Key was born in Bath, Somerset, and trained at the nearby Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.

[1] Her stage career included stints with the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company, alongside touring and fringe productions.

[2] Between 1970 and 1975 Key appeared in four horror films, as well as the sex comedy Percy and the historical drama Lady Caroline Lamb.

[3] Her only other cinema appearance came later in Nineteen Eighty-Four, although she also featured in several made-for-TV dramas, including the role of Charmian in the Jonathan Miller production of Antony and Cleopatra for the ambitious BBC Television Shakespeare project.

[4] Key became a familiar face on British television through many guest appearances in a wide variety of popular series ranging from crime and espionage through to comedy.