Maggie Smith was one of the most successful and best British character actress in a range of dramatic roles and comedy roles in a career that spanned 60 years. She started her career on the stage and her first film role was Nowhere To Go. She followed this with the all star film The V.I.P.'s. Young Cassidy was a period drama. She stared in Othello opposite Laurence Olivier for which she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress Oscar. It was her performance in Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie that she is probably best remembered for and for which she won the Best Actress Oscar. Travels With My Aunt gained her a Best Actress Oscar nomination. She was one of numerous stars in Death On The Nile. California Suite is an adaptaion of Neil Simon's comedy play. A Private Function was a British comedy in post war years. A Room With A View is another literary period adaptation and won her another Best Supporting Actress Oscar. Tea With Mussolini was Franco Zeffirelli's portrayal of women in Italy in the lead up to the war. She came to the notice of a new younger audience when she appeared in the Harry Potter films. She was then one of the stars in the historical drama/mystery Gosford Park from which she then appeared in the television series Downton Abbey. She then featured in several films that are based around older charcters and including The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Quartet. She reprised her stage role in the film version of The Lady In The Van.
