Elisabeth Sladen: Difference between revisions

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{{Infobox Actor
|image        = [[File:SJ&D.jpg|250px]]
|actor name  = Elisabeth Sladen
|role        = [[Sarah Jane Smith]]
|birth date  = [[1st February|1 February]] [[1948]] (age 61) <br> [[Liverpool]], [[England]]
|death date  =
|alias        = Elizabeth Sladen
|acting      = [[Doctor Who]] <br> [[The Sarah Jane Adventures]] <br> Z-Cars <br> Coronation Street <br> Silver Dream Racer <br> Peter Pan <br> Peak Pratice
|imdb_id      = nm0805207
}}
{{real world}}
{{real world}}
{{Infobox Person
|image      = LisSladen.jpg
|aka        = Elizabeth Sladen
|role      = [[Sarah Jane Smith]]
|birth date = [[1 February (people)|1 February]] [[1946 (people)|1946]]
|death date = [[19 April (people)|19 April]] [[2011 (people)|2011]]
|non dwu    = {{il|''[[Z-Cars]]''|''[[Coronation Street]]''|''Silver Dream Racer''|''[[Peter Pan]]''|''Peak Practice''}}
|imdb      = 0805207
|job title = Actor
|time = 1973-76, 1981, 1983, 1995, 2002, 2005-11|story=[[#Credits|See credits section]]
}}{{you may|Elisabeth Sladen (The Girl Who Loved Doctor Who)|n1=Elisabeth Sladen as referenced in the DWU}}
'''Elisabeth Clara Heath-Sladen''' ([[1 February (people)|1 February]] [[1946 (people)|1946]]<ref>[[DWDVDF 129]]</ref><ref>[[REF]]: ''[[Who-ology: The Official Miscellany]]''</ref>, [[Liverpool]], [[England]] – [[19 April (people)|19 April]] [[2011 (people)|2011]]<ref>[https://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/elisabeth-sladen.html Famous Birthdays]</ref>) played [[Sarah Jane Smith]]. She appeared as a regular on ''[[Doctor Who]]'' with both [[Jon Pertwee]] and [[Tom Baker]]. She also appeared in the [[A Girl's Best Friend (TV story)|pilot]] for the spin-off series, ''[[K9 and Company]]''. She later reprised her role as Sarah Jane on ''Doctor Who'' and in its spin-off series, ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]''.


[[Image:Elisabeth Sladen.jpg|right|thumb|Elisabeth Sladen in a 1991 agency publicity photo.]]
== Early career ==
'''Elisabeth Sladen''' (born [[1st February]] [[1948]], [[Liverpool]], [[England]]) played [[Sarah Jane Smith]]. She appeared as a regular on ''[[Doctor Who]]'' with both [[Jon Pertwee]] and [[Tom Baker]], and also appeared in the [[A Girl's Best Friend|pilot]] for the spin-off series, ''[[K-9 and Company]]''. Most recently, she reprised her role as Sarah Jane both on ''Doctor Who'' and in its spin-off series, ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]''.
An only child, Sladen developed an interest in performing at an early age, beginning dance lessons when she was five and dancing in one production with the Royal Ballet. She turned to acting and after finishing grammar school, attended drama school for two years.


==Early career==
She began work at the Liverpool Playhouse repertory company as an assistant stage manager. Her first stage appearance was as a corpse. She was scolded for giggling on stage, thanks to a young actor, [[Brian Miller (actor)|Brian Miller]], whispering the words, "Respiration nil, Aston Villa two" in her ear while he was playing a doctor. Sladen was so good as an ASM that she did not get many acting roles, a problem she solved by deliberately making mistakes. This got her told off again, but she started to get more on-stage roles.
An only child, Sladen developed an interest in performing at an early age, beginning dance lessons when she was five and dancing in one production with the Royal Ballet. She eventually turned to acting, and after finishing grammar school, attended drama school for two years.


Following this, she began work at the Liverpool Playhouse repertory company as an assistant stage manager. Her first stage appearance was as a corpse. However, she was scolded for giggling on stage, thanks to a young actor, [[Brian Miller]], whispering the words, "Respiration nil, Aston Villa two" in her ear while he was playing the doctor. Sladen was so good as an ASM that she did not get many acting roles, a problem she solved by deliberately making mistakes on several occasions. This got her told off again, but she started to get more on-stage roles.
Sladen moved into weekly repertory work, travelling around [[England]]. Sladen and Miller married on 8th June 1968, after moving to [[Manchester (city)|Manchester]], spending three years there. Her most notable role in this time was Desdemona in ''Othello'', her first appearance as a leading lady. She also got the odd part on Leeds Radio and Granada Television, appearing in 1970 as Anita Reynolds, barmaid of The Flying Horse, in six episodes of ''[[Coronation Street]]''.


Sladen eventually moved into weekly repertory work, traveling around to various locations in [[England]]. Sladen and Miller, now married, moved to [[Manchester]], spending three years there. She appeared in numerous roles, most notably as Desdemona in ''Othello'', her first appearance as a leading lady. She also got the odd part on Leeds Radio and Granada Television, eventually appearing as a barmaid in six episodes of the long-running soap opera ''[[Coronation Street]]''.
In 1972, Miller was appearing in a play that moved down to [[London]] and they moved along with it. Sladen found city life a change, but adapted. Her first television role in London was as a female terrorist in an episode of ''Doomwatch''. This was followed by guest roles in ''Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'' and ''Z-Cars''.


