LONDON — Pauline Collins, the versatile British actress who won a cult following for her portrayal on stage and screen of Shirley Valentine, a disillusioned middle-aged housewife finding excitement in Greece, died Thursday. She was 85.

In a statement, her family said Ms. Collins died peacefully at her care home in north London this week, having endured Parkinson’s for several years.

In a long career that spanned television, film and theater, Ms. Collins was adept at playing an array of roles, all of which she infused with her trademark authenticity that indisputably earned her the status of a “national sweetheart” in the U.K. She was awarded the Order of the British Empire, or OBE, in 2001 for services to drama.

“Pauline was so many things to so many people, playing a variety of roles i

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