John Leeson dies at 83: the voice of Doctor Who’s K9

Updated 5 Nov 2026, 17:15 · First published 5 Nov 2026

John Leeson, the actor who gave Doctor Who’s robot dog K9 its famous voice, has died aged 83.

His son, Guy Ducker, announced the news on Facebook, saying his father died peacefully after a summer of illness. He thanked Doctor Who fans for their support for his dad over the decades.

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“Known and loved since 1977”

The official Doctor Who accounts led the tributes, saying the show was “very sad” to hear of his passing.

The voice of K9

Leeson was cast as K9 by director Derrick Goodwin in 1977. The metal dog, with its clipped “Affirmative, master”, was brought in to add humour for younger viewers and quickly became one of the show’s best-loved companions, travelling with Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor and companions Leela and Romana.

David Brierley took over the voice for a season in 1979 and 1980, before Leeson returned. Decades later he was back for the revived series, in the 2006 episode School Reunion with David Tennant and Elisabeth Sladen, and went on to voice K9 in The Sarah Jane Adventures and the spin-off series K9.

Tributes from fans and the Doctor Who family

Tributes have been paid by former colleagues and thousands of fans, including Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies, who brought K9 back to the screen in 2006.

Leeson was also a familiar face on children’s television in the early 1970s, when he was inside the Bungle costume in the first series of Rainbow.

Sources: Doctor Who on Instagram and X, CultBox, Variety, Wikipedia.