The Deadly Assassin

The Fourth Doctor's new outfit
certainly turned some heads

Four episodes (Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four)
First broadcast Oct 30 to Nov 20 1976
Average audience for serial: 12.18m

REGULAR CAST

Tom Baker (The Doctor) Born Jan 20 1934 Click here for Tom Baker's entry on Robot

GUEST CAST

Michael Bilton (Time Lord) Dec 14 1919 to Nov 5 1993
Doctor Who credits
Played: Teligny in The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve (1966)
Played: Collins in Pyramids of Mars (1975)
Played: Time Lord in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Career highlights
Michael's first credit is in Sing Along With Me (1952), and over the course of his career he appeared in Quatermass II (1955), A Taste of Honey (1961), The Mind of the Enemy (1965), The Prisoner (1967), The Avengers (1968), Doctor at Large (1971), The Fenn Street Gang (1973), South Riding (1974), The Haunting of Julia (1977), The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin (1977), Pennies from Heaven (1978), Bognor (1981), Brideshead Revisited (1981), Coronation Street (1983), The Fourth Protocol (1987), The New Statesman (1990) and the Alleyn Mysteries (1993). He had memorable roles as Ned in To the Manor Born (1979-81), Mr Thorpe in Grace and Favour (1992-93) and Basil Makepeace in Waiting for God (1990-93). He may also be remembered for playing an elderly gardener in a TV commercial for Yellow Pages.
Facts
Crippling arthritis prevented him from working on stage toward the end of his career. While serving in World War Two, he was wounded in the stomach at the Battle of El Alamein.

Helen Blatch ([Matrix] Voice) Jan 24 1934 to Dec 31 2015 (cancer)
Doctor Who credits
Played: Matrix voice in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Played: Fabian in The Twin Dilemma (1984)
Career highlights
Helen first appeared in The Stiffkey Scandals of 1932 (1969), then took roles in Peer Gynt (1972), A Doll's House (1973), Within These Walls (1976), Secret Army (1979), Blake's 7 (1980), Sorry! (1982), Tenko (1984), London Embassy (1987), A Doll's House (1992, a different character!), The Buddha of Suburbia (1993), Baddiel's Syndrome (2001), Harry Hill's TV Burp (2002), Wimbledon (2004), Waking the Dead (2007), Kingdom (2008), Frankie (2013) and Casualty (2014).

Erik Chitty (Coordinator Engin) Jul 8 1907 to Jul 22 1977
Doctor Who credits
Played: Preslin in The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve (1966)
Played: Coordinator Engin in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Career highlights
Erik's prolific career began with James Simpson (1937) and continued through Alice (1946), The Pickwick Papers (1953), Footsteps in the Fog (1955), The Devil's Disciple (1959), The Strange World of Gurney Slade (1960), Emergency Ward 10 (1960, as Ignatius Small), The Victorians (1963), Danger Man (1965), Adam Adamant Lives! (1967), Casino Royale (1967), Virgin of the Secret Service (1968), Strange Report (1969), Doomwatch (1970), Lust for a Vampire (1971), The Stalls of Barchester (1971), The Vault of Horror (1973), Man About the House (1975), One of Our Dinosaurs is Missing (1975), Midnight is a Place (1977) and A Bridge Too Far (1977). He also had a regular role as Mr Smith in the sitcom Please Sir! (1968-72).
Facts
Erik was a Fellow of the Society of Genealogists and had carried out extensive research into the genealogy of his surname. He was also a founder of the Cambridge University Mummers.

John Dawson (Time Lord) Jun 10 1919 to May 13 1984
Career highlights
John first appeared in Quatermass and the Pit in 1959, then took roles in Dead Lucky (1960), Deadline Midnight (1961), Suspense (1963), Smuggler's Bay (1964), Dixon of Dock Green (1965), The Dirtiest Girl I Ever Met (1970), The Man Who Haunted Himself (1970), The Witch's Daughter (1971), Moody and Pegg (1974), The Brothers (1975), Poldark (1975), Scorpion Tales (1978) and A Family Affair (1979). He also played Bernard Nelson in The Newcomers (1967), and Mr Mumford, the original next door neighbour to the spooks in Rentaghost (1976-79).

