The Sarah Jane Adventures

Once upon a time, a young reporter named Sarah Jane Smith met a time traveller called the Doctor. In the TARDIS, Sarah witnessed wonders and horrors beyond her imagination, from the dreaded Daleks to the evil god Sutekh. But all good things must end, and eventually the Doctor was forced to return Sarah to Earth.

Twenty years later, Sarah Jane -- ever the intrepid reporter -- met the Doctor again. She was reminded that life on Earth can be as much of an adventure as a life spent travelling through time and space.

The Sarah Jane Adventures, a Doctor Who spin-off which ran from January 2007 to October 2011, chronicled the remainder of her story.


Special (2007): Welcome To Bannerman Road
First appearances of Maria, Luke, Kelsey, Mr Smith, Alan, Chrissie, Mrs Wormwood and the Bane.
Special 
(2007)
Season One: New Beginnings
First appearances of Clyde, the Trickster and Professor Rivers.
Season
One
Season Two: Family Matters
First appearances of Rani, Haresh and Gita.
Season
Two
Special (2009): The Two Ranis
Special 
(2009)
Season Three: All Our Yesterdays
First appearance of Androvax the Veil.
Season
Three
Season Four: The Circle Game
First appearance of the Shopkeeper.
Season
Four
Season Five: A Life Of Adventure
First appearance of Sky.
Season
Five

Special (2007): Welcome To Bannerman Road

The Characters

Having been inspired to defend the Earth during her travels with the Doctor, investigative journalist Sarah Jane Smith continued to seek out new adventures from her home at 13 Bannerman Road in London.

Having previously played Sarah Jane in Doctor Who, Elisabeth Sladen (bio) made her first The Sarah Jane Adventures appearance in Invasion Of The Bane (January 2007) and her last in The Man Who Never Was (October 2011).

Sarah Jane 
Smith

Maria Jackson was Sarah's neighbour across the road, who uncovered the truth about 13 Bannerman Road during the Bane's attempt to invade the Earth.

Yasmin Paige (bio) made her first appearance as Maria in Invasion Of The Bane (January 2007) and her last in The Mark Of The Berserker (November 2008).

Maria

Luke Smith was a genetically engineered genius created by the alien Bane, who was adopted by Sarah Jane and raised as her son.

Tommy Knight (bio) made his first appearance as Luke in Invasion Of The Bane (January 2007) and his last in The Man Who Never Was (October 2011).

Luke

Kelsey Hooper was a friend of Maria's, who assisted Sarah Jane's defeat of Mrs Wormwood and the Bane.

Porsha Lawrence-Mavour (bio) played Kelsey in Invasion Of The Bane (January 2007).

Kelsey

Mr Smith was an alien Xylok who operated as Sarah Jane's supercomputer, hidden within her attic chimney.

The voice of Mr Smith was provided by Alexander Armstrong (bio) from Invasion Of The Bane (January 2007) to The Man Who Never Was (October 2011).

Mr Smith

Although he was separated from Sarah Jane for a time, dedicating his resources to closing a black hole which threatened Earth, the robot dog K·9 was finally able to rejoin his mistress and take his place at her side during her adventures.

Having previously provided the voice of K·9 in Doctor Who, John Leeson (bio) did so in The Sarah Jane Adventures from Invasion Of The Bane (January 2007) to The Nightmare Man (October 2010).

K·9

Alan Jackson was Maria's father. Although initially unaware of his daughter's adventures, he eventually became another of Sarah Jane's valued allies.

Joseph Millson (bio) made his first appearance as Alan in Invasion Of The Bane (January 2007) and his last in The Mark Of The Berserker (November 2008).

Alan Jackson

Chrissie Jackson was Maria's mother and Alan's ex-wife.

Juliet Cowan (bio) made her first appearance as Chrissie in Invasion Of The Bane (January 2007) and her last in The Last Sontaran (September 2008).

Chrissie 
Jackson

The Production Team

The Sarah Jane Adventures completed the trio of Doctor Who programmes to be steered by Russell T Davies (bio), alongside the parent show and Torchwood.

