Since commencing a professional acting career as a teenager, Sally has tended the sick in "Flying Doctors", modelled on "Bingles", sung and thrown up for "The D-Generation", solicited for customers on "Totally Full Frontal", been Kylie Minogue's schoolyard mate and Guy Pearce's model student in "Neighbours", been very annoyed with Nick Giannopoulous on "Acropolis Now!", had a knight in shining armour, a priest and water dumped over her in the name of the A-Z Homeguide series of commercials, sold cars for Nissan, sold beds for Sleepy Sam's, pretended she knew about engines for Repco Autos, demonstrated and was arrested on "Blue Heelers" and eventually got into bed with Steve Vizard on "Tonight Live" - after which, she left the country.

She then studied at The Actor's Institute, London, completing her Degree in Dramatic Art, and beginning her MA in Drama & Education, before going on to play roles in UK theatre, television and film, including the lead roles in the World Premier of "Annabel's Requiem", and the films "A Little Rain Must Fall" (invited to screen at the Cannes Film Festival and Venice Film Festival) and "Just Move Your Lips", as well as being the voice for the relaunch of UKGold TV. She also snogged a stranger in a phone box in the middle of Piccadilly Circus for "The Bookworm" and mourned at a grave for "Poetry Nation", amongst other roles for BBC television. A highlight was playing a decidedly male "King Duncan" in the all-female "Macbeth", described as "... an utterly convincing performance as the old Scottish King, belying the fact that McLean is not only young and a woman, but also Australian." - Time Out.

Upon her return to Australia, she interviewed cops on "Blue Heelers", played a primary school teacher with a social conscience in the film "Joining The Dots", been everybody's favourite girl-next-door in the award-winning play "Lovepuke" and sung and danced her way across the stage in the professional Australian premier of the off-Broadway musical comedy "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change". She then appeared on stage in the duel roles of "Josie/Mindy" for La Mama Theatre in the moved reading of "Young Turks", then the role of "Judith" (a young woman with MS) in the World Premier performance of "The Clairvoyant", followed by a woman who spends her days living under her house, in the Melbourne Fringe Festival production of "The Auxiliary", as well as leading roles in numerous short films including "Death of A Property Salesman", "Within", "Return", "Raising Props", "Brigit & Benny (a modern faerietale)", as well as the award-winning "Life of Death", "Ring of Roses", "Shattered Melodie" and "Without A Word".

Other work includes the role of "Angie Powers" in the BBC mini-series "Bootleg", opposite Tim Robertson, guest appearances on the popular Channel 9 comedy series, "Comedy Inc.", the role of "Catherine Gale" in the 2006 professional comedy/drama short film "Sleeper"" and revisiting the role of "Katherine" in the 2006 staging of "Chasing Pegasus (a play in ten chords)".

Recent work in 2008 includes the short film "Interchange" directed by Paul Anthony Nelson and running about the Royal Botanical Gardens as part of the "Romeo & Juliet" cast for the Australian Shakespeare Company.

Sally will next be seen on television screens in the role of "Miss Julie" in the series "Elephant Princess" in late 2008.