 |
| Farewell Ten(nant) |
Two episodes (Part One, Part Two)
First broadcast Dec 25 2009 to Jan 1 2010
Average audience for story: 11.68m
REGULAR CAST
David Tennant (The Doctor) Born Apr 18 1971
Click here for David Tennant's entry on The Parting of the Ways
GUEST CAST
Freema Agyeman (Martha Jones) Born Mar 20 1979
Click here for Freema Agyeman's entry on Army of GhostsKrystal Archer (Nerys) Born 1984
Doctor Who credits
Played: Nerys in The Runaway Bride (2006), The End of Time Part Two (2010)
Career highlights
Krystal has also appeared in Genie in the House (2006), and various musical stage productions, as well as being a stunt double in The Mummy Returns (2001). She is also a DJ (she was one of the first female DJs at Ministry of Sound) and dancer, and has appeared in TV commercials and even a music video for Goldie Lookin' Chain!
(Winston Katusi) Born Jan 1 1935
Career highlightsBorn in Grenada, Allister debuted in Knight Errant Limited (1961), then took roles in Theatre 625 (1964), Dixon of Dock Green (1969), Quiller (1975), Love Thy Neighbour (1976), The Professionals (1977), The Chiffy Kids (1978), Empire Road (1978-79), World's End (1981), Dream Stuffing (1984), Black Silk (1985), Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987), Vanity Fair (1987), Us Girls (1992), Bugs (1996) and The Bill (1986/94/2005).
FactsAllister moved to the UK in 1958, after having taught actress Dorothy Dandridge to limbo dance for the film Island in the Sun (1957). Before becoming an actor he led his own dance troupe called the Bee Wee Ballet of Grenada, who were among the first to perform at what became the Notting Hill Carnival (they performed at the Caribbean Carnival in January 1959 at St Pancras town hall). Allister is also a playwright.
Teresa Banham (Governor) Born 1964
Career highlightsDebuted in The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1986), then After the War (1989), Frankenstein's Baby (1990), Ghosts (1995), Coogan's Run (1995), Roughnecks (1994-95), Gentleman's Relish (2001), Trust (2003), Vincent (2006), Robin Hood (2009), Casualty (2012), Utopia (2013), Vera (2014), Call the Midwife (2016), The Good Karma Hospital (2018), The Crown (2019) and No One Gets Out Alive (2021).
Max Benjamin (Teenager)
Max's only other credit is Living It (2006).
Claire Bloom (The Woman) Born Feb 15 1931
Career highlights
Debuting aged 17 in 1948's The Blind Goddess, Claire became one of British cinema's shining starlets, later taking roles in Martine (1952), Limelight (1952), Innocents in Paris (1953), Alexander the Great (1956), The Brothers Karamazov (1958), Look Back in Anger (1959), Anna Karenina (1961), The Haunting (1963), The Outrage (1964), The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1964), The Match Game (1967), Charly (1968), The Illustrated Man (1969), A Doll's House (1973), A Legacy (1975), Backstairs at the White House (1979), Clash of the Titans (1981), Brideshead Revisited (1981), Shadowlands (1985), Intimate Contact (1987), The Lady and the Highwayman (1989), The Camomile Lawn (1992), Mad Dogs and Englishmen (1995), Mighty Aphrodite (1995), The Book of Eve (2002), The Chatterley Affair (2006), New Tricks (2008), The King's Speech (2010), Doc Martin (2013), Midsomer Murders (2015), Miss Dali (2018) and Summer of Rockets (2019).
Awards
1953: BAFTA Film Award for Most Promising Newcomer (Limelight)
1986: BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress (Shadowlands)
2013: Commander of the order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to drama
Facts
Between 1959-69 Claire was married to actor Rod Steiger, with whom she had a daughter, opera singer Anna Steiger; her second husband was producer and talent scout Hillard Elkins (1969-72); and her third was author Philip Roth (1990-95). She also had an affair, and lost her virginity to, Richard Burton between 1949-57. Her brother is the film editor John Bloom (who won an Oscar in 1982 for his work on Gandhi). In his book The Writer's Tale, Russell T Davies revealed that his intention was that The Woman is actually the Doctor's mother (presumably the one who bought him up, rather than Tecteun).
