Best known for his role as Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter franchise, Sir Michael Gambon has died at age 82. The actor appeared in numerous films over the course of his six decade long career, passing away on September 28th, 2023.
Gambon was an Irish immigrant, moving to London when he was young. He apprenticed as a toolmaker before making his acting debut in 1962 with the play “Othello”. He appeared in notable films such as “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”, “Gosford Park” and “The Singing Detective”.
The actor was the recipient of many awards throughout the course of his life, including BAFTA TV Awards and Rome International Movie Awards, also winning the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017 from the Irish Film and Television Awards. Gambon was knighted in 1998 to celebrate his contributions to entertainment.
A publicist for the recently deceased actor released a statement stating, “Beloved husband and father, Michael died peacefully in hospital with his wife Anne and son Fergus at his bedside, following a bout of pneumonia.
One notable story from Gambon’s run on the Harry Potter franchise is a prank he pulled on Daniel Radcliffe, where he placed a fart machine into Daniel Radcliffe’s sleeping bag. This occurred while shooting the sleeping bag scene from “The Prisoner of Azkaban”. Radcliffe said, in a statement to the Hollywood Reporter, “With the loss of Michael Gambon the world just became considerably less fun. Michael Gambon was one of the most brilliant, effortless actors I’ve ever had the privilege of working with, but despite his immense talent, the thing I will remember most about him is how much fun he had doing his job.”
