Family pays tribute to actor, who was a ‘bright, sparky, witty presence on stage and screen’
The Shirley Valentine actor Pauline Collins has died aged 85, her family has announced.
She died peacefully, surrounded by her family in her care home in Highgate, north London, having had Parkinson’s disease for several years, they said.
Collins starred in the first series of the BBC sitcom The Liver Birds but did not become a household name until landing a regular role in Upstairs, Downstairs in 1971. She married fellow actor John Alderton in 1969. Her role in the 1989 film Shirley Valentine earned her an Oscar nomination and a Bafta for best actress.
Her family said in a statement on Thursday: “Pauline was so many things to so many people, playing a variety of roles in her life. A bright, sparky, witty presence on stage and screen. Her illustrious career saw her play politicians, mothers and queens.
