Dame Maggie Smith didn’t hold back when discussing her role in hit TV drama Downtown Abbey.
The 89-year-old actress, who died today, admitted in 2015 that she had never seen a single episode of the show.
But eventually she got around to it after she had some more time.
When asked by CBS News if she had seen the series, she said, “No. But they gave me the box set.”
Downtown Abbey – set on a fictional estate in Yorkshire – was first broadcast in 2010 and would have its final episode five years later in December.
Dame Maggie Smith played the Dowager Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey
The actor – who was also a well-known face from the Harry Potter films – died peacefully in hospital early this morning, her sons said in a statement
The British star was known for prominent roles in Harry Potter and Downton Abbey, and her Academy Award-winning performance in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie
The final episode of Downton Abbey aired on ITV on Christmas Day and Downton producer Gareth Neame revealed that it was Maggie’s decision to quit that led to the end of the series.
“We could have easily gone for a seventh season, but if I had said, ‘We don’t have Maggie,’ it would have been a shadow of itself,” he told The Sun.
“We all feel very blessed. No one regrets quitting when we did.”
The actor – who was also a well-known face from the Harry Potter films – died in hospital early this morning, her sons said in a statement.
Her children, Widow Clicquot actor Chris Larkin, and Die Another Day star Toby Stephens announced this afternoon: ‘It is with great sadness that we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith. She passed away peacefully in hospital this morning, Friday 27 September.
‘She was an intensely private person and was ultimately with friends and family. She is survived by two sons and five loving grandchildren, devastated by the loss of their special mother and grandmother.
‘We would like to take this opportunity to thank the wonderful staff at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and continued 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.’