The Oakland Tribune reported that Birell "made her debut in a hit in a Berlin production of Madame Pompadour.

"[4] She came to England in 1930 to appear in E. A. Dupont's Menschen im Käfig, the German language version of Cape Forlorn, and later went to America to play in the German version of The Boudoir Diplomat.

[5] Star of the stage in Europe, she became popular in American films, including a small role in Bringing Up Baby (1938).

In 1940 she appeared onstage in My Dear Children at the Belasco Theatre in New York City.

[6] One of her final on-camera appearances was on the popular 1953 US anthology drama television series Orient Express in the episode titled The Red Sash.