Book
Maggie Smith : a biography
Record details
- ISBN: 9781474601146
- ISBN: 1474601146
- ISBN: 1250081483 (hardback)
- ISBN: 9781250081483 (hardback)
- ISBN: 9781250081483 : HRD
- ISBN: 1250081483 : HRD
- ISBN: 9781250081483 (hardback)
- ISBN: 1250081483 (hardback)
- ISBN: 1474601146
- ISBN: 9781474601146
-
Physical Description:
print
xi, 353 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm - Edition: First U.S. edition.
- Publisher: New York : St. Martin's Press, [2015].
Content descriptions
| General Note: | Includes index. |
| Formatted Contents Note: | Preview: In the company of a secret star -- The flight from Ilford -- Schooling in Oxford accents -- Clown of town and gown -- New Revue and Old Vic -- West End calling, screen testing -- Surprises with Olivier at the National -- Romance with the new Lunts -- The prime of Miss Maggie Smith -- Prickly pain in Private lives -- Canada home and dry -- Salvation in Stratford, Stoppard and Virginia Woolf -- Best of British pork and Palin -- Millamant, Poliakoff and Poppy Cocteau -- A toast to the Bard with Levin and Lettice -- Alone without God -- Tales of ageing, innocence and experience -- Secrets and lies in Yorkshire and Italy -- Onstage with Albee, Bennett and Hare -- TV specials for the lady from Dubuque -- Goodbye Hollywood, hello British comedy -- Harry Potter and Downton Abbey -- Late flowering of marigolds around the van -- Overview: In old glory and new celebrity. |
| Summary, etc.: | "No one does glamour, severity, girlish charm or tight-lipped witticism better than Dame Maggie Smith. Michael Coveney's biography shines a light on the life and career of a truly remarkable performer, one whose stage and screen career spans six decades. From her days as a West End star of comedy and revue, Dame Maggie's path would cross with those of the greatest actors, playwrights and directors of the era. Whether stealing scenes from Richard Burton, answering back to Laurence Olivier, or playing opposite Judi Dench in Breath of Life, her career can be seen as a 'Who's Who' of British theatre. Her film and television career are just as starry. From the title character in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and the meddling chaperone in A Room With a View to the Harry Potter films in which she played Minerva McGonagall (as she put it 'Miss Jean Brodie in a wizard's hat') and the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel films in which she played the wise Muriel Donnelly, Smith has thrilled, engaged and made audiences laugh. As Violet Crawley, the formidable Dowager Countess of Downton Abbey she conquered millions more. Paradoxically she remains an enigmatic figure, rarely appearing in public. Michael Coveney's absorbing biography, written with the actress's blessing and drawing on personal archives, as well as interviews with immediate family and close friends, is a portrait of one of the greatest actors of our time"-- |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Smith, Maggie 1934- Actors Great Britain Biography |
| Genre: | Biographies. |
Available copies
- 19 of 19 copies available at Bibliomation.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 19 total copies.
Other Formats and Editions
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beacon Falls Public Library | B SMI COV (Text) | 33120000375425 | Adult Biography | Available | - |
| Bethel Public Library | BIO SMITH (Text) | 34030133669371 | Adult Biography | Available | - |
| Burnham Library - Bridgewater | B SMITH (Text) | 36937002140821 | Adult Biography | Available | - |
| C.H. Booth Library - Newtown | B SMITH, M. (Text) | 34014136916617 | Adult Biography | Available | - |
| David M. Hunt Library - Falls Village | B SMITH (Text) | 33180123738131 | Adult Biography | Available | - |
| Douglas Library of Hebron | B SMITH (Text) | 33400134699522 | Adult Biography | Available | - |
| Edith Wheeler Memorial Library - Monroe | 92 SMITH (MAGGIE) (Text) | 34026134307086 | Adult Biography | Available | - |
| Kent Library Association - Kent | B SMI (Text) | 33410130723986 | Adult Biography | Available | - |
| Kent Memorial Library - Suffield | 792.028092 SMITH (Text) | 32518133937477 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Mark Twain Library Association - Redding | 792.02 Cov (Text) | 33620128519465 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
Summary
Maggie Smith : A Biography
No one does glamour, severity, girlish charm or tight-lipped witticism better than Dame Maggie Smith, one of Britain's best-loved actors. This new biography shines the stage-lights on the life and work of a truly remarkable performer, one whose career spans six decades. From her days as a star of West End comedy and revue, Dame Maggie's path would cross with those of the greatest actors, playwrights and directors of the era. Whether stealing scenes from Richard Burton (by his own admission), answering back to Laurence Olivier, or impressing Ingmar Bergman, her career can be seen as a Who's Who of British theatre in the twentieth century. This book also covers her success in Hollywood, inaugurated by her first Oscar for her signature film, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie , as well as her subsequent departure to Canada for a prolific four-season run of leading theatre roles. Recently Dame Maggie has been as prominent on our screens as ever, with high-profile roles as Violet Crawley, the formidable Dowager Countess of Grantham, in the phenomenally successful television series Downton Abbey , and as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter film franchise: what she herself describes as 'Miss Jean Brodie in a wizard's hat'. Yet paradoxically she remains an enigmatic figure, rarely appearing in public and carefully guarding her considerable talent. Michael Coveney's absorbing biography, drawing on personal archives, interviews and encounters with the actress, as well as conversations with immediate family and dear friends, is therefore as close as it gets to seeing the real Maggie Smith.
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