Bernard Horsfall (Chancellor Goth) Nov 20 1930 to Jan 28 2013
Doctor Who credits
Played: Gulliver in The Mind Robber (1968)
Played: Time Lord in The War Games (1969)
Played: Taron in Planet of the Daleks (1973)
Played: Chancellor Goth in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Career highlights
Prolific character actor Bernard debuted in The Steel Bayonet (1957) and went on to appear in Dancers in Mourning (1959), The Angry Silence (1960), Captain Moonlight: Man of Mystery (1960), Pathfinders to Space (1960), Family Solicitor (1961), Harpers West One (1962), Guns at Batasi (1964), The Avengers (1965/67/68), Department S (1969), On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), Ivanhoe (1970), Elizabeth R (1971), Freewheelers (1973), Harriet's Back in Town (1973), South Riding (1974), Within These Walls (1976), Big Boy Now! (1977), Enemy at the Door (1978-80, as Dr Philip Martel), Minder (1982), Gandhi (1982), The Jewel in the Crown (1984), The Hound of the Baskervilles (1988), The Bill (1989), Thatcher: The Final Days (1991), Virtual Murder (1992), Braveheart (1995), Murder Rooms (2000), Doctors (2005) and Stone of Destiny (2008).
Facts
Bernard claimed he was a descendant of William the Conqueror. In the 1980s Bernard moved with his actress wife Jane Jordan Rogers to the Isle of Skye in Scotland, where he became a crofter, producing fruit and vegetables. His son Christian predeceased him in 2012.

Angus Mackay (Cardinal Borusa) Jul 15 1926 to Jun 8 2013
Doctor Who credits
Played: Cardinal Borusa in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Played: Headmaster in Mawdryn Undead (1983)
Career highlights
Angus's prolific career began in Death of a Ghost (1960), then Nothing But the Best (1964), Mogul (1966), The Tyrant King (1968), Paul Temple (1970), Inn of the Frightened People (1971), The Golden Bowl (1972), Warship (1973), The Pallisers (1974), Edward the King (1975), Flesh and Blood (1980), When the Boat Comes In (1981), The Jewel in the Crown (1984), Clockwise (1986), Hot Metal (1986), Chance in a Million (1984/86), Alexei Sayle's Stuff (1986), One Foot in the Grave (1990), Brass (1990), King Ralph (1991) and If You See God, Tell Him (1993).
Facts
After Angus's actor/ librettist wife Dorothy Reynolds died of motor neurone disease in 1977, he decided to combat his loneliness by renting out room space in his house to up-and-coming actors, one of whom was Kenneth Branagh, who cites copious diarist Angus's expert knowledge on theatrical history as a major inspiration to him. He had an enormous archive of theatre magazines and programmes, and there are hopes to make them publicly available.

Peter Mayock (Solis) May 31 1940 to Dec 15 1998
Doctor Who credits
Played: Namin in Pyramids of Mars (1975)
Played: Solis in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Career highlights
Peter made his debut in The Wright People (1959), then Triton (1961), The Face of Fu Manchu (1965), Ulysses (1967), Emmerdale Farm (1972), My Old Man (1974-75) and Spend Spend Spend (1977).

Peter Pratt (The Master) Mar 21 1923 to Jan 11 1995
Career highlights
Peter's earliest TV credit was Dial RIX (1962), followed by Six Characters in Search of an Author (1964), Music for You (1966), Melodies for You (1967), Orlando (1967), The Challengers (1972), The Edwardians (1972), The Brontes of Haworth (1973), Murder Must Advertise (1973), Village Hall (1974), Churchill's People (1975), The Story of Ruth (1981) and Squadron (1982).
Facts
Opera singer Peter was best known for his roles in Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas. His first wife was opera singer Joyce Wright, while his second was Patience Sheffield, a BBC studio manager and daughter of opera singer Leo Sheffield. If you've ever wondered what he really looked like under that mask, here's a picture of him looking rather sinister as Bunthorne in Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera Patience.

George Pravda (Castellan Spandrell) Jun 19 1916 to May 1 1985
Doctor Who credits
Played: Denes in The Enemy of the World (1967-68)
Played: Jaeger in The Mutants (1972)
Played: Castellan Spandrell in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Career highlights
Prague-born George's extensive career began with Muzi bez kridel (1946), followed by The Antlers (1947), Sailor of Fortune (1956), The Battle of the V-1 (1958), Jo's Boys (1959), The Avengers (1961), The Monsters (1962), Ring of Spies (1964), Thunderball (1965), The Prisoner (1967), Inspector Clouseau (1968), Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1969), Department S (1970), Hadleigh (1971), Dracula (1973), Spy Trap (1973), QB VII (1974), The Duchess of Duke Street (1976), I, Claudius (1976), Sexton Blake and the Demon God (1978), Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (1979), Strangers (1981-82), Chessgame (1983), Gulag (1985) and Cold War Killers (1986).
Facts
His wife was actress Hana Maria Pravda, best known as Emma Cohen in Survivors (1975). He was fluent in six languages, and sometimes acted on stage under the name Jiri Pravda (his birth name). His son is Dr Alex Pravda, an Emeritus Fellow at St Antony's College, Oxford University.

