She appeared in films, frequently on the American stage and on US TV as well as in Irish productions.

[1] In 1970 Dowling was part of the company at the Abbey Theatre, where she appeared in The Becauseway (1970) and Rites (1973).

[5][6] She established an ongoing presence at the Miniature Theatre of Chester in Massachusetts, often working with her father as director or co-star.

[8] In 2004, she appeared in Isobel Mahon's So Long, Sleeping Beauty, and in 2007, in The Gravity of Honey, in Dear Liar[9] and in Is Life Worth It?

[11] American television credits included roles in Murder She Wrote, Crossing Jordan, Days of our Lives, Star Trek: Voyager and ER.