The real-life dame and on-screen dowager countess, who has died aged 89, earned fame in her 70s and 80s for blockbuster roles. But her early work at the National Theatre marked her out as a talent for the agesDame Maggie Smith’s trophy cabinet reflected her extraordinary achievements across theatre, film and television – and in the biggest arenas of British and US culture, from the BBC to Hollywood, the West End to Broadway. A measure of her versatility and durability is that, in the 1960s, she played nine major roles in the formative years of the National Theatre, but also, from the start of the 2000s, appeared in five series of Downton Abbey, the ITV Sunday night series that became one of the biggest popular hits of the new millennium.Her role in that show was Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, who lived in such a bubble of exclusive comfort that, in trademark one-liners, she would drawl in mystification, for example: “What is a ‘weekend’?” That acerbic superiority was a signature throughout Smith’s career, including the part that brought her first Academy award in 1970, against a shortlist also featuring Liza Minnelli and Jane Fonda, for the title role in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, adapted from Muriel Spark’s novel about a maverick, arrogant schoolteacher in Edinburgh. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2024-09-27 13:37:47 UTC ]
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Usborne has acquired a new standalone title by US author Sara Zarr. Fiction director Rebecca... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Neil Patrick Harris, multi-hyphenate entertainer, will release a memoir in 2014 about his career so far. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Razorbill, the teenage imprint of Penguin Children's, has done the first English language... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-09-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Many newspapers have tried ebooks as a new revenue stream, but the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s “In the Footsteps of Little Crow” stands out. Curt Brown’s extensively researched narrative of the 1862 U.S.-Dakota ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Author Zadie Smith has spoken out about the importance of libraries, saying she owes her "... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The success of 'Harry Potter, 'Twilight' and other has created a halo effect for the entire genre. And kids aren't the only ones doing it.For years, the book industry has been mired in debates about the plight of independent booksellers, the rise of Amazon and the fate of print as it struggles... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-08-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury is asking members of the public to star on the cover of a forthcoming novel. The... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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W H Smith has announced that it expects full-year results to be at the top end of market... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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One of the most eagerly awaited literary offerings this autumn is NW (Hamish Hamilton, September... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Bookseller has begun its second annual search for its Rising Stars, a listing of the industry... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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American science fiction writer Harry Harrison, best known for The Stainless Steel Rat and the book that inspired Charlton Heston's classic film Soylent Green, has died aged 87. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2012-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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E L James Fifty Shades trilogy has out-sold J K Rowling’s seven-book Harry Potter series on... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-08-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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W H Smith is to rebrand all 11 of its Gatwick Airport shops as London News Company stores, giving... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-07-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishing is getting a starring role at London’s Design Museum this week while its... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-07-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cornerstone has acquired the new novel by Robert Harris, with "The Ghost" director... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-07-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The publishers of The Anniston Star on Monday announced a series of changes to cut expenses while concentrating on digital growth, including the discontinuation of the Monday print edition of The Star and the Friday Escapes section. The changes com ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-07-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bertrams’ parent company Smiths News has bought Dutch-based academic books supplier... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-06-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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US pop star Katy Perry will become the latest celebrity to be depicted in the biography comic book Fame series, publisher Bluewater Productions says. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2012-06-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ian Rankin, Robert Harris and Val McDermid are on the longlist for this year's Theakstons Old... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-05-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Kobo is to join the ranks of physical and online booksellers licensed by Pottermore to sell Harry... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-05-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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