🔗 Share this article

Pauline Collins, best known for her performance in the movie Shirley Valentine, has died at the age of 85.

Her passing was peaceful in her London residence, in the company of her loved ones after battling Parkinson's disease for several years, as stated by her family.

Collins will be best remembered for her portrayal of unhappy homemaker Shirley in the director's award-winning motion picture, based on the acclaimed stage play by Willy Russell.

Her critically acclaimed performance won her the Golden Globe for best actress as well as a Bafta.

'Sparkling Personality'

Collins' family said in a statement: "She was a multifaceted person to countless individuals, portraying diverse characters in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on stage and screen. 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 every single role."

They added she was their "loving mum, our beloved grandmother and great-grandmother", and actor John Alderton's "life-long love"

"Kind, humorous, giving, considerate, intelligent, she was constantly supportive," they expressed, thanking her carers, who cared for her with "respect, empathy, and above all affection"

"She could not have had a more peaceful goodbye. We hope you will remember her at the peak of her career; so joyful and full of energy; and give us the space and privacy to reflect on life in her absence"

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.

A year later she returned to the character on the New York stage, where she earned several awards including a esteemed Tony Award.

The movie adaptation was launched shortly after.

Her other films included 1991's City of Joy with Patrick Swayze, shot in Kolkata, which gained her international fame globally.

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

Her passion for theater led her to take up acting on a side 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 striptease nightclub, the Windmill Theater.

After a number of stage roles, she used her Liverpool accent to secure a part on the show The Liver Birds.

It was through acting that she met her husband John Alderton. They wed in 1969 and had a family of three, Nicholas, Kate, and Richard.

The couple performed alongside each other in a variety of screen projects, such as the series Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she portrayed a servant in ITV's popular series.