The Story
Invasion Of The Bane
Invasion Of The Bane by Russell T Davies and Gareth Roberts, directed by Colin Teague
Maria Jackson has just moved onto Bannerman Road with her recently-divorced father, Alan, when she becomes aware of strange goings-on involving her reclusive neighbour, journalist Sarah Jane Smith. Then things get even weirder when Maria's new friend, Kelsey, invites her on a tour of a factory run by the supercilious Mrs Wormwood, at which the addictive energy drink Bubbleshock is produced. There Maria rescues a strange boy, and finds that she has nowhere to turn for help but to Sarah Jane. Together, they must discover the connection between Bubbleshock, the boy, and an alien plan to conquer the Earth.

Making History

In the wake of its return to television in 2005, Doctor Who had endeared itself to a whole new generation of younger viewers. As a result, Children's BBC asked executive producer Russell T Davies to create a spin-off series which would appeal specifically to that audience. The result was The Sarah Jane Adventures, which debuted with a one-hour special, Invasion Of The Bane, on New Year's Day 2007.

Season One: New Beginnings

The Characters

Artist and class clown Clyde Langer became Luke's best friend and a member of Sarah Jane's trusted gang after helping to defeat the Slitheen scheme at Park Vale Comprehensive.

Daniel Anthony (bio) made his first appearance as Clyde in Revenge Of The Slitheen (September 2007) and his last in The Man Who Never Was (October 2011).

Clyde Langer

The Stories
Revenge Of The Slitheen
Revenge Of The Slitheen by Gareth Roberts, directed by Alice Troughton
It's Maria and Luke's first day at Park Vale Comprehensive, and they soon befriend charming troublemaker Clyde Langer. But not everything seems right: the food in the cafeteria has gone off, there's a mysterious new technology wing, and some of the teachers have developed an issue with flatulence. When a sudden power cut in the area impacts even non-electrical energy sources, Sarah Jane becomes determined to investigate. With the aid of her young friends, she discovers that schools all over the world have been infiltrated by the Slitheen, who intend to wreak their vengeance on the entire planet.
Clyde joins Maria and Luke in helping Sarah Jane with her investigations.
Eye Of The Gorgon
Eye Of The Gorgon by Phil Ford, directed by Alice Troughton
Maria is upset by her mother's decision to temporarily move back in with Alan, while rumours of a ghostly nun lead Sarah Jane, Luke and Clyde to the Lavender Lawns retirement home. There Luke befriends a resident called Bea Nelson-Stanley, who is far more than her dotty facade would suggest. For decades, Bea has been hiding an alien talisman, which she now entrusts to Luke's care. The talisman is the key to a portal leading to the planet of the Gorgons: the infamous monsters of Greek myth who possess the power to turn people into stone. And the nuns who serve the last Gorgon on Earth will stop at nothing to get it back.
Warriors Of Kudlak
Warriors Of Kudlak by Phil Gladwin, directed by Charles Martin
Lance Metcalf, a classmate of Maria, Luke and Clyde's, goes missing following a visit to Combat 3000, a popular new laser tag facility. Investigating, Sarah Jane discovers that there have actually been a number of disappearances associated with Combat 3000 locations across the country. The abductor is the alien General Kudlak, who is using the game arena to identify young people with the greatest aptitude for becoming warriors. Unbeknownst to Sarah Jane, however, Luke and Clyde decide to participate in Combat 3000 -- and they soon become Kudlak's latest targets.
Whatever Happened To Sarah Jane?
Whatever Happened To Sarah Jane? by Gareth Roberts, directed by Graeme Harper
Maria wakes up one morning to discover, much to her horror, that she is the only one who remembers Sarah Jane Smith. Clyde has never heard of her, Luke is nowhere to be found, and a woman named Andrea Yates now lives in Sarah Jane's house. To make matters worse, an enormous meteor that Mr Smith was going to deflect is now on a collision course with Earth. Maria becomes convinced that Andrea has something to do with her vanished friend. But as she begins to uncover a tragedy in the distant past that involves both women, will Maria become the next person erased from history by the malevolent Trickster?
The Lost Boy
The Lost Boy by Phil Ford, directed by Charles Martin
The lives of Sarah Jane and her friends are thrown into turmoil when a news report reveals that Luke is not an artificial creation of the Bane after all, but an amnesiac boy named Ashley Stafford. While Sarah Jane faces allegations of child abduction, Maria realises that she may never be allowed to see her mentor again. Mr Smith encourages Sarah Jane to take her mind off things by visiting the Pharos Parascience Institute, where Professor Rivers introduces her to the brilliant but bratty young Nathan Goss. Meanwhile, Maria and Clyde begin to unearth a conspiracy involving an old foe... and one of their closest allies.

