Dame Maggie Smith, the award-winning British acting legend whose work ranged from Downton Abbey to Harry Potter, has died at the age of 89.

The Oscar-winning actress died in hospital on Friday 27 September, her sons Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens said in a statement.

‘It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith,’ they began.

‘She passed away peacefully in hospital early this morning, Friday 27th September.

‘An intensely 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.

‘We would like to take this opportunity to thank the wonderful staff at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and unstinting kindness during her final days.

Dame Maggie enjoyed a varied and decorated career in the spotlight (Picture: ANDY RAIN/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

The actress’ sons shared the news in a statement (Picture: Everett/Shutterstock)
‘We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time.’

Dame Maggie was a hugely versatile actress, and had an incredible capacity to switch from melancholy to mischief, and from graciousness to exuberance in an instant, and her illustrious 70-year career – as well as her many accolades – is a testament to this.

In honour of the six-time Olivier award winner West End theatres will dim their lights for 2 minutes at 7pm on TuesdayOctober 1, in her memory.

Hannah Essex, Co-CEO of the Society of London Theatre and UK Theatre, said that she will be ‘will be remembered as one of the most significant performers British theatre has ever seen.’

She continued: ‘We are proud to be able to honour her remarkable career in some small way.’

Many have taken to social media to commemorate the star including King Charles III.

A message of condolence from His Majesty The King following the passing of Dame Maggie Smith. pic.twitter.com/SiKw8EEHva

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 27, 2024

‘My wife and I were deeply saddened to learn of the death of Dame Maggie Smith.

‘As the curtain comes down on a national treasure, we join all those around the world in remembering with the fondest admiration and affection her many great performances and her warmth and wait that shone through both on and off stage,’ the statement reads.

Meanwhile, in the realm of acting, Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe shared a statement remembering her ‘incredibly kind’ legacy and her personal impact on his life.

‘The first time I met Maggie Smith I was nine years old and we were reading through scenes for David Copperfield, which was my first job. I knew virtually nothing about her other than that my parents were awestruck at the fact that I would be working with her,’ he said, per Variety.

‘The other thing I knew about her was that she was a Dame, so the first thing I asked her when we met was “would you like me to call you Dame?” at which she laughed and said something to the effect of “don’t be ridiculous!”.

Maggie Smith and Daniel Radcliffe worked together for over a decade (Picture: AP / Warner Bros)
‘I remember feeling nervous to meet her and then her putting me immediately at ease. She was incredibly kind to me on that shoot, and then I was lucky enough to go on working with her for another 10 years on the Harry Potter films,’ he fondly remembered.

He continued: ‘She was a fierce intellect, a gloriously sharp tongue, could intimidate and charm in the same instant and was, as everyone will tell you, extremely funny.

‘I will always consider myself amazingly lucky to have been able to work with her, and to spend time around her on set. The word legend is overused but if it applies to anyone in our industry then it applies to her. Thank you Maggie.’

Elsewhere, Downton Abbey co-star Hugh Bonneville led tributes.

Hugh, who played the son of Dame Maggie’s character in the period drama, said in a statement: ‘Anyone who ever shared a scene with Maggie will attest to her sharp eye, sharp wit and formidable talent.

Dame Maggie starred alongside Miriam Margolyes, Richard Harris and Alan Rickman in the Harry Potter films (Picture: Visual/allaction.co./PA Wire)

She appeared in the films as stern but loved Professor McGonagall (Picture: Warner Bros)

Dame Maggie Smith shares the incredulous answer she gave to young Harry Potter fa

‘She was a true legend of her generation and thankfully will live on in so many magnificent screen performances.

‘My condolences to her boys and wider family.’

Gary Oldman described the late Dame Maggie Smith as the kind of talent that ‘comes along about every other generation’.

The British actor shared the screen with Dame Maggie in several Harry Potter films, in which he played Harry’s godfather Sirius Black.

‘Maggie Smith, one of the true greats along with (Laurence) Olivier and (John) Gielgud,’ Oldman said in a statement to the PA news agency.

‘Those who saw her dazzling talent on the stage say they can never forget her.

‘Her magnificent film performances remain for all to see and enjoy.

‘Such an artist comes along about every other generation. If one is lucky.’

Downton’s Dan Stevens also paid tribute to Dame Maggie Smith on his Instagram Story, writing ‘Truly one of The Greats. RIP’ alongside two pictures of his former co-star.

The official Downton Abbey account also shared a heartfelt tribute, calling her a ‘true British icon’. ‘Thank you for everything, Dame Maggie Smith,’ the caption added.

The Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: ‘Dame Maggie Smith introduced us to new worlds with the countless stories she acted over her long career.

‘She was beloved by so many for her great talent, becoming a true national treasure whose work will be cherished for generations to come.

‘Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones. May she rest in peace.’

TV presenter Gyles Brandreth described Dame Maggie as ‘wise, witty, waspish, wonderful’ and reflected to Times Radio that she was a ‘uniquely towering acting talent’.

Dame Maggie is one of the most decorated actresses in history ((Picture: Richard Young/Shutterstock)

Her career spanned genres and generations (Picture: Universal Studios)
Born in 1934 in east London, Dame Maggie and her family moved to Oxford where she began acting as a teenager.

