Born in Nottingham, England and trained at the Central Junior Television Workshop, Samantha's first television work came at the age of 13. Since then, she has played many minor TV roles in such dramas as "Cracker" (1993), "Peak Practice" (1993), "Boon" (1986), "Soldier Soldier" (1991) and "Medics" (1990), before reaching the big time with major roles in such TV movies and mini-series as "Band of Gold" (1995) (mini), Emma (1996) (TV), Jane Eyre (1997) (TV) and "The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling" (1997) (mini).