Real Name: Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock
Other aliases: (former) Captain Britain II, Lady Mandarin
Identity: Secret
Height: (both bodies) 5'11"
Weight: (both bodies) 155 lbs.
Eyes: (original body) Violet, (current body) Blue
Hair: (original body) Light Violet, (current body) Black (dyed purple)
Other distinguishing features: Red tattoo over her left eye
Occupation: (current) Adventurer, (former) Fashion model, operative for S.T.R.I.K.E. Psi Division, (as Lady Mandarin) Assassin
Place of birth: Braddock Manor, England
Known relatives: James Braddock, Sr. (father, deceased), Elizabeth Braddock (mother, deceased), Brian Braddock (Captain Britain, brother), James "Jamie" Braddock, Jr. (brother)
Base of operations: The Xavier Institute, Salem Center, Westchester County, New York State, (former) Braddock Manor, England; X-Men headquarters, Australian outback
Group affiliation: X-Men, (former) S.T.R.I.K.E. Psi Division (British division of S.H.I.E.L.D.)
First appearance: (U. K.) CAPTAIN BRITAIN (Vol. 1) #8, (U. S.) NEW MUTANTS ANNUAL #2

Strength level: Psylocke possesses the normal human strength of a woman of her age, height, and build who engages in intensive regular exercise.

Mutant Powers: Psylocke possessed many telepathic abilities, enabling her to read minds, communicate mentally with others over long distances, stun the minds of others with "mental bolts," control the minds of others, and create illusions in the minds of others. Psylocke can intensely focus her psionic powers into her "psychic knife," with which she can stun or kill an adversary. Recently, has since taken on the telekinetic abilities of Jean Grey, aka Phoenix. She has yet to master her new powers.

Other abilities: Psylocke is highly skilled in Far Eastern martial arts.

History: Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock is the daughter of Dr. James Braddock, who was once a denizen of Otherworld, an other-dimensional realm. A being who called himself Merlin (but who may not actually be the wizard of Arthurian legend) sent Braddock to Earth to father the champion who would be known as Captain Britain.

Living in England, Dr. Braddock became one of the United Kingdom's leading research scientists. He married a woman named Elizabeth and they bought the mansion they renamed Braddock Manor. There Dr. Braddock created a highly advanced computer complex called Mastermind (which is not to be confused with the two mutants of the same name).

Dr. and Mrs. Braddock's three children, the eldest, Jamie, and the twins, Brian and Elizabeth (nicknamed "Betsy"), inherited genes from their father that endowed them with superhuman powers. The children's powers, however, remained latent for many years.

Dr. and Mrs. Braddock were killed in an explosion in Dr. Braddock's laboratory at Braddock Manor that was caused by the malfunctioning computer Mastermind.

Brian Braddock eventually became the costumed champion known as Captain Britain. Betsy developed the psychic ability which she used in the service of S.T.R.I.K.E., a British division of the international law enforcement agency S.H.I.E.L.D. Betsy also developed a highly successful career as a fashion model. She knew of Brian's double identity, and the two siblings took up residence in Braddock Manor.

Members of a British government agency called R.C.X., knowing that Brian Braddock was Captain Britain, attempted to recruit him to work with them. Refusing to be exploited by the government, Brian Braddock gave up the role of Captain Britain. The R.C.X. agents then persuaded Betsy to become the new Captain Britain, working with them. Betsy used a costume taken from an otherdimensional counterpart of Brian, which magnified her strength to superhuman levels when she wore it and enabled her to fly. Another other-dimensional hero, Captain UK, trained Betsy to become a crimefighter, and the two acted as partners on missions together for many weeks.

Finally, Betsy launched her solo career as the new Captain Britain, which came to a quick end when she went into battle against two of the original Captain Britain's arch foes, the Vixen and Slaymaster. Wearing a battle suit that amplified his own strength, Slaymaster savagely beat Betsy nearly to death and blinded her. Sensing her telepathic cries of agony, Brian Braddock rushed to his sister's rescue and fought and killed Slaymaster. Realizing he could not forsake his responsibilities, Brian resumed his role as Captain Britain.

Betsy went to Switzerland to recuperate. While there she was taken prisoner by the other-dimensional creature known as Mojo (see Mojo). Mojo took control of Betsy and gave her new, artificial eyes, thereby restoring her sight. Betsy was rescued through the intervention of the New Mutants, a team of adolescent mutants, under the tutilage of Prof. Xavier (to become the "new X-Men"). Having regained her free will, Betsy chose to remain at the New Mutants' home, Professor Charles Xavier's mansion in Westchester County, New York, which also served as the secret headquarters of the mutant adventurers called the X-Men.