Lacey Bond (Serving woman)
Career highlightsOther work includes The Calcium Kid (2004), The Shadow Within (2007), Whitechapel (2010), Call the Midwife (2012), Law and Order UK (2014), EastEnders (2015), The Krays: Dead Man Walking (2018), Above the Clouds (2018) and To Nowhere (2020).
FactsLacey is a former member of the band Toto Coelo, who had a number 8 UK hit single in 1982 with
I Eat Cannibals Part 1. They had further singles, and an album, but could not reproduce this initial success. Here she is on
Twitter.
Brid Brennan (Visionary) Born 1955
Career highlights
Debuted in Excalibur (1981), then Maeve (1982), Anne Devlin (1984), Who Bombed Birmingham? (1990), South of the Border (1990), Ghostwatch (1992), Guinevere (1994), Cracker (1995), Dancing at Lughnasa (1998), Topsy-Turvy (1999), The Clinic (2004), South Riding (2011), The Escape Artist (2013), Quirke (2014), Brooklyn (2015), The Truth Commissioner (2016), Peaky Blinders (2016-17), Unforgotten (2018), Dalgliesh (2021) and Hope Street (2021-22). In the 1980s she played Lorna Martin in a series of three Play for Todays written by Graham Reid and made by BBC Northern Ireland - Too Late to Talk to Billy (1982), A Matter of Choice for Billy (1983) and A Coming to Terms for Billy (1984), plus the 1987 TV movie Lorna.
Awards
1992: Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play (Dancing at Lughnasa)
1999: Irish Film and Television Award for Best Actor in a Female Role (Dancing at Lughnasa)
2013: Irish Film and Television Award for Best Supporting Actress - Film (Shadow Dancer)
Karl Collins (Shaun Temple) Born 1971
Doctor Who credits
Played: Shaun Temple in The End of Time (2009-10), The Star Beast (2023), The Giggle (2023)
Career highlightsKarl debuted at the age of 12 in the 1983 Dramarama Because I Say So (credited as Carl Myers), then made appearances in the children's series Your Mother Wouldn't Like It (1985), Hard Cases (1988), As Time Goes By (1992), EastEnders (1992), Metrosexuality (1999), Grease Monkeys (2004), Silent Witness (2008), Shelfstackers (2010), Come Fly With Me (2011), Attack the Block (2011), Twenty Twelve (2011), The Fades (2011), The Slammer (2011), Black Mirror (2011), Blackout (2012), Our Zoo (2014), Transporter: The Series (2014), The Driver (2014), Transporter: The Series (2014), Midsomer Murders (2019) and The Larkins (2021). He has also had two regular roles, as DC Danny Glaze in The Bill (1999-2003) and Louis Loveday in more than 220 episodes of soap Hollyoaks (2015-19).
FactsKarl's brother is fellow actor Johann Myers. Here he is on
Twitter.
