Born: December 28, 1934 in Ilford, Essex, England

Dame Maggie Smith is regarded as one of the world's great movie actresses of our lifetime, having a career spanning some fifty years. She has won great critical acclaim and awards, having been nominated for the Academy Award six times over. A veteran of the stage, she performed with Laurence Olivier in Othello as Desdemona, later earning an Academy Award for the film version. She was also awarded a Tony Award for her work in the Broadway play Lettice and Lovage. She won her first Academy Award in 1969 for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, and her second in 1978 for California Suite by playwright Neil Simon. Maggie Smith returned for her fifth appearance as the head of Gryffindor House, Professor Minerva McGonagall, in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and also appeared in the hit film Becoming Jane about author Jane Austen. Maggie Smith was awarded the CBE in 1979, and in 1990 officially became titled Dame Maggie Smith after receiving the DBS. Dame Maggie Smith resides in London.