The celebrated actress Pauline Collins, widely recognized for her performance in the film Shirley Valentine, has died at the eighty-five years old.
She died peacefully in her London care home, in the company of her family after living with Parkinson's for several years, according to her relatives.
Collins will be best remembered for her depiction of unhappy homemaker Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's acclaimed motion picture, based on the acclaimed stage play by playwright Willy Russell.
Her critically acclaimed performance won her the Golden Globe Award for best actress as well as a Bafta.
Her relatives said in a statement: "Pauline was so many things to so many people, playing a variety of roles in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on stage and screen. Her illustrious career saw her portray leaders, parents, and royalty."
"She will always be remembered as the iconic, strong-willed, vivacious and wise Shirley Valentine - a role that she made all her own. 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-grandmother", and actor John Alderton's "eternal partner"
"Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was always there for us," they said, thanking her carers, who cared for her with "respect, empathy, and above all affection"
"She could not have had a calmer departure. We hope you will remember her at the peak of her career; so joyful and full of energy; and allow us privacy to contemplate a life without her"
Collins first played the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theater in the UK capital in 1988. She won that year's Olivier Award for best actress.
The following year she reprised the role on the New York stage, where she earned several awards including a esteemed Tony Award.
The film of the same name was released later that year.
Her other films included 1991's City of Joy with actor Patrick Swayze, shot in Kolkata, which gained her international fame globally.
Born in Exmouth in 1940, she grew up near Liverpool and began her professional life as a teacher.
Her passion for theater led her to take up acting on a side basis, and in 1957 she had a cameo role as a medical attendant in the TV series Emergency Ward 10.
She starred in the film Secrets of a Windmill Girl in 1966, playing a fictional dancer in a London adult entertainment venue, the Windmill Theatre.
After a number of stage roles, she used her Liverpool accent to secure a part on The Liver Birds.
It was through acting that she met her husband John Alderton. They married in 1969 and had a family of three, their sons and daughter.
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.
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