Brian Cox (Voice of Elder Ood) Born Jun 1 1946
Career highlights
Brian is one of the UK's most prestigious and experienced actors, debuting in 1965's A Knight in Tarnished Armour, then Redcap (1966), Z Cars (1969), Doomwatch (1970), Manhunt (1970), Nicholas and Alexandra (1971), The Master of Ballantrae (1975), Rooms (1977), The Devil's Crown (1978), The House on the Hill (1981), Jemima Shore Investigates (1983), Scotland's Story (1984), Manhunter (1986), Perfect Scoundrels (1990), The Lost Language of Cranes (1991, for which he was BAFTA nominated), The Cloning of Joanna May (1992), Iron Will (1994), Grushko (1994), Rob Roy (1995), Braveheart (1995), Chain Reaction (1996), The Glimmer Man (1996), Kiss the Girls (1997), Rushmore (1998), Nuremberg (2000, for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe and won a Primetime Emmy), The Affair of the Necklace (2001), Frasier (2002), The Bourne Identity (2002), The Ring (2002), X-Men 2 (2003), Troy (2004), The Bourne Supremacy (2004), Match Point (2005), Deadwood (2006), Zodiac (2007), The Water Horse (2007), Trick 'r Treat (2007), Tell Tale (2009), The Day of the Triffids (2009), Ironclad (2011), Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), The Straits (2012), Bob Servant Independent (2013-14), Blumenthal (2013), Anna (2013), The Anomaly (2014), The Game (2014), The Slap (2015), Forsaken (2015), War and Peace (2016), Penny Dreadful (2016), Medici (2016), Churchill (2017), Good Omens (2019), The Bay of Silence (2020), The Simpsons (2021), Succession (2018-21), Blade Runner: Black Lotus (2021-22) and Unsinkable (2022). He has also provided the voice of Scolar Visari in the Killzone video game franchise (2004-11).
Awards
1984: Laurence Olivier Award for Actor of the Year in a New Play (Rat in the Skull)
1984: Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Best Actor (Strange Interlude; Rat in the Skull)
1987: Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Best Actor (The Taming of the Shrew; Titus Andronicus; Fashion)
1988: Olivier Award for Actor of the Year in a Revival (Titus Andronicus)
2001: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie (Nuremberg)
2002: Commander of the order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to drama
2004: BAFTA Scotland Award for Outstanding Achievement
2008: BAFTA Scotland Award for Best Acting Performance in a Film (The Escapist)
2020: Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama (Succession)
Facts
Brian has an actor son named Alan (best known for playing Watson in 1985's Young Sherlock Holmes).
Bernard Cribbins (Wilfred Mott) Dec 29 1928 to Jul 27 2022
Click here for Bernard's entry on Voyage of the Damned
Timothy Dalton (Lord President [Rassilon]) Born Mar 21 1946 (some sources claim 1944)
Career highlightsTimothy debuted in Troilus and Cressida (1966), followed by Sat'day While Sunday (1967), Wuthering Heights (1970), Cromwell (1970), Mary, Queen of Scots (1971), The Executioner (1975), The Man Who Knew Love (1978), Centennial (1978-79), Charlie's Angels (1979), Flash Gordon (1980), Jane Eyre (1983), Mistral's Daughter (1984), The Doctor and the Devils (1985), Sins (1986), Hawks (1988), The Rocketeer (1991), Framed (1992), Scarlett (1994), Cleopatra (1999), Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), Hot Fuzz (2007), The Tourist (2010), Chuck (2010-11) and Doom Patrol (2019-21). He has provided the voice of Mr Pricklepants in the Toy Story franchise since 2010, and regularly played Sir Malcolm Murray in Penny Dreadful (2014-16), but he is best known for his two cinema outings as 007 James Bond in The Living Daylights (1987) and Licence to Kill (1989).
FactsTimothy was always destined to play Bond: he was first offered the part in 1968 when Sean Connery left, but he turned it down as he believed he was too young at 24 (he probably was!). He was offered it again in 1980 but said no as he disliked the comedic direction the franchise had taken. He was offered it a third time in 1985 when Roger Moore announced he was leaving the role, but declined due to other commitments. Pierce Brosnan was then offered the role, but couldn't get out of his Remington Steele contract, so Timothy was offered it a second time, by which point he was free to take it up - almost 20 years after first being asked! In the end, Brosnan took over from Timothy with 1995's GoldenEye. Here's Timothy in a Bond-themed commercial for
Lark cigarettes. Timothy was the partner of actress Vanessa Redgrave between 1971-86; in 1997 he had a son, Alexander, with Russian musician Oksana Grigorieva. In
March 2015, the 17-year-old Alexander threw a raucous party at his father's Hollywood home resulting in the Los Angeles police being called out.
