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Tributes paid to acting great Michael Gambon

Updated / Thursday, 28 Sep 2023 20:49
Tributes have been paid to Michael Gambon following the news of his death
Tributes have been paid to Michael Gambon following the news of his death

President Michael D Higgins has paid tribute to the acting great Michael Gambon following the news of his death at the age of 82, saying he was "one of the finest actors of his generation".

In a statement, Higgins said: "Michael Gambon, born in Dublin, was one of the finest actors of his generation. Having won recognition as an exceptional talent very early in his career, on stage, film, television and radio. More recently, a new generation of children and adults came to know him for his portrayal of Albus Dumbledore in the "Harry Potter" films.

"However, his was a talent delivered over six decades. As an actor he seemed boundless, be it through his work with Sir Laurence Oliver's National Theatre in London, to his performances at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford. His friendship with the late Peter O’Toole reflected a commitment to the importance of work on stage that they shared."

President Michael D Higgins pays tribute to Michael Gambon's stage work

He continued: "His achievements as an actor in several of Samuel Beckett’s plays, including at the Gate in Dublin was part of a career that included performances in the work of so many of the major playwrights of his time, including Harold Pinter.

"Sir Michael Gambon leaves a great body of work that will remain as a compelling legacy, and a reminder to all who appreciated his work, of all that he accomplished."

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar hailed Gambon as a great actor who "gave his all to every performance".

Referencing the Irish-born actor's roles as Albus Dumbledore, on the stage, and in The Singing Detective series, Mr Varadkar wrote: "Rest In Peace. A great actor.

"Whether performing in (Samuel) Beckett, or a Dennis Potter or Harry Potter, he gave his all to every performance."

Irish film and TV actress Fiona Shaw has said she will remember her Harry Potter co-star for being a "brilliant, magnificent trickster".

Michael Gambon: A Life in Pictures

Shaw, who played Petunia Dursley in the film franchise while Gambon played Professor Albus Dumbledore, told BBC Radio 4: "I will remember him because he was also a gun maker, he could make guns, he always said he could fool the V&A into believing that they were 18th-century guns.

"So I will think of him as a trickster, just brilliant, magnificent trickster, but with text, there was nothing like him, he could do anything."

Irish actor Fiona Shaw among those paying tribute to Michael Gambon

Shaw added: "He did once say to me in a car 'I know I go on a lot about this and that, but actually in the end, there is only acting'. I think he was always pretending that he didn’t take it seriously, but he took it profoundly seriously, I think."

JK Rowling, Rupert Grint and James Phelps are also among those who have paid tribute to Gambon, describing him as a "wonderful man" and an "outstanding actor".

Rowling, who wrote the Harry Potter book series on which the films were based, said she first saw Gambon perform in King Lear in 1982 and if someone had told her the late actor "would appear in anything I'd written, I’d have thought you were insane".

The author sent her condolences to his family and those who loved him as she recalled her experience of working with him on the Harry Potter films and in the BBC’s 2015 adaptation of her book The Casual Vacancy.

"Michael was a wonderful man in addition to being an outstanding actor, and I absolutely loved working with him, not only on Potter but also The Casual Vacancy."

Grint, who starred as Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter film franchise, remembered the "warmth and mischief" Gambon brought to the set.

"He captivated me as a kid and became a personal role model of mine for finding the fun and eccentricities in life. Sending all my love to his family, Rupert", he wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of the actor dressed in full Dumbledore regalia.

Phelps also paid tribute to his former colleague, saying Gambon was "on and off the camera, a legend" alongside a touching anecdote he posted about the late star on X (formerly Twitter).

Actress Joan Collins called Gambon a "great" and "wonderful" actor.

She worked with the late actor in BBC sitcom Mama's Back in 1993 where they played as a married couple.

In a post on Facebook, she wrote: "So sorry to hear of the death of the wonderful actor Michael Gambon.

"We played husband and wife in Ruby Wax’s pilot called 'Mama’s Back’.

"A great actor and great fun."

Eileen Atkins, who starred alongside Gambon in the revival of Samuel Beckett's All That Fall in 2012 has said there was something "very sweet" about the late actor.

The 89-year-old actress told BBC Radio 4: "He was a lot of fun. He was a great actor, but he always pretended he didn’t take it very seriously. Of course, he does really take it seriously.

"But presence on stage was amazing. He just had to walk on stage and he commanded the whole audience immediately. He was very lovely to play with, when he behaved. He behaved with me. Sometimes he really played tricks on stage."

Michael Gambon and Eileen Atkins in Samuel Beckett's All That Fall, October 2012

"There was something very sweet about him, this huge man who could look very frightening but there was something incredibly sweet inside Michael."

She later added: "I’ll always remember him hanging on my shoulder and those incredibly beautiful hands which he always placed on my shoulder so that the audience could see them.

"I will always remember that man."

Welsh singer Katherine Jenkins described Gambon as "the loveliest of legends".

Jenkins said he "couldn't have been kinder, calmer and more supportive" during her time on set in the Doctor Who Christmas special A Christmas Carol in 2010.

The singer, who portrayed Abigail, shared a photo of herself next to Gambon dressed as his character Kazran.

In a Facebook post, Jenkins said: "My dear Kazran! My first acting role was opposite Sir Michael Gambon in the Doctor Who Christmas Special.

"He couldn’t have been kinder, calmer and more supportive.

"Today we have lost the loveliest of legends."

Former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson said he was "so sad" to hear the news of Gambon's passing and said he was "such a tremendous guest".

Comedian David Baddiel described Gambon's theatre performance as "the best acting I've ever seen".

Irish Times film critic Donald Clarke praised Gambon as a "reasonable candidate for the best Irish and the best English actor of his generation".

Piers Morgan said Gambon was "a true acting great".

Warner Bros Ireland said Gambon brought "immeasurable joy to Harry Potter fans from all over the world with his humour, kindness and grace".

Empire Magazine praised Gambon as "a titan of stage and screen".

Additional reporting: Press Association

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