In [[1972]], Miller was appearing in a play that moved down to [[London]], and they had to move along with it. Sladen found city life a bit of an adjustment, but eventually adapted. Her first television role in London was as a female terrorist in an episode of ''Doomwatch''. This was followed by guest roles in ''Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'' and ''Z-Cars''.
== ''Doctor Who'' ==
In 1973, [[Katy Manning]], who was playing the [[Third Doctor]]'s assistant, [[Jo Grant]] opposite [[Jon Pertwee]], was leaving the series. Producer [[Barry Letts]] was growing increasingly desperate in his search for a replacement when ''Z-Cars'' producer Ron Craddock gave Sladen an enthusiastic recommendation. Sladen arrived at the audition not knowing it was for the new [[companion]] role and was amazed at Letts's thoroughness. She was introduced to Pertwee, whom she found intimidating. As she chatted with Letts and Pertwee, each gave the other a thumbs-up when her back was turned. She was offered and accepted the part of investigative journalist [[Sarah Jane Smith]].


==''Doctor Who''==
Sladen stayed on ''Doctor Who'' from the start of [[Season 11 (Doctor Who 1963)|season 11]] to midway through [[Season 14 (Doctor Who 1963)|season 14]]. She worked with Pertwee as the Third Doctor and [[Tom Baker]] as the [[Fourth Doctor]], receiving popular and critical acclaim. When she left the series in 1976, it made front page news — previously only a change of Doctors had received such attention. Bob Baker and Dave Martin intentionally left Sarah's departure scene in ''[[The Hand of Fear (TV story)|The Hand of Fear]]'' unwritten; Sladen and Tom Baker co-wrote it themselves. Sladen was sad to be leaving ''Doctor Who'' and cried on her last day.
In [[1973]], [[Katy Manning]], who was playing the [[Third Doctor]]'s assistant [[Jo Grant]] opposite [[Jon Pertwee]], was leaving the series. Producer [[Barry Letts]] was growing increasingly desperate in his search for a replacement when ''Z-Cars'' producer Ron Craddock gave Sladen an enthusiastic recommendation. Sladen arrived at the audition not knowing it was for the new [[companion]] role and was amazed at Letts's thoroughness. She was introduced to Pertwee, whom she found intimidating at the time. As she chatted with Letts and Pertwee, each time she turned to look at one of them the other would signal a thumbs-up. She was offered and accepted the part of investigative journalist [[Sarah Jane Smith]].


Sladen learned that Jon Pertwee was leaving as the Doctor in 1974. She continued to work with Tom Baker's Doctor until The Hand of Fear, which Sladen and Tom Baker co-wrote Sarah's departure scene themselves. She was sad to be leaving Doctor Who and cried on her last day on Doctor Who.
Sladen was heartbroken upon hearing of Jon Pertwee's death in 1996 and cried for weeks afterwards. In a later interview, Sladen stated that Pertwee was "her" Doctor. (BBC interview 1997)


Sladen stayed on ''Doctor Who'' from the start of [[Season 11]] to mid-way through [[Season 14]]. She worked with both Pertwee as the Third Doctor and [[Tom Baker]] as the [[Fourth Doctor]]. She received both popular and critical acclaim for her role as Sarah. When she left the series in [[1976]], it made front page news, where previously only a change of Doctors had received such attention. The Hand of Fear was Sladen's last story. Bob Baker and Dave Martin intentionally left Sarah's departue scene unwritten. Tom Baker and Lis Sladen wrote Sarah's departure scene themselves.
In October 2009, Sladen paid tribute to her boss and friend, Barry Letts, who had died that month, calling him one of her best friends.


In 1996, Jon Pertwee died and Sladen was very saddened and heartbroken when she learned the news of his death. Sladen cried for weeks after his death. In an interview, Sladen stated that Pertwee was her Doctor (BBC interview 1997.)
== 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 programme ''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. The new decade also marked her first appearance at a ''Doctor Who'' convention, Who 1, in March 1980 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''. She continued to appear in advertisements and in another Letts production, ''Alice in Wonderland'' (in which she played the Dormouse) and attended ''Doctor Who'' 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. She appeared only occasionally on television.


In October, 2009, Sladen paid tribute to her boss and friend, Barry Letts, who died that month. She called Letts one of her best friends.
== Reprising Sarah ==
Until ''[[School Reunion (TV story)|School Reunion]]'', Sladen's last television appearance as Sarah had been in the 1993 charity special ''[[Dimensions in Time (TV story)|Dimensions in Time]]''. 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, but accepted his second offer of a pilot for a spin-off series called ''[[K9 and Company]]'', co-starring with [[K9]], the popular [[robot]] dog from ''Doctor Who''. The pilot was not picked up for a series. Sladen would reprise the role of Sarah in 1983 for the twentieth anniversary special, ''[[The Five Doctors (TV story)|The Five Doctors]]''. In 1995 she played the role once again in the independent non-BBC film ''[[Downtime (home video)|Downtime]]'', her last on-screen appearance as the character until 2006.


