Ball was born in Blackpool, Lancashire, and grew up in Farnham Common, Buckinghamshire. She attended Holy Cross Convent School in Chalfont St. Peter, and also attended the Young Theatre at Beaconsfield where she trained as an Actress. Her first TV appearance was as a child in the studio audience of the 1980s Saturday morning children's show, Saturday Superstore, on which her father, Johnny Ball, was appearing as a guest.