Doctor Who Actress Lynda Baron Dies at 82

Actress Lynda Baron, who appeared in multiple Doctor Who stories, has died. She was 82 years old. Baron first appeared on Doctor Who in the classic 1983 serial “Enlightment,” starring Peter Davison’s Fifth Doctor. She played Captain Wrack, an Eternal competing in a race across the solar system. She returned to play Val in the new Doctor Who episode “Closing Time” in 2011 with Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor. Prior to appearing on-screen in Doctor Who, she sang the original song “The Ballad of the Last Chance Saloon” in the 1966 serial “The Gunfighters,” starring William Hartnell as the First Doctor.

Baron is likely best known for playing Nurse Gladys Emmanuel on the BBC television sitcom Open All Hours. The series aired in the 1970s and the 1980s and saw a revival in 2013. Baron also played Auntie Mabel in the children’s show Come Outside and had the role of Linda Clarke in the long-running soap opera EastEnders. She earned a BAFTA nomination in 2011 for her role in The Road to Coronation Street, a drama that went behind the scenes of the popular soap opera Coronation Street. She played actress Violet Carson, who played Ena Sharples on Coronation Street. 

Baron’s agent, Donna French, released a statement confirming Baron’s death: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved client Lynda Baron. She was a wonderful actress and a great friend. Her iconic roles of Nurse Gladys in Open All Hours and Aunt Mabel in Come Outside were loved by all generations. Renowned for her leading roles in West End musicals and dramatic productions alike, we have lost a leading light of our world. We extend our deepest condolences to her daughter Sarah, her son Morgan and all her family.”

Baron’s roles include parts on The Two Ronnies, Oh No, It’s Selwyn Froggitt, The Bill, Crossroads, and several Carry On films. She appeared in the 2002 film Dream Horse, 2006’s Scoop, and 2005’s Colour Me Kubrick. She also appeared on the stage in the 1987 musical Follies in the West End, the 2007 play In Celebration, and other shows including An Inspector Calls, Stepping Out, and The Full Monty.

Baron’s landed her first professional job at Liverpool Empire at the age of 16. “It was certainly a start and I have been quite busy ever since,” she said (via BBC). “You get your lulls in work and that makes you all the more grateful when the next job comes along and all the more determined to give it your best.”