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

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

Her legacy will be defined for her depiction of unhappy homemaker Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's award-winning motion picture, adapted from the acclaimed theatrical production by playwright Willy Russell.

Her critically acclaimed performance won her the Golden Globe Award for outstanding actress as well as a BAFTA award.

'Charming and Witty'

Collins' family released a statement saying: "Pauline was so many things to countless individuals, playing a variety of roles in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on theater and film. Her distinguished work 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 charm was embedded in every single role."

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

"Kind, humorous, giving, considerate, intelligent, she was constantly supportive," they expressed, thanking her caregivers, who cared for her with "dignity, compassion, and most of all love"

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

Stage Success

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

A year later she returned to the character on Broadway, New York, where she earned several awards including a esteemed 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, shot in Kolkata, which gained her international fame 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 part-time 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, 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 Liver Birds.

Her acting career that she encountered her spouse John Alderton. They wed in 1969 and had a family of three, their sons and daughter.

Alderton and Collins starred together in a variety of screen projects, such as the series Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she portrayed a servant in the acclaimed ITV program.