Harry Potter is mourning the loss of his beloved teacher, Professor Minerva McGonagall. In a new statement, Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe is paying tribute to beloved actress Maggie Smith, who portrayed McGonagall — the head of Gryffindor House and the deputy headmistress at Hogwarts under Albus Dumbledore — in the film franchise.
“The first time I met Maggie Smith I was 9 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,” Radcliffe said in a statement shared by Variety.
“The other thing I knew about her was that she was a Dame,” he continued, “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 feeling nervous to meet her and then her putting me immediately at ease. She was incredibly kind to me on that shoot, and then I was lucky enough to go on working with her for another 10 years on the Harry Potter films.”
(left) Maggie Smith as Professor Minerva McGonagall and (right) Miriam Margolyes as Professor Sprout in the ‘Harry Potter’ franchise
– Warner Bros.)
“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 went on to add. “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 is overused but if it applies to anyone in our industry then it applies to her. Thank you Maggie.”
Just hours earlier, Smith’s sons, Toby Stephens and Chris Larki, announced her death, writing in a statement: “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.”