Brenda Fricker on Feb. 16, 2012, in Dublin, Ireland. Phillip Massey/WireImage

Brenda Fricker, the Irish actor who won an Academy Award for 1989's "My Left Foot," played the Pigeon Lady in "Home Alone 2" and appeared in "A Time to Kill" and "So I Married an Axe Murderer," has died, her agent confirmed to CBS News on Friday. She was 81.

Fricker died Thursday night in Dublin after "a period of ill health," her agent, Phil Belfield, said in a statement to CBS News.

"We will never see her like again and the world is lesser for the lack of her," Belfield said. "I was honoured to know, love and work with her and she will always have a place in my heart and in the heart of so many film and TV fans the world over."

Born in Dublin, Fricker performed onstage in London and was part of the original cast of what's become known as the longest-running primetime medical drama in the world, the BBC's "Casualty," when it debuted in 1986.

Fricker won the Oscar for best supporting actress for her performance in 1989's "My Left Foot," about the Irish writer Christy Brown, who was born with cerebral palsy and only had control over his left foot. Fricker played Brown's mother opposite Daniel Day-Lewis, who won the Academy Award for best actor for his portrayal of Brown.

Fricker's victory in Hollywood marked the first time an Irish woman won an Oscar.

In reaction to her death, Ireland's deputy prime minister, Simon Harris, hailed Fricker's contributions to the country.

"She truly was among the greatest exports this country has ever produced and an ambassador for Irish talent on the world stage,'' he said. "Quite simply, we will never see the like of her ever again."

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