Joe Dixon (Chancellor) Born Oct 10 1965
Career highlightsDebuted in The Bill (1989), then The Manageress (1990), Comics (1993), Little Napoleons (1994), Holding On (1997), Always and Everyone (1999), The Mummy Returns (2001), Rise of the Footsoldier (2007), Criminal Justice (2008), 32 Brinkburn Street (2011), Atlantis (2013), Lewis (2014), A.D: The Bible Continues (2015), The Carrier (2015), The Coroner (2016), Midsomer Murders (2017) and Us (2020).
FactsBetween 2000-04, Joe was married to fellow actor Lesley Manville. Here's his
Twitter feed.
David Harewood (Joshua Naismith) Born Dec 8 1965
Career highlights
Debuted in South of the Border (1988), then Minder (1991), Anna Lee (1993), Medics (1993), Spatz (1991-93), Harnessing Peacocks (1993), Hearts and Minds (1995), Agony Again (1995), Ballykissangel (1998), Always and Everyone (1999-2001), Babyfather (2001), Silent Witness (2004), New Street Law (2006), Blood Diamond (2006), The Palace (2008), Gunrush (2009), Mrs Mandela (2010), The Body Farm (2011), Anatomy of Violence (2013), The Wrong Mans (2013), Selfie (2014), Spooks: The Greater Good (2015), SuperBob (2015), Grimsby (2016), The Night Manager (2016), Madiba (2017), Tulip Fever (2017), The Man in the High Castle (2019) and The Abominable Snow Baby (2021). He played Joe Robinson in 28 episodes of The Vice (1999-2003), Max Robertson in Fat Friends (2004-05), Tuck in Robin Hood (2009) and David Estes in 24 episodes of Homeland (2011-12). More recently he has played the character of J'onn J'onzz/ Martian Manhunter across the DC superhero franchise, in The Flash (2017/19), Legends of Tomorrow (2020), Arrow (2020) and over 120 episodes of Supergirl (2015-21).
Awards
2012: Member of the order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to drama
2023: Officer of the order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to drama and charity
FactsDavid has spoken of his struggle with alcohol and mental health in the past, having once been sectioned under the Mental Health Act, spending time on a psychiatric ward and prescribed anti-psychotic drugs. Here he is on
Twitter.
Barry Howard (Oliver Barnes) Jul 9 1937 to Apr 28 2016 (blood cancer)
Career highlights
Barry debuted in Terry and June (1979), then Kelly Monteith (1981), You Rang, M'Lord? (1990), The House of Windsor (1994), Dad (1997) and Beautiful People (2009). He will forever be remembered as ballroom dancer Barry Stuart-Hargreaves in 46 episodes of the sitcom Hi-De-Hi! (1980-86).
Facts
For many years Barry was the partner, and fellow pantomime dame, of actor John Inman (from Are You Being Served?).
Jessica Hynes (Verity Newman) Born Oct 30 1972
Doctor Who creditsPlayed: Joan Redfern in Human Nature/ The Family of Blood (2007)
Played: Verity Newman in The End of Time Part Two (2010)
Career highlightsJessica (real first name Tallulah) went by her maiden name of Jessica Stevenson until 2007. She debuted in Swing Kids in 1993, followed by The House of Eliott (1994), Six Pairs of Pants (1995), Crown Prosecutor (1995), Asylum (1996), Staying Alive (1996-97), The Armstrong and Miller Show (1997), Harry Enfield and Chums (1997), People Like Us (1999), Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) (2000), Bob and Rose (2001), Black Books (2002), Shaun of the Dead (2004), Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004), According to Bex (2005), Confetti (2006), Son of Rambow (2007), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), Lizzie and Sarah (2010), Burke and Hare (2010), Skins (2011), The Hour (2011), Moone Boy (2012), Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger (2012), Blandings (2013), Pudsey the Dog: The Movie (2014), Winter (2015), Cider with Rosie (2015), Swallows and Amazons (2016), Bridget Jones's Baby (2016), Hooten and the Lady (2016), Paddington 2 (2017), Songbird (2018), Nativity Rocks! (2018), Years and Years (2019), There She Goes (2018-20) and Roald and Beatrix (2020). Jessica's breakthrough role was as Daisy Steiner in the sitcom Spaced (1999-2001); other recurring roles include Cheryl Carroll in The Royle Family (1998-2010), Siobhan Sharpe in Twenty Twelve (2011-12) and its spin-off W1A (2014-17), and Margaret in Up the Women (2013-15). She is also a screenwriter, having put pen to paper for Six Pairs of Pants, Asylum, Spaced, Learners (2007), Lizzie and Sarah (which she also produced), Common Ground (2013), Up the Women (also producer) and The Fight (2018).