Betsy proved her courage to the X-Men by resisting the attack of their enemy, Sabretooth when he broke into the mansion (see Sabretooth). As a result she was accepted into the ranks of the X-Men, becoming a costumed adventurer once more under the code name Psylocke.

Later, Psylocke was captured by the crimelord Matsu'o Tsurayaba. Seeking to save the life of his lover, the female assassin Kwannon, Tsurayaba oversaw a process through which the minds of Kwannon and the X-Man Psylocke switched bodies. In the process Kwannon's mind melded with that of Psylocke, endowing each of them with the same memories and telepathic abilities. Tsurayaba brainwashed Psylocke and turned her over to one of Earth's most dangerous men, the Mandarin. Under the name of Lady Mandarin (see right), Psylocke briefly served the Mandarin, but ultimately Psylocke regained her free will and returned to the X-Men.

Later Kwannon, in Psylocke's body, became an ally of the X-Men, calling herself Revanche. For a time there was confusion among the X-Men as to who was the "real" Betsy Braddock. Finally, Revanche learned that she was dying from the Legacy Virus and had Tsurayaba kill her. Thus Betsy's original body died, but she lived on as Psylocke in Kwannon's original body.

After a time, Psylocke and her fellow X-Man, Angel, fell in love (see Angel). Psylocke was nearly killed by Sabretooth (see left) , but was healed by magical forces from a mystical dimension called the Crimson Dawn. However, Kuragari, a sinister being who had conquered the Crimson Dawn, attempted to corrupt Psylocke's personality through a mystical ring. Kuragari planned to make Psylocke his queen and through her father a genetically powerful bloodline. However, together Angel and Psylocke thwarted Kuragari, and Psylocke's mind was now free of Kuragari's influence, but she had gained strange shadow teleportation powers and a red scar over her eye, from being exposed to the crimson dawn (bottom right). Along with these new powers came, an ehanced speed, agility, and a new dark, foreboding personality, that has yet to be explained

Later, Storm recieved a message for help from an old friend of hers by the name of Ainet. Ororo called on Betsy for her help, mostly because Jeanwas in Alaska, and there was no other telepath available. Psylocke takes Storm and her teammates, to Africa via her newly acquired Shadow porting. The group gets separated, and Psylocke and Wolverine fall together and take on the welcoming committee: a swarm of sand warriors. Wolverine, however, vanished in a cloud of sand, which left Betsy by herself. Storm finds a not-so-mentally functioning Ainet, and discovers the source of her village's problem....a local legend (the spider-god, Ananasi). The spider god smacks Storm aside and grabs Psylocke, but Betsy slips away easily, and challenges him in her astral armor (which bears an uncanny resemblance to her Lady Mandarin armor), and rips a big hole in Ananasi with her Psychic Katana. However, Ananasi starts to bait her, hitting some real touchy nerves with, comments about her being a nothing and being ignored. After Ananasi hits the final nerve, Psylocke finds that she has been tricked into plunging her psychic knife into one of the townspeople's thoughts, which triggers a radical psionic event: normals suffer from mild deja vu, nightmares, migraines and nosebleeds, while ALL the telepaths in the world were crippled, their psionic, telepathic and intuitive powers ripped from them (see left).

Ananasi is then revealed to be the Shadow King (the onmipotent telepath who caused Prof. X to be wheelchair bound). Now, with no telepaths to stop him (including the Prof.), Shadow King invokes complete and utter insanity in normal citizens of the world. Betsy herself is killed (again). The Crimson Dawn however, saves her, turning her into a shadow elemental on the Astral plane. Tempted by the darkness and evil surrounding her, she shoves the desire back and sends shadows to attack Ananasi's nexus point. Her subtle attack begins to entomb him on the astral plane. She wakes, leaving her powers on the psionic plane. Thus, Psylocke's psionic powers are rendered useless, for if she uses them, the Shadow King will be released. Psylocke returns to Angel, destraught over the loss of her powers. The two remain X-Men, but no longer live in the mansion and choose instead to remain in Warren's SoHo flat. Although no longer a telepath, Psylocke's personality still remains distant and her powers continue to evolve (thanks to the crimson dawn)...  Psylocke gains the ability of telekinesis, and it shows that it is not the use of her mind that would release the Shadow King, but the use of her Telepathy alone. Yet again, her powers grow.

Psylocke recently ended her relationship with Angel and became interested in the rookie X-Man, Thunderbird. She left the mansion along with Storm and several other teamates in search of Destiny's diaries - which supposedly foretell much of what the future holds for the Earth and it's inhabitants. She was recently slain in battle, when defending her team from the new X-Villian, Vargas. May she rest in peace...only time will tell if she will return yet again....