely and then goes off, rather like a cheese.香蕉视频直播�
香蕉视频直播淪o the fact that we only just had enough time to do it was an absolute blessing really because she was so fresh and just so into it,香蕉视频直播� said Bennett. He also wrote a starring role for Smith in 香蕉视频直播淭he Lady in the Van,香蕉视频直播� as Miss Shepherd, a redoubtable woman who lived for years in her vehicle on Bennett香蕉视频直播檚 London driveway.
However extravagant she may have been on stage or before the cameras, Smith was known to be intensely private.
Simon Callow, who acted with her in 香蕉视频直播淎 Room with a View,香蕉视频直播� said he ruined their first meeting by spouting compliments.
香蕉视频直播淚 blurted out various kinds of rubbish about her and she kind of withdrew. She doesn香蕉视频直播檛 like that sort of thing very much at all,香蕉视频直播� Callow said in a film portrait of the actress. 香蕉视频直播淪he never wanted to talk about acting. Acting was something she was terrified to talk about because if she did, it would disappear.香蕉视频直播�
Smith was made a the equivalent of a knight, in 1990.
She married fellow actor Robert Stephens in 1967. They had two sons, Christopher and Toby 香蕉视频直播� who both grew up to be actors 香蕉视频直播� and divorced in 1975. The same year she married the writer Beverley Cross, who died in 1998.
