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The celebrated actress Pauline Collins, widely recognized 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 disease for several years, according to her relatives.

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 critically acclaimed performance won her the Golden Globe Award for best actress as well as a Bafta.

'Sparkling Personality'

Her relatives released a statement saying: "Pauline was so many things to so many people, playing a variety of roles in her life. A bright, sparky, witty presence on stage and screen. Her illustrious career saw her play politicians, mothers and queens."

"Her memory will endure 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 charm was embedded in every single role."

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

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

"She could not have had a calmer departure. We ask that you recall her at the height of her powers; so joyful and full of energy; and give us the space and privacy to reflect on life in her absence"

Stage Success

She initially performed the title role of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theatre in the UK capital in 1988. She received that year's Olivier Award for outstanding actress.

A year later she returned to the character on Broadway, New York, where she earned several awards including a prestigious 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 gained her international fame worldwide.

Born in Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised near the city of Liverpool and started out her career as a teacher.

Her love of the stage led her to take up 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, playing a fictional dancer in a London striptease nightclub, the Windmill Theatre.

After a number of stage roles, 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 wed in 1969 and had a family of three, their sons and daughter.

Alderton and Collins starred together in a number of television and film roles, such as Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she portrayed a servant in the acclaimed ITV program.