The passing of British actress Dame Maggie Smith will be mourned not only by Potterheads worldwide, but also by Shakespeare fans and anyone who appreciated old-school acting. The Lady Mail editorial team has compiled photos of Maggie Smith to show just how strict the Hogwarts professor was in her youth.
Many perceive Dame Maggie Smith not only as Professor McGonagall, but also as an actress in her own right, who only achieved success in this challenging profession in her later years. The Lady Mail team debunks this myth and explores the British actress’s eventful career and life.
Maggie Smith’s recognition came even before Harry Potter.
Few people remember, but Maggie Smith joined the cast of the first film adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s novel as an already established actress, with two Oscars, five BAFTA awards (Smith would later receive two more), and two Golden Globes.
Smith won her first Academy Award in 1969 for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie , in which she played a monstrous teacher at an all-girls school. The manipulative Jean Brodie was so detestable that critics were floored.
Maggie Smith won her second Oscar in 1978 for her supporting role in California Hotel. In this film about a London actress, Smith stars opposite another British audience favorite, Sir Michael Caine.
Those around her didn’t believe that Maggie Smith would be able to become an actress.
Maggie Smith proved to perhaps the biggest skeptic in her life—her own mother—that she had chosen the right profession only in 1969, when the golden statuette from the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, coveted by every actor, appeared in her hands.
Maggie Smith was destined to become a secretary like her mother, but a teacher at school convinced her to try out for the Oxford Drama Theatre. “I don’t know what he saw in me. I guess I was just weird,” Smith later modestly remarked. But ultimately, the future legend took the most conservative acting path: she began working at the Old Vic Theatre, where she became a true Shakespearean actress—one who can convince an audience of both beauty and ugliness.
Maggie Smith always preferred theater to cinema.
According to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, theater gave her much more than film. At 17, she played Cinderella, Olivia in Twelfth Night, and Desdemona on London stages.
“On set, I feel vulnerable, cornered. You have nowhere to go; you have to do it right now. In the theater, you have another chance—you can do it right next time, at the next performance. But in film, you don’t have that chance, so I drive everyone crazy, forcing them to do countless takes. I always think I can do it better,” explained Maggie Smith.
Cinema always seemed “colder” to the actress. But ultimately, it was films and TV series that brought her true international fame and—not at all cold, but rather ardent—audience love. The kind that made many mentally raise their hands when news of Maggie Smith’s death broke.
What caused Maggie Smith’s death?
The British actress was 89 years old. Her family has not yet disclosed the exact cause of her death , but it is known that Maggie Smith had previously suffered from breast cancer and the autoimmune disease Graves’ disease.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Lady Maggie Smith. She passed away peacefully in hospital early on Friday morning, September 27. A very private person, she was finally with friends and family,” said Maggie Smith’s family.
The British actress had two children and five grandchildren.
