🔗 Share this article

Pauline Collins, widely recognized for her role in the movie Shirley Valentine, has passed away at the eighty-five years old.

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

Collins will be best remembered for her depiction of disgruntled housewife Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's acclaimed motion picture, adapted from the celebrated theatrical production by playwright Willy Russell.

Her critically acclaimed performance also earned her the Golden Globe for best actress along with a Bafta.

'Witty Presence'

Collins' family said in a statement: "Pauline was so many things to so many people, portraying diverse characters in her career. A bright, sparky, witty presence on stage and screen. Her illustrious career saw her play politicians, mothers and queens."

"She will always be remembered as the iconic, strong-willed, vivacious and wise Shirley Valentine - a role that she made all her own. We were familiar with all those aspects of her personality because her charm was embedded in each one of them."

The statement continued she was their "loving mum, our beloved grandmother and great-grandma", and her husband John Alderton's "life-long love"

"Warm, funny, generous, thoughtful, wise, she was constantly supportive," they expressed, appreciating her caregivers, who looked after her with "dignity, compassion, and most of all love"

"She could not have had a more peaceful goodbye. We hope you will remember her at the height of her powers; so joyful and full of energy; and allow us privacy to contemplate a life without her"

New York Theater

Collins first played the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theatre in London in 1988. She received 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 esteemed Tony Award.

The movie adaptation was released later that year.

Her other films included 1991's City of Joy with actor Patrick Swayze, filmed in Calcutta, which gained her international fame worldwide.

A native of Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised near the city of Liverpool and began her professional life 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 medical attendant 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 employed her regional dialect to secure a part on 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 ITV's popular series.