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Pauline Collins, widely recognized for her performance in the film Shirley Valentine, has died at the age of 85.

Her passing was peaceful in her London care home, in the company of her loved ones after living with Parkinson's disease for several years, according to her family.

Collins will be best remembered for her portrayal of unhappy homemaker Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's award-winning motion picture, adapted from the acclaimed theatrical production by playwright Willy Russell.

Her praised acting won her the Golden Globe Award for best actress along with a BAFTA award.

'Witty Presence'

Collins' family said in a statement: "Pauline was so many things to countless individuals, playing a variety of roles in her career. A bright, sparky, witty presence on stage and screen. Her distinguished work saw her play politicians, mothers and queens."

"She will always be remembered as the iconic, strong-willed, vivacious and wise 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 actor John Alderton's "life-long love"

"Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was always there for us," they expressed, thanking her caregivers, who looked after her with "dignity, compassion, and most of all love"

"She experienced a calmer departure. We ask that you recall her at the height of her powers; so joyful and full of energy; and allow us privacy to reflect on life in her absence"

Broadway Role

Collins first played the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theater in London in 1988. She won that year's Olivier award for best actress.

A year later she reprised the role on the New York stage, where she picked up numerous prizes 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 gained her international fame worldwide.

Born in Exmouth in 1940, she grew up near Liverpool and started out her career as a educator.

Her passion for theater led her to take up acting on a side 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, portraying an imaginary performer in a London adult entertainment venue, the Windmill Theatre.

Following several theater parts, she employed her regional dialect to secure a part on The Liver Birds.

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

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