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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Valuable books, including a £40,000 first edition of J K Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, have been stolen from a bookshop in Norfolk, according to news reports. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-01-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In the 20 years since Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone â the first novel in JK Rowling's global publishing phenomenon â was released, the bespectacled boy wizard has achieved many, many revolutionary things. Most importantly, he has transformed children's passion for reading â and... Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2018-01-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury will release a ‘house edition’ of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the second book in the Harry Potter series, in June. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-01-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The first book in the Harry Potter series is translated into Scots for the first time. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2017-11-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Niantic Labs, the creator of free-to-download augmented reality game Pokemon Go, is to launch a new game based on Harry Potter in conjunction with Warner Bros. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-11-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Magic is in the air at the British Library here — specifically the magical world of one of the most famous characters in modern literature, Harry Potter. “Harry Potter: A History of Magic,” a recently opened exhibition spotlighting rare books and artifacts that detail traditions of folklore and... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2017-10-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Acting children's editor and Harry Potter fan Caroline Carpenter gives her verdict on the British Library's new Harry Potter exhibition. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-10-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Unseen material from J K Rowling and Bloomsbury’s personal collections sit alongside artefacts from the British Library's archives in the new Harry Potter: A History of Magic exhibition, which opens today. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-10-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The British Library has revealed that its Harry Potter exhibition has sold more than 30,000 tickets - the highest number of advance tickets it has ever sold for an exhibition. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-10-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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While July sales last year were mightily padded by the release of 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,' which came out July 31, 2016, July 2017 saw no such blockbuster. Thanks in large part to this, July 2017 sales were down 1.9%, compared to the same time last year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-09-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The BBC will celebrate the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter with “rarely seen documents from J K Rowling’s archives, revealing her magical inspirations” in the run up to the British Library’s exhibition next month. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-09-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The screenings of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone" at Durham Cathedral has broken all of the city’s book festival records with 1,500 tickets selling out in one day. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-08-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As her wizarding world returns to the stage and screen, Rowling’s $95m pushes James Patterson into second place with $87mJK Rowling will need to reserve a particularly large vault at Gringotts bank after a bumper year for the Harry Potter novelist magicked her back to the No 1 spot on Forbes’... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2017-08-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jim Kay’s illustrated edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone will be available digitally through Amazon Kindle for the first time this September. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-07-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The first book in the Harry Potter series is set to be translated into Scots for the first time, with "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stane", marking the 80th translation of the publishing phenomenon. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-06-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The author said it was "wonderful" seeing the first Harry Potter book in the shops. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2017-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bookshops around the country are unveiling a host of magical events — including Quidditch Pong, Harry Potter Bingo and Horcrux hunts—to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the publication of J K Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Bloomsbury). Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nobody wants to be in the Harry Potter House Hufflepuff, Amazon made it official today, as it released fresh data about the UK’s buying habits of all things Potter. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-06-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury and Pottermore will publish two new books this autumn for the British Library exhibition “Harry Potter: A History of Magic”, opening on 20th October. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-06-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bookshops, libraries and schools are preparing to mark the 20th anniversary of the publication of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone with quizzes, events and an attempt to break a world record. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-06-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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