Elisabeth Sladen

I've always had a love for Doctor Who. My first doctor was Tom Baker and my first companion was Elisabeth Sladen. Elisabeth died last week and it actually hit me fairly hard. Sarah Jane Smith is, in my humble opinion, the best companion that the Doctor ever had. She was not a "screamer" like most of the previous companions had been. She was an intelligent, strong women. She was my Sarah Jane.

When she returned to the new series in School Reunion, I cried. Every time at the end of that story I cry. It was so poignant seeing the new doctor to give her a proper goodbye.

When she first hears the Daleks in Stolen Earth, I felt her pain more than any others, her face filled with fear and a tear in her eyes. She was there at the creation of the Daleks in Genesis of the Daleks and knew the evil that they represent more than most of the companions.

When she got her own series I was ecstatic. The Sarah Jane Adventures is more like what classic Doctor Who was like and I loved it. If you haven't watched the series because it's a "kids" show, then you should really give it a try. The story writing is top notch, and Sarah Jane is, well, Sarah Jane. I can hardly wait for the filmed, yet unaired, episodes of series 5 to see the light of day.

In honour of her I watched a series of her stories. My Elisabeth Sladen tribute playlist includes the following stories:
- The Time Warrior (her first)
- Genesis of the Daleks
- Pyramids of Mars
- The Hand of Fear (her last classic story)
- School Reunion (new series)
- The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith (SJA)
- The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith (SJA)

One of the best tribute videos is by Babelcolour on YouTube.

And here is the BBC's tribute to Elisbath.