==Later career==
[[File:SJ&D.jpg|left|thumb|Sladen with [[David Tennant]].]]
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. 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''.
Sladen played Sarah in many audio stories. Two were produced for [[BBC Radio]]: ''[[The Paradise of Death (audio story)|The Paradise of Death]]'' (1993), and ''[[The Ghosts of N-Space (audio story)|The Ghosts of N-Space]]'' (1996), with Pertwee as the Doctor and [[Nicholas Courtney]] as [[Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart|the Brigadier]]. In the early 2000s, Sladen reprised the role for a [[Big Finish Productions]] audio series, ''[[Sarah Jane Smith (audio series)|Sarah Jane Smith]]'', set in the present day. A week before her death, she and Tom Baker had signed a contract to begin recording a new series of Big Finish audio stories.<ref>http://www.tombakerofficial.com/lis-sladen/</ref>
She continued to appear in various advertisements and in another Letts production, ''Alice in Wonderland'' (in which she played the Dormouse), and attended ''Doctor Who'' 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 found time to appear occasionally on television.


==Reprising Sarah==
Sladen was one of several "classic series" cast and crew interviewed for ''[[Project Who]]'', a BBC Radio documentary on the revival of ''Doctor Who'' that aired in March 2005.
Until ''[[School Reunion]]'', Sladen's last television appearance as Sarah was in the [[1993]] charity special ''[[Dimensions in Time]]''. 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]]''. In [[1995]] she played the role once again in the independent non-BBC film ''[[Downtime]]'' which was her last on-screen appearance as the character until [[2006]].


Sladen also portrayed Sarah in numerous [[List of audio stories|audio dramas]]. Two of them were produced for [[BBC Radio]]: ''[[The Paradise of Death]]'' ([[1993]]), and ''[[The Ghosts of N-Space (audio drama)|The Ghosts of N-Space]]'' ([[1996]]), together with Pertwee as the Doctor and [[Nicholas Courtney]] as [[the Brigadier]]. In the early 2000s, Sladen reprised the role once again for a [[Big Finish Productions]] audio series, ''[[Sarah Jane Smith (audio series)|Sarah Jane Smith]]'', set in the present day.
On [[25 July (production)|25 July]] [[2005 (production)|2005]], the BBC confirmed that Sladen would appear as Sarah Jane Smith in [[Series 2 (Doctor Who 2005)|Series 2]] of the revived ''Doctor Who''. The BBC later announced that [[John Leeson]] would also be returning as the voice of the robot dog [[K9]]. The positive response to Sladen's appearance in the story, ''[[School Reunion (TV story)|School Reunion]]'', led to the BBC commissioning another attempt at a Sarah Jane spinoff series, this time created by [[Russell T Davies]]. ''[[Invasion of the Bane (TV story)|Invasion of the Bane]]'' (not technically a pilot, as the BBC had already agreed to a season), a special premiere episode of ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'', aired on 1 January 2007 and was followed by [[Series 1 (SJA)|a ten episode series]] later in the year. [[Series 2 (SJA)|Series 2]] aired in 2008, followed by [[Series 3 (SJA)|Series 3]] in 2009, and [[Series 4 (SJA)|Series 4]] in autumn 2010. A [[Series 5 (SJA)|fifth series]] was in production, with six episodes (half the series) completed when Sladen fell ill with cancer. Filming was immediately postponed but was expected to eventually resume. However, Sladen died in the early hours of [[19 April (people)|19 April]] [[2011 (people)|2011]]. Although some tabloids reported that production of ''SJA'' was to continue regardless, it was quickly announced filming would not resume and the three completed stories would air as a tribute. The three completed stories aired in October 2011, the last of them ending with a montage that gave a sense of closure to the show.


Sladen was one of several "original series" cast and crew who were interviewed for ''[[Project Who]]'', a BBC Radio documentary on the revival of ''Doctor Who'' that aired in March 2005.
Sladen also narrated a series of non-fiction behind-the-scenes audio releases from [[BBC Audio]] dubbed ''[[Doctor Who at the BBC (documentary series)|Doctor Who at the BBC]]''.


On [[25th July]] [[2005]], the BBC confirmed that Sladen would indeed be appearing as Sarah Jane Smith in [[Series 2 (Doctor Who)|Series 2]] of the revived ''Doctor Who''. The BBC subsequently announced that [[John Leeson]] would also be returning as the voice of the robot dog [[K-9]]. The episode, ''[[School Reunion]]'', served to finally cement the link between the revival and the original series. The postive response to Sladen's appearance led to the BBC commissioning another attempt at a Sarah Jane spinoff series, this time created by [[Russell T Davies]]. ''[[Invasion of the Bane]]'' (not technically a pilot, as the BBC had already agreed to a season), a special premiere episode of ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'', aired on [[1st January]] [[2007]] and was followed by [[Series 1 (The Sarah Jane Adventures)|a ten episode series]] later in the year. [[Series 2 (The Sarah Jane Adventures)|Series 2]] aired in 2008, followed by [[Series 3 (The Sarah Jane Adventures)|Series 3]] in the fall of 2009. A fourth and fifth series have been confirmed.
In July 2008, Sladen returned to ''Doctor Who'' once more for the two final episodes ''[[The Stolen Earth (TV story)|The Stolen Earth]]'' and ''[[Journey's End (TV story)|Journey's End]]''. In an interview with ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' in 2008, she said she expected her appearance in the two-parter to be her final appearance on the parent programme. Her prediction was wrong; she made one more appearance in ''[[The End of Time (TV story)|The End of Time, Part 2]]'', in which the [[Tenth Doctor]] briefly arrives at Sarah's house before his impending regeneration in order to say a silent goodbye to his old friend.


