View source for Companion in Punk Leather

{{Starlog|135}}{{article
| publication = Starlog
| file =
| px =
| height =
| width =
| date = 1988-10-01
| display date = issue 135 (October 1988)
| author = Juanita Elefante-Cordon 
| pages = 82
| language = English
| type =
| description =
| categories =
| moreTitles =
| morePublications =
| moreDates =
| text =
Portraying a cross between Mrs. Peel and a Hell's Angel, Sophie Aldred promises not to be a screamer. 


Doctor Who has been on the air now 
for 25 years, a long time for a TV 
series to sustain freshness and 
zing — to cast and audience. But one only 
has to check the ratings, count the fan clubs 
and talk to Sophie Aldred to learn that the 
British SF series has so far succeeded. 

Just one year older than the long-running 
series itself, Sophie Aldred's elation with 
landing the much-coveted part of the Doc- 
tor's companion is matched only by her enthusiasm in playing it. 

JUANITA ELEFANTE-GORDON is 
writing Turning on the British Charm, a 
booklength study of British TV. She profiled Peter Davison in STARLOG 27. 


Nearly a year later, Aldred still looks back 
on the audition with wide-eyed wonder. 
"From my point-of-view, I was still a struggling fringe and children's theater actress 
when my agent got me an interview. I really 
haven't been involved in that kind of high 
profile type audition before either, so it's all 
completely new to me. I understand now 
that many people did go up for the part of 
Ace. For me, it was slightly different in that 
I didn't actually go up for that part, but for 
the character of Ray in another story, '[[broadwcast:Delta and the Bannerman|Delta and the Bannerman]],' because I could ride a 
motorbike and they wanted someone who 
could ride a motorbike. Getting the part of 
the assistant was a shock in itself! 

"It's quite strange for me having gone through such ... you know, very small-time 
stuff— traveling around schools in a van, 
putting my set up and doing two shows a 
day and really working very, very hard. To 
do something where I will get recognition 
for all the work I do will be quite strange. At 
the moment over here, I'm known more for 
the children's series Corners whereas now I 
suppose Doctor Who will take over, and I'll 
be known for Who." 

Now that the young actress has the role, 
she intends to follow her own checklist of 
"companion do's and don'ts." "Well, I 
don't want to scream although you might 
hear me screech from time to time — so 
that's the 'don't'! Because Ace is one of 
those kids who wants everybody to believe 
that she's so tough, tougher than she really 
might be. She's quite bright and aggressive 
and doesn't take no for an answer. The 
main 'do' is to support the Doctor," Aldred 
explains. 

"A friend of mine told her grandparents, 
[who are in their 80s) that I had gotten the 
part of the Doctor's assistant and they said, 
'Ah yes, that's rather like being Lady 
Macbeth in Macbeth, isn't it?' It's really 
quite interesting, that kind of supporting 
role that the assistant has; and I fully intend 
to carry on the tradition and support the 
Doctor. She's great and terrific fun to play. 
1 find it very interesting being 26 and playing 
a character nearly 10 years younger than me. 
If I can do that convincingly, I hope I'll 
have achieved something." 

It is her lack of television experience that 
seems to allow Aldred to bring before the 
Doctor Who cameras a style which is fresh, 
natural and unaffected. "Well, 
'[[broadwcast:Dragonfire|Dragonfire]],' which I did last season was 
literally my very first time in a television 
studio— and I even had to ask where Television Centre was in front of Bonnie 
Langford," Aldred admits sheepishly. "It's 
really good news that I was cast in Doctor 
Who because it shows some real courage on 
behalf of [producer] John Nathan-Turner 
and director Chris Clough. They didn't 
know how I was going to perform in front 
of the cameras, yet they trust me enough to 
give me this responsibility. That's good for 
all my friends, who are all actors and ac- 
tresses. They're pleased that I got this part 
because it means that there's still hope for 
them!" 

Wowed by her first television job, Aldred 
declares, "1 certainly found it, as an actress, 
quite rewarding. It was pretty nervy but 
everyone was really friendly. I'm a much 
more technical actress than say a method ac- 
tress. I don't go out and research. What I 
really like about television is the fact that 
you must draw everything together for one 
short take and try to get it as right as possi- 
ble and then it's gone, finished. Whereas 
with theater, I tend to find the repetition 
starts to get me down. After the 100th time, 
I ask myself, 'Why am I doing this!' I 
suspect I have a very low boredom threshold 
or something like that! But I certainly 
thoroughly enjoy doing television. I enjoy 
learning and happen to learn very quickly so 
I find it fascinating. Also, it's interesting to see what other people are doing, like the 
cameraman and director. I like going up to 
the gallery to see what's going on and try to 
work out how the scene's being put 
together. 

