The Sarah Jane Adventures is a British science fiction television programme produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC. Created by Russell T Davies, it is a spin-off of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who . In comparison to Doctor Who's family-orientated viewership, The Sarah Jane Adventures is aimed at a younger audience generally aged 6–12 years old. 53 episodes and 1 short were produced between 2007 and 2011 across five series.
The programme focuses on Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen), an investigative journalist and former companion to the Doctor, an alien time traveller whom Smith adventured with in her youth. Now living in modern-day Ealing, London, she investigates extraterrestrial matters and protects Earth against alien threats with a group of teenage accomplices: her adopted son Luke Smith, neighbour Maria Jackson and friend Clyde Langer. New neighbour Rani Chandra and adopted daughter Sky Smith later join the cast. Additionally, the group is aided by Mr Smith, a sentient extraterrestrial computer, and K9, a dog-shaped robot gifted to Sarah Jane by the Doctor.
Following an introductory episode broadcast as a New Year's Day special, a first series of 10 episodes (5 two-part serials) premiered on 24 September 2007. Series 2–4, each comprising 12 episodes (6 serials), followed annually between 2008 and 2010. A fifth series of 12 episodes was commissioned in 2010, but only 6 (3 serials) were completed before Sladen's death. They were posthumously broadcast in 2011.
For Series 1 and 2, after an episode was broadcast on BBC One, the next would air immediately after on CBBC. Certain repeats are broadcast in omnibus rather than the traditional Part One and Two format. [1]
No. story | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | UK viewers (millions) [2] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Special | ||||||||||||
1 | – | "Invasion of the Bane" | Colin Teague | Russell T Davies & Gareth Roberts | 1 January 2007 | 1.X | 2.92 | |||||
Series | ||||||||||||
2 | 1–2 | Revenge of the Slitheen | Alice Troughton | Gareth Roberts | 24 September 2007 | 1.1 | 1.40 | |||||
1.2 | 1.55 | |||||||||||
3 | 3–4 | Eye of the Gorgon | Alice Troughton | Phil Ford | 1 October 2007 | 1.3 | 1.47 | |||||
8 October 2007 | 1.4 | 1.44 | ||||||||||
4 | 5–6 | Warriors of Kudlak | Charles Martin | Phil Gladwin | 15 October 2007 | 1.5 | 1.43 | |||||
22 October 2007 | 1.6 | 1.60 | ||||||||||
5 | 7–8 | Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? | Graeme Harper | Gareth Roberts | 29 October 2007 | 1.7 | 1.61 | |||||
5 November 2007 | 1.8 | 1.73 | ||||||||||
6 | 9–10 | The Lost Boy | Charles Martin | Phil Ford | 12 November 2007 | 1.9 | 1.77 | |||||
19 November 2007 | 1.10 | 1.86 | ||||||||||
No. story | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | UK viewers (millions) [3] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Series | ||||||||||||
7 | 1–2 | The Last Sontaran | Joss Agnew | Phil Ford | 29 September 2008 | 2.1 | 0.82 | |||||
2.2 | 1.18 | |||||||||||
8 | 3–4 | The Day of the Clown | Michael Kerrigan | Phil Ford | 6 October 2008 | 2.3 | 1.11 | |||||
13 October 2008 | 2.4 | 1.28 | ||||||||||
9 | 5–6 | Secrets of the Stars | Michael Kerrigan | Gareth Roberts | 20 October 2008 | 2.5 | 1.42 | |||||
27 October 2008 | 2.6 | 1.21 | ||||||||||
10 | 7–8 | The Mark of the Berserker | Joss Agnew | Joseph Lidster | 3 November 2008 | 2.7 | 1.43 | |||||
10 November 2008 | 2.8 | 1.53 | ||||||||||
11 | 9–10 | The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith | Graeme Harper | Gareth Roberts | 17 November 2008 | 2.9 | 1.18 | |||||
24 November 2008 | 2.10 | 1.39 | ||||||||||
12 | 11–12 | Enemy of the Bane | Graeme Harper | Phil Ford | 1 December 2008 | 2.11 | 1.36 | |||||
8 December 2008 | 2.12 | 1.26 | ||||||||||
Supplemental | ||||||||||||
– | – | "From Raxacoricofallapatorius with Love" | Joss Agnew | Gareth Roberts & Clayton Hickman | 13 March 2009 | – | 8.30 |
No. story | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | UK viewers (millions) [4] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
13 | 1–2 | Prisoner of the Judoon | Joss Agnew | Phil Ford | 15 October 2009 | 3.1 | 0.73 |
