Biography

(Dame Margaret Natalie Cross), 1934–, English actress. Smith first appeared on stage in Twelfth Night (1952). With her precise, sometimes rapid-fire, articulation and her meticulous stagecraft, she is adept at both comedic and serious roles. Smith worked with the Old Vic Company and the National Theatre, giving notable performances in As You Like It, Richard II, The Rehearsal, and Private Lives. In 1989 she scored a personal triumph in London and New York in Lettice and Lovage. Among her films are Othello (1966), Travels with My Aunt (1973), A Room with a View (1985), and A Private Function (1985). She has won two Academy Awards, for The Prime of Miss Brodie (1969) and, ironically, in the role of a nominated actress on Academy Award night, in California Suite (1978). More recent performances in plays include Three Tall Women (1991) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1992); in films, The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (1991) and The Secret Garden (1993). She was created a dame commander, Order of the British Empire, in 1990.

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