Aurum Press have announced that the autobiography of Elisabeth Sladen will be published on 7th November 2011, following her life from her humble Liverpool beginnings through to a celebrated return as the popular sidekick to the Doctor, Sarah Jane Smith, in her own series for CBBC.


Originally slated for April, completion of the book was delayed through Sladen's illness and her untimely death earlier this year; it has now been completed with the support of her family. Her editor, Sam Harrison, reflected:

The final series of The Sarah Jane Adventures is expected to be broadcast in the Autumn.

We have recently heard from Doctor Who's Brand Manager Edward Russell, who will be undertaking a walk to raise money on behalf of the hospice that looked after Elisabeth Sladen; he wishes to thank everybody who has donated so far, and has a message from the Meadow House Hospice itself to share:


As previously reported, the walk is scheduled to start at the BBC's Upper Boat Studios in Wales (where The Sarah Jane Adventures were produced) on the 3rd September; once under way, Edward aims to utilise the dedicated Facebook group for the walk to chart his progress.

Edward Russell, the Brand Manager for Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures, is to undertake a 160 mile walk from the BBC's Upper Boat Studios in Wales to BBC Television Centre in London:


You can follow his preparations and progress for the walk via the WalkForLis blog, and there is also a Facebook group that you can join.

Doctor Who Magazine have passed on details on where people who wish to make a donation in memory of Elisabeth Sladen should send to; her family have nominated the hospice that cared for her:

The Radio Times have reported that The Hand of Fear is to be broadcast as a tribute to the late Elisabeth Sladen; the story was her last appearance as series regular Sarah Jane Smith alongside Tom Baker's portrayal as The Doctor.

The story will be broadcast on BBC4, with parts one and two on at 7:40pm and 8:05pm respectively on Monday 9th, and parts three and four in the same timeslots the following evening.



Episode details may be found both on the Radio Times and from our own Doctor Who Guide.

Tonight, the CBBC channel broadcast a special programme in tribute to Elisabeth Sladen, who died this week, aged 63.

The show featured memories of the actress from her co-stars on The Sarah Jane Adventures, Daniel Anthony, Anjli Mohindra and Tommy Knight, the two recent Doctors she worked with, David Tennant and Matt Smith, and series creator Russell T Davies, plus contributions from Katy Manning, John Barrowman and Barney Harwood. A variety of clips from throughout her 38-year association with Doctor Who appeared in the programme, including a montage at the end set the song She (as sung by Elvis Costello for the film Notting Hill).


The tribute programme is available to watch in the United Kingdom via the BBC iplayer until next Saturday (30th April).


Update: The programme was watched by 707,000 viewers when broadcast, representing some 4.1% of the audience.

With the sad news of the death of Elisabeth Sladen still raw in many people's minds and so difficult to comprehend, many fans around the world have been making their own tributes to a woman who was such a central part of so many childhoods.

British folk singer Talis Kimberley has recorded her own tribute, Goodnight Sarah Jane, available as a download from her website. Kimberley says "this is my tribute to the actor Lis Sladen. Along with many other people I was desparately saddened to hear of her death; her portrayal of Sarah-Jane Smith was an inspiration during two periods of my life."

Other tracks released include Companion by Parralox and What's the Story Sarah Jane by New Magnet.

The tribute page in Gallifrey Base now stands at over 2000 posts and a special thread has been setup where fans can post their own artwork. Meanwhile a whole new generation of fans have been expressing their sense of loss on the BBC's Newsround page, which has had its biggest response ever to a story covered on the site. Some of the messages from children are read out by the co-stars of The Sarah Jane Adventures, Tommy Knight and Daniel Anthony, who are mourning the loss of the woman they called their "Mother Hen, ...always smiling, always laughing".

Many fans have made their own tribute videos which can be found on YouTube. Dork Tower, the online comic, has also produced its own cartoon in tribute.

A group of fans have launched a JustGiving site raising money for the charity Cancer Research UK, in memory of the actress. To date over £3000 has been raised. Other fans have been donating to the Lymphoedema Support Network, which was understood to be a charity the actress supported. A JustGiving site has been set up to buy an imaginary pint to toast Sarah Jane.

The BBC's programme in memory of Elisabeth Sladen, My Sarah Jane, which contains contributions from many of those who worked with her, can be seen in the UK on CBBC at 6.45pm Saturday, directly after Doctor Who finishes on BBC One.


News links: Obituary, Doctors pay tribute, Elisabeth Sladen Tributes, Press Roundup

Today sees the release of the latest Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition, which looks in depth at series three and four of The Sarah Jane Adventures.

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Doctor Who Magazine editor Tom Spilsbury reflects on the sad timing of this particular publication:

The BBC have announced that there will be a special programme broadcast this coming Saturday, called My Sarah Jane: A Tribute to Elisabeth Sladen. The show is due to be shown on the CBBC channel at 6:45pm, directly after Doctor Who finishes on BBC1 and before Doctor Who Confidential on BBC3 at 7:00pm.

Doctor Who Magazine have also reported that there will be a dedication to the actress at the start of Saturday's episode, The Impossible Astronaut.

The three surviving actors to play Sarah Jane Smith's "Doctor" have paid tribute to their former co-star Elisabeth Sladen, who died yesterday morning.




Sixth Doctor Colin Baker has also paid tribute via Twitter: