Did you know
Known for her wit in both comedic and dramatic roles, she had an extensive career on stage and screen for over seven decades and was one of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actresses.
Notable Deaths on September 27
2024 — Maggie Smith
English actress (born 1934)
September 27 has 102 recorded notable deaths across history, from 765 to 2025. This focused page highlights 20 people with the strongest available profile context.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Notable Deaths
102 source records
765 – 2025
Today in history
Major events on September 27
See what else happened on this day in history.
- 1996 The Battle of Kabul ends in a Taliban victory; an Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is established. Source
- 1422 After the brief Gollub War, the Teutonic Knights sign the Treaty of Melno with Poland and Lithuania. Source
- 1941 The SS Patrick Henry is launched, becoming the first of more than 2,700 Liberty ships. Source
- 1941 World War II: The Greek National Liberation Front is established with Georgios Siantos as acting leader. Source
Did you know
Robert Montgomery appeared in a wide variety of roles, such as the weak-willed prisoner Kent in The Big House (1930), the psychotic Danny in Night Must Fall (1937), and Joe, the boxer mistakenly sent to Heaven in Here Comes Mr.
Did you know
Fields was known affectionately as Our Gracie and the Lancashire Lass and for never losing her strong, native Lancashire accent.
Did you know
Estelle Sylvia Pankhurst was an English feminist, socialist, activist and writer.
Did you know
H.D.'s career began in 1911 after she moved to London and co-founded the avant-garde Imagist group of poets with American expatriate poet and critic Ezra Pound.
More major people who died on September 27
Notable people are ranked by substantive profile depth and public notability.
1981
Robert Montgomery
American actor, singer, director, and producer (born 1904)
Robert Montgomery was an American actor, director, and producer. He began his acting career on the stage, but was soon hired by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM).
1979
Gracie Fields
English actress and singer (born 1898)
Dame Gracie Fields was a British actress, singer and comedian.
1960
Sylvia Pankhurst
English activist (born 1882)
Estelle Sylvia Pankhurst was an English feminist, socialist, activist and writer.
1961
H.D.
American poet, novelist, and memoirist (born 1886)
Hilda Doolittle was an American modernist poet, novelist, and memoirist who wrote under the name H.D. throughout her life.
1919
Adelina Patti
Italian-French opera singer (born 1843)
Adela Juana Maria Patti, commonly known as Adelina Patti, was a Spanish-Italian opera singer. At the height of her career, she was earning huge fees performing in the music capitals of Europe and America.
1998
Doak Walker
American football player (born 1927)
Ewell Doak Walker II was an American football player who was a halfback and kicker. He played college football for the SMU Mustangs, winning the Maxwell Award in 1947 and the Heisman Trophy in 1948.
1972
S. R. Ranganathan
Indian mathematician, librarian, and academic (born 1892)
Shiyali Ramamrita Ranganathan was an Indian librarian and mathematician. S. R.
1536
Felice della Rovere
illegitimate daughter of Pope Julius II (born 1483)
Felice della Rovere, also known as Madonna Felice, was the illegitimate daughter of Pope Julius II.
1832
Karl Christian Friedrich Krause
German philosopher and author (born 1781)
Karl (Carl) Christian Friedrich Krause was a German philosopher whose doctrines became known as Krausism.
1934
Ellen Willmott
English horticulturalist (born 1858)
Ellen Ann Willmott was an English horticulturist. She was an influential member of the Royal Horticultural Society, and a recipient of the first Victoria Medal of Honour, awarded to British horticulturists living in the…
2010
Balaji Sadasivan
Singaporean neurosurgeon and politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs for Singapore (born 1955)
Balaji Sadasivan was a Singaporean politician and neurosurgeon.
1985
Lloyd Nolan
American actor (born 1902)
Lloyd Benedict Nolan was an American stage, film and television actor who rose from a supporting player and B-movie lead early in his career to featured player status after creating the role of Captain Queeg in Herman…
1996
Mohammad Najibullah
Afghan physician and politician, seventh President of Afghanistan (born 1947)
Mohammad Najibullah Ahmadzai was an Afghan military officer and politician who served as the fifth president of Afghanistan from 1987 until his resignation in April 1992, shortly after the Afghan mujahideen's takeover…
1674
Robert Arnauld d'Andilly
French writer (born 1589)
Robert Arnauld d’Andilly was a French conseiller d’État, specialising in financial questions, in the court of Marie de' Medici.
1944
Aimee Semple McPherson
Canadian-American evangelist, founded the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel (born 1890)
Aimee Elizabeth Semple McPherson, also known as Sister Aimee or Sister, was a Canadian-born American Pentecostal evangelist and media celebrity in the 1920s and 1930s, famous for founding the Foursquare Church.
765
Pugu Huai'en
Chinese general during the Tang dynasty
Pugu Huai'en, formally the Prince of Da'ning (大寧王), was a general of the Chinese Tang dynasty of Tiele ancestry.
2025
Russell M. Nelson
17th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (born 1924)
Russell Marion Nelson Sr. was an American religious leader and surgeon who was the seventeenth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 2018 until his death in 2025.
2007
Dale Houston
American singer-songwriter (born 1940)
Dale & Grace was an American singing duo consisting of Dale Houston and Grace Broussard. They had two Billboard chart hits. The first was the No. 1 gold record "I'm Leaving It Up to You" in 1963.
2012
Herbert Lom
Czech-English actor (born 1917)
Herbert Charles Angelo Kuchačevič ze Schluderpacheru, known professionally as Herbert Lom, was a Czech-British actor with a career spanning over 60 years.