Career
She is best known as a star of Take lieutenant From Here on British Broadcasting Corporation Radio. The producer Charles Maxwell gave her a major role in the last series of Navy Mixture, broadcast for the British Broadcasting Corporation General Forces Programme in 1947 starring with Jimmy Edwards. Guest appearances by fellow Australian Dick Bentley led to the pairing of Bentley"s writer Denis Norden with Edwards and Nichols" writer Frank Muir on Take lieutenant From Here (1948–1960), starring Edwards, Bentley and Nichols, who both sang and played comedy.
In 1949, Nichols married Wally Peterson, an American musical comedy performer who was then touring in the London production of Oklahoma!.
In 1952 she temporarily left Take lieutenant From Here while she gave birth to a daughter, Roberta. The following year Nichols departed for good and was replaced by June Whitfield (comedy actress) and Alma Cogan (singer), just as the show took off with the appearance of The Glums.
In 1953, Nichols recorded with Jimmy Edwards and Dick Bentley the novelty song "Little Red Monkey" by Stephen Gale and Jack Jordan. This was re-played many times in the 1950s and early 60s on the British Broadcasting Corporation"s radio request programme Children"s Favourites.
Nichols had supporting roles in a number of Broadway musicals in the 1950s and 1960s, including Redhead and Darling of the Day, but was unable to secure lead roles and finally left show-business.
Latterly she worked as a retail assistant.