Making History

The Sarah Jane Adventures experienced its first cast change almost immediately. Reflecting on the character dynamics of Invasion Of The Bane, Russell T Davies decided that the programme would benefit from a better gender balance amongst its main cast. As a result, Porsha Lawrence-Mavour's Kelsey Hooper was dropped, to be replaced by Daniel Anthony's Clyde Langer. The resulting set of five stories proved to be an enormous success for the CBBC digital channel, which scored its largest-ever audiences by the end of the season.

Season Two: Family Matters

The Characters

Rani Chandra was an aspiring journalist who succeeded Maria as Sarah Jane's neighbour across the road, and proved to be equally adept at helping to defeat all manner of extraterrestrial threats to the Earth.

Anjli Mohindra (bio) made her first appearance as Rani in The Day Of The Clown (October 2008) and her last in The Man Who Never Was (October 2011).

Rani

Haresh Chandra was Rani's father, and Luke and Clyde's principal at Park Vale school.

Ace Bhatti (bio) made his first appearance as Haresh in The Day Of The Clown (October 2008) and his last in The Curse Of Clyde Langer (October 2011).

Haresh Chandra

Gita Chandra was Rani's mother, as well as owner of the florist shop Bloomin' Lovely.

Mina Anwar (bio) made her first appearance as Gita in The Day Of The Clown (October 2008) and her last in Sky (October 2011).

Gita Chandra

The Production Team

While Russell T Davies continued to oversee the broad creative direction of the programme, Phil Ford (bio) assumed the role of lead writer on The Sarah Jane Adventures.

