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

She died peacefully in her London care home, in the company of her loved ones after living with Parkinson's disease for a number of years, as stated by her relatives.

Her legacy will be defined for her portrayal of disgruntled housewife Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's award-winning film, based on the acclaimed theatrical production by Willy Russell.

Her critically acclaimed performance won her the Golden Globe for best actress along with a BAFTA award.

'Witty Presence'

Her relatives said in a statement: "She was a multifaceted person to so many people, playing a variety of roles in her life. 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 parts of her because her magic was contained in every single role."

They added she was their "loving mum, our wonderful grandma and great-grandmother", and her husband John Alderton's "life-long love"

"Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was constantly supportive," they said, thanking her carers, who looked after her with "dignity, compassion, and most of all love"

"She experienced a more peaceful goodbye. We hope you will remember her at the height of her powers; radiant and energetic; and give us the space and privacy to contemplate a life without her"

Broadway Role

She initially performed the title role of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theater in the UK capital in 1988. She won that year's Olivier Award for outstanding actress.

A year later she reprised the role on Broadway, New York, where she picked up numerous prizes including a prestigious Tony award.

The film of the same name was launched shortly after.

Her other films included the 1991 film City of Joy with Patrick Swayze, filmed in Calcutta, which gained her international fame globally.

A native of Exmouth in 1940, she grew up near Liverpool and began her professional life as a educator.

Her passion for theater inspired her to pursue acting on a part-time basis, and in 1957 she appeared briefly as a nurse 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 Liver Birds.

Her acting career that she met her husband John Alderton. They wed in 1969 and had three children, Nicholas, Kate, and Richard.

The couple performed alongside each other in a variety of screen projects, such as Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she portrayed a servant in ITV's popular series.