Maurice Quick (Gold Usher) Aug 24 1911 to Dec 17 2000
Doctor Who credits
Played: Auton VIP in Spearhead from Space (1970, uncredited)
Played: Priest in The Masque of Mandragora (1976, uncredited)
Played: Gold Usher in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Career highlights
After debuting in The Other Man (1964), Maurice's CV includes The Forsyte Saga (1967), Sherlock Holmes (1968), Sentimental Education (1970), Father Dear Father (1971), The Edwardians (1973), The Pallisers (1974, as Collingwood), Rooms (1975), The Basil Brush Show (1975), Raffles (1977), Penmarric (1979), Kessler (1981), Beau Geste (1982), Potter (1983) and Strangers and Brothers (1984).

Llewellyn Rees (The President) Jun 18 1901 to Jan 7 1994
Career highlights
Llewellyn's earliest credit is in The Inward Eye (1955), followed by Sword of Freedom (1957), The Navy Lark (1959), The Davy Jones Saga (1959), The House in Marsh Road (1960), The Double (1963), The Power Game (1966), The Tempest (1968), Strange Report (1969), The Way We Live Now (1969), Doomwatch (1970), Crown Court (1972), The Ruling Glass (1972), Coronation Street (1973), Comet Amongst the Stars (1975), Dickens of London (1976), Crossroads (1978), Carry On Emmannuelle (1978), The Return of the Soldier (1982), The Dresser (1983), The Kenny Everett Television Show (1986), Withnail and I (1987), Mr Majeika (1988), A Fish Called Wanda (1988), Chancer (1990) and Splitting Heirs (1993).
Facts
Llewellyn was a staunch supporter of his industry, having served on the committees of actors' union Equity, the Federation of Theatre Unions, the Old Vic, the Arts Council of Great Britain, and the Arts Theatre. His wives were actors Carol Rees and Madeleine Newbury.

Derek Seaton (Commander Hilred) Oct 1 1943 to Sep 2 1979 (brain haemorrhage)
Career highlights
Debuted in Coriolanus (1965), then Troilus and Cressida (1966), The Likely Lads (1966), Dombey and Son (1969), The Strauss Family (1972), Tittertime (1975), Within These Walls (1976), Miss Jones and Son (1977), People Like Us (1978, as Harold Godbeer), Telford's Change (1979), Shoestring (1979) and Only a Game (1981).
Facts
Derek, who also had the recurring role of Rusty in BBC Radio's Waggoner's Walk, was married to actress Paula Wilcox between 1969 and his death. Derek collapsed at BBC TV Centre during rehearsals for the 1980 thriller series Breakaway. He was rushed to hospital for a four-hour operation on his brain, which was sadly unsuccessful.

Hugh Walters (Commentator Runcible) Mar 2 1939 to Feb 13 2015
Doctor Who credits
Played: William Shakespeare in The Chase (1965)
Played: Commentator Runcible in The Deadly Assassin (1976)
Played: Vogel in Revelation of the Daleks (1985)
Career highlights
Other credits include The Larkins (1963), Nicholas Nickleby (1968), Ivanhoe (1970), Never Say Die (1970), Doctor at Large (1971), The Fenn Street Gang (1971-72), Jason King (1972), Survivors (1975), Clayhanger (1976), Thomas and Sarah (1979), Holding the Fort (1982), Miss Marple: The Body in the Library (1984), Chance in a Million (1986), The Russ Abbot Show (1991), The Brittas Empire (1996), Bernard's Watch (1999), Cor Blimey! (2000, as Charles Hawtrey), Doctors (2006), Sold (2007) and M.I High (2011). He also wrote for and played Peter Pringle in the series The Train Now Standing (1971-72).
Facts
Some lovely tributes to Hugh can be found here.

CREW

Robert Holmes (writer and script editor) Apr 2 1926 to May 24 1986 (chronic liver ailment) Click here to see Robert Holmes's entry on The Krotons

David Maloney (director) Dec 14 1933 to Jul 18 2006 (cancer) Click here for David Maloney's entry on The Mind Robber

Philip Hinchcliffe (producer) Born Oct 1 1944 Click here for Philip Hinchcliffe's entry on The Ark in Space