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

She died peacefully in her London residence, surrounded by her family after battling Parkinson's for several years, according to her family.

Collins will be best remembered for her portrayal of unhappy homemaker Shirley in the director's acclaimed motion picture, based on the acclaimed theatrical production by playwright Willy Russell.

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

'Sparkling Personality'

Collins' family said in a statement: "She was a multifaceted person to countless individuals, playing a variety of roles in her life. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on theater and film. Her distinguished work saw her play politicians, mothers and queens."

"Her memory will endure as the legendary, determined, lively, and insightful Shirley Valentine - a part she completely owned. We were familiar with 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 her husband John Alderton's "life-long love"

"Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was always there for us," they said, thanking her caregivers, who cared for 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 peak of her career; so joyful and full of energy; and allow us privacy to reflect on life in her absence"

New York Theater

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

The following year she reprised the role on Broadway, New York, where she picked up numerous prizes including a prestigious Tony award.

The movie adaptation was released later that year.

Additional movie roles included the 1991 film City of Joy with actor Patrick Swayze, shot in Kolkata, which brought her wider recognition worldwide.

Born in Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised near Liverpool and began her professional life as a educator.

Her passion for theater inspired her to pursue acting on a part-time basis, and in 1957 she had a cameo role as a nurse in the 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 used her Liverpool accent to secure a part on The Liver Birds.

Her acting career that she encountered her spouse John Alderton. They married in 1969 and had three children, their sons and daughter.

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