16 October 2009 | 3.2 | 0.82 | |||||
14 | 3–4 | The Mad Woman in the Attic | Alice Troughton | Joseph Lidster | 22 October 2009 | 3.3 | 0.75 |
23 October 2009 | 3.4 | 0.84 | |||||
15 | 5–6 | The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith | Joss Agnew | Gareth Roberts | 29 October 2009 | 3.5 | 1.59 |
30 October 2009 | 3.6 | 1.47 | |||||
16 | 7–8 | The Eternity Trap | Alice Troughton | Phil Ford | 5 November 2009 | 3.7 | 1.14 |
6 November 2009 | 3.8 | 0.93 | |||||
17 | 9–10 | Mona Lisa's Revenge | Joss Agnew | Phil Ford | 12 November 2009 | 3.9 | 1.12 |
13 November 2009 | 3.10 | 0.92 | |||||
18 | 11–12 | The Gift | Alice Troughton | Rupert Laight | 19 November 2009 | 3.11 | 0.95 |
20 November 2009 | 3.12 | 0.89 | |||||
No. story | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | UK viewers (millions) [5] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
19 | 1–2 | The Nightmare Man | Joss Agnew | Joseph Lidster | 11 October 2010 | 4.1 | 0.59 |
12 October 2010 | 4.2 | 0.67 | |||||
20 | 3–4 | The Vault of Secrets | Joss Agnew | Phil Ford | 18 October 2010 | 4.3 | 0.73 |
19 October 2010 | 4.4 | 0.61 | |||||
21 | 5–6 | Death of the Doctor | Ashley Way | Russell T Davies | 25 October 2010 | 4.5 | 0.92 |
26 October 2010 | 4.6 | 0.96 | |||||
22 | 7–8 | The Empty Planet | Ashley Way | Gareth Roberts | 1 November 2010 | 4.7 | 0.99 |
2 November 2010 | 4.8 | 0.81 | |||||
23 | 9–10 | Lost in Time | Joss Agnew | Rupert Laight | 8 November 2010 | 4.9 | 0.98 |
9 November 2010 | 4.10 | 0.68 | |||||
24 | 11–12 | Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith | Joss Agnew | Clayton Hickman and Gareth Roberts | 15 November 2010 | 4.11 | 0.81 |
16 November 2010 | 4.12 | 0.82 | |||||
No. story | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | UK viewers (millions) [6] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
25 | 1–2 | Sky | Ashley Way | Phil Ford | 3 October 2011 | 5.1 | 0.53 |
4 October 2011 | 5.2 | 0.53 | |||||
26 | 3–4 | The Curse of Clyde Langer | Ashley Way | Phil Ford | 10 October 2011 | 5.3 | 0.79 |
11 October 2011 | 5.4 | 0.73 | |||||
27 | 5–6 | The Man Who Never Was | Joss Agnew | Gareth Roberts | 17 October 2011 | 5.5 | 0.71 |
18 October 2011 | 5.6 | 0.60 | |||||
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
Season | Episode number | Average | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |||
1 | 2.92 | 1.40 | 1.55 | 1.47 | 1.44 | 1.43 | 1.60 | 1.61 | 1.73 | 1.77 | 1.86 | – | 1.59 | |
2 | 0.82 | 1.18 | 1.11 | 1.28 | 1.42 | 1.21 | 1.43 | 1.53 | 1.18 | 1.39 | 1.36 | 1.26 | 1.27 | |
3 | 0.73 | 0.82 | 0.75 | 0.84 | 1.59 | 1.47 | 1.14 | 0.93 | 1.12 | 0.92 | 0.95 | 0.89 | 1.01 | |
4 | 0.59 | 0.67 | 0.73 | 0.61 | 0.92 | 0.96 | 0.99 | 0.81 | 0.98 | 0.68 | 0.81 | 0.82 | 0.80 | |
5 | 0.53 | 0.53 | 0.79 | 0.73 | 0.71 | 0.60 | – | 0.65 |
Doctor Who spin-offs refers to material created outside of, but related to, the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.
Sarah Jane Smith is a fictional character played by Elisabeth Sladen in the long-running BBC Television science fiction series Doctor Who and two of its spin-offs. Sarah Jane is a dogged investigative journalist who first encounters alien time traveller the Doctor while trying to break a story on a top secret research facility, and subsequently becomes his travelling companion on a series of adventures spanning the breadth of space and time. After travelling with The Doctor in four seasons of the show they suddenly part ways, and after this she continues to investigate strange goings-on back on Earth. Over time, Sarah Jane establishes herself as a committed defender of Earth from alien invasions and other threats, occasionally reuniting with The Doctor in the course of her own adventures, all the while continuing to work as a freelance investigative journalist.
Elisabeth Clara Heath-Sladen was an English actress. She became best known as Sarah Jane Smith in the British television series Doctor Who, appearing as a regular cast member from 1973 to 1976, alongside both Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker, and reprising the role many times in subsequent decades, both on Doctor Who and its spin-offs, K-9 and Company (1981) and The Sarah Jane Adventures (2007–2011).
