Repertory company work in Liverpool and Manchester followed, notably as Desdemona in 'Othello', and then for two seasons working for Alan Ayckbourn in Scarborough. When Brian got a West End job, the couple settled in London, and in the early 1970s, after six episodes as Len Fairclough's barmaid girlfriend in 'Coronation Street', she obtained television roles in 'Special Branch', 'Public Eye', 'Doomwatch', 'Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em' and 'Z-Cars'. Her professionalism and versatility led to a recommendation by 'Z-Cars' producer Ron Craddock to the 'Doctor Who' producer Barry Letts, and she went to provide stability in the show when Jon Pertwee handed over the role of the Doctor to Tom Baker. It was a daunting time for the newcomer, and he greatly appreciated her kindness. Elisabeth's Sarah Jane character was widely considered the favourite of the Doctor’s many companions over the years and her time on the show opposite both actors is fondly remembered by fans as a golden era of the series. When the moment came for her to leave the programme, she did so in an impressively underplayed scene of suppressed emotion with Tom Baker. After her initial run ended in 1976, she returned to Liverpool with her husband and performed in a series of plays which included a two-hander with Brian in 'Mooney and his Caravans'. Work continued with a lead role in the drama 'Send in the Girls' (1978), appearing opposite Brian and in comedies with 'Take My Wife' (1979) and 'In Loving Memory' (1980). She also presented 98 episodes of the children's series 'Stepping Stones' (1978-79) for Yorkshire TV. Her return to the Doctor Who cosmos came in 1981, when the popular robot dog K-9 was given his own pilot programme, 'K-9 and Company', and so needed Sarah Jane as a human lead. Despite good ratings, the show was not taken further.
Gong into semi-retirement following the birth of her daughter Sadie Miller in 1985 to look after the family, she still made occasional television appearances, in the classic serials 'Gulliver In Lilliput' (1982), as Lady Flimnap and in 'Alice in Wonderland' (1986), as Dormouse, both for Barry Letts at the BBC. There was also a recurring role in the ITV medical drama 'Peak Practice' (1996), and a guest stint on the sitcom 'Faith in the Future' (1996). Soon she was reunited with Pertwee for Doctor Who's 20th anniversary story, 'The Five Doctors', a pair of Radio 2 drama series (1993 and 1996), and the Children in Need special, 'Dimensions in Time' (1993), observing good-humouredly that the fans who watched her as children were now working in the industry and giving her jobs. Her role in BBC schools programme 'Numbertime' (1996-2001) was to be her final television acting appearance until her spectacular return to 'Doctor Who' in 2006. The firm Big Finish's series of audio stories for Sarah Jane, released on CD and via online download, had given her a way of sustaining the character until Davies asked her to appear in the television series' successful revival. Although she was at first reluctant to return for what she suspected would be a jokey, fleeting cameo, it came as a surprise to discover that she would be the guest lead in the episode 'School Reunion' (2006), starring alongside the tenth Doctor, David Tennant. She would appear again in the two-part fourth series finale 'The Stolen Earth' and 'Journey's End' and also made a brief cameo in Tennant's 'Who' swansong 'The End of Time'. Elisabeth once again displayed the pluckiness and vulnerability that had made her so popular, and Davies came up with 'The Sarah Jane Adventures' (2007-2011). For four series she battled with teatime-friendly aliens alongside her teenage sidekicks, including a cloned alien boy genius she adopted as her son. The series was a huge success, and latterly was graced with cameos from the later Doctors David Tennant and Matt Smith. It won the Royal Television Society Award for Best Children's Drama in 2010. In the parent series, she joined David Tennant for the 2008 finale and for his departure from the role on the 1st of January 2010. A popular convention guest and contributor to the enhanced versions of programmes that appeared on DVD, when she learned that Letts was very ill, she persuaded the producers to reunite her with him for the commentary on his favourite story, 'Planet of Spiders', which had been John Pertwee's swansong and also featured Courtney.
Sadly Elisabeth was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in February 2011, though she had once fought it before, over a decade earlier in 1999, and she died on the 19th of April 2011 aged 65. Tom Baker posted a moving tribute; "Lis Sladen was very important to me, you know. When I joined the little world of Doctor Who, Lis was already a star. She had an enormous success with Jon Pertwee. She was good pals with the Brigadier, our beloved Nicholas Courtney; she knew all the regular directors. She was adored by Barry Letts, the producer who cast her in the role. She always said she was Barry's girl. It was for that reason she decided to leave the show. But it was not necessary at all. The fans adored her, Philip Hinchcliffe, our new and glamorous producer, adored her, so did David Maloney, her favourite director."
see also :- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2023/12/a-history-of-liverpool-thespians-john.html
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