Bland made her stage debut on tour in 1927 in The Constant Nymph. She then returned to London and understudied Tallulah Bankhead. In 1935 she appeared in the historical play Mary Tudor.Her interpretation of the role of Goneril in King Lear was considered extraordinary and sinister.However, another critic referred to her as the aptly named Joyce Bland, who spoke finely and looked beautiful as Desdemona in Othello at Stratford.