05 Nov 2026, 09:16 PM

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Actor who provided the voice for the ‘tin dog’ K9 in the BBC’s Doctor Who and also worked on ITV’s Beadle’s AboutJohn Leeson, who has died aged 83, was a genial character actor who provided the voice of the much-loved robotic sidekick K9 in the popular BBC TV series Doctor Who. Originally conceived to appear in just one story, The Invisible Enemy, in 1977, K9 was a mobile, dog-shaped computer who produced ticker-tape information from his mouth and had a laser gun in his nose. With a pinched voice, clipped delivery and a tendency towards pedantry, he served as both encyclopedia and guard dog, and was deemed successful enough a creation to retain as a regular character.K9 was the perfect foil for Tom Baker’s spiky, obtuse Time Lord: Leeson likened the character to King Lear’s fool – a wise and funny factotum licensed to call out his master’s faults and prick his pomposity. Off-screen Baker thought highly of Leeson, and felt that the intelligent, unassuming and witty actor was more interesting that the oft-malfunctioning K9 prop, which caused many delays on the studio floor. Leeson also won the appreciation of his colleagues by attending rehearsals and gamely performing on all fours. Continue reading...

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