Muriel was born in Lewisham, south-east London, to Boris Pavlov, a Russian émigré and salesman, and his French wife Germaine.

[4] This was followed by a role as a young girl in Dodie Smith's Dear Octopus (1938), with John Gielgud and Marie Tempest at the Queen's theatre, London.

Pavlow's film roles include Maria, the young Maltese woman, in Malta Story (1953),[6] with Alec Guinness; Joy, the girlfriend of Simon Sparrow, in Doctor in the House (1954) and Thelma Bader, the wife of the fighter pilot Douglas Bader (played by Kenneth More) in Reach for the Sky (1956).

[7] Other plays included her Critics' Choice portrayal of Miss Marple at the Vaudeville and Murder in the Vicarage at the Fortune Theatre in 1979.

Another notable appearance was her quietly dignified portrayal of Madame de Rosemond in 'Les Liaisons Dangereuses' at the English Theatre of Vienna in 2003.

She appeared in the original House of Cards political trilogy ("The Final Cut", 1995) lobbying the Prime Minister as an Age Concern campaigner, the serial Belonging (2004), starring Brenda Blethyn and was interviewed for the documentary series on BBC Two, British Film Forever.

She had read Paul Brickhill's biography of aviation hero Douglas Bader and had pursued the role of his wife Thelma.