Sladen also narrates a series of non-fiction behind-the-scenes audio releases from [[BBC Audio]] dubbed ''[[Doctor Who at the BBC]]''.
While that may have been her last appearance on ''Doctor Who'', it wasn't the last time she had an adventure with the Doctor, as not one, but two Doctors appeared in ''The Sarah Jane Adventures''. [[David Tennant]] appeared as the [[Tenth Doctor]] in the third series episode ''[[The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith (TV story)|The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith]]'' and [[Matt Smith]] appeared as the [[Eleventh Doctor]] in the fourth series episode ''[[Death of the Doctor (TV story)|Death of the Doctor]]''. That made it nine Doctors she had worked with, thanks to ''The Five Doctors'' and ''Dimensions in Time''.


In July 2008, Sladen returned to ''Doctor Who'' once more for the two finale episodes ''[[The Stolen Earth]]'' and ''[[Journey's End]]''. Although she expects to stay with ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'', Sladen, in an interview with ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' in 2008 said she expected her appearance in the two-parter to be her final appearance on the parent program. Her prediction has proven incorrect, however, as she later made an appearance in [[DW]]: ''[[The End of Time (TV story)|The End of Time, Part 2]]'' and a [[The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith|two-part episode of Series 3]] featured a guest appearance by [[David Tennant]] as [[Tenth Doctor|the Doctor]].
Elisabeth Sladen died on Tuesday [[19 April (people)|19 April]] [[2011 (people)|2011]] from [[cancer]]. She was sixty-five years old. Many people paid tribute to Sladen, including: [[Russell T Davies]], David Tennant, Matt Smith, [[Alexander Armstrong]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://twitter.com/#!/XanderArmstrong/status/60462384875180032|title=[[Alexander Armstrong|XanderArmstrong]]|date of source=11 April 2011|website name= [[Twitter]]|accessdate=2 February 2012}}</ref>, [[Colin Baker]], [[Nicola Bryant]], Damian Kavanagh, Keith Jones, Roger Carey, [[Stephen Fry]], [[Steven Moffat]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/dw/news/bulletin_110419_01|title=Elisabeth Sladen|author=|coauthors=|date of source=19 April 2011|website name=BBC Doctor Who - The Official Site|accessdate=2 February 2012}}</ref> and [[Tom Baker]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tom-baker.co.uk/pages/content/index.asp?PageID=217|title=Lis Sladen Newsletter|author=[[Tom Baker]]|date of source=|website name=Tom Baker official website|accessdate=2 February 2012}}</ref> The ''Doctor Who'' story ''[[The Impossible Astronaut (TV story)|The Impossible Astronaut]]'', which went to air the following Saturday, was dedicated to her memory. Due to an editing mistake in the beginning of her career, the date listed for her birth on the dedication was incorrect - she was actually born in 1946. It was followed immediately by ''[[My Sarah Jane: A Tribute to Elisabeth Sladen]]'', a tribute special on the [[CBBC]] channel featuring actors and actresses she had worked with.


Sladen had begun working on her autobiography and had completed the final draft before she was diagnosed with cancer, when she put the project aside. Following her death, it was decided (with the support of Sladen's family) that the autobiography would be published posthumously. ''Elisabeth Sladen: The Autobiography'' was published on 7 November 2011, with a foreword by David Tennant and an epilogue by Brian and Sadie Miller. The audiobook version was released on 1 December 2011 narrated by [[Caroline John]], with Tennant and Brian and Sadie Miller reading their contributions.


In [[2012]], Steven Moffat introduced a new companion, [[Clara Oswald]], who's first name was likely named after Sladen's middle name in tribute to her. A possible reference to that was included in the [[Doctor Who: 50 Years (trailer)|50 year trailer]] for the 50th anniversary of ''Doctor Who'', where Sarah Jane, looking at the Third Doctor in a glass ball, transitioned into Clara, with Sarah's reflection still in the ball.


== Credits ==
=== Television ===
==== ''Doctor Who'' ====
* ''[[The Time Warrior (TV story)|The Time Warrior]]''
* ''[[Invasion of the Dinosaurs (TV story)|Invasion of the Dinosaurs]]''
* ''[[Death to the Daleks (TV story)|Death to the Daleks]]''
* ''[[The Monster of Peladon (TV story)|The Monster of Peladon]]''
* ''[[Planet of the Spiders (TV story)|Planet of the Spiders]]''
* ''[[Robot (TV story)|Robot]]''
* ''[[The Ark in Space (TV story)|The Ark in Space]]''
* ''[[The Sontaran Experiment (TV story)|The Sontaran Experiment]]''
* ''[[Genesis of the Daleks (TV story)|Genesis of the Daleks]]''
* '' [[Revenge of the Cybermen (TV story)|Revenge of the Cybermen]]''
* ''[[Terror of the Zygons (TV story)|Terror of the Zygons]]''
* ''[[Planet of Evil (TV story)|Planet of Evil]]''
* ''[[Pyramids of Mars (TV story)|Pyramids of Mars]]''
* ''[[The Android Invasion (TV story)|The Android Invasion]]''
* ''[[The Brain of Morbius (TV story)|The Brain of Morbius]]''
* ''[[The Seeds of Doom (TV story)|The Seeds of Doom]]''
* ''[[The Masque of Mandragora (TV story)|The Masque of Mandragora]]''
* ''[[The Hand of Fear (TV story)|The Hand of Fear]]''
* ''[[The Five Doctors (TV story)|The Five Doctors]]''
* ''[[School Reunion (TV story)|School Reunion]]''
* ''[[The Stolen Earth (TV story)|The Stolen Earth]]'' / ''[[Journey's End (TV story)|Journey's End]]''
* ''[[The End of Time (TV story)|The End of Time]]''


