Maria Margalida Castro Rueda (San Gil, Santander, November 19, 1941 - Bogotá, December 19, 2024) was a Colombian actress who stood out for her appearances in numerous Colombian soap operas, films and plays. In 2015 she was awarded the Víctor Nieto Lifetime Achievement Award. Margalida Castro grew up in the city of Bogotá. Coming from a family from Santander, her father was a renowned lawyer and her mother was a governess. She studied at the Colegio Departamental de la Merced where she deepened her knowledge of music. She entered the National University of Colombia to study architecture; she also studied flute and was part of the university orchestra. She never thought of becoming an actress until she was called to play the flute in a children's play. In that play, future actors and directors such as Pepe Sánchez (director), Vicky Hernández and Álvaro Ruiz Zúñiga were already participating. In these plays she would meet her future husband, the playwright Carlos Perozzo. From that moment on, Margalida Castro left her studies to devote herself full time to her acting career.5 She received a scholarship from the French government to study drama. Her debut in Colombian television was in 1967, in the series La tercera palabra, directed by Bernardo Romero Lozano. Since then she appeared in dozens of plays, Colombian soap operas and films. Margalida passed away on December 19, 2024 due to an aggressive cancer. The news was announced by Claudia Serrato, her manager, through her official Instagram account.