The Stories
The Last Sontaran
The Last Sontaran by Phil Ford, directed by Joss Agnew
Strange lights in the sky draw Sarah Jane, Maria, Luke and Clyde to a radio tracking station. There they find a teenaged girl called Lucy Skinner, whose scientist father is behaving very strangely. Searching the nearby woods, they discover a spaceship piloted by Commander Kaagh, the last survivor of the Sontarans' recent Earth invasion. Kaagh is determined to avenge his people by manipulating the tracking station's technology to crash artifical satellites down onto the world's nuclear reactors, with apocalyptic results. But even as she strives to stop Kaagh, Maria must grapple with the prospect of leaving Bannerman Road forever.
Maria decides to move away with her father so that he can accept a new job.
The Day Of The Clown
The Day Of The Clown by Phil Ford, directed by Michael Kerrigan
Luke and Clyde's new classmate, Rani Chandra, has moved with her family into the Jacksons' former home on Bannerman Road. Sarah Jane is determined to prevent Rani from getting involved in her adventures, until she learns that the girl is being haunted by a malevolent clown. Clyde becomes convinced that the clown is connected to a spate of disappearances from their school. With Rani's help, they deduce that all of the missing children had a ticket to Elijah Spellman's circus museum. When they confront Spellman, he reveals that he is not only Odd Bob the Clown... but also the Pied Piper of old.
Rani fills the void in the Bannerman Road gang left by Maria.
Secrets Of The Stars
Secrets Of The Stars by Gareth Roberts, directed by Michael Kerrigan
One night, a blazing light from the heavens strikes a small-time shyster named Martin Trueman. Within weeks, Trueman has risen to fame for his uncanny astrological ability: seeing into the past and predicting the future. When Sarah Jane attends one of his demonstrations, she's unnerved by the extent to which he is able to divine her history with the Doctor. But when she confronts Trueman about the source of his abilities, he becomes hostile, warning her against interfering with the power of the Ancient Lights. Although Sarah Jane is unbowed, she is unaware that Trueman's malign influence already extends to one of her friends.
The Mark Of The Berserker
The Mark Of The Berserker by Joseph Lidster, directed by Joss Agnew
Rani discovers that one of her classmates has found an alien pendant which allows the wearer to control the minds of others. But the power comes at a terrible cost, and she is able to retrieve the artefact and bring it to Sarah Jane's attic for safekeeping. However, Sarah Jane is out of town, and Luke is staying with the Langers. Without warning, Clyde's long-absent father, Paul, shows up and expects to reconnect with his son. Clyde is reluctant, but he inadvertently gives his dad the opportunity to steal the pendant. Paul quickly finds the lure of its power irresistible -- and one of his first acts is to make Clyde forget all about his friends.
The Temptation Of Sarah Jane Smith
The Temptation Of Sarah Jane Smith by Gareth Roberts, directed by Graeme Harper
In August 1951, Eddie and Barbara Smith inexplicably left their infant daughter, Sarah Jane, by the side of the road. Moments later, they perished in a traffic accident. In the present day, Sarah Jane discovers a time fissure which leads back to her home town of Foxgrove in the summer of 1951. Although she suspects a trap, she and Luke travel back in time, where Sarah Jane finds herself unable to resist altering the course of events to save her parents' lives. In the process, she succumbs to a plot by the Trickster to corrupt history -- leaving Clyde and Rani to confront the Trickster's minion, the Graske, on a ruined Earth.
Enemy Of The Bane
Enemy Of The Bane by Phil Ford, directed by Graeme Harper
Mrs Wormwood returns, desperate for Sarah Jane's help. She explains that she is now being hunted by the Bane, due to her failure during their attempted invasion of Earth. In retaliation, she wants to foil the Bane's plan to resurrect an ancient interstellar conqueror named Horath. To do so, she requires information stored in UNIT's Black Archive, and Sarah Jane reluctantly agrees to seek assistance from her old friend, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. But Mrs Wormwood has formed a secret alliance with Sontaran Commander Kaagh. The plan to revive Horath is theirs -- as a first step to their domination of the galaxy.

Making History

The regular cast of The Sarah Jane Adventures remained in flux during its second season. With Yasmin Paige's education precluding her participation in every episode, it was decided to write the Jackson family out of the programme in the opening serial, The Last Sontaran. In the next story, The Day Of The Clown, Rani Chandra and her family were introduced to fill the void left by the Jacksons. Meanwhile, perennial Doctor Who favourite Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart -- played once again by Nicholas Courtney -- made an appearance in the season finale, Enemy Of The Bane. His return coincided with the fortieth anniversary of the Brigadier's Doctor Who debut.

Special (2009): The Two Ranis

The Story
From Raxacoricofallapatorius With Love...
From Raxacoricofallapatorius With Love... by Gareth Roberts and Clayton Hickman, directed by Joss Agnew
Ambassador Rahnius of the Galactic Alliance teleports into Sarah Jane's attic. He claims to have been despatched to extend the Alliance's gratitude to Sarah Jane for her many accomplishments. But when K·9 appears, he accuses the Ambassador of being a Slitheen in disguise.

