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

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

Collins will be best remembered for her portrayal of unhappy homemaker Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's award-winning motion picture, based on the celebrated stage play by playwright Willy Russell.

Her praised acting won her the Golden Globe for best actress along with a Bafta.

'Charming and Witty'

Her relatives released a statement saying: "She was a multifaceted person to so many people, playing a variety of roles in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on stage and screen. Her distinguished work saw her play politicians, mothers and queens."

"She will always be remembered as the legendary, determined, lively, and insightful Shirley Valentine - a part she completely owned. We knew all those aspects of her personality because her charm was embedded in each one of them."

The statement continued she was their "devoted mother, our beloved grandmother and great-grandmother", and her husband John Alderton's "life-long love"

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

"She could not have had a more peaceful goodbye. We hope you will remember her at the peak of her career; radiant and energetic; and give us the space and privacy to reflect on life in her absence"

Stage Success

Collins first played the title role of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theatre in the UK capital in 1988. She won that year's Olivier Award for outstanding actress.

The following year she reprised the role on the New York stage, where she picked up numerous prizes including a prestigious Tony award.

The film of the same name was launched shortly after.

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

Born in Exmouth in 1940, she grew up 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 starred in the film Secrets of a Windmill Girl in 1966, portraying an imaginary performer in a London adult entertainment venue, the Windmill Theater.

Following several theater parts, she used her Liverpool accent to land a role 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.

The couple performed alongside each other in a number of television and film roles, such as Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she played a maid in ITV's popular series.