Before long she was appearing in a number of stage shows including the 1957 musical comedy Share My Lettuce alongside Kenneth Williams, before moving to the screen for thriller Nowhere to Go in 1958 – for which she received a Bafta nomination.

On the news of her death, Bafta issued a tribute saying she was a ‘legend’ of stage and screen.

American actor Rob Lowe, who appeared with Dame Maggie Smith in 1993 BBC drama Suddenly, Last Summer, described his late co-star as a ‘lion’.

In a post on X, he wrote: ‘Saddened to hear Dame Maggie Smith has passed. I had the unforgettable experience of working with her; sharing a two-shot was like being paired with a lion.

‘She could eat anyone alive, and often did. But funny, and great company. And suffered no fools. We will never see another. God speed, Ms. Smith!’

Dame Maggie Smith’s dazzling accolades over seven decades in film and theatre

Dame Maggie Smith won two Oscars in her life: one for best actress in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and another for best supporting actress in California Suite in 1979.

She won five Baftas over her career, as well as a Bafta special award and a Bafta fellowship.

The decorated star also won three Golden Globes, four Primetime Emmy Awards, five Screen Actors Guild Awards and a Tony Award.

Dame Maggie shone in Downton Abbey (Picture: 2010 Universal.)
American actress Whoopi Goldberg said she felt ‘lucky’ to have worked alongside Dame Maggie.

The actors starred together in Sister Act, where Dame Maggie played Reverend Mother Superior while Goldberg portrayed Deloris Van Cartier.

Whoopi shared an old picture of the two on set of Sister Act, dressed as nuns, on Instagram and described her as a ‘great woman’.

She wrote in her post: ‘Maggie Smith was a great woman and a brilliant actress. I still can’t believe I was lucky enough to work with the ‘one-of-a-kind’. My heartfelt condolences go out to the family… RIP.’

In 2022 Whoopi publicly pleaded with Dame Maggie to appear in Sister Act 3 on The One Show, as she said: ‘I will shoot whatever you want if you say yes. I love you.’

Kristin Scott Thomas says Dame Maggie Smith ‘saw through the nonsense and razzmatazz’ of acting, and ‘had a sense of humour and wit that could reduce me to a blithering puddle of giggles’.

She starred opposite Dame Maggie in 2014 drama My Old Lady and wrote on Instagram saying: ‘So very, very sad to know she has gone. She was a true inspiration.’

She added: ‘The last time I saw her she was very cross about being old. “Maddening,” I think she said.’

This time last year Dame Maggie appeared as the unexpected face of fashion brand Loewe in their spring/summer 2024 pre-collection, and fans went wild with appreciation for the photos, which saw the icon pose in a brown, furry jacket while clutching a leather bag.

She has been on our screens and stages for 70 years (Picture: Fremantle Media/REX)
Before rocketing to fame, Dame Maggie was starring in a number of plays at the Old Vic theatre – including The Rehearsal and Mary, Mary – when she was spotted by Laurence Olivier, who invited her to become part of his National Theatre Company.

Dame Maggie’s stage career was prolific, but she garnered international fame for her role as fanatical teacher Jean Brodie in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie, for which she won a best actress Oscar in 1970.

The star found Harry Potter later in life, when she appeared in all eight films as the stern but beloved Hogwarts teacher, Professor Minerva McGonagall.

On the same day last year, September 27, Harry Potter co-star Sir Michael Gambon, who played her boss Professor Albus Dumbledore in the film series, died.

In 2009 Dame Maggie revealed her breast cancer diagnosis – which she recovered from – had knocked her confidence so much that she became afraid of returning to the stage.

Despite this, she picked herself back up to star in 2009’s Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince, and continued with 2010 adventure film From Time To Time, 2011’s The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and 2014 drama My Old Lady.

In 2010 Dame Maggie was central to the success of ITV series Downton Abbey, in her Emmy-award winning role as the acerbic Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, which she continued to play in the films.

Other film roles include her portrayal of a drunken Oscar loser in California Suite, the dying older lover in Love, Pain And The Whole Damn Thing, the tragic lodger in The Lonely Passion Of Judith Hearne, and the so-called “funny old bat” in Gosford Park, which brought her a sixth Oscar nomination.

Dame Maggie was one of the UK’s most beloved actors (Picture: William Conran/PA Wire)
Another of Dame Maggie’s famous roles came in The Lady In The Van, the 2015 adaptation of Alan Bennett’s memoirs.

She recently starred in the 2022’s Downton Abbey: A New Era, where her character Violet’s health deteriorates and she dies in an emotional end.

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Last year she appeared in The Miracle Club, which follows a group of women from Dublin who go on a pilgrimage to the French town of Lourdes.

Dame Maggie’s second husband, the playwright Beverley Cross who she married in 1975, died in 1998.

She is survived by her two sons Toby and Chris – both actors – who are from her first marriage to the late actor Robert Stephens.

As a beloved British star, Dame Maggie was often spotted enjoying Wimbledon tennis and in one of her final public outings she attended King Charles’ coronation last year.