Legendary British actor Dame Maggie Smith dies aged 89
Dame Maggie Smith has passed away
Beloved actress Dame Maggie Smith has died at the age of 89.
In a statement issued via their publicist, her sons Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens said: “It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith.
“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.
Maggie Smith has passed away aged 89 (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images)
“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.
“We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time.”
The legendary actress was perhaps most well known for her role as Professor McGonagall in Harry Potter – heartbreakingly, she has become the 26th cast member to have died since the movies first became so loved all the way back in 2001.
Smith was also a beloved name throughout her entire career, with her being well known for her time on Downton Abbeyand Sister Act.
Tributes have begun pouring in from fans online, devastated by the death of the beloved actor.
rip to one of the greatest, maggie smith, may you continue to be cutthroat wherever you may be
James Crooks, a film journalist, posted on Twitter saying: “An absolutely fantastic actress whose presence will be missed. So influential to British television and film too, what a shame.”
Gyles Brandreth posted a picture of the pair and said: “The saddest news: the death of Dame Maggie Smith marks the end of a golden era & a quite extraordinary life.
“She was a truly great actress, “one of the greats” & simply the best company: wise, witty, waspish, wonderful.
“One of a kind in every way & consequently irreplaceable.”
Another account posted on Twitter and said: “One of those news you think you’ll never hear because in your heart they’re just immortal.
“Rest in peace, Dame Maggie Smith. You’ll be deeply missed.”
One fan posted on Twitter to say: “Heartbreaking news. An iconic actress that will be dearly missed.”
Another pointed to her role in Harry Potter, saying: “Will always remember this as one of Maggie Smith’s most iconic scenes”.
Smith’s role as Minerva McGonagall was an iconic one, with Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe crediting her for getting him the role.
He said in 2011: “Well she got me the job at Potter, practically, so for anyone who doesn’t know that story, I basically owe everything to Maggie Smith because I worked with her on David Copperfield and then she came over to Potter as McGonagall and said to the director, you need to audition this boy.”
Featured Image Credit: Mike Marsland/WireImage/Getty Images/Warner Bros.
Topics: Celebrity, Entertainment, UK News, TV and Film, Film
Michael Slavin
Published 16:50 26 Sep 2024 GMT+1
Harry Potter fans think ‘brain is glitching’ after discovering massive Hollywood star’s cameo in The Deathly Hallows
Fans spotted the cameo and now can’t believe it
Harry Potter may have spawned the career of numerous actors, expected and unexpected, but fans are discovering a secret cameo from a massive Hollywood star from before he was famous.
The film series obviously catapulted the likes of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint into fame forever, while also solidifying the legacy of actors such as Maggie Smith, Ralph Fiennes, and Michael Gambon.
Add to that actors in supporting roles such as Matthew Lewis, who played Neville, and Harry Melling, who played Dudley, and you have a litany of names whose careers were set off in part by Harry Potter.
This, however, is one name spotted by fans from well before he was a name, and in a tiny cameo role.
The cameo was spotted on TikTok, and is taken from Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows: Part 1.
At the wedding of William Weasley and Fleur Delacour, fans spotted a young Regé-Jean Page.
He plays a concerned wedding attendee, stood next to Hermione and Ginny when they receive word an attack is on the way.
The actor, who went on to star in Bridgerton, Dungeons and Dragons: Honour Amongst Thieves, and The Gray Man, is even a frontrunner to be playing the next James Bond, if rumours are to be believed.
Regé-Jean Page made an appearance (Warner Brothers)
The post was posted with the accompanying caption: “Pls tell me my brain isn’t glitching and you do see that too.”
One comment on the post read: “For anyone still wondering: yes, it is Regé-Jean Page (Hasting’s actor in Bridgerton).”
Another read: “THE DUKE OF HASTINGS—”, whilst another tagged their friend saying: “omg it is actually him!”
Page has spoken out about the role since, telling The Tonight show that he enjoyed it ‘hugely’.
He said: “I mean, the best thing about background acting, particularly on big movies like that, and I recommend it to every actor out there – is essentially, no one pays attention to you in the background, so you get to be the best actor spy.”
