Salem was born on January 22, 1944 in Bombay, India. She was educated at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. She started as an actress on stage and with guest appearances on television.
Her career began to develop at the turn of the 1970s and 1980s. It was then that she appeared in the series for the first time “Doctor Who”. Over the years, she played three different roles in it. The most famous was Professor Rachel Jensen in season 25 in 1988.
Salem also occasionally acted in films. She was a partner Sean Connery in “Never Say Never Again”, an unofficial (because it was created outside the Eon studio) film about the adventures of James Bond.
In the 1990s, the actress moved to the United States, where she appeared as a guest in popular series, including “ER”“Five of Them” and “Presidential Poker”.
Salem was the wife of British actor Michael O’Hagan from 1983. He died in 2017. The actress passed away on February 21, 2024 at the age of 80. The cause of her death was not given.