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The celebrated actress Pauline Collins, best known for her performance in the movie Shirley Valentine, has passed away at the age of 85.

Her passing was peaceful in her London residence, in the company of her family after living with Parkinson's for several years, as stated by her family.

Collins will be best remembered for her depiction of disgruntled housewife Shirley in the director's acclaimed motion picture, adapted from the acclaimed stage play by Willy Russell.

Her critically acclaimed performance also earned her the Golden Globe Award for outstanding actress along with a BAFTA award.

'Charming and Witty'

Her relatives released a statement saying: "She was a multifaceted person to so many people, portraying diverse characters in her life. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on stage and screen. 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 were familiar with all those aspects of her personality because her charm was embedded in each one of them."

They added she was their "loving mum, our beloved grandmother and great-grandmother", and actor John Alderton's "life-long love"

"Kind, humorous, giving, considerate, intelligent, she was always there for us," they said, appreciating her caregivers, who cared for her with "dignity, compassion, and most of all love"

"She experienced a calmer departure. We hope you will remember her at the peak of her career; so joyful and full of energy; and give us the space and privacy to reflect on life in her absence"

Stage Success

Collins first played the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theater in the UK capital in 1988. She received that year's Olivier award for outstanding actress.

The following year she reprised the role on Broadway, New York, where she picked up numerous prizes including a esteemed Tony Award.

The movie adaptation was released later that year.

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

Born in Exmouth in 1940, she grew up 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 appeared briefly as a nurse in the Emergency Ward 10.

She starred in the film Secrets of a Windmill Girl in 1966, playing a fictional dancer in a London striptease nightclub, the Windmill Theatre.

Following several theater parts, she employed her regional dialect 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 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 the acclaimed ITV program.