John Leeson, best known for voicing robot dog K9 in Doctor Who, has passed away at the age of 83.
As per the latest reports, the actor breathed his last on Sunday after a “summer of illness.”
John’s son, film editor Guy Ducke, announced his death on social media.
“I regret to announce the death of my father, John Ducker, a.k.a. John Leeson, at 3.03pm today after a summer of illness. The end was peaceful,” Guy shared.
“Good night, sweet prince, and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest,” John’s son added.
As the heartbreaking news of John’s death broke out, the former Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies took to his Instagram handle to pay a heartfelt tribute to the late star.
“John Leeson (1943-2026) The voice of K9, and a fine, fine actor,” he penned. “When we brought K9 back in 2006, there was no question that we’d ask John to provide the voice, it was impossible to imagine anyone else.
“And really, what a performance, what a character: a posh dog, uppity, haughty, wry, but somehow innocent too, and so funny. ‘Maximum defence mode!’ God he was good. Pitched perfectly so that kids could impersonate him. That’s not easy, that’s hell of a piece of acting,” Russell continued.
“And he was wonderfully dedicated to that character for… gasp, six decades! He’d phone me up and chat sometimes – on the landline, I remember, those were the days. Including one time when he hadn’t been paid! But he was so gracious about it,” the TV producer added.
Concluding the note, Russell wrote, “A true gent, and a great loss. Sympathy to his family and friends.”
