Daniel Radcliffe’s emotional message on the death of Maggie Smith

The film and theatre industry is in mourning following the death of one of its most veteran stars: Maggie Smith. Smith’s death was announced by her sons, Toby Stephens and Chris Larki, who reported that the actress died “peacefully” in a hospital early this Friday, October 27.

“She was a very private person and was with friends and family at the end. She leaves behind two loving children and five grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother,” the brothers told Variety. The actress passed away at the age of 89.

During her lengthy career, Smith won two Oscars, three Emmys and countless theater awards. She took home an Academy Award for Best Actress for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) and another for Best Supporting Actress for California Suite (1978).

Daniel Radcliffe, fortunate and privileged to work with Maggie Smith

In a statement, Daniel Radcliffe paid his own personal tribute to Smith, with whom she shared the screen in the Harry Potter series. Radcliffe starred in the film, while Smith appeared in every film in the franchise (except Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1) as Professor Minerva McGonagall, the head of Gryffindor House and deputy headmistress of Hogwarts.

“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.

“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!’

“I remember being nervous meeting her and being put at ease immediately.She was incredibly kind to me during that shoot and then I was lucky enough to go on to work with her for another 10 years on the Harry Potter films. 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,” Radcliffe added.

“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 gets thrown around a lot, but if it applies to anyone in our industry, it applies to her. Thank you, Maggie,” he ended.

Emma Watson and Rupert Grint have not yet shared a message on the matter.

Bonnie Wright, who played Ginny Weasley, wrote: “You will be sorely missed by the Harry Potter community. My favourite scene with Maggie was when we were all learning to dance for the Yule Ball. She embodied that perfect balance of sass and caring that McGonagall has. She kept the Gryffindors on their toes. My condolences to Maggie’s family at this time.”