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Pauline Collins, best known for her performance in the film Shirley Valentine, has died at the eighty-five years old.

Her passing was peaceful in her London care home, surrounded by her family after living with Parkinson's for a number of years, as stated by her family.

Her legacy will be defined for her depiction of disgruntled housewife Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's acclaimed motion picture, adapted from the celebrated theatrical production by playwright Willy Russell.

Her praised acting won her the Golden Globe for outstanding actress along with a BAFTA award.

'Witty Presence'

Collins' family released a statement saying: "Pauline was so many things to so many people, portraying diverse characters in her life. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on theater and film. Her illustrious career 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 knew all those aspects of her personality because her magic was contained in each one of them."

The statement continued she was their "devoted mother, our wonderful grandma and great-grandmother", and actor John Alderton's "eternal partner"

"Kind, humorous, giving, considerate, intelligent, she was constantly supportive," they expressed, appreciating her caregivers, who cared for her with "respect, empathy, and above all affection"

"She experienced a more peaceful goodbye. We hope you will remember her at the peak of her career; radiant and energetic; and allow us privacy to contemplate a life without her"

Broadway Role

She initially performed the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theatre in the UK capital in 1988. She won that year's Olivier award for best actress.

A year later she reprised the role on the New York stage, where she picked up numerous prizes including a esteemed Tony Award.

The film of the same name was launched shortly after.

Additional movie roles included the 1991 film City of Joy with Patrick Swayze, shot in Kolkata, which brought her wider recognition globally.

A native of Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised near Liverpool and started out her career as a educator.

Her love of the stage inspired her to pursue acting on a side basis, and in 1957 she appeared briefly as a medical attendant in the TV series Emergency Ward 10.

She featured in the film Secrets of a Windmill Girl in 1966, playing a fictional dancer in a London adult entertainment venue, the Windmill Theater.

After a number of stage roles, she employed her regional dialect to land a role on The Liver Birds.

It was through acting that she encountered her spouse John Alderton. They married in 1969 and had a family of three, 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.