He stated that one particular thing he learnt from watching Emma Watson? Where she hid her phone.
He said: “I was like watching how these directors work with these actors, where Emma Watson hides her phones between takes… and this is the valuable stuff.
“It was under the tablecloths at the wedding, by the way. Sorry, Emma.”
The actor is one of many to have gone on, and not the only cameo – with Charlotte Ritchie of Ghosts, Taskmaster, and Feel Good fame having previously been spotted for her cameo in the Harry Potter franchise.
Featured Image Credit: Warner Bros
Topics: Harry Potter, TikTok, Celebrity, TV and Film, Film
Michael Slavin
Published 16:50 26 Sep 2024 GMT+1
Harry Potter fans think ‘brain is glitching’ after discovering massive Hollywood star’s cameo in The Deathly Hallows
Fans spotted the cameo and now can’t believe it
Harry Potter may have spawned the career of numerous actors, expected and unexpected, but fans are discovering a secret cameo from a massive Hollywood star from before he was famous.
The film series obviously catapulted the likes of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint into fame forever, while also solidifying the legacy of actors such as Maggie Smith, Ralph Fiennes, and Michael Gambon.
Add to that actors in supporting roles such as Matthew Lewis, who played Neville, and Harry Melling, who played Dudley, and you have a litany of names whose careers were set off in part by Harry Potter.
This, however, is one name spotted by fans from well before he was a name, and in a tiny cameo role.
The cameo was spotted on TikTok, and is taken from Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows: Part 1.
At the wedding of William Weasley and Fleur Delacour, fans spotted a young Regé-Jean Page.
He plays a concerned wedding attendee, stood next to Hermione and Ginny when they receive word an attack is on the way.
The actor, who went on to star in Bridgerton, Dungeons and Dragons: Honour Amongst Thieves, and The Gray Man, is even a frontrunner to be playing the next James Bond, if rumours are to be believed.
Regé-Jean Page made an appearance (Warner Brothers)
The post was posted with the accompanying caption: “Pls tell me my brain isn’t glitching and you do see that too.”
One comment on the post read: “For anyone still wondering: yes, it is Regé-Jean Page (Hasting’s actor in Bridgerton).”
Another read: “THE DUKE OF HASTINGS—”, whilst another tagged their friend saying: “omg it is actually him!”
Page has spoken out about the role since, telling The Tonight show that he enjoyed it ‘hugely’.
He said: “I mean, the best thing about background acting, particularly on big movies like that, and I recommend it to every actor out there – is essentially, no one pays attention to you in the background, so you get to be the best actor spy.”
He stated that one particular thing he learnt from watching Emma Watson? Where she hid her phone.
He said: “I was like watching how these directors work with these actors, where Emma Watson hides her phones between takes… and this is the valuable stuff.
“It was under the tablecloths at the wedding, by the way. Sorry, Emma.”
The actor is one of many to have gone on, and not the only cameo – with Charlotte Ritchie of Ghosts, Taskmaster, and Feel Good fame having previously been spotted for her cameo in the Harry Potter franchise.
Featured Image Credit: Warner Bros
Topics: Harry Potter, TikTok, Celebrity, TV and Film, Film
Michael Slavin
Published 17:42 17 Sep 2024 GMT+1
Gary Oldman has offered to come back as Dumbledore in Harry Potter reboot
The actor has offered to return to the series
Gary Oldman, the actor who iconically played Sirius Black in the original set of Harry Potter films, has revealed he would be willing to come back as Dumbledore in the reboot TV show.
There has been a great deal of speculation on the possibility of returning characters, with many hoping that there will be some cast crossover from the films.
Whilst Warner Bros have put out their casting requirements for the main trio, you can imagine that Radcliffe, Grint, and Watson will have slightly aged out of their roles.
Oldman starred as Sirius in the films (Warner Brothers)
Other suggestions have been more reasonable than this, with the fitting if uncreative suggestion for Daniel Radcliffe to return as James Potter or Sirius Black.
Oldman, however, reckons he should come back if anyone as Dumbledore.
