John Leeson, Voice of Doctor Who's K9, Dies Aged 83
The actor who voiced the robot dog K9 for decades, from 1977 on, has died. He also played Bungle the Bear in Rainbow.
John Leeson, who gave the robot dog K9 his voice in Doctor Who, has died aged 83. The Guardian's obituary also recalls a long career in comedy, children's television and prank shows.
Bungle the Bear and a busy career
Born John Ducker in Leicester, he trained at Rada, took his stage name from a kindly godmother and graduated in 1964. His first job was in repertory theatre at Frinton-on-Sea. His television debut came in 1967, as a French hippy in the soap Crossroads. In 1972 he became the first Bungle the Bear, taking part in Rainbow's opening 50 episodes.
He was an adept light comedian, with credits in Dad's Army, Sorry! and 'Allo 'Allo. In drama he played two different roles in Blake's 7. Millions saw him as one of the regular actors who helped Jeremy Beadle pull elaborate pranks on unsuspecting people in Beadle's About, which ran from 1986 to 1992.
Life away from the screen
Leeson was curious and had knowledge of many subjects. He introduced programmes as a continuity announcer for the BBC and for Channel 4. For 25 years he sat as a magistrate, a justice of the peace, at Ealing court. He was an accredited wine educator and a member of the Circle of Wine Writers, lecturing on cruises and advising at tastings.
Cooking was another strength. He won a Radio Times and BBC recipe competition, and won a stay at the Cipriani hotel in Venice, where the judge Antonio Carluccio went with him. He later helped his wife Judy, a production buyer, by preparing period food for shows such as Poirot and Foyle's War.
His books were an autobiography, Tweaking the Tale, in 2013 and a cookbook, Dog's Dinners, in 2014. He is survived by Judy, whom he married in 1969, and their son, Guy.
How K9 outlasted his single story
K9 first appeared in The Invisible Enemy in 1977, and the plan was for one story only. K9 was a computer built as a dog, with a laser gun in his nose and ticker tape feeding from his mouth. Pedantic, pinched in voice and clipped in speech, he proved popular enough to stay on.
Leeson likened K9 to the fool in King Lear, a wise and funny helper allowed to point out his master's faults and deflate his pomposity. Tom Baker, who played the Time Lord, thought highly of Leeson. In Baker's view the actor was more interesting than the often malfunctioning prop, which caused many delays in the studio. Colleagues also liked that Leeson came to rehearsals and played along on all fours.
Leeson also appeared as a person in the show, in The Power of Kroll in 1978, playing an undercover environmentalist. He left briefly and came back for a final season in 1980. Over the next 45 years he kept voicing the "tin dog". The run took in K9 and Company in 1981, Big Finish audio adventures from 2003 to 2026, the revival opposite David Tennant, The Sarah Jane Adventures and an Australian children's series, K9.
Source: The Guardian