 The daughter of show business parents, Carson was born in Pudsey, West Riding of Yorkshire.In her early British films, she performed under the name Jean Carson, but later changed her given name to "Jeannie" to avoid confusion with the similarly named American actress Jean Carson.Carson became an overnight star in "Love from Judy", a musical by Hugh Martin and Jack Gray, and produced by Emile Littler, which played at the Saville Theatre in London from 1952 to 1953.