"Although television pays better, theater 
still holds that prestige— West End theater in 
particular. My agent watches me in Doctor 
Who and says: 'Oh, never mind dear, 
something will come up soon. Next, what 
you should do is nice Rep Theater and get 
some experience.' There's a lot of snobbery 
about theater favored over jobs in TV." 

Watching herself on television is a "very 
weird" experience. "I don't really look at it 
as me," she says. "It sounds very odd but I 
see 'this person' and I don't relate to it as 
myself, though I do tend to criticize myself 
as 'another' actress like — 'Good Lord, she 
could have done that better!' 

"I had seen myself on Corners quite a few 
times before 'Dragonfire' came on the air. 
When I actually saw this episode of Doctor 
Who, I was so nervous. In a way, there's 
much more to lose and really, I had forgot- 
ten what I had done because it was months 
between filming and actually seeing it on 
TV. I was squirming with embarrassment. I 
wasn't even able to look at myself! But now, 
I don't find it so much the problem." 

Unequivocally, Sophie Aldred will be 
known for having played Ace in Doctor 
Who. However, she has some definite ideas 
of how she would like to be remembered in 
Who history. "I would like it to be said that 
I was a strong character. I'm quite a feminist 
in my own way — not with a capital 'F'— and 
I think it's marvelous to play a character 
who can run around and help the Doctor by 
being his protector and smash up a Dalek 
rather than scream and run away. When I 
told my friends that I got this part, they 
thought it was funny and almost a cliche. 
They said, 'Oh, you're going to scream, run 
around corridors and run away from 
Daleks!' See what I mean? Also, I hope that 
my relationship with the Doctor will come 
across well. Sylvester McCoy and I get along 
very well in real life — I hope some of that 
translates to the screen." 

The idea of Ace working in concert with 
the Doctor as more of an "equal" sounds a 
bit like "The Avengers in space." Laughing, 
Aldred remarks, "We joked about this 
because I have to do what [director] Andrew 
Morgan calls my 'butch acting' and we did 
talk about The Avengers—I suppose slightly 
rather less the sex symbol but certainly that 
kind of relationship. I would like to be as 
strong as the Doctor in strength, but not 
quite so intelligent and all-knowing." 

Very often, being a "too strong" companion can have its drawbacks, resulting in 
the character's premature departure. But 
Aldred explains why Ace might just work. 
"It's the character's fallibility," Aldred 
observes, "she's young which is good. If 
you had an older assistant who was running around and jumping over land mines, it 
would be a bit too overpowering but 
because Ace is about 16 or 17, it's acceptable. And the writers seem keen on this." 

While on the topic of departure, Aldred 
confides, "Of course, something else worries me a bit. I met [previous companion] 
Nicola Bryant and she told me the problems 
that she has had in getting work. I'll just 
have to cross my fingers — but yes, it is a 
worry! It's a very, very good thing that I 
have the children's series in between Doctor 
Who seasons. I hope to carry on with that 
next year. Doing other things I think is very 
important. It's very difficult with any high 
profile show. Really, my agent will let me 
know when I've had enough." 

The instant fame, international press and 
touring engagements which accompany being a companion are an unexpected bonus. 
"At the first convention that I went to [in 
London], when I was introduced, a rush of 
photographers came down and people 
wanted to speak to me. It made me feel as 
though I was Madonna, and I just thought, 
'But this isn't me!' " 

With an almost childlike fascination, the 
young actress says, "It was bewildering why 
these people wanted to have my name on a 
piece of paper and speak to me and ask me 
questions about my life. I'm lucky that my 
friends keep my feet firmly on the 
ground— they think it's hilarious that I got 
this part and they would give me hell if I 
start taking myself too seriously. 


Unlike previous companions, Ace is a 
strong character "who can run around and 
help the Doctor by being his protector and 
smash up a Dalek rather than scream and 
run away," asserts Sophie Aldred. 

"There's a strange gap between what 
Doctor Who fans think of me— which is like 
a star — and what I actually think of 
myself — as just an ordinary person who 
managed to land this incredible job," 
Sophie Aldred says, "and I just try to do my 
job the best I can, like we all try." 


Although awed by her instant popularity, Aldred manages to keep her feet firmly on the ground, considering herself just an ordinary person. 


}}