===== Mini-episodes =====
* ''[[Dimensions in Time (TV story)|Dimensions in Time]]''


==== ''K9 and Company'' ====
* ''[[A Girl's Best Friend (TV story)|A Girl's Best Friend]]''


==== ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' ====
* ''[[Invasion of the Bane (TV story)|Invasion of the Bane]]''
* ''[[Revenge of the Slitheen (TV story)|Revenge of the Slitheen]]''
* ''[[Eye of the Gorgon (TV story)|Eye of the Gorgon]]''
* ''[[Warriors of Kudlak (TV story)|Warriors of Kudlak]]''
* ''[[Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? (TV story)|Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?]]''
* ''[[The Lost Boy (TV story)|The Lost Boy]]''
* ''[[The Last Sontaran (TV story)|The Last Sontaran]]''
* ''[[The Day of the Clown (TV story)|The Day of the Clown]]''
* ''[[Secrets of the Stars (TV story)|Secrets of the Stars]]''
* ''[[The Mark of the Berserker (TV story)|The Mark of the Berserker]]''
* ''[[The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith (TV story)|The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith]]''
* ''[[Enemy of the Bane (TV story)|Enemy of the Bane]]''
* ''[[Prisoner of the Judoon (TV story)|Prisoner of the Judoon]]''
* ''[[The Mad Woman in the Attic (TV story)|The Mad Woman in the Attic]]''
* ''[[The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith (TV story)|The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith]]''
* ''[[The Eternity Trap (TV story)|The Eternity Trap]]''
* ''[[Mona Lisa's Revenge (TV story)|Mona Lisa's Revenge]]''
* ''[[The Gift (TV story)|The Gift]]''
* ''[[The Nightmare Man (TV story)|The Nightmare Man]]''
* ''[[The Vault of Secrets (TV story)|The Vault of Secrets]]''
* ''[[Death of the Doctor (TV story)|Death of the Doctor]]''
* ''[[The Empty Planet (TV story)|The Empty Planet]]''
* ''[[Lost in Time (TV story)|Lost in Time]]''
* ''[[Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith (TV story)|Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith]]''
* ''[[Sky (TV story)|Sky]]'' (released posthumous)
* ''[[The Curse of Clyde Langer (TV story)|The Curse of Clyde Langer]]'' (released posthumous)
* ''[[The Man Who Never Was (TV story)|The Man Who Never Was]]'' (released posthumous)


Sladen paid tribute to Barry Letts when he died in 2009.
===== Mini-episodes =====
* ''[[Chute! Episode 9 (TV story)|Chute! Episode 9]]''
* ''[[From Raxacoricofallapatorius with Love (TV story)|From Raxacoricofallapatorius with Love]]''
* ''[[Find the Alien (video game)|Find the Alien]]''
* ''[[Chris Meets... (TV story)|Chris Meets...]]''
* ''[[Monster Morpher (video game)|Monster Morpher]]''
* ''[[SJAF 1|Sarah Jane's Alien Files 1]]''
* ''[[SJAF 4|Sarah Jane's Alien Files 4]]''


==Photographs==
=== Direct-to-video ===
<gallery>
* ''[[Downtime (home video)|Downtime]]''
Image:Lis sladen1.jpg|Elisabeth Sladen taken at Longleat Exhibition 1983
Image:Es1.jpg|Elisabeth Sladen taken at Longleat Exhibition 1983
</gallery>


=== Audio dramas ===
==== BBC Audio ''Doctor Who'' ====
* ''[[Glorious Goodwood (audio story)|Glorious Goodwood]]''
* ''[[Doctor Who and the Pescatons (audio story)|Doctor Who and the Pescatons]]''
* ''[[Exploration Earth (audio story)|Exploration Earth: The Time Machine]]''
* ''[[The Paradise of Death (audio story)|The Paradise of Death]]''
* ''[[The Ghosts of N-Space (audio story)|The Ghosts of N-Space]]''


==External links==
==== Bernice Summerfield ====
{{imdb name|id=0805207|name=Elisabeth Sladen}}
* ''[[Walking to Babylon (audio story)|Walking to Babylon]]'' as [[Ninan-ashtammu]]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4714061.stm BBC confirm return of Sarah Jane Smith]
 
