Enigmatic Maggie Smith Stays Away From The Golden Globes (Still Wins)

British screen icon Dame Maggie Smith did not attend the Golden Globes in Beverly Hills on Sunday (January 13, 2013) though fended off stiff competition to win Best Supporting Actress in a TV drama. Dame Maggie built on her 2012 Emmy Awards win by taking the prize for her critically acclaimed portrayal of Violet, the Dowager Countless in ITV's much-loved Downton Abbey. She was also nominated for Best Actress in the film category for the well-received Quartet.

Smith did not attend the Emmy Awards last year and is rarely spotted at awards' ceremonies despite her prestigious career. However, she did collect the Stratford Shakespeare Festival's Legacy Award from actor Christopher Plummer at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel back in September. At the Globes, Smith lost out to Jennifer Lawrence in the Best Actress (Comedy or Musical) category, though beat the likes of Hayden Panettiere and Sofia Vergara to the Best Supporting Actress gong for Downton Abbey.

It was a rather successful night for British stars, with Damian Lewis taking the Best Actor in a Television Drama award for Homeland. He beat Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston, Boardwalk Empire's Steve Buscemi, The Newsroom's Jeff Daniels and Mad Men's Jon Hamm in one of the evening's toughest-to-call categories. "I'd like to dedicate this to my mum, looking down on me bursting with pride telling everyone around her how well her son is doing in acting," Lewis said in his acceptance speech. It was a strong night for Homeland, which took Best Drama Series and saw its lead star Claire Danes win Best Actress.

Other big television winners included Lena Dunham and her show Girls (Best Comedy Actress, Best Comedy) and the HBO movie Game Change (Best Mini-series, Best Actress for Julianne Moore).