Awards
1999: British Comedy Award for Best Female Comedy Newcomer
2001: British Comedy Award for Best TV Comedy Actress (Spaced)
2013: Royal Television Society Award for Comedy Performance (Twenty Twelve)
2015: BAFTA TV Award for Best Female Performance in a Comedy Programme (W1A)
2019: BAFTA TV Award for Best Female Performance in a Comedy Programme (There She Goes)
FactsIn 1995, she appeared in a TV commercial for
Kodak cameras. Here she is on
Twitter.
Tracy Ifeachor (Abigail Naismith) Born Feb 13 1985
Career highlightsDebuted in Casualty (2009), then Blooded (2011), Strike Back (2012), Crossbones (2014), Hawaii 5-0 (2014), The Originals (2015), Spark (2016), Quantico (2016-17), Legends of Tomorrow (2017-18), Treadstone (2019), Confetti (2020) and Showtrial (2021).
FactsTracy's
Twitter feed.
Sinead Keenan (Addams) Born Dec 27 1977
Career highlights
Irish Sinead made her debut playing Farrah Phelan in the soap Fair City between 1998-2003. Further work includes Sunburn (1999), The Cassidys (2001), Murder City (2004), Trouble with Sex (2005), Doctors (2008), Moving Wallpaper (2008-09), Victoria Wood's Mid Life Christmas (2009), Silent Witness (2011), Lip Service (2012), London Irish (2013), Uncle (2015), Little Boy Blue (2017), Married to a Paedophile (2018), Porters (2019), Deep Water (2019), My Left Nut (2020), Three Families (2021) and Showtrial (2021). She also played Nina in Being Human between 2009-11.
Awards
2018: Royal Television Society Award for Female Actor (Little Boy Blue)
FactsSinead's sister and brother are actors too - Grainne and Rory Keenan. She is 5ft 1.5in tall, and allergic to chocolate! Here she is on
Twitter.
(Sylvia Noble)
Click here for Jacqueline's entry on The Runaway Bride
Tommy Knight (Luke Smith) Born Jan 22 1993
Doctor Who credits
Played: Luke Smith in The Sarah Jane Adventures: Invasion of the Bane, The Sarah Jane Adventures Series 1-5 (2007-11), The Stolen Earth/ Journey's End (2008), The End of Time (2010)
Career highlightsDebuted in TV to Go (2002), then The Impressionists (2006), Doctors (2006), Sorted (2006), Casualty (2005/08), Myths (2009), The Bill (2006/10), Stitches (2012), Glue (2014-15), Closets (2015), The Hippopotamus (2017), Ghost Seekers (2020) and A Suburban Fairytale (2021). He also played Kevin Chalk in 52 episodes of Waterloo Road (2012-15).
FactsAs from 2014, Tommy's professional name has been Tommy Lawrence Knight. Here he is on
Twitter.
Pete Lee-Wilson (Tommo) Born Mar 28 1956
Career highlights
Debuted in Shoestring (1979), then Dick Turpin (1980), Metal Mickey (1980), Maybury (1981), Big Jim and the Figaro Club (1981), The Bounty (1984), CATS Eyes (1985), Strike It Rich (1987), Drummonds (1987), The Paradise Club (1989), She-Wolf of London (1990), Moon and Son (1992), Joseph in Egypt (1995), Our Friends in the North (1996), Bugs (1996), Newborn (2000), Blade II (2002), Down to Earth (2003), Spooks (2007), Spiders (2013), Downton Abbey (2013), Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool (2017) and Cursed (2020).