*[http://www.bbc.co.uk/norfolk/content/articles/2006/04/19/film_doctor_who_lis_sladen_interview_feature.shtml BBC Norfolk webTV interview with Elisabeth Sladen]
==== Sarah Jane Smith ====
{{Wikipedia|Elisabeth_Sladen}}
* ''[[Comeback (audio story)|Comeback]]''
[[Category:Doctor Who regular cast|Sladen, Elisabeth]]
* ''[[The Tao Connection (audio story)|The Tao Connection]]''
[[Category:The Sarah Jane Adventures regular cast|Sladen, Elisabeth]]
* ''[[Test of Nerve (audio story)|Test of Nerve]]''
[[Category:Previous Spotlight Articles|Sladen, Elisabeth]]
* ''[[Ghost Town (audio story)|Ghost Town]]''
[[Category:Actors who appeared in 1963 and 2005 versions of Doctor Who|Sladen]]
* ''[[Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre (audio story)|Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre]]''
[[Category:Actors interviewed on Doctor Who Confidential|Sladen, Elisabeth]]
* ''[[Buried Secrets (audio story)|Buried Secrets]]''
* ''[[Snow Blind (audio story)|Snow Blind]]''
* ''[[Fatal Consequences (audio story)|Fatal Consequences]]''
* ''[[Dreamland (audio story)|Dreamland]]''
 
==== Big Finish ''Doctor Who'' audio stories ====
* ''[[Zagreus (audio story)|Zagreus]]'' as [[Lime (Zagreus)|Miss Lime]]
 
=== Audiobooks ===
==== ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' ====
* ''[[The Glittering Storm (audio story)|The Glittering Storm]]''
* ''[[The Thirteenth Stone (audio story)|The Thirteenth Stone]]''
* ''[[The Time Capsule (audio story)|The Time Capsule]]''
* ''[[The Ghost House (audio story)|The Ghost House]]''
* ''[[The Shadow People (audio story)|The Shadow People]]''
* ''[[The White Wolf (audio story)|The White Wolf]]''
* ''[[Deadly Download (audio story)|Deadly Download]]''
* ''[[Wraith World (audio story)|Wraith World]]''
 
==== Target Novelisations ====
* ''[[Doctor Who and the Planet of the Spiders (novelisation)|Doctor Who and the Planet of the Spiders]]''
 
=== Documentary ===
* ''[[30 Years in the TARDIS]]''
* ''[[More than 30 Years in the TARDIS|More Than 30 Years in the TARDIS]]''
* ''K9 Unleashed''
* ''[[MM VHS 50|Myth Makers: Elisabeth Sladen]]''
* ''Chronotrip''
* ''[[The Story of Doctor Who]]''
* ''[[Serial Thrillers (documentary)|Serial Thrillers]]''
* ''[[Osirian Gothic (documentary)|Osirian Gothic]]''
* ''The Planet of the Doctor''
* ''[[Aliens: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly (CON episode)|Aliens: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly]]''
* ''[[TARDIS Tales (CON episode)|TARDIS Tales]]''
* ''[[I Get a Side-Kick Out of You (CON episode)|I Get a Side-Kick Out of You]]''
* ''[[The World of Who (CON episode)|The World of Who]]''
* ''[[Friends Reunited (CON episode)|Friends Reunited]]''
* ''[[Genesis of a Classic (documentary)|Genesis of a Classic]]''
* ''[[Totally Doctor Who]]''
* ''[[Changing Time: Living and Leaving Doctor Who (documentary)|Changing Time]]''
* ''[[Built for War: The Sontaran Story (documentary)|Built for War]]''
* ''[[Beginning the End (documentary)|Beginning the End]]''
* ''[[Planetary Performance: Acting in Doctor Who (documentary)|Planetary Performance]]''
* ''[[A Darker Side (documentary)|A Darker Side]]''
* ''[[Celebration: Doctor Who in 1983 (documentary)|Celebration]]''
* ''[[Sontar-Ha! (CON episode)|Sontar-Ha!]]''
* ''[[Friends and Foe (CON episode)|Friends and Foe]]''
* ''[[The Eleventh Doctor (CON episode)|The Eleventh Doctor]]''
* ''[[Doctor Who Greatest Moments]]''
* ''[[On Target: Ian Marter (documentary)|On Target with Ian Marter]]''
* ''[[Like Nothing on Earth (documentary)|Like Nothing on Earth]]'' (archive interview)
 
=== Audio commentary ===
 
* ''[[Planet of Evil (TV story)|Planet of Evil]]''
 
''to be completed''
 
=== Other ===
* ''[[Children in Need 1985 (TV story)|Children in Need 1985]]''
* ''[[Built for War (home video)|Built for War]]''
 
== External links ==
{{imdb name|id=0805207}}
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4714061.stm BBC confirm return of Sarah Jane Smith]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/norfolk/content/articles/2006/04/19/film_doctor_who_lis_sladen_interview_feature.shtml BBC Norfolk webTV interview with Elisabeth Sladen]
 
== Footnotes ==
{{Reflist|1}}
{{NameSort}}
 
 
[[ru:Элизабет Слейден]]
 
