Maggie Smith, star of stage, film and ‘Downton Abbey,’ has died aged 89

By The Associated Press on September 27, 2024.

LONDON (AP) – Maggie Smith, the masterful, scene-stealing actor who won an Oscar for “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie” in 1969 and gained new fans in the 21st century as the dowager Countess of Grantham in “Downton Abbey” and Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter films, died Friday. She was 89.

Smith’s 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,” they said in a statement issued through publicist Clair Dobbs.

Smith was frequently rated the preeminent British woman actor of a generation that included Vanessa Redgrave and Judi Dench.

“Jean Brodie” brought her the Academy Award for best actress and the British Academy (BAFTA) award as well in 1969. She added a supporting actress Oscar for “California Suite” in 1978.

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