Born Diana Fluck to middle-class parents in Swindon, Wiltshire, curvaceous
blonde actress Diana Dors was touted as Britain's answer to Marilyn
Monroe. The daughter of a railway clerk, Diana was a student at the
London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts and by the age of 15 had made
her uncredited film debut in The Shop at Sly Corner (1946). Signed as
a Rank starlet by J. Arthur Rank, she appeared as a troubled teenager
in David MacDonald’s Good-Time
Girl (1947). Promoted by Rank as a sex symbol, she was cast in various
low-budget drama and comedies, and despite proving her acting credentials
with effective dramatic performances in A
Kid for Two Farthings (1955) and J. Lee Thompson’s capital
punishment critique Yield to the Night (1956), she was usually seen
in sexy-siren supporting assignments.
When acting roles weren't forthcoming she toured the country with her
one woman cabaret act despite the fact she couldn't really sing and
certainly couldn’t dance. In the late 1960s, Diana continued to
be cast in worthwhile supporting roles but was increasing finding work
in the blossoming new medium of television. During the 70s she had notable
minor roles as the ex-wife of Peter Sellers in There's a Girl in My
Soup (1970), a frustrated housewife in Jerzy Skolimowski's Deep
End (1970), and an excellent character role in The
Amazing Mr. Blunden (1972). She retained her personal popularity
and became a tabloid favourite due to her turbulent private life but
was still prolific in television light entertainment throughout the
decade. Diana had also become increasingly involved in working for various
religious and charitable causes. She returned to screen acting in Joseph
Losey’s Steaming (1984) immediately prior to her death from ovarian cancer aged 52.
