Image Credit: James Ashworth

Image Description: L-R: Simon Danes Wendy Padbury, Jennie Linden and Frazer Hines on the stage

Adam Kendrick hears from Barbara at Bedford Who Charity Con

Rather appropriately for the anniversary year of Doctor Who, one of the many guests at Bedford Who Charity Con was someone who played one of the earliest companions – or at least, the version of them who appeared on the silver screen! It was a pleasure to meet Jennie Linden, who starred as Barbara in Dr. Who and the Daleks, as she recounted her life as an actress at the convention.

After winning a scholarship to the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama at the age of 16, Jennie began her acting career by performing in various plays, but it didn’t take long until Doctor Who came calling. She wasn’t aware of the sheer scale of Dalekmania when she was cast as Barbara, one of her earliest film roles, so she entered the world of the show without realising the following that it had and would continue to have for decades to come. Even though she might have been unaware of their infamy, she described the Daleks as “brilliant” and recalled how the lights on their dome needed to be manually flashed in time with the actor’s lines of dialogue. She praised the highly detailed set and remembered seeing it on display at Selfridges to promote the film afterwards. Not everything turned out to be quite as glamorous, however – the Thals were played by porters from Covent Garden Market, who were paid handsomely to shave off their chest hair!

Though she wishes she could have reprised the role of Barbara for Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 A.D., she was committed to Ken Russell’s Women in Love at the time, a role for which she would be nominated for a BAFTA for Best Newcomer. Part of the reason why she enjoyed working on the Dalek film so much was the opportunity to work with Peter Cushing, whom she described as a kind man who belied his high profile and spoke with a grandiose voice. Less amiable, however, was her brief encounter with Katherine Hepburn, whom she met during a screen test for The Lion in Winter. After a strong audition with Peter O’Toole, who confidently told her “See you on the set, kid!”, Katherine informed her in no certain terms that “There’s only one person who cries in this film and that’s me!”

Jennie had a much better time with Roger Moore, whom she appeared with in his pre-Bond days in The Persuaders! and The Saint. She described him as “a very beautiful man” with amazing blue eyes, and that he never took himself seriously and loved practical jokes – for example, he once paid a prop man to clean the window of a stationary aeroplane while filming was taking place inside! The fun she had with these wonderful people was why she preferred filmmaking back then instead of today, along with the slower pace of production, having time to rehearse, and the ability to film on location rather than against projected backdrops. 

Looking back on her role as Barbara, Jennie felt that Dr. Who & the Daleks has become a fascinating cultural artefact and is impressed by its continued presence on our screens almost 60 years later. Alongside the bright colours, striking Daleks, and a touch of big screen magic, Jennie is an important part of this film’s enduring success.

Print copies of Tides 49 are, at time of publication, available to buy through this link