Screen Legend Dame Maggie Smith Dead at 89

Dame Maggie Smith has died. She was 89.

The acclaimed British actress, who was well known for her roles in Downton Abbey and the Harry Potter franchise, died in Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London on Sept. 27 (Friday), her two sons Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens revealed.

Maggie's final moments came as she was surrounded by family and friends.

In a statement issued via their publicist, they said: "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.

READ MORE: Madonna’s Stepmother Joan Ciccone Dead at 81

"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.

"We would like to take this opportunity to thank the wonderful staff at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and unstinting kindness during her final days. We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time."

Maggie was born Margaret Natalie Smith in December 1934 in Ilford, Essex, to pathologist dad Nathaniel Smith and Scottish secretary mother Margaret Hutton.

READ MORE: James Earl Jones, Beloved ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Lion King’ Star, Dies at 93

She moved to Oxford when she was four after her father got a job at Oxford university and later left school to study acting at the Oxford Playhouse.

Maggie was 17 when she was cast as Viola in Twelfth Night at the Oxford Playhouse and she went on to land roles in Cinderella, Rookery Nook, Cakes and Ale and The Government Inspector through the early 1950s at the same English theatre.

In her personal life, Maggie married actor Robert Stephens in June 1967, the father of her two sons, Chris and Toby.

They divorced in 1975, and Smith then tied the knot with playwright Beverley Cross, and they stayed together until his death in 1998.