Julie Legrand (Partisan)
Career highlightsJulie's earliest credit is on Angels (1980), followed by Water (1985), Prick Up Your Ears (1987), Coasting (1990), Turbulence (1991), Anglo Saxon Attitudes (1992), Bad Girls (2000), Night and Day (2002), Doctors (2009), Edge of Heaven (2014), Holby City (1999/2010/2014), Call the Midwife (2018) and Flack (2020). She also played Jeanette Dunkley in 17 episodes of Footballers' Wives and spin-off Footballer$' Wives: Overtime (2002-06).
FactsJulie is married to sound recordist Simon Clark (who worked on 2013's An Adventure in Space and Time).
Lawry Lewin (Rossiter) Born Nov 28 1985
Career highlightsDebuted aged three in Grange Hill (1988-89), then Extras (2006), Touch Me, I'm Karen Taylor (2006-07), The Life and Times of Vivienne Vyle (2007), Zimbani (2010), Borrowed Time (2012), Mr Sloane (2014), Some Girls (2014), Horrible Histories (2003-15) and the Horrible Histories Movie (2019).
In 2016 Toby Hadoke released his Who's Round interview with Lawry here.
Alexandra Moen (Lucy Saxon) Born 1978
Doctor Who credits
Played: Lucy Saxon in The Sound of Drums/ Last of the Time Lords (2007), The End of Time Part One (2009)
Career highlights
Italian born Alexandra made her screen acting debut in Foyle's War (2004), then Falling (2005), Whatever Love Means (2005), Tripping Over (2006), Waking the Dead (2008), Doctors (2010), Bert and Dickie (2012), Luther (2013), Not Alone (2015), Into the Badlands (2018), A Private War (2018), The Spanish Princess (2019), Dublin Murders (2019) and Industry (2020). She also regularly played Emily James in Hotel Babylon (2008-09), Kerry Stonebridge in Strike Back (2010-12), Frances Barbary in Dickensian (2015-16) and Petra Bergen in Fortitude (2015-18).
Dwayne Scantlebury (Ginger)
Career highlights
Debuted in Father and Son (2009), then Doctors (2010), Lost Christmas (2011), Prisoners' Wives (2012) and Scott and Bailey (2014).
Facts
After leaving acting, Dwayne studied business management and later found work as an account manager for AO.
Simon Thomas (Mr Danes)
Career highlightsSimon debuted in Bigga Than Ben (2008), then The 7th Dimension (2009), Into the Woods (2011), Jonathan Creek (2014), Badults (2014), The Royals (2015), Holby City (2015), Life in Squares (2015), Drifters (2015) and The Royals (2015-16).
FactsHere he is on
Twitter.
Russell Tovey (Midshipman Frame) Born Nov 14 1981
Doctor Who credits
Played: Midshipman Alonso Frame in Voyage of the Damned (2007), The End of Time Part Two (2010)
Narrated: Doctor Who Confidential (2010-11)
Career highlights
Russell's acting debut came aged 12 playing Bill in Mud (1994-95), followed by Look and Read: Spywatch (1996), The Mrs Bradley Mysteries (1998), Ultimate Force (2002), Servants (2003), My Family and Other Animals (2005), Annually Retentive (2007), Ashes to Ashes (2008), Little Dorrit (2008), Gavin and Stacey (2007-08), Mike the Knight (2011-12), Sherlock (2012), In Love with Wilde (2012), Tower Block (2012), What Remains (2013), Muppets Most Wanted (2014), Pride (2014), Blackwood (2014), Banished (2015), The Night Manager (2016), Queers (2017), The Flash (2017), DC's Legends of Tomorrow (2017), Years and Years (2019), Flesh and Blood (2020), The Understudy (2020) and The Sister (2020). His recurring roles include George Sands in Being Human (2008-12), Steve in Him & Her (2010-13), Karl Lyndhurst in The Job Lot (2013-15), Kevin Matheson in Looking (2014-16), Harry Doyle in Quantico (2016-18) and the title role in Shane the Chef (2018).
