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Pauline Collins, best known for her performance in the film Shirley Valentine, has passed away at the eighty-five years old.

Her passing was peaceful in her London care home, 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 unhappy homemaker Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's award-winning film, adapted from the acclaimed stage play by playwright Willy Russell.

Her praised acting won her the Golden Globe 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, portraying diverse characters in her career. A bright, sparky, witty presence on theater and film. Her distinguished work saw her play politicians, mothers and queens."

"She will always be remembered as the legendary, determined, lively, and insightful Shirley Valentine - a part she completely owned. We knew all those parts of her because her magic was contained in each one of them."

The statement continued she was their "loving mum, our beloved grandmother and great-grandmother", and her husband 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; radiant and energetic; and give us the space and privacy to reflect on life in her absence"

New York Theater

Collins first played the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theater 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 Broadway, New York, where she earned several awards including a esteemed Tony Award.

The movie adaptation was launched shortly after.

Her other films included the 1991 film City of Joy with Patrick Swayze, filmed in Calcutta, which brought her wider recognition worldwide.

Born in Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised 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 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 Theater.

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 met her husband John Alderton. They married 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 played a maid in ITV's popular series.