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Pauline Collins, widely recognized for her performance in the movie Shirley Valentine, has died at the age of 85.

Her passing was peaceful in her London care home, surrounded by her loved ones after battling Parkinson's for a number of years, as stated by her relatives.

Collins will be best remembered 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 also earned her the Golden Globe for outstanding actress as well as a BAFTA award.

'Charming and Witty'

Collins' family 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 illustrious career saw her play politicians, mothers and queens."

"She will always be remembered as the iconic, strong-willed, vivacious and wise Shirley Valentine - a part she completely owned. We were familiar with all those aspects of her personality because her magic was contained in every single role."

The statement continued she was their "devoted mother, our wonderful grandma and great-grandma", and actor 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 title role of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theater in London in 1988. She won that year's Olivier Award for best actress.

A year later she returned to the character on the New York stage, where she earned several awards 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 brought her wider recognition worldwide.

Born in Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised near the city of Liverpool and started out her career 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 TV series Emergency Ward 10.

She featured in the film Secrets of a Windmill Girl in 1966, portraying an imaginary performer in a London striptease nightclub, the Windmill Theater.

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

Her acting career that she encountered her spouse John Alderton. They married in 1969 and had a family of three, Nicholas, Kate, and Richard.

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