Brenda Fricker, the Irish actress who won an Academy Award for "My Left Foot" and became widely known to family audiences as the "pigeon lady" in "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York," has died at the age of 81. Her death marks the loss of one of Ireland's most celebrated screen performers, whose career spanned decades and combined critical acclaim with mainstream popularity.

Fricker died on Thursday night in Dublin after a period of declining health, according to a statement from her agent, Phil Belfield. Paying tribute, Belfield said "we will never see her like again and the world is lesser for the lack of her," adding that he was honoured to have known and worked with her and that she would remain in the hearts of film and television fans worldwide.