Pam Ayres was born in Stanford in the Vale, Berkshire in England. After leaving school she joined the Women's Royal Air Force, and it was there that she decided she wanted to be an entertainer. She began reading her verses at the local folk club in Oxfordshire, and this led to an invitation to read on the local BBC radio station in 1974. Her reading was rebroadcast nationally, and then broadcast again as one of the BBC's "Pick of the Year".
In 1975 Pam read on the talent search TV show Opportunity Knocks. This led to a wide variety of guest appearances on TV and radio shows. Since then she has published six books of poems, toured in a one woman stage show, briefly hosted her own TV show and performed her stage show for the Queen.
Pam Ayres' poetry is mostly concerned with the details of everyday life. The simple style and everyday subject matter make the poems accessible to almost everyone, and they have a charm and optimism that will probably make them enduring favourites. Her poem I Wish I’d Looked After me Teeth, was voted into the Top Ten of a BBC poll to find the Nation’s “100 Favourite Comic Poems”. In the UK Arts Council’s report on poetry Pam was identified as the fifth best-selling poet in Britain during 1998 and 1999.