Jean Brodie, Minerva McGonagall, Violet Crawley: Maggie Smith embodied these memorable roles on stage and screen. NPR's Scott Simon has a remembrance of the actor, who died yesterday at the age of 89.

London : Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2015.

Smith’s remarkable career spanned several decades, during which she was celebrated as one of her generation’s most distinguished actresses, sharing the stage and screen with contemporaries like Vanessa Redgrave and Judi Dench.

You’re never too old to fall in love is the heartwarming message of the Company of Ten’s next production, Ladies in Lavender.

The actress, 84, looked in high spirits as she arrived at the premiere of the feature film adaptation of Downton Abbey in Leicester Square on Monday.

In scenes set to air on Saturday's edition of the Jonathan Ross Show, the pair joked that that the iconic British actress, 84, 'loves a meme'.

Lesley Nicol, who played Downton cook Mrs Patmore in the long-running period drama, told DailyMailTV talks for a second film are underway following the success of the first movie last month.

Dame Maggie Smith has revealed she didn't feel 'satisfied' with her roles in the Harry Potter and the Downton Abbey franchise.