Thompson started playing pool, aged 14, when a friend invited her into a pub for a game.

[4][5] Thompson won the 1993 European Eight-ball championship on her 24th birthday, retaining her title from the previous year.

[1] She reached the final of the WEPF World Eightball Championship in both 1994 and 1995, losing both times to Linda Leadbitter.

[7] At the 2012 WEPF World Eightball Championship, Thompson won 16 frames and lost only two whilst winning the title.

She continued to play exhibition matches to raise funds for Macmillan Cancer Support.