Maggie Smith

Dame Maggie Smith is best known for playing Professor McGonagall in Harry Potter and the Dowager in Downton Abbey, but what else is there to know about her?

Her heart lies with the soaps, and her all-time favourite character has to be EastEnders' Pat Butcher - no one rocked a big earring quite like her. During her seven-year stint there she joined the cast of Emmerdale for a tour around the famous village, partied with soap stars at awards bashes, interviewed her acting idol David Suchet, and sat in the front row of Strictly Come Dancing. "I went back in the following week," Dominic said, "And Maggie told me she’s booked another film, she starts next week." Her first marriage was to actor Robert Stephens in June 1967 and ended in April 1975. The couple remained devoted to one another until Beverley’s death in 1998, and Maggie is grateful they got a second chance at love. While working with Laurence Olivier’s National Theatre in the 1960s, Maggie started a relationship with actor Robert Stephens, who was also contracted to the company. Life struck Maggie a blow in 1988 when she was diagnosed with Graves’ disease. and I said, “Can I help you?” and he said, “It’s alright, it’ll come to me in a minute”. I thought that was so sweet, so lovely.” Maggie is one of only a few illustrious actors to have achieved 'The Triple Crown of Acting' — the highest accolade for film, television and theatre. With her incredible acting ability and impeccable comedic timing, versatile Maggie can turn her hand to any genre. After leaving school in 1952 at 17, she joined the Oxford Playhouse to hone her craft, and took on her first leading lady role, playing Viola in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Parts in productions of Cinderella, Cakes and Ale and The Government’s Inspector followed, before Maggie went overseas to Broadway, making her professional acting debut there in 1956. Dame Maggie Smith is one of the most recognizable faces in entertainment and has enjoyed a glittering career on stage and screen, spanning seven decades.