Players
Elisabeth Sladen (Sarah Jane Smith); John Leeson (Voice of K.9); Bill Fraser (Commander Pollock); Ian Sears (Brendan Richards); Colin Jeavons (George Tracey); Sean Chapman (Peter Tracey); Mary Wimbush (Aunt Lavinia); Linda Polan (Juno Baker); Gillian Martell (Lilly Gregson); Neville Barber (Howard Baker); John Quarmby (Henry Tobias); Nigel Gregory (Sergeant Wilson); Stephen Oxley (P.C. Carter)
NOT South Croydon
Morton Harwood! For the whole thing!! How dull!!! While not in South Croydon, Sarah Jane enjoys roving around the countryside and peeking in her neighbors windows. What a perv. While on an evening jaunt, K9 almost attacks a garden gnome, and then does assault a deadly ladder.
Blink and You’d Miss It
Brendan’s acting abilities.
K9 Says…
I am an efficient machine with a Trisec Bus Driver, a UART, a nuclear battery (self-charging) and a holographic memory.
Brendan loves me.
The Drugs Don’t Work (Sometimes)
Sarah’s biddy of an aunt chain smokes like house on fire. That’s well out of order. During his sacrifice it’s pretty obvious Brendan is feeling no pain. The coven must have given him some of their top grade Columbian to get him so out of it.
Things That Embarrass Us
Hmmm, everything after the opening credits, which let’s face it are the best bit of Doctor Who produced in the Eighties. Bill Pollock introduces himself as Aunt Lavinia’s “partner” as though they’ve been getting all naked and sweaty. That’s done it, excuse us while we’re ill for an hour or so. The HONKING! Sorry, we’re gonna be sick again.
Modes of Transport
Sarah drives a tiny little blue number with the registration DKR 591W, meaning it was a fairly new car. Bill Pollick drives a 1972 Land Rover, registration ending in 984K.
The Sarah Jane Utility Belt
Two words. K. 9. What else would anyone ever need. Let’s hope she never sends him into a black hole, ‘cuz that’d be a daft thing to do.
K9 Says…
The Doctor Master last spoke to me in One Nine Seven Eight Earth years to give me a message for my Mistress: Give Sarah Jane Smith my fondest love. Tell her I shall remember her always.
Eldrad Must Live (and everybody else must die)
Sergeant Wilson has a heart attack and dies when he sees a goat. Brendan almost… oh bugger, K9 saved him.
RTD’s Gay Agenda (25 Years Early)
Juno Baker makes some very telling glances at Sarah throughout the episode as well as several point blank double entendres. And who doesn’t recognize the smoldering teen lust between Peter Tracey and Brendan. Watch out for the scene when Tracey grabs Brendan from behind. Then Brendan ties his new boyfriend up. Oooo-err! We never would have figured Brendan for the top in that relationship.
Evening News
Lavina Smith popping off to America seems to be the biggest news to hit Morton Harwood in years. They’re probably still talking about it on the front page.
Sarah Jane’s Got the Coolest Duds
Not this time she doesn’t. Unless you count eighties style crap with broad shoulders, which we never do.
“…and he goes… and she goes…”
(after what appears to be a phone sex call to Sarah Jane) “She’ll come.” – Juno
“Good.” – Howard
“Who is the Doctor?” – Brendan
“Affirmative.” – K9
“Oh Brendan, where the devil are you?” – Sarah (no pun intended, we’re sure)
“No. No. No. No!” – Peter Tracey (a man of few words)
On Maria’s iPod
Da da da de da… K9 we oo, da da da de da K9… Oh we could do this all day.
Things That Don’t Make Sense (even to a six-year-old)
How does Brendan have such a good understanding of 51st century tech? (although we love the way he says “mother BOARD”.) “The Americans don’t go much on Christmas, do they?” Brendan boy should visit the US in early September when all the US stores are decked out in their finest Christmas wears. The yank shop owners are thinking of extending the Christmas shopping season to eight months next year, we hear. For a bright boy, Brendan’s pretty stupid. Also, for being a journalist, Sarah is one of the slowest typists we’ve ever seen. When Lavinia phones at the end of the episode it’s obvious that she’s not in America as they don’t even make beds that small in the US.
Snafus
Jasper is a ventriloquist dog, but he’s not allowed to sit in the same room as humans.
Also Known As
Bill Fraser was bloody ancient by 1981 and had done about a hundred things (we guess as we ran out of toes to count on), mainly for TV. Our grandparents enjoyed him in The Tony Hancock Show (1956), Dial 999 (1959), The Avengers (1966), Up Pompeii (1971), The Goodies (1973), Ripping Yarns (1979), some Doctor Who story about a cactus (1980), Flesh and Blood (1982) and Rumpole of the Bailey (1978-1987).
Ian Sears hadn’t done much before K9 and Company, but we caught him on French and Saunders (1988), The Bill (188), and Boon (1991).
Colin Jeavons was also really really old, and was in loads of stuff before TV got good, like: Great Expectations (1959), David Copperfield (1966), Doctor Who: The One with the Fish People on Wires (1967), Jackanory (1969), Doomwatch (1971), The Sweeney (1978), Minder (1984), The House of Eliot (1991) and The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (1993).
That honey Sean Chapman was in the first two Hellraiser films (1987 and 1988), Bergerac (1991), Cadfael (1997), Peak Practice (2001-2002) and Midsomer Murders (2005).
The over-the-top Linda Polan was in tons of stuff, but we can only imagine her doing lesbian porn. BAD lesbian porn.
In the End
Oh, we couldn’t give a toss who the bad guys really were. We just wanna play that theme tune over and over.
Did we mention we loved the theme?
Photographic Proof
