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

She died peacefully in her London care home, surrounded by her family after battling Parkinson's disease for a number of years, according to her family.

Her legacy will be defined for her depiction of disgruntled housewife Shirley in the director's award-winning motion picture, based on the celebrated theatrical production by Willy Russell.

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

'Charming and Witty'

Collins' family released a statement saying: "Pauline was so many things to so many people, portraying diverse characters in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on theater and film. Her illustrious career saw her portray leaders, parents, and royalty."

"She will always be remembered as the legendary, determined, lively, and insightful Shirley Valentine - a role that she made all her own. We knew all those parts of her because her magic was contained in each one of them."

They added she was their "devoted mother, our beloved grandmother and great-grandma", and her husband John Alderton's "eternal partner"

"Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was always there for us," they said, thanking her caregivers, who looked after her with "respect, empathy, and above all affection"

"She could not have had a more peaceful goodbye. We ask that you recall her at the peak of her career; radiant and energetic; and allow us privacy to contemplate a life without her"

New York Theater

She initially performed the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theater in London in 1988. She won that year's Olivier award for outstanding actress.

A year later 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 released later that year.

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

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

Her passion for theater inspired her to pursue acting on a side basis, and in 1957 she had a cameo role as a medical attendant in the Emergency Ward 10.

She featured 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 secure a part on the show The Liver Birds.

Her acting career that she met her husband John Alderton. They married in 1969 and had a family of three, their sons and daughter.

The couple performed together in a number of television and film roles, such as Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she portrayed a servant in ITV's popular series.