On Friday, September 27th, the death of Dame Maggie Smith was announced, with grief felt all over the world for the devastating loss of the iconic actress. Maggie Smith died at 89 years old in the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, UK, surrounded by her family.
The cause of death was not made public. Her sons Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens stated, “She leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother” (Today.com). As the world and students at LJHS found out about her death, they were saddened by the news. Alisa Franklin said, “I was pretty shocked, actually! She had been around for so long, I guess I hoped she was invincible or something. I was really upset though, as I had grown up watching her on screen.” Maggie Smith participated in various popular and well-known audiovisual media such as Harry Potter, Downton Abbey, and The Secret Garden. Maggie Smith has overall won 58 competitive awards and 157 nominations throughout her career, even winning Oscar awards for Best Supporting Actress in 1979 and Best Actress in 1970.
Maggie Smith was an astounding actress with breathtaking acting; her love for theater and acting was very noticeable throughout her career. Elise Carter said, “She was a great and funny actress.” After her death, various actors who were in Harry Potter described her as someone funny, honest, and lovely, with all of them enjoying her company. She was like a mother, who embraced us all in a tight and warm hug, but she has let go and sadly left this world. Goodbye, Dame Maggie Smith; you will be forever missed, and we will always find deep joy when we think of you.