In an interview with Indiewire, he said that ‘no one’ has approached him to return as Sirius for the reboot, but that he still holds ‘a soft spot’ for the character.
He said: “I love Sirius. He wasn’t in it enough. He turned up and then he went through the veil”.
He went on to say: “I would bet my money that they will get a whole new cast of people.
“Maybe in a few years, I could do Dumbledore”, he said after clarifying he doesn’t expect to get a call to play Sirius Black again.
When discussing the upcoming reboot, Daniel Radcliffe was coy about the possibility of appearing in the series, but signs seem to be pointing away from this.
He said: “My understanding is that they’re trying to very much start fresh and I’m sure whoever is making them will want to make their own mark on it and probably not want to have to figure out how to get old Harry to cameo in this somewhere.
“I’m definitely not seeking it out in any way. But I do wish them, obviously, all the luck in the world and I’m very excited to have that torch passed.
“But I don’t think it needs me to physically pass it.”
David Vaslav, the CEO of Warner Bros, has previously said about the upcoming show:
“We’ve not been shy about our excitement around Harry Potter,” the executive said.
The Harry Potter show casting call. (X/@jk_rowling)
“We are just thrilled to be reigniting this franchise. Our conversations were great, and we couldn’t be more excited about what’s ahead. We can’t wait to share a decade of new stories with fans around the world on Max.”
Schedule to premiere in 2026, casting for the show has begun.
Featured Image Credit: Warner Bros
Topics: Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe, TV and Film, Film
Michael Slavin
Published 16:01 24 Aug 2024 GMT+1
Rupert Grint spent part of his Harry Potter millions on fulfilling a childhood dream
Being an actor in Harry Potter allowed Rupert Grint to achieve his childhood dream
Actor Rupert Grint revealed that he’d used his Harry Potter riches to pursue his childhood dream job.
Prior to being cast as the three leading characters in the film adaptation of JK Rowling‘s wizarding franchise actors Grint, Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson were just regular children.
However, by their 18th birthday’s, the trio were all guaranteed millionaires, with the following films in the Harry Potter series making enough money to allow them all to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.
The trio made a life changing amount of money from the films. ( Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
Grint, 35, is the lowest earning actor out of the film’s ‘golden trio’ – however he is by no means short of cash.
Reports vary on how much the Knock at the Cabin star raked in for all eight films, but it’s believed that he made around £37 million for playing Ron Weasley.
It’s also believed that the trio still earn royalties from the Harry Potter which make a healthy top-up to their earnings, as per Cosmopolitan.
So how does one spend 10s of millions of pounds? Well, in Grint’s case, he decided to splash out on following his childhood dream.
And it’s something you’ll have never have guessed.
Grint used his Harry Potter earnings to pursue his dream job. (Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)
Turns out that Grint has used his money to buy himself an ice-cream van as it was his dream job as a child.
Revealing the unusual piece of trivia in a 2014 interview with the Daily Mail, the actor explained that he keeps the van stocked up with frozen treats after previously disappointing a group a of children.
“Not long after I first got it, I pulled into a pub to do a U-turn and there were eight kids with their pocket money out, hoping to buy a 99 or whatever,” he said.
“But I had nothing to give them. I’ve learnt my lesson since then.”
Grint added that he keeps the van ‘well stocked’ with a machine which dispenses Mr Whippy ice-cream and various ice lollies.
Imagine being served an ice-cream by Ron Weasley. (Warner Bros))
He continued to say: “I tend to avoid July and August, but the rest of the year, I’ll drive around the local villages and if I see some kids looking like they’re in need of ice creams, I’ll pull over and dish them out for free.
“They’ll say, ‘Ain’t you Ron Weasley?’ And I’ll say, ‘It’s strange, I get asked that a lot’.”
So there you go, next time you see an ice-cream van pull into your local park, you could be getting an ice-cream from Mr Ronald Weasley himself.
Although we’d imagine he’s a bit busy these days, after welcoming his first child, a baby daughter, with Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging star Georgia Groome.
Featured Image Credit: David M. Benett/Hoda Davaine/Dave Benett/WireImage/Warner Bros
Topics: Harry Potter, Rupert Grint, Celebrity
Brenna Cooper
