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Kate O’Mara, who memorably portrayed the villainous Rani in the latter years of the classic series of Doctor Who, has died aged 74.

O’Mara, best known for her role in the American soap opera Dynasty, was cast as the Rani opposite Colin Baker’s Doctor in the 1985 serial The Mark of the Rani. She returned as Sylvester McCoy’s first opponent in Time and the Rani in 1987, and then was the protagonist of the charity special Dimensions in Time, created to mark Doctor Who’s 30th anniversary in 1993. She reprised the role for an audio in 2000.

Her genre credits include Danger Man, The Saint, The Avengers and The Champions in the 1960s and she played the Governess in the 1970 movie The Vampire Lovers as well as Alys in The Horror of Frankenstein. In the 1970s she appeared opposite Baker in The Brothers, and she was one of the main stars of the BBC soaps Triangle and Howard’s Way.

She also had a distinguished career in the theatre, with high acclaim given to her roles as Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing and Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Regent’s Park among many others.