Susan Bickley was born in Liverpool, England, and studied music at The City University in London and at the Guildhall School where she won the Gold Medal for singers. She made her operatic debut in Monteverdi's Orfeo at the Maggio Musicale in Florence, singing the role of Prosperina. She has sung Baba the Turk (The Rake's Progress) and Ulrika (Un Ballo in Maschera) for Opera 80; Florence Pike (Albert Herring), Anna (The Electrification of the Soviet Union), Marcellina (Le nozze di Figaro), Kabanicha (Katya Kabanova), Kostelnicka (Jenufa), Elvira (Don Giovanni), and Nan (New Year) for Glyndebourne Touring Opera; Florence Pike, Marcellina, Kostelnicka, Hippolyta (A Midsummer Night's Dream) and Mrs Sedley (Peter Grimes) for Glyndebourne Festival Opera; Dorabella (Cosi fan tutte), Second Lady (Die Zauberflöte) and Andromache (King Priam) for English National Opera; Feodor (Boris Godunov) for the Royal Opera House.

Susan Bickley has a busy concert schedule with orchestras such as the London Symphony, The Philharmonia, London Philharmonic, Hallé, BBC Symphony, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, London Classical Players, London Sinfonietta, Sinfonia 21 (formerly the Docklands Sinfonietta), St. James's Baroque Players, Premiere Ensemble, Les Arts Florissants and the Ensemble Intercontemporain and has given recitals with the Allegri and Brodsky Quartets, The Songmakers' Almanac and Fretwork.