Series 5 (SJA)

Series 5 — 2011
Main character:	Sarah Jane Smith
Regular characters:	Clyde Langer, Luke Smith, Rani Chandra, Sky Smith, Mr Smith
Key crew
Executive producer(s):	Russell T Davies, Nikki Wilson
Producer(s):	Brian Minchin
Series details
Start date:	3 October 2011
End date:	18 October 2011 (series finale)
Premiere network:	CBBC
Typical episode length:	25'
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Series 5 of The Sarah Jane Adventures ran between 3 October 2011 and 18 October 2011. It starred Elizabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith, Tommy Knight as Luke Smith, Daniel Anthony as Clyde Langer, Anjli Mohindra as Rani Chandra, Alexander Armstrong as Mr Smith and Sinead Michael as Sky Smith. The series opened with Sky and concluded with The Man Who Never Was.

Overview

It consisted of three stories and six episodes. On 4 March 2010, the BBC announced that it had officially commissioned both a fourth and fifth series of the spin-off. Part of the series was planned to film in 2010 alongside Series 4 and it was later announced that half the series had been completed as planned.

With the death of Elisabeth Sladen in April 2011, the BBC announced that no new episodes will be made. Three stories (six episodes) of series 5 were completed. The final episodes aired between 3 October 2011 and 18 October 2011.

Three stories, however, were left unproduced: Meet Mr Smith, The Thirteenth Floor, The Battle for Bannerman Road. Also planned, but unproduced, were four Halloween specials: Full Moon, The Station, an unnamed story and Night of the Spectre. (DWMSE 32)

Cast

• Sarah Jane Smith - Elisabeth Sladen
• Rani Chandra - Anjli Mohindra
• Clyde Langer - Daniel Anthony
• Sky Smith - Sinead Michael
• Luke Smith - Tommy Knight
• Mr Smith - Alexander Armstrong
• Haresh Chandra - Ace Bhatti

Recurring

• Gita Chandra - Mina Anwar
• Professor Rivers - Floella Benjamin
• Carla Langer - Jocelyn Jee Esien
• Steve Wallace - Elijah Baker

Guest

• Miss Myers - Christine Stephen-Daly
• Ellie Faber - Lily Loveless
• Lionel Carson - Peter Bowles
• John Harrison - James Dreyfus
• Plark - Dan Starkey

Stories

The series consisted of 3 two-part serials. The series began on the 3 October. Luke Smith made appearances in the first and third stories, but this was the only SJA season in which K9 Mark IV did not appear. A new ongoing character, Sky Smith, was introduced for the season.

Story number	Title	Writer	Director	Notes
1	Sky	Phil Ford	Ashley Way	First appearance of Sky Smith. Final appearances of Gita Chandra, the Shopkeeper and Captain.
2	The Curse of Clyde Langer	Phil Ford	Ashley Way	Final appearances of Haresh Chandra and Carla Langer. Rather than a typical happy ending commonplace to SJA stories, this story has an unusually downbeat and ambiguous ending.
3	The Man Who Never Was	Gareth Roberts	Ashley Way	Final appearances of Sarah Jane Smith, Luke Smith, Clyde Langer, Rani Chandra, Sky Smith, and Mr Smith and the 13 Bannerman Road residence. Final episode of The Sarah Jane Adventures, with the series coming to an end prematurely after Elisabeth Sladen's sudden illness and passing.

Notes

This is the only series of The Sarah Jane Adventures not to contain an episode that has Sarah's name in the title (Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?, The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith, and so on). This would have remained the case even if the series had been completed, as none of the three unproduced serials featured such a title. Interestingly, it would also turn out to be the only series to contain episode titles featuring the names of some of the shows other main characters, those being Sky and The Curse of Clyde Langer.

Rumours

Shortly after Elisabeth Sladen's passing, reports began to circulate that production on the series' three remaining serials would continue without Sladen, with the scripts rewritten to explain her absence. Series writer Gareth Roberts confirmed that these reports were false.

DVD and Blu-ray releases

• DVD and Blu-ray release occurred in the UK on 6 February 2012 in a single-disc edition that includes the featurette "Goodbye Bannerman Road: Remembering Elisabeth Sladen". A North American release, on DVD only, occurred on 12th June 2012 with the same bonus feature.