Season Three: All Our Yesterdays

The Stories
Prisoner Of The Judoon
Prisoner Of The Judoon by Phil Ford, directed by Joss Agnew
Sarah Jane and her friends investigate what they expect to be a meteorite, but which turns out to be a crashed Judoon prisoner transport. It was carrying an intergalactic serial killer named Androvax -- a Veil, capable of inhabiting the bodies of others. Sarah Jane forges an uneasy alliance with Judoon Captain Tybo in an effort to recapture Androvax, but she falls prey to the Veil herself. Now in possession of all of Sarah Jane's knowledge and weapons, Androvax sets his sights on Genetec Systems -- whose nanobot technology will help him escape the Earth, or destroy it in trying.
The Mad Woman In The Attic
The Mad Woman In The Attic by Joseph Lidster, directed by Alice Troughton
Rani is feeling alienated from Sarah Jane, Luke and Clyde. When her old friend Sam asks her to come back home to Danemouth to investigate a mystery, she's quick to accept. Stories of disappearances at a derelict amusement park lead Rani to an alien girl named Eve, who crashlanded on Earth and was hidden in the park by its caretaker, Harry. But Eve and her damaged vessel possess devastating powers that transcend time and space, and when Sarah Jane and her companions come looking for Rani, their actions may put their own futures at risk...
The Wedding Of Sarah Jane Smith
The Wedding Of Sarah Jane Smith by Gareth Roberts, directed by Joss Agnew
Sarah Jane has a surprise for Luke: she's been secretly dating a man named Peter Dalton, and has accepted his proposal of marriage. Luke is delighted to see his mother so happy, but Clyde and Rani are suspicious -- especially when it turns out that nobody has lived in Peter's house for several weeks. They're unable to convince the others that anything is amiss, however, and the day of the wedding quickly arrives. But Peter does indeed harbour a dark secret: he is a pawn of the Trickster, and not even the arrival of the Doctor may be enough to spare Sarah Jane.
The Eternity Trap
The Eternity Trap by Phil Ford, directed by Alice Troughton
Professor Rivers of the Pharos Institute invites Sarah Jane to participate in her investigation of Ashen Hill Manor. The estate has been plagued by rumours of hauntings and mysterious disappearances for centuries, dating all the way back to 1665, when it was home to the purported alchemist, Erasmus Darkening. Sarah Jane is skeptical at first... until Professor Rivers vanishes as well. With spirits roaming the secret passages that riddle the house, and something malevolent stalking the grounds after dark, Sarah Jane and her friends must find out what really happened in Ashen Hill Manor three hundred and fifty years ago.
Mona Lisa's Revenge
Mona Lisa's Revenge by Phil Ford, directed by Joss Agnew
Clyde has developed a talent for art. Luke secretly entered one of his pieces in a contest, and it has won their class a trip to see the Mona Lisa, which is on display at a London gallery. But something hidden in the bowels of the gallery brings the painting to life, and Mona Lisa turns out to be a sinister woman gifted with unearthly powers. She forces the weak-willed curator, Lionel Harding, to help her search the gallery for her mysterious “brother”. And when Sarah Jane arrives to investigate, Mona Lisa traps her inside a painting -- leaving Luke, Clyde and Rani to stop the threat on their own.
The Gift
The Gift by Rupert Laight, directed by Alice Troughton
Sarah Jane uncovers a new scheme by the Slitheen to destroy the Earth, but the villains are stopped by the Blathereen, members of another family on Raxacoricofallapatorius. The Blathereen profess nothing but goodwill towards the human race, and offer Sarah Jane the gift of Rakweed, a hardy and nutritious plant which can grow in even the most hostile of environments. Although Sarah Jane does not entirely trust the Blathereen, she decides to take a chance and accept the Rakweed -- little realising that the Blathereen have their own sinister designs on Earth.

Making History

For the third season of The Sarah Jane Adventures, an agreement was reached for K·9 to join the main cast, and so the events of The Mad Woman In The Attic were arranged to provide K·9 with a release from the extra-dimensional space in which he had been voluntarily trapped since Invasion Of The Bane. A new broadcast schedule was introduced for the programme, which now aired twice weekly.

