Series 2 (SJA)

The Second Series of The Sarah Jane Adventures featured 12 episodes split over 6 two-part stories which were broadcast in the UK in the fall of 2008. The season initially began with all of the first-season cast (with the exception of John Leeson's K-9, who did not appear in any regular episodes). A major cast change occurred following the initial two-part storyline, with Yasmin Paige (Maria Jackson) leaving the series and being replaced by Anjli Mohindra as Rani Chandra. (Despite this, references to Maria including flashback footage a photos were incorporated into the other story arcs, with Paige herself returning for a guest appearance in The Mark of the Berserker.)

The season was also noted for featuring the return of Nicholas Courtney as now-Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, for the first time (on screen) since the independent film BBV: Downtime in 1995 and for the first time in a BBC production since DW: Battlefield in 1989. UNIT also makes its first on-screen appearance in the spin-off. Returning villains include the Bane, the Trickster and the Graske, and Sontarans appear for the first time in the spin-off in an episode that is a direct sequel to the Doctor Who episodes The Sontaran Strategem/The Poison Sky.

Several months after the season ended, the cast -- including K-9 in his only Series 2-era appearance -- reunited for From Raxacoricofallapatorius With Love, a mini-episode produced for the 2009 Comic Relief Red Nose Day appeal.

Cast

Primary Cast

• Sarah Jane Smith - Elisabeth Sladen
• Luke Smith - Tommy Knight
• Clyde Langer - Daniel Anthony
• Mr. Smith - Alexander Armstrong
• Rani Chandra - Anjli Mohindra (The Day of the Clown onwards)

Secondary Cast

• Haresh Chandra - Ace Bhatti (The Day of the Clown onwards)
• Gita Chandra - Mina Anwar (The Day of the Clown onwards)
• Maria Jackson - Yasmin Paige (The Last Sontaran/The Mark of the Berserker)
• Alan Jackson - Joseph Millson (The Last Sontaran/The Mark of the Berserker)
• Chrissie Jackson - Juliet Cowan (The Last Sontaran)

Guest Cast

• The Brigadier - Nicholas Courtney
• Mrs Wormwood - Samantha Bond
• Nicholas Skinner - Ronan Vibert
• Lucy Skinner - Clare Thomas
• Professer Rivers - Floella Benjamin
• Paul Langer - Gary Beadle
• Carla Langer - Jocelyn Jee Esien
• Barbara Smith - Rosanna Lavelle
• Eddie Smith - Christopher Pizzey

Television Stories

• The Last Sontaran (2 episodes)
• The Day of the Clown (2 episodes)
• Secrets of the Stars (2 episodes)
• The Mark of the Berserker (2 episodes)
• The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith (2 episodes)
• Enemy of the Bane (2 episodes)

Specials

• From Raxacoricofallapatorius With Love (Mini Episode)

Aliens and Enemies

• Kaagh
• Pied Piper
• Martin Trueman
• Ancient Lights
• Paul Langer
• Travist Polong
• The Trickster
• Graske
• Mrs Wormwood
• Cal Kilburne
• Bane
• Slitheen

Novels

To date, two stories have been adapted as novelisations by Penguin Character Books, both published in November 2008. It has not yet been announced whether any other Series 2 episodes will be adapted, although a Series 3 story has been novelised.

• The Last Sontaran
• The Day of the Clown

Audiobooks

• The Time Capsule
• The Ghost House

International Broadcast

Unlike Series 1, which saw broadcast on BBC Kids in Canada and The Sci-Fi Channel in the US, Series 2 was not immediately broadcast in those regions, resulting in the DVD release (see below) occurring without a prior TV broadcast in North America.

In mid-January 2010, BBC Kids belatedly began airing Series 2, although by this time the digital network had been dropped by one of Canada's major cable service providers.

SJA Series 2 DVD

DVD Release

• The Complete Second Series (including From Raxacoricofallapatorius With Love as a bonus feature accessed by correctly completing a quiz) was released in the UK on 09 November 2009.
• North American release occurred the next day, 10 November. This marked the first time a complete season of a Doctor Who franchise programme has been released to DVD in North America without it first having been viewed on TV.

Footnotes

Previous series: SJA Series 1

Next series: SJA Series 3