ROBERT Stephens left an indelible mark on the theatrical world, particularly through his work with the Royal National Theatre.
His marriage to actress Dame Maggie Smith linked their professional lives and led to Oscar-winning collaborations.
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Robert Stephens was a English actor known for his performances on stage and screen.
He was born on July 14, 1931, in Hastings, Sussex, England, and passed away on August 12, 1995.
Robert had a successful career in theatre, particularly with the Royal National Theatre, and he appeared in various films and television series throughout the 1960s and 1970s.
He is perhaps best known for his roles in films such as The Homecoming (1973) and The Elephant Man (1980).
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Married to Dame Maggie Smith
Robert married actress Dame Maggie Smith in 1967.
The pair blended business with pleasure by co-starring in the 1969 film The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, which earned Dame Maggie her first Oscar for Best Actress.
They reunited on screen for the 1972 film Travels with My Aunt, which also garnered her an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Their children
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During their marriage they had two sons together, Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens, both of whom pursued careers in acting.
Toby Stephens was born on April 21, 1969.
He has carved out a successful acting career, known for his role as the villain Gustav Graves in the James Bond film Die Another Day.
Toby made his film debut in Orlando, based on Virginia Woolf’s novel.
In 2024, he starred as Lionel in the Netflix series One Day and voiced the character of the gentleman ghost in Batman: Caped Crusader.
Toby is married to actress Anna-Louise Plowman, and they have three children: Elijah, Tallulah, and Kura.
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Chris Larkin was born on June 19, 1967 and has also pursued acting.
He appeared in the popular series Outlander, as well as in The Facility and Widow Clicquot.
In 2005 Chris married Victoria “Suki” Steadman and they have two children together.
Divorcing Dame Maggie Smith
In 1975, Dame Maggie and Robert divorced due to a combination of his mental health struggles and infidelity.
Robert’s attempted suicide in 1970 significantly impacted their marriage.
She reflected on this period in a 2004 interview with The Guardian, saying: “And after that it was just hopeless.
“We had two little boys. He didn’t understand.
” I sure as hell didn’t understand. It got worse and then it went on getting worse and worse.
“In the end, it was destroying everybody. And he was having so many affairs.”
Despite the difficulties in their relationship, Dame Maggie expressed gratitude for the family they created together, acknowledging, “I have two wonderful sons and he is the reason for that.”
Dame Maggie Smith remarried
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After her divorce from Robert Dame Maggie married Beverley Cross.
The two had a long and complicated relationship that began in 1952 when they met at Oxford University.
Beverley was smitten with her from the start, but at the time, he was married to someone else.
After his divorce, he proposed to Dame Maggie, but she ended up marrying Robert Stephens in 1967.
Following her divorce from Robert in 1975, Beverley and Dame Maggie finally married later that same year.
Beverley was an accomplished playwright and screenwriter, known for works like Jason and the Argonauts and the musical Half a Sixpence.
The couple did not have children together, but Beverley became a stepfather to Maggie’s two sons, Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens.
Beverley passed away on March 20, 1998, at the age of 66, due to an aneurysm.
His death deeply affected Maggie, who later described life without him as “pointless.”
Robert Stephens death
On August 12, 1995, Robert passed away due to complications from liver cancer.
His health had been declining for some time before his death.
