🔗 Share this article Pauline Collins, Lead Actress of the Film Shirley Valentine, Dies at Eighty-Five Years Old The celebrated actress Pauline Collins, best known for her performance in the film Shirley Valentine, has passed away at the age of 85. Her passing was peaceful in her London residence, surrounded by her loved ones after battling Parkinson's disease for several years, according to her family. Collins will be best remembered for her depiction of unhappy homemaker Shirley in the director's award-winning motion picture, adapted from the acclaimed stage play by playwright Willy Russell. Her praised acting won her the Golden Globe for outstanding actress as well as a Bafta. 'Witty Presence' She appeared with her husband John Alderton in the series Upstairs Downstairs, appearing from 1971 to 1973 Her relatives said in a statement: "Pauline was so many things to countless individuals, playing a variety of roles in her life. A bright, sparky, witty presence on stage and screen. Her illustrious career saw her portray leaders, parents, and royalty." "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 charm was embedded in each one of them." The statement continued she was their "devoted mother, our beloved grandmother and great-grandmother", and her husband John Alderton's "eternal partner" "Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was always there for us," they said, appreciating her caregivers, 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 height of her powers; radiant and energetic; and give us the space and privacy to reflect on life in her absence" Stage Success Collins first played the title role of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theater in London in 1988. She received that year's Olivier award for outstanding actress. A year later she reprised the role on the New York stage, where she earned several awards including a prestigious Tony award. The film of the same name was launched shortly after. Her other films included the 1991 film City of Joy with Patrick Swayze, shot in Kolkata, 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 educator. Her passion for theater inspired her to pursue acting on a side basis, and in 1957 she had a cameo role 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 Theatre. After a number of stage roles, she used her Liverpool accent to land a role on the show 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. The couple performed alongside each other in a number of television and film roles, such as Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she portrayed a servant in ITV's popular series.