Deborah Patricia Watling (2 January 1948 – 21 July 2017) was an English actress who played the role of Victoria Waterfield, a companion of the

Second Doctor The Second Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Patrick Troughton. While the Troughton era of ''Doctor Who'' is well-remembered by fans ...

in the BBC television series '' Doctor Who'' from 1967 to 1968. She began her career as a child actress, making her debut as a regular in ''

The Invisible Man ''The Invisible Man'' is a science fiction novel by H. G. Wells. Originally serialized in '' Pearson's Weekly'' in 1897, it was published as a novel the same year. The Invisible Man to whom the title refers is Griffin, a scientist who has devo ...

'' (1958-1959). Watling is also well known for starring in the films '' Take Me High'' (1973) with

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is an Indian-born British musican, singer, producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who holds both British and Barbadian citizenship. He has total sales of over 21.5 million s ...

and '' That'll Be the Day'' (1973) with

David Essex David Essex (born David Albert Cook; 23 July 1947) is an English singer, songwriter, and actor. Since the 1970s, he has attained 19 Top 40 singles in the UK (including two number ones) and 16 Top 40 albums. Internationally, Essex had the most ...

as well as playing Julie Robertson in '' The Newcomers'' (1969) and Norma Baker in ''

Danger UXB ''Danger UXB'' is a 1979 British ITV television series set during the Second World War. It was developed by John Hawkesworth and starred Anthony Andrews as Lieutenant Brian Ash, an officer in the Royal Engineers (RE). The series chronicle ...

'' (1979) on television.

Early life

Deborah was born at the

Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital is one of the oldest maternity hospitals in Europe, founded in 1739 in London. Until October 2000, it occupied a site at 339–351 Goldhawk Road, Hammersmith, but is now located between East Acton and Wh ...

in London the daughter of actors

Jack Watling Jack Stanley Watling (13 January 1923 – 22 May 2001) was an English actor. Life and career The son of a travelling scrap metal dealer, Watling trained at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts as a child; and made his stage debut in '' Wh ...

and Patricia Hicks. Her brother Giles and her half-sister,

Dilys Dilys is a feminine given name of Welsh origin, which translates into English as genuine, steadfast, valid, true or perfect. The name may refer to: People * Dilys Breese (1932–2007), British television producer * Dilys Cadwaladr (1902–1979), ...

, are also actors.''Daddy's Girl: The Autobiography,'' Deborah Watling and Paul W.T. Ballard, Fantom Films, 2012 She was raised in Epping until the family moved to the 16th-century Alderton Hall in

Loughton Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Char ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

. Educated at Braeside School in

Buckhurst Hill Buckhurst Hill is an affluent suburban town in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England. It is part of the Greater London Urban Area and adjacent to the northern boundary of the London Borough of Redbridge. The area developed following the op ...

, Watling considered becoming a dentist before enrolling at the Italia Conti Stage School. Watling made her film debut aged three and started playing background roles in her father's films. During one of her half-sister's parties, Watling started talking to a boy who turned out to be

Michael Craze Michael Craze (29 November 1942 – 8 December 1998) was a British actor noted for his role of Ben Jackson, a companion of the Doctor, in the long-running BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He played the part from 19 ...

who she would take over from as a companion in ''Doctor Who'' many years later.

Career

Beginning as a child actress, Watling had a regular role as the niece of Peter Brady in ''

'' (1958) television series. She was later cast for the lead role in ''Alice'' (1965),

Dennis Potter Dennis Christopher George Potter (17 May 1935 – 7 June 1994) was an English television dramatist, screenwriter and journalist. He is best known for his BBC television serials '' Pennies from Heaven'' (1978), '' The Singing Detective'' (1 ...

's play about

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequel ...

and

Alice Liddell Alice Pleasance Hargreaves (''née'' Liddell, ; 4 May 1852 – 16 November 1934), was an English woman who, in her childhood, was an acquaintance and photography subject of Lewis Carroll. One of the stories he told her during a boating trip bec ...

, for the BBC's ''

The Wednesday Play ''The Wednesday Play'' is an anthology series of British television plays which ran on BBC1 for six seasons from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually original works written for television, although dramatic adaptations of fiction ...

'', a small role in '' That'll Be the Day'' (1973) and as Norma Baker in the ITV series ''

'' (1979). She also co-starred with

in the 1973 film '' Take Me High''. She also made many theatre appearances throughout her career. Jamie & Victoria (11027723533)

According to the short BBC Video documentary ''The Dalek Factor'' about the making of the story, released in September 2021 as part of the animated restoration of the serial, Denise Buckley was cast in the role of Victoria Waterfield by director Derek Martinus. The production team had been hoping that

Pauline Collins Pauline Collins (born 3 September 1940) is a British actress who first came to prominence portraying Sarah Moffat in ''Upstairs, Downstairs'' (1971–1973) and its spin-off, '' Thomas & Sarah'' (1979). In 1992, she published her autobiography, ...

would continue in the role of Samantha Briggs, that she had played in the previous story ''

The Faceless Ones ''The Faceless Ones'' is the mostly missing eighth serial of the fourth season in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from 8 April to 13 May 1967. In this serial, the ...

'', but had created Victoria as a potential ongoing character should Collins decline. When Collins confirmed she did not want to join the regular cast, it was decided to introduce Victoria as the new companion and Denise Buckley was released, but paid in full, with Deborah Watling replacing her as a more suitable actress for the continuing role. Watling played Victoria in ''Doctor Who'' from 1967 to 1968, though owing to the BBC's

wiping Lost television broadcasts are mostly those early television programs which cannot be accounted for in studio archives (or in personal archives) usually because of deliberate destruction or neglect. Common reasons for loss A significant prop ...

policy of the time, ''

The Tomb of the Cybermen ''The Tomb of the Cybermen'' is the first serial of the fifth season of the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was originally broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 2 to 23 September 1967. In the serial, the ...

'' (1967) and '' The Enemy of the World'' (1967–1968) are the only serials in which she appeared that still exist in their entirety. She also appeared in '' Dimensions in Time'' (1993) and ''

Downtime The term downtime is used to refer to periods when a system is unavailable. The unavailability is the proportion of a time-span that a system is unavailable or offline. This is usually a result of the system failing to function because of an ...

'' (1995). Watling also appeared in the ''Doctor Who'' audio drama '' Three's a Crowd'' and regularly attended ''Doctor Who'' conventions and events. In November 2013, she appeared in the one-off 50th anniversary comedy homage ''

The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot ''The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot'' is a 2013 comedy spoof and homage to the British science fiction television programme '' Doctor Who''. It appeared on the BBC Red Button service after the broadcast of " The Day of the Doctor", the official 50th ...

''.

Personal life

In her later years, Watling lived with her husband in Thorpe-le-Soken,

where she was a well known figure in the village and regularly used her acting experience by directing the local pantomimes. Her autobiography, entitled ''Daddy’s Girl'', was published in 2010.

Death

She died on 21 July 2017 at Beaumont Manor nursing home in Frinton-on-Sea, six weeks after being diagnosed with

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, malign ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Audio dramas

References

External links

*
Deborah Watling's official website (archived)BBC Norfolk Online – RealAudio interview
from the Holt '' Doctor Who'' Midsummer Invasion 2006
Deborah Watling
Aveleyman) {{DEFAULTSORT:Watling, Deborah 1948 births 2017 deaths English television actresses 20th-century English actresses Actresses from Buckinghamshire People from Loughton Actresses from Essex 21st-century English actresses English child actresses Deaths from lung cancer in England 20th-century British businesspeople