The two-time Oscar winner, actress of impeccable humour and wit, Dame Margaret Natalie Smith, died on 27 September aged 89. Famously known by her admirers as Maggie Smith, she had a prolific acting career on stage and screen, spanning 70 years. Smith gained her 21st-century fans for the roles of Professor McGonagall in the Harry Potter series and dowager Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey. She began her acting career at the age of 17, as she stepped into the role of Viola in the play Twelfth Night, produced by the Oxford University Dramatics Society. She went on to act in the National Theatre, sharing the stage with stalwart British actors like Derek Jacobi, Michael Gambon and Laurence Olivier. Smith's now controversial rivalry with Olivier is best described by her biographer and theatre critic, Michael Coveney. Coveney wrote in her biography, "There was a brittle wariness and rivalry between Olivier and Maggie. She was possibly the only member of the company of whom he was secretly afraid, simply because he knew how good she was." Maggie Smith further shed light on this when she recalled in a 2015 interview how Olivier had slapped her with particular force during a production of Othello in 1964 for resisting his suggestions. Despite that, Othello was made into a film with the original cast in 1965 and got Maggie Smith her first Oscar nomination. Smith was not only a formidable actress but also a strong person. She had her share of health scares, which included being diagnosed with Graves' disease in 1988 and breast cancer in 2007 during the filming of the sixth Harry Potter movie. But Smith didn't let these stop her acting ventures. Smith received numerous accolades throughout her illustrious career, including multiple BAFTA and Primetime Emmy Awards. The title role in the film The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) won her the Oscar for Best Actress. Maggie Smith was one of the few actors to win the Triple Crown of Acting, that is, the Academy Award (2), Emmy Award (4) and Tony Award. In 1990, she was knighted by Queen Elizabeth and became a Dame for services to the performing arts. She was only the third actress then, to have received the title of dame. In fact, Smith's association with the queen dates back to 1966, when Olivier and Maggie first met the Queen. In 2015, Smith was one of the 20 privileged members invited to a special 'dine and sleep' event. Her sons, Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens, said in a statement that Smith died early Friday in a London hospital, "She leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother. We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time." Maggie Smith had a memorable career with numerous awards and films to her name, but for the 21st-century generations, she will always be remembered as Professor Minerva McGonagall.
29 Sep 2024
Krishnanshu Panda
