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I was so happy to see her 2009 reprise of the role, but no more 
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Elisabeth Sladen, who played Sarah Jane Smith in Doctor Who and two spin-off shows, has died, according to BBC News.
Her death is a huge loss to Doctor Who fans, and to fans of strong female adventure heroes everywhere. It's hard to overstate how important Elisabeth Sladen was to Doctor Who, and how much she transformed the role of the companion on the show. In many ways, she paved the way for all of the show's more intelligent, resourceful companions in the 21st Century.
When her character, Sarah Jane Smith, was added to the show in 1973, she was a direct reaction against the ditzy, spacey Jo Grant, her predecessor. And at first, Sarah Jane Smith was conceived of as a sort of plucky girl reporter, like Lois Lane, who would spout lines about "Women's Lib" every now and then. In her very first scene, Sarah Jane has a stereotypical 1970s feminist moment with the Doctor, who asks her to make herself useful by making coffee. Later, Sarah Jane gives the struggling Queen Thalira a crash course in standing up for herself. Watching those early episodes, you sense that the show is cluelessly trying too hard to make Sarah Jane a strong female character.
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Her death is a huge loss to Doctor Who fans, and to fans of strong female adventure heroes everywhere. It's hard to overstate how important Elisabeth Sladen was to Doctor Who, and how much she transformed the role of the companion on the show. In many ways, she paved the way for all of the show's more intelligent, resourceful companions in the 21st Century.
When her character, Sarah Jane Smith, was added to the show in 1973, she was a direct reaction against the ditzy, spacey Jo Grant, her predecessor. And at first, Sarah Jane Smith was conceived of as a sort of plucky girl reporter, like Lois Lane, who would spout lines about "Women's Lib" every now and then. In her very first scene, Sarah Jane has a stereotypical 1970s feminist moment with the Doctor, who asks her to make herself useful by making coffee. Later, Sarah Jane gives the struggling Queen Thalira a crash course in standing up for herself. Watching those early episodes, you sense that the show is cluelessly trying too hard to make Sarah Jane a strong female character.
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