Sci-Fi Bulletin: Exploring the Universes of SF, Fantasy, Horror and Spy-fi!

Jane Baker, who contributed four stories to the classic era of Doctor Who as well as many other shows from the 1960s to 1980s, has died.

Working with her husband Pip, she created the character of the Rani, played by Kate O’Mara, for Colin Baker’s first full season as the Doctor, following it with the introductory story for Bonnie Langford’s Mel, and the final episode of the Trial of a Time Lord, which the Bakers had to write at short notice. They were invited back to pen Sylvester McCoy’s debut serial, Time and the Rani. They also novelised their stories for the Target book range.

Their other genre work included the movie Captain Nemo and the Underwater City, episodes of Space: 1999, and the series Watt on Earth.

The Bakers were surprised by the reaction they received to their Doctor Who work, with Jane noting, “The only thing we’ve got against the programme is the element of malice which creeps in among some of the fans. Basically, it’s a good-natured show – it’s not a great social tract, but we can only speak as we find.”