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.
She was frequently rated the preeminent British actress of a generation which 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. Smith added a supporting actress Oscar for “California Suite” in 1978.
In 2014, Smith was made a member of the Order of the Companions of Honor in recognition of her six decades in theater, cinema and television, an honor bestowed by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II. The award is limited to 65 living people “of distinction.” Other members include physicist Stephen Hawking, actor Ian McKellen and artist David Hockney.
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