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Pauline Collins, widely recognized for her role in the movie Shirley Valentine, has died at the eighty-five years old.

She died peacefully in her London residence, in the company of her loved ones after battling Parkinson's for several years, according to her relatives.

Her legacy will be defined for her depiction of unhappy homemaker Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's award-winning film, based on the acclaimed stage play by Willy Russell.

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

'Charming and Witty'

Her relatives released a statement saying: "She was a multifaceted person to countless individuals, playing a variety of roles in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on theater and film. 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 role that she made all her own. We knew all those aspects of her personality because her magic was contained in each one of them."

The statement continued she was their "devoted mother, our wonderful grandma and great-grandmother", and actor John Alderton's "life-long love"

"Kind, humorous, giving, considerate, intelligent, she was constantly supportive," they said, appreciating her caregivers, who looked after 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; so joyful and full of energy; 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 the UK capital in 1988. She won that year's Olivier Award for best actress.

The following year she returned to the character 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 the 1991 film City of Joy with actor Patrick Swayze, filmed in Calcutta, which gained her international fame globally.

A native of Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised near Liverpool and started out her career as a educator.

Her passion for theater inspired her to pursue acting on a part-time basis, and in 1957 she appeared briefly as a nurse in the TV series Emergency Ward 10.

She starred in the film Secrets of a Windmill Girl in 1966, portraying an imaginary performer in a London striptease nightclub, the Windmill Theater.

After a number of stage roles, she used her Liverpool accent to land a role on 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.

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