As a London schoolgirl, Virginia developed her interest in acting, and after attending drama school she began taking roles in British television. She made her film debut in 1957 (a minor role in 'Happy Is the Bride', a British comedy), and then began switching between the theatre and the screen. She starred in the delightful fantasy/comedy '(Our) Virgin Island' (on the location of which she is depicted here) with John Cassevetes and Sidney Poitier. Virginia's final film was 'Interlude', released after her death, for which she posthumously received a National Board of Review Award and a BAFTA nomination. Following the birth of her second child, Maskell showed signs of post-natal depression (a condition that someone with zero paternal instinct, such as myself, cannot fully comprehend). After going missing, police discovered Virginia's car near her home and found her collapsed in the woods. Just 31, she was unable to recover from barbiturate overdose and exposure.