[[Category:Articles that were originally Wikipedia forks]]
[[Category:Doctor Who regular cast]]
[[Category:K9 and Company cast]]
[[Category:SJA regular cast]]
[[Category:Doctor Who cast reprising their roles at Reeltime Pictures]]
[[Category:Video game actors]]
[[Category:Big Finish Bernice Summerfield voice actors]]
[[Category:Big Finish Sarah Jane Smith voice actors]]
[[Category:Pre-2005 Doctor Who cast reprising their roles at Big Finish]]
[[Category:BBC Audio audiobook readers]]
[[Category:Doctor Who actors that exist in the DWU]]
[[Category:Actors who were credited in the Doctor Who opening titles]]
[[Category:Doctor Who Pinball archive voice actors]]
[[Category:Actors interviewed on Doctor Who Confidential]]
[[Category:Actors who had speaking roles in adlibbed stories]]
[[Category:Totally Doctor Who guests]]
[[Category:Main Range voice actors]]
[[Category:Big Finish regular cast]]
[[Category:Doctor Who cast reprising their roles at BBC Radio]]
[[Category:Audio cast stubs]]
[[Category:Actors who portrayed Sarah Jane Smith]]
[[Category:1963 Doctor Who cast reprising their roles in 2005 Doctor Who]]
[[Category:Doctor Who cast reprising their roles in The Sarah Jane Adventures]]
[[Category:Actors interviewed on Swap Shop]]

Latest revision as of 20:19, 3 November 2024

RealWorld.png

You may be looking for Elisabeth Sladen as referenced in the DWU.

Elisabeth Clara Heath-Sladen (1 February 1946[1][2], Liverpool, England – 19 April 2011[3]) played Sarah Jane Smith. She appeared as a regular on Doctor Who with both Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker. She also appeared in the pilot for the spin-off series, K9 and Company. She later reprised her role as Sarah Jane on Doctor Who and in its spin-off series, The Sarah Jane Adventures.

Early career[[edit] | [edit source]]

An only child, Sladen developed an interest in performing at an early age, beginning dance lessons when she was five and dancing in one production with the Royal Ballet. She turned to acting and after finishing grammar school, attended drama school for two years.

She began work at the Liverpool Playhouse repertory company as an assistant stage manager. Her first stage appearance was as a corpse. She was scolded for giggling on stage, thanks to a young actor, Brian Miller, whispering the words, "Respiration nil, Aston Villa two" in her ear while he was playing a doctor. Sladen was so good as an ASM that she did not get many acting roles, a problem she solved by deliberately making mistakes. This got her told off again, but she started to get more on-stage roles.

Sladen moved into weekly repertory work, travelling around England. Sladen and Miller married on 8th June 1968, after moving to Manchester, spending three years there. Her most notable role in this time was Desdemona in Othello, her first appearance as a leading lady. She also got the odd part on Leeds Radio and Granada Television, appearing in 1970 as Anita Reynolds, barmaid of The Flying Horse, in six episodes of Coronation Street.

In 1972, Miller was appearing in a play that moved down to London and they moved along with it. Sladen found city life a change, but adapted. Her first television role in London was as a female terrorist in an episode of Doomwatch. This was followed by guest roles in Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em and Z-Cars.

Doctor Who[[edit] | [edit source]]

In 1973, Katy Manning, who was playing the Third Doctor's assistant, Jo Grant opposite Jon Pertwee, was leaving the series. Producer Barry Letts was growing increasingly desperate in his search for a replacement when Z-Cars producer Ron Craddock gave Sladen an enthusiastic recommendation. Sladen arrived at the audition not knowing it was for the new companion role and was amazed at Letts's thoroughness. She was introduced to Pertwee, whom she found intimidating. As she chatted with Letts and Pertwee, each gave the other a thumbs-up when her back was turned. She was offered and accepted the part of investigative journalist Sarah Jane Smith.

Sladen stayed on Doctor Who from the start of season 11 to midway through season 14. She worked with Pertwee as the Third Doctor and Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor, receiving popular and critical acclaim. When she left the series in 1976, it made front page news — previously only a change of Doctors had received such attention. Bob Baker and Dave Martin intentionally left Sarah's departure scene in The Hand of Fear unwritten; Sladen and Tom Baker co-wrote it themselves. Sladen was sad to be leaving Doctor Who and cried on her last day.

Sladen was heartbroken upon hearing of Jon Pertwee's death in 1996 and cried for weeks afterwards. In a later interview, Sladen stated that Pertwee was "her" Doctor. (BBC interview 1997)

In October 2009, Sladen paid tribute to her boss and friend, Barry Letts, who had died that month, calling him one of her best friends.

Later career[[edit] | [edit source]]

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 programme 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. The new decade also marked her first appearance at a Doctor Who convention, Who 1, in March 1980 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. She continued to appear in advertisements and in another Letts production, Alice in Wonderland (in which she played the Dormouse) and attended Doctor Who 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. She appeared only occasionally on television.

Reprising Sarah[[edit] | [edit source]]

Until School Reunion, Sladen's last television appearance as Sarah had been in the 1993 charity special Dimensions in Time. 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, but accepted his second offer of a pilot for a spin-off series called K9 and Company, co-starring with K9, the popular robot dog from Doctor Who. The pilot was not picked up for a series. Sladen would reprise the role of Sarah in 1983 for the twentieth anniversary special, The Five Doctors. In 1995 she played the role once again in the independent non-BBC film Downtime, her last on-screen appearance as the character until 2006.

Sladen with David Tennant.

Sladen played Sarah in many audio stories. Two were produced for BBC Radio: The Paradise of Death (1993), and The Ghosts of N-Space (1996), with Pertwee as the Doctor and Nicholas Courtney as the Brigadier. In the early 2000s, Sladen reprised the role for a Big Finish Productions audio series, Sarah Jane Smith, set in the present day. A week before her death, she and Tom Baker had signed a contract to begin recording a new series of Big Finish audio stories.[4]

Sladen was one of several "classic series" cast and crew interviewed for Project Who, a BBC Radio documentary on the revival of Doctor Who that aired in March 2005.

