It’s the other Maggie

Yes, it’s Britain’s other iconic Maggie, acting legend and double Oscar winner, Dame Maggie Smith. The striking new portrait was unveiled recently by the National Portrait Gallery and shows the actress, who plays the formidable Dowager Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey, in relaxed spirits.

Artist James Lloyd began the likeness in 2011 and has revealed that he was looking to create a portrait of ‘understated grandeur’ with his 6ft by 3ft canvas. ‘I was delighted to be asked by the National Portrait Gallery to paint Dame Maggie Smith,’ he said, ‘not only because this was an opportunity to have a third painting in the gallery’s collection, but also for the honour of trying to portray such a luminary of stage and film.’

He then goes on to say, ‘I learnt that Dame Maggie had been reluctant to have her portrait painted in the past, and at my first meeting with her, her opening words were, “Poor you.”