Maggie Smith will continue to be a role model and someone to look up to forever and always.
By Gianna Liantonio
“Dame!” On September 27, 2024, at the age of 89 years old Maggie Smith passed away surrounded by friends and family at Chealsea and Westminster hospital.
Smith was a British actress who showcased her talent both on stage and on screen from her start in the movie, Child in the House (1956) which would launch her career. By 1959, she would win her first British Academy Award nomination for her role in Nowhere to Go.
The two most well known roles she has had are in Downton Abbey and Harry Potter.
In Downton Abbey, she played Violet Crawley, a countess who was the matriarch of the Crawley family.
In the Harry Potter films, she played Professor Minerva McGonagall, head of Gryffindor house and teacher of Transfiguration. She was in all seven movies, bringing the role to life as if she was straight from the books.
She was kind, sharp, and was always there for her fellow cast-mates. Many of the actors from the movies have written messages about the late Maggie Smith with nothing but praise and admiration.
Actors such as Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, who played the three main characters, said how Maggie was always there for them on and off set, and how much of an honor it was to work beside her.
In an article written by BBC News Smith’s two sons, Toby Stephens and Chris Larkin, described her as “an extremely 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.”
An important note is that during the filming of the sixth film, she was battling cancer, but still perceived and made sure to be there for the movie.
One touching message to note was from Emma Watson after speaking with BBC News, she states that “she did not quite appreciate that young Hermione was sharing the screen “with a true definition of greatness” until her adult years.”
Maggie Smith’s legacy will live on through the inspiring roles she has played and through the people who knew her; keeping her spirit alive forever.