On 25 July 2005, the BBC confirmed that Sladen would appear as Sarah Jane Smith in Series 2 of the revived Doctor Who. The BBC later announced that John Leeson would also be returning as the voice of the robot dog K9. The positive response to Sladen's appearance in the story, School Reunion, led to the BBC commissioning another attempt at a Sarah Jane spinoff series, this time created by Russell T Davies. Invasion of the Bane (not technically a pilot, as the BBC had already agreed to a season), a special premiere episode of The Sarah Jane Adventures, aired on 1 January 2007 and was followed by a ten episode series later in the year. Series 2 aired in 2008, followed by Series 3 in 2009, and Series 4 in autumn 2010. A fifth series was in production, with six episodes (half the series) completed when Sladen fell ill with cancer. Filming was immediately postponed but was expected to eventually resume. However, Sladen died in the early hours of 19 April 2011. Although some tabloids reported that production of SJA was to continue regardless, it was quickly announced filming would not resume and the three completed stories would air as a tribute. The three completed stories aired in October 2011, the last of them ending with a montage that gave a sense of closure to the show.

Sladen also narrated a series of non-fiction behind-the-scenes audio releases from BBC Audio dubbed Doctor Who at the BBC.

In July 2008, Sladen returned to Doctor Who once more for the two final episodes The Stolen Earth and Journey's End. In an interview with Doctor Who Magazine in 2008, she said she expected her appearance in the two-parter to be her final appearance on the parent programme. Her prediction was wrong; she made one more appearance in The End of Time, Part 2, in which the Tenth Doctor briefly arrives at Sarah's house before his impending regeneration in order to say a silent goodbye to his old friend.

While that may have been her last appearance on Doctor Who, it wasn't the last time she had an adventure with the Doctor, as not one, but two Doctors appeared in The Sarah Jane Adventures. David Tennant appeared as the Tenth Doctor in the third series episode The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith and Matt Smith appeared as the Eleventh Doctor in the fourth series episode Death of the Doctor. That made it nine Doctors she had worked with, thanks to The Five Doctors and Dimensions in Time.

Elisabeth Sladen died on Tuesday 19 April 2011 from cancer. She was sixty-five years old. Many people paid tribute to Sladen, including: Russell T Davies, David Tennant, Matt Smith, Alexander Armstrong[5], Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, Damian Kavanagh, Keith Jones, Roger Carey, Stephen Fry, Steven Moffat[6] and Tom Baker.[7] The Doctor Who story The Impossible Astronaut, which went to air the following Saturday, was dedicated to her memory. Due to an editing mistake in the beginning of her career, the date listed for her birth on the dedication was incorrect - she was actually born in 1946. It was followed immediately by My Sarah Jane: A Tribute to Elisabeth Sladen, a tribute special on the CBBC channel featuring actors and actresses she had worked with.

Sladen had begun working on her autobiography and had completed the final draft before she was diagnosed with cancer, when she put the project aside. Following her death, it was decided (with the support of Sladen's family) that the autobiography would be published posthumously. Elisabeth Sladen: The Autobiography was published on 7 November 2011, with a foreword by David Tennant and an epilogue by Brian and Sadie Miller. The audiobook version was released on 1 December 2011 narrated by Caroline John, with Tennant and Brian and Sadie Miller reading their contributions.

In 2012, Steven Moffat introduced a new companion, Clara Oswald, who's first name was likely named after Sladen's middle name in tribute to her. A possible reference to that was included in the 50 year trailer for the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who, where Sarah Jane, looking at the Third Doctor in a glass ball, transitioned into Clara, with Sarah's reflection still in the ball.

Credits[[edit] | [edit source]]

Television[[edit] | [edit source]]

Doctor Who[[edit] | [edit source]]

Mini-episodes[[edit] | [edit source]]

K9 and Company[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Sarah Jane Adventures[[edit] | [edit source]]

Mini-episodes[[edit] | [edit source]]

Direct-to-video[[edit] | [edit source]]

Audio dramas[[edit] | [edit source]]

BBC Audio Doctor Who[[edit] | [edit source]]

Bernice Summerfield[[edit] | [edit source]]

Sarah Jane Smith[[edit] | [edit source]]

Big Finish Doctor Who audio stories[[edit] | [edit source]]

Audiobooks[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Sarah Jane Adventures[[edit] | [edit source]]

Target Novelisations[[edit] | [edit source]]

Documentary[[edit] | [edit source]]

Audio commentary[[edit] | [edit source]]

to be completed

Other[[edit] | [edit source]]

External links[[edit] | [edit source]]

Footnotes[[edit] | [edit source]]

  1. ↑ DWDVDF 129
  2. ↑ REF: Who-ology: The Official Miscellany
  3. ↑ Famous Birthdays
  4. ↑ http://www.tombakerofficial.com/lis-sladen/
  5. ↑ XanderArmstrong. Twitter (11 April 2011). Retrieved on 2 February 2012.
  6. ↑ Elisabeth Sladen. BBC Doctor Who - The Official Site (19 April 2011). Retrieved on 2 February 2012.
  7. ↑ Tom Baker. Lis Sladen Newsletter. Tom Baker official website. Retrieved on 2 February 2012.
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