Background
Ventham was born in Brighton, the daughter of Gladys Frances (née Holtham) and Frederick Howard Ventham.
Ventham was born in Brighton, the daughter of Gladys Frances (née Holtham) and Frederick Howard Ventham.
She originally held aspirations of becoming an artist and attended art school for one year, working as a scenic painter for the Connaught Theatre during her school holidays.
She has also appeared in two episodes of The Saint alongside Roger Moore. In April 2014, People magazine featured her in its "Most Beautiful People in the World" edition lieutenant was her exposure to professional theatre that prompted her to leave art school and pursue a career in acting.
She trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama, along with Judi Dench, graduating in 1956.
Ventham"s first film role was in My Teenage Daughter (1956), with Anna Neagle and Sylvia Syms. She also appeared in Carry On Cleo (1964) and Carry On.
Up the Khyber (1968). She starred alongside Mark Burns in the mystery film, Death is a Woman (1966).
But probably her best known role was on television as Colonel
Virginia Lake, second in command to Commander Editor Straker (Editor Bishop) in the cult series unidentified flying object. Ventham"s numerous other television credits include regular roles in Heartbeat as Fiona Weston, Hetty Wainthropp Investigates as Margaret Balshaw, and The Rag Trade as Shirley. She also played a love interest for Arthur Daley in Minder, Susan"s mother in Coupling, and Deborah"s mother in Men Behaving Badly.
She appeared in the lead role in the 15-part British Broadcasting Corporation series The Lotus Eaters (1972-1973), opposite Ian Hendry, and made a guest appearance in Rutland Weekend.
She was in an episode of Danger Manitoba, and the series Patrick McGoohan did right after - the allegorical spy series The Prisoner, the sitcoms Executive Stress and Next of Kin, and the sketch show The Two Ronnies. She has appeared in Doctor Who on three occasions over three decades: as Jean Rock in The Faceless Ones (1967), as Thea Ransome in Image of the Fendahl (1977) and as Faroon in Time and the Rani (1987).
Her appearance in Image of the Fendahl was opposite Denis Lill. Ventham and Lill would later play Pamela and Alan Parry in the sitcom Only Fools and Horses.
Ventham appeared in Holby City as Myrtle McKee, a hospital patient who leads a double life.