THE latest picture of acting icon Dame Maggie Smith shows her smiling for the camera as she stars in a fashion campaign.
Dame Maggie died on Friday morning aged 89 after a glittering screen career, her sons confirmed.
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Dame Maggie Smith poses for Vogue in her last public photo Credit: Juergen Teller/Courtesy of Loewe
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Dame Maggie as Professor Minerva McGonagall in Harry Potter Credit: Alamy
In the photo for Loewe’s new fashion campaign, taken in October 2023 and featured in Vogue, she can be seen smiling down the lens.
The Downton Abbey actress carries an oversized fur coat with Loewe’s “Puzzle signature bag.”
In other photos taken during the campaign shoot, Dame Maggie poses in a turtleneck dress and ruffled skirt while holding a Paseo bag.
It came after a statement released by the family through their publicist: “It is with great sadness that we have to announce the death of Lady Maggie Smith.
“She passed away peacefully in hospital early this morning, Friday September 27th.
“A very private person, she was with friends and family at the end.
“He leaves behind 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 Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and endless kindness during her final days.
“We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time.”
The beloved actress played Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter film franchise.
Dame Maggie was also known for bringing a sharp wit to other roles, including Violet Crawley in Downton Abbey.
She won an Oscar for her performance as The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie.
The actress was born Margaret Natalie Smith in December 1934 in Ilford, Essex, to a Scottish secretary mother and a pathologist father.
The star moved to Oxford when she was four after her father got a job at the university, and later left school to study acting at the Oxford Playhouse.
But her family background gave no indication that she would enter the acting profession, let alone become one of its leading representatives.
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Dame Maggie Smith in the early years of her career in the 1960s Credit: PA
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Dame Maggie in her Oscar-winning performance in The Prime of Miss Jean BrodieCredit: SNAP/REX/Shutterstock
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Maggie Smith after winning the Oscar for Best Actress Credit: THE TIMES
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Dame Maggie Smith also won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in “California Suite” in 1979. Credit: AP
At just 17, Maggie landed her first role as Viola in Twelfth Night before appearing in Cinderella, Rookery Nook and The Government Inspector.
In 1957, she was cast opposite Kenneth Williams in the musical comedy Share My Lettuce.
This led to regular appearances in a number of plays at the Old Vic, including The Rehearsal and Mary, Mary.
While starring in The Double Dealer, Maggie caught the eye of Laurence Olivier who invited her to join his National Theater Company.
Maggie next appeared opposite the actor in Othello, with the pair known for their professional rivalry.
In 1958, the actress made her screen debut in Nowhere to Go, but it wasn’t until her Oscar-winning performance in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie that she gained international fame 11 years later.
Maggie continued to appear on stage in numerous plays – winning a Tony Award for her role in the Broadway comedy Private Lives.
During this time, she won her second Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The California Suite alongside Michael Caine.
She appeared in a number of comedies, including Sister Act, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Quartet.
In 2001, Maggie took on the role of Hogwarts Vice Headmistress Professor McGonagall in the Harry Potter film series.
She played the Transfiguration teacher in seven out of eight films until 2011.
Lady Maggie recently starred in 2022’s Downton Abbey: A New Era, where Violet’s health deteriorates and she dies in her character’s emotional ending.
The following 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.
Away from the screen, Maggie married actor Robert Stephens in June 1967.
The couple had two sons, actors Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens, before divorcing eight years later.
She has previously spoken about her health battles, including treatment for Graves’ disease in 1988.
In 2007, it was revealed that Maggie was diagnosed with breast cancer, but made a full recovery.
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Dame Maggie at Downton Abbey Credit: Alamy
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