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The celebrated actress Pauline Collins, best known for her role in the movie Shirley Valentine, has died at the eighty-five years old.

Her passing was peaceful in her London residence, surrounded by her family after battling Parkinson's disease for a number of years, as stated by her family.

Collins will be best remembered for her depiction of unhappy homemaker Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's award-winning motion picture, based on the acclaimed theatrical production by playwright Willy Russell.

Her critically acclaimed performance also earned her the Golden Globe Award for best actress along with a Bafta.

'Witty Presence'

Her relatives said in a statement: "She was a multifaceted person to countless individuals, portraying diverse characters in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on stage and screen. Her distinguished work saw her play politicians, mothers and queens."

"Her memory will endure as the legendary, determined, lively, and insightful Shirley Valentine - a part she completely owned. We were familiar with all those aspects of her personality because her charm was embedded in every single role."

The statement continued she was their "loving mum, our beloved grandmother and great-grandmother", and her husband John Alderton's "eternal partner"

"Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was constantly supportive," they expressed, appreciating her carers, who cared for her with "dignity, compassion, and most of all love"

"She could not have had a calmer departure. We hope you will remember her at the peak of her career; radiant and energetic; and give us the space and privacy to contemplate a life without her"

New York Theater

Collins first played the title role of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theatre in London in 1988. She received that year's Olivier Award for best actress.

A year later she returned to the character on Broadway, New York, where she earned several awards including a esteemed Tony Award.

The movie adaptation was launched shortly after.

Additional movie roles included 1991's City of Joy with actor Patrick Swayze, filmed in Calcutta, which gained her international fame globally.

Born in Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised near the city of Liverpool and began her professional life as a teacher.

Her love of the stage led her to take up acting on a part-time basis, and in 1957 she had a cameo role as a medical attendant in the Emergency Ward 10.

She starred in the film Secrets of a Windmill Girl in 1966, playing a fictional dancer in a London striptease nightclub, the Windmill Theatre.

Following several theater parts, she used her Liverpool accent to secure a part on the show The Liver Birds.

It was through acting that she encountered her spouse John Alderton. They wed in 1969 and had three children, Nicholas, Kate, and Richard.

Alderton and Collins starred together in a variety of screen projects, such as Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she played a maid in ITV's popular series.