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

Her passing was peaceful in her London residence, surrounded by her family after living with Parkinson's for a number of years, according to her relatives.

Her legacy will be defined for her portrayal of disgruntled housewife Shirley in the director's award-winning film, adapted from the acclaimed stage play by Willy Russell.

Her praised acting won her the Golden Globe Award for best actress as well as a Bafta.

'Charming and Witty'

Her relatives said in a statement: "Pauline was so many things to so many people, portraying diverse characters in her career. 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 legendary, determined, lively, and insightful Shirley Valentine - a role that she made all her own. We were familiar with all those parts of her because her charm was embedded in each one of them."

They added she was their "loving mum, our beloved grandmother and great-grandma", and her husband John Alderton's "eternal partner"

"Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was always there for us," they expressed, thanking her carers, who cared for her with "respect, empathy, and above all affection"

"She could not have had a calmer departure. We ask that you recall her at the height of her powers; radiant and energetic; and allow us privacy to contemplate a life without her"

Broadway Role

Collins first played the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theatre in London in 1988. She received 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 prestigious Tony award.

The movie adaptation was launched shortly after.

Additional movie roles included 1991's City of Joy with Patrick Swayze, filmed in Calcutta, which gained her international fame worldwide.

A native of Exmouth in 1940, she grew up near 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 medical attendant 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 adult entertainment venue, the Windmill Theater.

Following several theater parts, she employed her regional dialect to land a role on the show The Liver Birds.

Her acting career that she met her husband John Alderton. They wed in 1969 and had three children, Nicholas, Kate, and Richard.

Alderton and Collins starred together in a variety of screen projects, such as the series Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she played a maid in ITV's popular series.