She made her film debut in the 1974 English horror movie Vampira (released as Old Dracula in America). In 1979, Shirriff made her American film debut with a role in the musical drama All That Jazz, which also featured Star Trek: The Next Generation guest star Ben Vereen and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine actor Wallace Shawn. That same year, she appeared in a made-for-television movie She's Dressed to Kill, along with fellow Star Trek alumni Joanna Cassidy, John Rubinstein, Clive Revill, and Jonathan Banks.