The performer John Leeson, the sound of K-9, has died at the age of 83.
John Leeson played the sound of the Doctor's robot dog in 54 episodes of Doctor Who. His characterisation of the small robot dog was so skilled and so complete of fun that he helped create what was because of be a impermanent character into a completely fledged associate of the TARDIS crew, much loved and remembered by fans. It is a tribute to the performer that his cry of Affirmative is as much connected alongside Doctor Who as the Daleks' cry of Exterminate. He endowed the character with a existence power that saw K-9 come back to the sequence and its spinoffs many times complete the years.
John Leeson was delivered John Ducker in 1943. In the 1950s, he joined the Leicester Dramatic Society before winning a location at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. At RADA, he adopted the phase name John Leeson, derived from the surname of a affluent godmother whom he believed was backing his tuition.
After graduating, he worked in repertory and pantomimes, including a manufacturing of Toad of Toad Hall, in which he met his forthcoming wife.
His archetypal activity in tv was as a walk-on in a BBC play The Wedding Feast in 1965, followed by The Spanish Farm and Dad's Army in 1968. He played the first Bungle the Bear in the children's sequence Rainbow.
In 1977, he was asked to perform two voices in the fourth Doctor story, The Invisible Enemy. One was the sound of the Nucleus, the another a fun character, Professor Marius's robot dog K-9. Because the digital prop was unavailable for the rehearsal period, Leeson got downward on his hands and knees and physically ran about the rehearsal area acting as K9.
His sound for the character was so prosperous that the manufacturer Graham Williams decided to create the character a regular and put Leeson on agreement to provision the voice.
Leeson would remain alongside the sequence for the next two years, appearing on display as the character Dugeen in the narrative The Power of Kroll, a narrative anywhere K-9 does not appear. He remaining at the end of The Armageddon Factor, fearing that he would endure activity if he remained firmly off-screen.
The character of K-9 remained in the series, voiced by David Brierley for period 17, but for period 18, Leeson was rear rearward the microphone, guiding the character until it was written out at the end of the 1981 narrative Warriors' Gate.
K-9 and Leeson would be rear at the end of the twelvemonth in the spin-off starring Elisabeth Sladen, K-9 and Company and in the 20th Anniversary particular The Five Doctors. in 2006, whenever Russell T. Davies was penning an episode, School Reunion, dealing alongside the come back of Sarah Jane Smith, he additionally brought rear John Leeson as K-9. Over the next 15 years, Leeson would reprise his portrayal of K-9 on many occasions, including in The Sarah Jane Adventures, the K-9 sequence and many Big Finish audio adventures.
Away from Doctor Who, John Leeson made many memorable appearances on British television, including roles in Blake's 7, Jigsaw, Crown Court, The Barretts of Wimpole Street, Minder, Vanity Fair and Doctors.
John Leeson died peacefully earlier today following a abbreviated illness. He is survived by his wife Judy Griffiths and their son, filmaker Guy Ducker
