Damian Lewis Honors Late Wife Helen McCrory During His Return to the Stage

Helen McCrory died last April following her cancer battle. Earlier this week, her husband, actor Damian Lewis, returned to the stage for the first time since her passing and honored the late actress.

By Elyse Dupre Jan 28, 2022 1:43 PMTags
Watch: "Harry Potter's" Helen McCrory Dead at 52 After Cancer Battle

Helen McCrory's legacy lives on in those who knew her best, including husband Damian Lewis.

During a poetry reading in London on Jan. 25, the actor paid tribute to the late Harry Potter star.

Held at the Lyttelton Theatre, the event was called A Poet for Every Day of the Year and was dedicated to McCrory, who had participated in previous years. According to the British newspaper The Times, Lewis stood in front of the audience in what was his first stage appearance since McCrory's passing and told a story about John Dennis, an English poet, critic and dramatist from the 18th century who's been credited with originating the phrase "steal my thunder." 

But as Lewis reportedly put it, "One person whose thunder absolutely would not be stolen was Helen McCrory. You could try, but it wouldn't work."

Lewis wasn't the only actor in attendance. Simon Russell Beale, Fay Ripley, Danny Sapani and Lesley Sharp were also at the event, which was hosted by writer Allie Esiri. In addition, The Times reported that Helena Bonham Carter, a friend of McCrory's who'd appeared in the Harry Potter movies with her, was in the crowd.

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McCrory died last April after a battle with cancer. She was 52 years old. "She died as she lived. Fearlessly," Lewis, 50, shared in a note on Twitter at the time. "God we love her and know how lucky we are to have had her in our lives. She blazed so brightly. Go now, Little One, into the air, and thank you."

Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images

McCrory and Lewis wed in 2007 and welcomed two children together: Manon, 15, and Gulliver, 14. During her lifetime, McCrory acted in many roles, including Polly in Peaky Blinders and Narcissa Malfoy in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (parts one and two) and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

At one point in the Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts reunion, Jason Isaacs, who played Narcissa's husband Lucius Malfoy in the films, recalled working with McCrory and saying, "'I think I just met the best actress I've ever seen in my life.'"

Tom Felton, who portrayed Narcissa and Lucius' son Draco Malfoy, also honored the late actress. "She had taught me a lot," he said while tearing up. "She had this ability to show such empathy in her eyes. It was a real treat to work with her."

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