🔗 Share this article Pauline Collins, Lead Actress of the Film Shirley Valentine, Dies at 85 The celebrated actress Pauline Collins, widely recognized for her role in the film Shirley Valentine, has passed away 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, according to her relatives. Collins will be best remembered for her depiction of unhappy homemaker Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's acclaimed film, based on the acclaimed theatrical production by Willy Russell. Her praised acting also earned her the Golden Globe for best actress as well as a BAFTA award. 'Charming and Witty' Collins starred opposite her husband John Alderton in Upstairs Downstairs, appearing from 1971 to 1973 Collins' family said in a statement: "She was a multifaceted person to so many people, portraying diverse characters in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on theater and film. Her illustrious career saw her play politicians, mothers and queens." "Her memory will endure as the iconic, strong-willed, vivacious and wise Shirley Valentine - a part she completely owned. We were familiar with all those parts of her because her charm was embedded in every single role." The statement continued she was their "loving mum, our wonderful grandma and great-grandmother", and her husband John Alderton's "life-long love" "Kind, humorous, giving, considerate, intelligent, she was constantly supportive," they said, thanking her carers, who cared for her with "dignity, compassion, and most of all love" "She could not have had a calmer departure. 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 contemplate a life without her" Broadway Role 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. 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 released later that year. Additional movie roles included the 1991 film City of Joy with Patrick Swayze, shot in Kolkata, which gained her international fame worldwide. A native of Exmouth in 1940, she grew up near the city of Liverpool and began her professional life as a teacher. Her passion for theater inspired her to pursue acting on a part-time basis, and in 1957 she appeared briefly as a nurse in the TV series Emergency Ward 10. She starred 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 secure a part on the show The Liver Birds. Her acting career that she encountered her spouse John Alderton. They wed in 1969 and had three children, Nicholas, Kate, and Richard. Alderton and Collins starred alongside each other 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.