One of four sisters from a broken home, she was brought up for eight years at a convent orphanage in Nottingham.
Discovered as a waitress at the Lyons Corner House in Piccadilly and signed to a film contract by The Rank Organisation after winning the Lyons 'Miss Nippy' contest of 1949.
She operated an estate agency - the Joan Rice Bureau - letting accommodation in Maidenhead, Berkshire, in the 1970's.
Had two Labrador dogs, Jessie and Sheba.
Pert, dark-haired occasional leading lady in 1950's British films.
Interred at Plot 66, Braywick Cemetery, Maidenhead, Berkshire.
A heavy smoker she suffered from asthma and emphysema in the last years of her life.
Following the end of her film career she spent some years in provincial repertory theatre but retired completely from acting as she disliked being away from home for long periods.
Featured on the cover of "Life Magazine" (August 11th 1952) with the description "Robin Hood's New Girlfriend", a reference to her part as Maid Marion in The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952).