Awards
2012: Royal Television Society Award for Comedy Performance (Him & Her) - shared with Sarah Solemani
FactsRussell, who is an avid collector of contemporary art, can be found on
Twitter here.
June Whitfield (Minnie Hooper) Nov 11 1925 to Dec 29 2018
Career highlights
June is one of the UK's best loved comedy actors, having made her uncredited debut in 1946's Quiet Weekend. She then appeared in The Passing Show (1951), Love from Judy (1953), Fast and Loose (1954-55), The Tony Hancock Show (1956-57), Hancock's Half Hour (1957), Before Your Very Eyes (1955-58), Whack-O! (1958/59), Friends and Neighbours (1959), The Arthur Askey Show (1961), Hancock (1961), Benny Hill (1961-68), The Rag Trade (1962), Steptoe and Son (1964), Frankie Howerd (1966), Hancock's (1967), Father Dear Father (1968), According to Dora (1969), The Goodies (1971), Bless This House (1972/73), The Pallisers (1974), The Dick Emery Show (1969-74), Bernie (1980), It Ain't Half Hot Mum (1980), Minder (1984), Cluedo (1990), Terry and Julian (1992), Jude (1996), Out of Sight (1997), Friends (1998), The Last of the Blonde Bombshells (2000), New Tricks (2007), Kingdom (2009), Coronation Street (2010), Jonathan Creek (2014), Boomers (2014) and EastEnders (2015). June's most high profile roles include Rose Garvey in Beggar My Neighbour (1966-68), Mabel Pollard in The Best Things in Life (1969-70), various characters in Scott On... (1968-74), June Fletcher in 40 episodes of Happy Ever After (1974-79), June Medford in 65 episodes of Terry and June (1979-87), Nelly in 43 episodes of Last of the Summer Wine (2005-10) and, perhaps most famously, Mother in Absolutely Fabulous (1992-2012) and its 2016 film spin-off. She also appeared in four Carry On films (Nurse, Abroad, Girls and Columbus, 1958/72/73/92).
Awards
1985: Officer of the order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to drama
1994: British Comedy Awards Lifetime Achievement
1998: Commander of the order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to drama
2017: Dame Commander of the order of the British Empire (DBE) for services to drama and entertainment
Facts
June's daughter is actress Suzy Aitchison.
This is Your Life: June was twice the subject of Thames TV's This is Your Life, firstly on April 14th, 1976, surprised by host Eamonn Andrews at her home in Wimbledon, and secondly by Michael Aspel on March 8th, 1995 at BBC TV Centre. Three Doctor Who actors were guests for the first tribute (Lynda Baron, Colin Jeavons and Peter Butterworth), while Honor Blackman was a guest for the second tribute.
Link to The Big Red Book entry.
and introducing...
Matt Smith (The Doctor) Born Oct 28 1982
Doctor Who credits
Played: The Doctor in The End of Time, The Eleventh Hour, The Beast Below, Victory of the Daleks, The Time of Angels/ Flesh and Stone, The Vampires of Venice, Amy's Choice, The Hungry Earth/ Cold Blood, Vincent and the Doctor, The Lodger, The Pandorica Opens/ The Big Bang, The Sarah Jane Adventures: Death of the Doctor, A Christmas Carol, The Impossible Astronaut/ Day of the Moon, The Curse of the Black Spot, The Doctor's Wife, The Rebel Flesh/ The Almost People, A Good Man Goes to War, Let's Kill Hitler, Night Terrors, The Girl Who Waited, The God Complex, Closing Time, The Wedding of River Song, The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe, Asylum of the Daleks, Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, A Town Called Mercy, The Power of Three, The Angels Take Manhattan, The Snowmen, The Bells of Saint John, The Rings of Akhaten, Cold War, Hide, Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS, The Crimson Horror, Nightmare in Silver, The Name of the Doctor, The Day of the Doctor, The Time of the Doctor (2010-13). Return appearance in Deep Breath (2014)
Matt also played the Doctor in Doctor Who: The Adventure Games (2010-11), various video games (2010-12), Space/ Time (2011), Night and the Doctor (2011), Good as Gold (2012), Pond Life (2012), An Adventure in Space and Time (2013) and various other cameo appearances and DVD extras between 2010-13.
