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John Leeson, the voice of Doctor Who's robot dog K9, dies aged 83 after a 'summer of illness'

John Leeson on the cover of his autobiography Tweaking the Tail, posed with a K9 prop — his final project saw him reunite with Tom Baker in audio drama Sir Sherlock: The Red Letter Day.
John Leeson on the cover of his autobiography Tweaking the Tail, posed with a K9 prop — his final project saw him reunite with Tom Baker in audio drama Sir Sherlock: The Red Letter Day.

John Leeson, born John Ducker, died at 3:03pm on Sunday after what his family described as a "summer of illness," his son Guy Ducker announced on Facebook. He first voiced the robotic dog K9 in the 1977 Doctor Who episode 'The Invisible Enemy' and returned for the modern revival in 2006. Beyond Doctor Who, Leeson appeared in Dad's Army, Sorry! and Crown Court.

Doctor Who writer Russell T Davies said it was "impossible to imagine anyone else" in the role.

Davies praised K9 as "a posh dog, uppity, haughty, wry, but somehow innocent too — and so funny."

Leeson's final project saw him reunite with Tom Baker, playing Doctor Watson to Baker's Sherlock Holmes in audio drama 'Sir Sherlock: The Red Letter Day'.

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