Elisabeth Sladen

Elisabeth Sladen (born February 1, 1948, Liverpool, England) English actress best known for her work as the character Sarah Jane Smith on the television series Doctor Who. She appeared as a regular on Doctor Who with both Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker.

Later career

Sladen returned to Liverpool with her husband and did a series of plays. Notable appearances following that include a two-year stint as a presenter for the children's program Stepping Stones, a role as a stand-up comic's spouse in Take My Wife, and a small part in the movie Silver Dream Racer as a bank secretary in 1980, her only motion picture appearance to date.

Related Topics:
Stepping Stones - Take My Wife - Silver Dream Racer - 1980

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The new decade also marked her first appearance at a Doctor Who convention, Who 1 in March 1980, along with Ian Marter, who had played companion Harry Sullivan on the programme. In 1981, Letts cast her as the female lead in the BBC Classics production of Gulliver in Lilliput.

Related Topics:
1980 - Ian Marter - Harry Sullivan - 1981

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New Doctor Who producer John Nathan-Turner had asked her to return to the series to ease the transition between Tom Baker and new Doctor Peter Davison. She declined the offer, but accepted his second offer of doing a pilot for a spin-off series called K-9 and Company, co-starring with K-9, the popular robot dog from Doctor Who. However, the pilot was not picked up for a series. Sladen would reprise the role of Sarah in 1983 for the 20th anniversary special The Five Doctors.

Related Topics:
John Nathan-Turner - Peter Davison - K-9 and Company - K-9 - 1983 - The Five Doctors

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She continued to appear in various advertisements and in another Letts production, Alice in Wonderland (playing the Dormouse), as well as attending conventions in the United States. After the birth of her daughter Sadie Miller in February 1985, Sladen went into semi-retirement, placing her family first, but still finding time to appear occasionally on television. Sladen's last on screen appearance as Sarah was in the 1993 charity special Dimensions in Time.

Related Topics:
United States - Sadie Miller - 1985 - 1993 - Dimensions in Time

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Sladen returned to the role of Sarah once again in several audio plays. Two of them were produced for BBC Radio, The Paradise of Death (Radio 5, 1993), and The Ghosts of N-Space (Radio 2, 1996), together with Pertwee as the Doctor and Nicholas Courtney as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. Big Finish Productions has also produced a series of Sarah Jane Smith audio adventures set in the present day, of which five have been released and a second series has been announced. Her daughter Sadie has also appeared in the Sarah Jane Smith audios.

Related Topics:
Audio play - BBC Radio - The Paradise of Death - Radio 5 - 1993 - The Ghosts of N-Space - Radio 2 - 1996 - Nicholas Courtney - Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart - Big Finish Productions

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On July 25 the BBC confirmed that Sladen would indeed be appearing as Sarah Jane Smith in the second series of the revived Doctor Who, featuring David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor. The BBC subsequently announced that John Leeson would also be returning as the voice of the robot dog K-9.

Related Topics:
July 25 - David Tennant - Tenth Doctor - John Leeson - K-9

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