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Sophie Aldred (born 20 August 1962) portrayed Ace in the original television series from "Dragonfire" to "Survival," and reprised the role for "Dimensions in Time" and for audio dramas produced by Big Finish. Aldred also had a part in the 1998 Doctor Who spin-off Mindgame. She was born in Greenwich, and raised in Blackheath, London.
Having attended Blackheath High School, she studied drama at the University of Manchester, before embarking on a career in children's theatre. In 1987 she was cast as Ace in Doctor Who.
Aldred's Doctor Who tenure spanned the last nine stories of the show's run. The Ace character was a troubled teenager from Perivale, West London. The Doctor found her serving milkshakes on Iceworld in the story "Dragonfire," at the end of which she joined the Doctor on his travels. Several stories ("Ghost Light," "The Curse of Fenric," and "Survival") explored her character to an extent that previous companion characters had not been.
Both before and since Doctor Who, Aldred has had a varied and busy television career, particularly in children's programming, where she has presented educational programmes such as Corners, Melvin and Maureen's Music-a-grams and the long running BBC series Words and Pictures. She has also performed on radio and in the theatre. She has also reprised her role as Ace in the charity special "Dimensions in Time" and the Doctor Who audio plays produced by Big Finish Productions.
She co-wrote the hardback reference book, Ace, The Inside Story of the End of An Era with Mike Tucker, published by Virgin Publishing in 1996. (ISBN 1-85227-574-X).
Sophie Aldred married Vince Henderson on 12 July, 1997. They have a son, Adam.