The Hand of Fear is the second serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 2 to 23 October 1976. The serial was the last regular appearance of Elisabeth Sladen in the role of Sarah Jane Smith in Doctor Who, until the 1981 spin-off special K9 and Company followed by an appearance in the 20th anniversary special "The Five Doctors".
"School Reunion" is the third episode in the second series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It first aired on BBC One on 29 April 2006.
The Paradise of Death is a 5-part BBC radio drama, based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and starring Jon Pertwee as the Doctor.
Brian Reginald Miller is a British actor and television personality. He is known for his music and television appearances. Miller was married to Elisabeth Sladen, who was a recurring cast member on the BBC show Doctor Who and also in her own spin off series The Sarah Jane Adventures.
The Sarah Jane Adventures is a British science fiction television programme that was produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies, and starring Elisabeth Sladen. The programme is a spin-off of the long-running BBC science fiction programme Doctor Who and is aimed at a younger audience than Doctor Who. It focuses on the adventures of Sarah Jane Smith, an investigative journalist who, as a young woman, had numerous adventures across time and space with the Doctor. Following Sladen's death in 2011, the BBC confirmed that the show would not return for a sixth series.
"Invasion of the Bane" is the first episode of the British science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures. It was written by series creator Russell T Davies with Gareth Roberts and was directed by Colin Teague. It was originally broadcast on BBC One on 1 January 2007 as a New Year special. Since a full series of the show was commissioned before the script for the episode was written it is not a pilot, despite serving the introductory functions of one.
Luke Smith is a fictional regular character played by Tommy Knight in the British children's science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures, a spin-off of the long-running series Doctor Who. Luke is a regular character in The Sarah Jane Adventures both in television and audio adventures. He has also appeared in three episodes of Doctor Who: the two-parter "The Stolen Earth"/"Journey's End" (2008), and the Tenth Doctor's finale episode "The End of Time, Part Two" (2010).
Eye of the Gorgon is the second serial of the first series of the British science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures. It first aired in two weekly parts on the CBBC channel on 1 and 8 October 2007. The episode makes references to classical mythology.
The Lost Boy is the fifth serial of the first series of the British science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures. It first aired on the CBBC channel in two weekly parts on 12 and 19 November 2007. This episode was intentionally named after Dave Pelzer's The Lost Boy.
Thomas Lawrence Knight, usually credited as Tommy Knight, is an English former actor best known for playing Luke Smith in The Sarah Jane Adventures and Doctor Who, Kevin Chalk in the original run of Waterloo Road, Cal Bray in Glue and Archibald Brodie in Victoria.
The Last Sontaran is the first serial of the second series of the British science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures. The first part of the two-part story aired on BBC One on 29 September 2008, with the second part premiering immediately after the first on the CBBC channel. This serial marks the departure of Maria Jackson, played by Yasmin Paige.
The Day of the Clown is the second serial of the second series of the British science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures. It was first broadcast in two weekly parts on the CBBC channel on 6 and 13 October 2008. The Day of the Clown introduces main character Rani Chandra and her parents, Haresh and Gita Chandra, and they would stay for the rest of the series.
The Mark of the Berserker is the fourth serial of the second series of the British science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures. It was first broadcast in two weekly parts on CBBC on 3 and 10 November 2008. Due to Elisabeth Sladen's commitments elsewhere, main character Sarah Jane Smith has a minor role in this serial, making the episodes similar to the 'Doctor-lite' episodes of Doctor Who which do not feature The Doctor heavily, as well as the Torchwood episode "Random Shoes", which had minor roles for most of the main cast.
Rani Chandra is a fictional character played by Anjli Mohindra in the British children's science fiction television programme The Sarah Jane Adventures, a spin-off from the long-running series Doctor Who. She first appeared in The Day of the Clown.
The Eternity Trap is a two-part story of The Sarah Jane Adventures which was first broadcast on CBBC on 5 and 6 November 2009. It is the fourth serial in the third series. The story involves the scientific investigation of a haunted house.
The Man Who Never Was is a two-part final story of The Sarah Jane Adventures, which was broadcast on CBBC on 17 and 18 October 2011. It is the third story of the fifth series and the final appearance of all the main cast, marking the last posthumous appearance of Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith.
Wizards vs Aliens is a British science fantasy television programme produced by BBC Cymru Wales and FremantleMedia Enterprises for CBBC and created by Russell T Davies and Phil Ford. The series focuses on the exploits of 16-year-old wizard Tom Clarke and his scientifically gifted best friend Benny Sherwood in their fight against the Nekross, a magic-consuming alien race who have arrived on Earth with the intention of hunting down wizards and feasting on their magical energies.