LONDON (AP) — Michael Gambon, the Irish-born actor knighted for his illustrious profession on the stage and display and who went on to realize admiration from a brand new era of moviegoers along with his portrayal of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in six of the eight “Harry Potter” movies, has died. He was 82.
The actor died on Wednesday following “a bout of pneumonia,” his publicist, Clair Dobbs, mentioned Thursday.
“We’re devastated to announce the lack of Sir Michael Gambon. Beloved husband and father, Michael died peacefully in hospital along with his spouse Anne and son Fergus at his bedside,” his household mentioned in a press release.
Whereas the Potter position raised Gambon’s worldwide profile and located him an enormous viewers, he had lengthy been celebrated as one in every of Britain’s main actors. His work spanned TV, theater, movie and radio, and over the a long time he starred in dozens of films from “Gosford Park” and “The King’s Speech” to the animated household movie “Paddington.” He lately appeared within the Judy Garland biopic “Judy,” launched in 2019.
Gambon was knighted for his contribution to the leisure business in 1998.
The position of the a lot cherished Professor Dumbledore was initially performed by one other Irish-born actor, Richard Harris. When Harris died in 2002, after two of the movies within the franchise had been made, Gambon took over and performed the half from “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” by means of to “Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Half 2.”
He as soon as acknowledged not having learn any of J. Ok Rowling’s best-selling books, arguing that it was safer to observe the script relatively than be too influenced by the books. That didn’t forestall him from embodying the spirit of the highly effective wizard who fought towards evil to guard his college students.
Michael Gambon, from left, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint and Alan Rickman attend the premiere of “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince”, in New York, on July 9, 2009. (AP Picture/Peter Kramer, File)
Co-stars usually described Gambon as a mischievous, humorous man who was self-deprecating about his expertise. Actress Helen Mirren fondly remembered his “pure Irish humorousness — naughty however very, very humorous.”
Fiona Shaw, who performed Petunia Dursley within the “Harry Potter” collection, recalled Gambon telling her how central performing was to his life.
“He did as soon as say to me in a automotive ‘I do know I am going on loads about this and that, however really, in the long run, there may be solely performing’,” Shaw advised the BBC on Thursday. “I believe he was all the time pretending that he didn’t take it critically, however he took it profoundly critically.”
Irish President Michael D. Higgins paid tribute to Gambon’s “distinctive expertise,” praising him as “one of many most interesting actors of his era.”
Born in Dublin on Oct. 19, 1940, Gambon was raised in London and initially skilled as an engineer, following within the footsteps of his father. He didn’t have formal drama coaching, and was mentioned to have began work within the theater as a set builder. He made his theater debut in a manufacturing of “Othello” in Dublin.
In 1963 he acquired his first large break with a minor position in “Hamlet,” the Nationwide Theatre Firm’s opening manufacturing, below the directorship of the legendary Laurence Olivier.
Gambon quickly grew to become a distinguished stage actor and acquired important approval for his main efficiency in “Lifetime of Galileo,” directed by John Dexter. He was regularly nominated for awards and gained the Laurence Olivier Award 3 instances and the Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards twice.
A multi-talented actor, Gambon was additionally the recipient of 4 coveted British Academy of Movie and Tv Arts awards for his tv work.
He grew to become a family identify in Britain after his lead position within the 1986 BBC TV collection “The Singing Detective,” written by Dennis Potter and thought of a traditional of British tv drama. Gambon gained the BAFTA for finest actor for the position.
Gambon additionally gained Emmy nominations for more moderen tv work — as Mr. Woodhouse in a 2010 adaption of Jane Austen’s “Emma,” and as former U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson in 2002’s “Path to Conflict.”
Gambon was versatile as an actor however as soon as advised the BBC he most popular to play “villainous characters.” He performed gangster Eddie Temple within the British crime thriller “Layer Cake” — a evaluate of the movie by the New York Instances referred to Gambon as “reliably glorious” — and a Satanic crime boss in Peter Greenaway’s “The Cook dinner, The Thief, His Spouse and Her Lover.”
He additionally had an element as King George V within the 2010 drama movie “The King’s Speech.” In 2015 he returned to the works of J.Ok. Rowling, taking a number one position within the TV adaptation of her non-Potter ebook “The Informal Emptiness.”
“I completely cherished working with him,” Rowling posted on X, previously referred to as Twitter. “The primary time I ever laid eyes on him was in ‘King Lear’, in 1982, and for those who’d advised me then that sensible actor would seem in something I’d written, I’d have thought you had been insane.”
From AP’s archives: Michael Gambon on changing into his notable Harry Potter character “Albus Dumbledore.” The 82-year-old actor died Thursday following “a bout of pneumonia,” in response to his publicist.
Gambon retired from the stage in 2015 after struggling to recollect his strains in entrance of an viewers as a result of his advancing age. He as soon as advised the Sunday Instances Journal: “It’s a horrible factor to confess, however I can’t do it. It breaks my coronary heart.”
Gambon was all the time protecting when it got here to his non-public life. He married Anne Miller they usually had one son, Fergus. He later had two sons with set designer Philippa Hart.