Career highlights
Matt made his debut playing Jim Taylor opposite Billie Piper in The Ruby in the Smoke (2006), a role he reprised for 2007's The Shadow in the North. Other work includes Party Animals (2007), Secret Diary of a Call Girl (2007, again with Billie Piper), The Street (2007), Moses Jones (2009), Together (2009), Clone (2010), Christopher and His Kind (2011), Bert and Dickie (2012), Lost River (2014), Terminator: Genisys (2015), Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (2016), Mapplethorpe (2018), Patient Zero (2018), His House (2020), Last Night in Soho (2021), The Forgiven (2021) and Morbius (2022). He also played HRH Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh in The Crown (2016-17), and Daemon Targaryen in Game of Thrones spin-off House of the Dragon (2022). He also directed an episode of Playhouse Presents called Cargese in 2013.
Awards
2012: National Television Award for Most Popular Male Drama Performance (Doctor Who)
2014: National Television Award for Most Popular Drama Performance (Doctor Who)
FactsMatt was discovered by acting agent Wendy Padbury (who played companion Zoe in Doctor Who 1968-69)). In May 2012, Matt carried the Olympic Torch through Cardiff, an honour the Tenth Doctor has in the TV episode Fear Her (2006). Matt's sister Laura Jayne was a dancer in the music video for Eric Prydz's 2004 song
Call On Me, while Matt himself appeared in the 2021 music video for
We're on Our Way Now by Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.
Euros Lyn (director) Born Mar 1971
Click here for Euros Lyn's entry on The End of the World
Tracie Simpson (producer)
Click here for Tracie Simpson's entry on Planet of the DeadGary Russell (script editor) Born Sep 18 1963
Doctor Who credits
Script edited: Torchwood: Dead Man Walking (2008), Torchwood: A Day in the Death (2008), Torchwood: Something Borrowed (2008), Torchwood: Fragments (2008), Music of the Spheres (2008), The Sarah Jane Adventures: Enemy of the Bane (2008), The Waters of Mars (2009), The End of Time (2009-10)
Wrote: Real Time (2002, audio), Shada (2003, audio)
Directed: Real Time (2002, audio), The Infinite Quest (2007, animation), Dreamland (2009, animation)
Career highlights
Lifelong Doctor Who fan Gary started out as a child actor, appearing in The Phoenix and the Carpet (1976-77), then The Famous Five (1978-79), Look and Read: Dark Towers (1981), Schoolgirl Chums (1982) and Octopussy (1983, uncredited). His achievements in the Doctor Who universe are legion - apart from working on the series itself, as well as its spin-offs, Gary edited Doctor Who Magazine between 1992-95, and has written several novels, including Virgin New and Missing Adventures, BBC Eighth and Past Doctor books, and books for the new series of Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures. He has also written Doctor Who and Torchwood comic strips, and was producer for the Big Finish audio adventures from their inception in 1998 until 2006. Beyond Doctor Who he has written books about The Lord of the Rings, Frasier and The Simpsons (the latter two as Warren Martyn). After leaving the BBC in 2011, Gary moved to Australia to become executive producer of the Planet 55 animation company, the firm responsible for the animated reconstructed episodes of The Tenth Planet and The Moonbase on DVD. More recently he has overseen animated reconstructions of missing stories such as Galaxy 4 and Fury from the Deep.
