Nikki van der Zyl was born 27 April 1935 in Berlin. Her father was Rabbi Dr. Werner van der Zyl.
In January 2013, van der Zyl published her book, For Your Ears Only, which was translated into German for a 2015 release in Germany. In November 2013, an exhibition called "Night FLIGHT to Berlin" opened in the Museum Pankow in Berlin and ran until April 2014. The exhibition highlighted stages in van der Zyl's life from her childhood days to the Bond films and her work as a barrister and political correspondent in London.
On 20 September 2014, she was a special guest star at a 50th anniversary screening of Goldfinger in Braunschweig (Germany) where she was awarded an Honorary Membership in the James Bond Club Deutschland e.V. for her contribution to the James Bond film series.
