THE GUESTS

SOPHIE ALDRED

- who needs no introduction!  Sophie's an old friend of the convention and she was actually with us ten years ago for our very first event. 

Sophie co-starred with Sylvester McCoy from 1987 to 1989; she continues to place Ace for Big Finish and guest-starred in The Power of the Doctor in 2022.

Her novel, Doctor Who - At Childhood's End, was published by BBC Books in 2020.  With Mike Tucker, she wrote Ace! The Inside Story of the End of an Era, a memoir of the McCoy years.

It's great to have her back.

JILL CURZON

Jill starred as Louise in the 1966 film Daleks - Invasion Earth 2150 AD, alongside Peter Cushing as Dr Who.  Louise was the niece of the Doctor; the character replaced Barbara from the television original.

Jill lives in Spain and is rarely able to attend conventions in the UK; we're really grateful to her for flying in to be with us for Bedford Who 10.

Jill's other work includes The Champions, Adam Adamant Lives!, The Saint, and Dr Syn, Alias the Scarecrow.

We're looking forward to welcoming her to Bedford.

LOUISE JAMESON

Louise was last with us in 2019 for Bedford Who Charity Con 5.  As she is now a regular in Emmerdale, she's taking time out from her busy schedule to come and see us again.  We're really grateful.  She's a wonderful convention guest, of course:  warm, friendly, witty, and happy to meet with and chat to the fans.

Louise joined the Royal Shakespeare Company soon after leaving RADA; her theatre work includes Gertrude (Hamlet), Rosalind (As You Like It) and Beatrice (Much Ado About Nothing).  Television includes leading roles in EastEnders, Toast of London (do try and see it if you haven't yet - she's hilarious), Doc Martin, Adrian Mole, Tenko, The Omega Factor and Bergerac.

She co-starred with Tom Baker, as Leela, in Doctor Who.

JACQUELINE KING

Jacqueline trained at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and went on to work with Alan Ayckbourn at The Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, starring in many of the premiere productions of his plays.  (Ayckbourn is Britain's most prolific playwright; he's actually written more plays than Shakespeare!)  She was a regular in 55 Degrees North as Georgina Hodge, and in Doctors as Wendy Sheffield. 

In the BBC docudrama Theresa vs Boris: How May Became PM, Jacqueline played none other than Theresa May herself.

Jacqueline was and is Sylvia Noble in Doctor Who, co-starring with David Tennant, Catherine Tate and Bernard Cribbins.  Her first appearance in the part was in The Runaway Bride in 2006.  Sylvia - and Jacqueline - returned as a regular character for the fourth series of nu-Who in 2008; she also featured in The End of Time (2009-10) and, more recently, in the sixtieth anniversary specials The Star Beast and The Giggle (2023).

This is Jacqueline's first appearance at Bedford Who; we're very pleased that she's able to come to help us celebrate our tenth anniversary.

KATY MANNING

One of the longest-running and best loved of all the Doctor's companions, Katy co-starred as Jo with Jon Pertwee's Doctor for seasons 8, 9 and 10 in the early seventies. 

This is Katy's second visit to Bedford Who; she was a huge hit at our second convention and we're really pleased that she's coming to see us again.  She and Sophie were also the sponsors for our Sponsored Dalek Push in 2016, which raised more than £4000.

Katy's enormously wide-ranging career spans more than fifty years as an actor, writer and director.  Television work includes her own show, Serendipity; her other appearances include Softly Softly, Armchair Theatre and Target.  In the theatre in the UK and Australia, she's played Ophelia in Hamlet, the title role in Educating Rita, and Yvette in the stage version of 'Allo 'Allo!

Katy continues to play Jo for Big Finish, alongside Tim Treloar as the Doctor.

NEVE MCINTOSH

While she's originally from Paisley, Neve moved to Glasgow to train at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.  She was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company; her stage roles include Goneril in King Lear and Portia in The Merchant of Venice.  Television work includes Fuchsia in Gormenghast, Doc Martin, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Dracula and, more recently, Miss Harbottle in the revived series of All Creatures Great and Small.

Neve is best known to Doctor Who fans as Madame Vastra, the leader of the Paternoster Gang, co-starring alongside Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi.  Her first appearance in the series was in The Hungry Earth / Cold Blood, playing the Silurians Alaya and Restac.

Neve is very much in demand as an actor and isn't able to make many appearances at Who conventions; we're delighted she's going to be with us for our tenth anniversary.

PETER ROY

Another old friend of the convention, Peter is one of the most prolific actors in Doctor Who, with appearances as a supporting artist spanning the years from William Hartnell to Peter Davison.  He is one of the nicest people you could hope to meet and is always pleased to spend time with members of the audience.

Peter's frequently appeared in the Star Wars, Harry Potter and James Bond franchises; his memoir, My Extra Life in Show Business, was published last year.

Doctor Who appearances include The Myth Makers, The Highlanders, The Faceless Ones, The Invasion, Doctor Who and the Silurians, The Hand of Fear, The Face of Evil, The Invasion of Time, Logopolis, Snakedance and Resurrection of the Daleks.  Phew!

VIRGINIA WETHERELL

Extraordinarily, Virginia first appeared in Doctor Who in episode seven.  Not episode seven of a particular story: episode seven of Doctor Who.  She was Dyoni, the lead female Thal, in The Daleks (1963-4).

The Daleks is one of the most iconic of all the Doctor's adventures, and the only one to have come down to us in four different versions (the original TV version, the film, the novel, and as The Daleks In Colour, made for the programme's sixtieth anniversary).  It was The Daleks which ensured the programme's success and popularity; viewing figures nearly doubled from the first story, An Unearthly Child.  We're looking forward to hearing Virginia's memories of the making of a classic.

Virginia also starred in another leading dystopian drama, Stanley Kubrick's film of Burgess's A Clockwork Orange, withdrawn by the director after criticism for its graphic depiction of the 'ultra violence' which motivates its protagonists.  Other films include Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde and Demons of the Mind for Hammer, The Big Switch, and Dracula (1974).  Virginia was a regular in The Troubleshooters on television, and featured in Minder, The Gentle Touch and The Protectors.

Other guests to be announced.

Thanks to Pete Sims and Matthew Campbell.