Season Four: The Circle Game

The Stories
The Nightmare Man
The Nightmare Man by Joseph Lidster, directed by Joss Agnew
Luke is wracked with insecurity after he decides to take early admission to Oxford University. As the day of his departure from Bannerman Road looms, he finds himself dreaming for the first time ever. But what he experiences are terrible nightmares, which play upon his worries about leaving his home, mum and friends behind. These dreams are actually the work of an entity which calls itself the Nightmare Man, who is feeding upon Luke's fears in order to manifest in the real world. Once the Nightmare Man walks the Earth, he will plunge all humanity into an eternal state of bad dreams...
Luke leaves for university, accompanied by K·9.
The Vault Of Secrets
The Vault Of Secrets by Phil Ford, directed by Joss Agnew
Androvax the Veil returns to Earth, but this time he claims to be seeking Sarah Jane's help. Dying from an incurable poison, Androvax is trying to recover a spaceship which carries the cryogenically-frozen survivors of his doomed planet. The trail has led him to a mysterious vault hidden beneath a disused asylum in London, but it is guarded by androids led by the impassive Mister Dread. With the fate of an entire species at stake, Sarah Jane is forced into an uneasy alliance with one of her most sinister enemies, little realising that Androvax's designs may have terrible consequences for the Earth.
Death Of The Doctor
Death Of The Doctor by Russell T Davies, directed by Ashley Way
UNIT arrives at Sarah Jane's door with terrible news: the Doctor is dead, his body brought to Earth by alien undertakers called the Shansheeth. Sarah Jane refuses to believe that her friend is gone for good, but she nonetheless agrees to travel to a UNIT base for the Doctor's hastily-assembled funeral. She isn't the only skeptic: also in attendance is Jo Jones, Sarah Jane's predecessor aboard the TARDIS, who is equally convinced that the Doctor is still alive. But when Clyde discovers that he and the Doctor share an unexpected connection, it's up to him, Rani and Jo's grandson Santiago to uncover the Shansheeth's scheme.
The Empty Planet
The Empty Planet by Gareth Roberts, directed by Ashley Way
One night, Mr Smith detects an untraceable alien signal. Nothing seems amiss... until the next morning, when Rani and Clyde awaken to find that Sarah Jane, their parents, and indeed everybody on Bannerman Road have all vanished. Even Mr Smith does not respond to their commands. Heading into town, they find that London is deserted, with only a frightened boy named Gavin left behind. But suddenly, strange sounds fill the air, alien symbols appear on every television screen, and robots roam the streets. Can Clyde and Rani solve the mystery of the empty planet?
Lost In Time
Lost In Time by Rupert Laight, directed by Joss Agnew
Sarah Jane is summoned by the mysterious Shopkeeper, who warns her that three fragments of chronosteen, a metal forged in the time vortex, have been lost in the Earth's past. Chronosteen has the power to change history, and so the Shopkeeper sends Sarah Jane, Clyde and Rani back in time, each with a mission to recover one of the pieces. Clyde finds himself fighting Nazis along the English coast. Rani becomes caught up in the intrigue of the court of Lady Jane Grey. And Sarah Jane must unearth the secret of a haunted house, and its tragic connection to the future...
Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith
Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith by Clayton Hickman and Gareth Roberts, directed by Joss Agnew
Sarah Jane is feeling old, her memory becoming unreliable. When she and her friends confront a platoon of Dark Horde warriors, she forgets vital equipment and endangers them all. Only the intervention of a mysterious adventurer called Ruby White averts disaster. Ruby quickly develops a rapport with Clyde and Rani; she is assisted by an AI called Mr White and has even moved in just down the road. Sarah Jane begins to consider retirement, and she views Ruby as her natural successor. But Ruby is actually a Qetesh: an alien entity which feeds on thrills... and no human leads a more exciting life than Sarah Jane Smith.

Making History

The real-life obligations of its young stars again influenced the direction of The Sarah Jane Adventures during its fourth season, with Tommy Knight's educational commitments prompting him to reduce his role. As Luke headed off for an early start to university, K·9 went with him, reflecting the expiry of the agreement which had permitted the robot dog to enjoy a more substantial presence during the previous season.

Season Five: A Life Of Adventure

The Characters

Bred to be a weapon in a genocidal alien war, Sky Smith was spirited away by the mysterious Shopkeeper and brought to Earth to be raised by Sarah Jane as her daughter.

Sinead Michael (bio) made her first appearance as Sky in Sky (October 2011) and her last in The Man Who Never Was (October 2011).

Sky

The Stories
Sky
Sky by Phil Ford, directed by Ashley Way
An alien baby is abandoned on Sarah Jane's doorstep, prompting her to investigate the child's mysterious background. She soon discovers the presence of two aliens in London: a humanoid Fleshkind and a boron-based Metalkind, representatives of species which have been at war for generations. The baby, whom Sarah Jane names “Sky,” is a genetically-engineered weapon which was developed by the Fleshkind. However, their plan to wipe out the Metalkind will endanger not only Sky, but the entire Earth -- and when Sky abruptly ages to teenagerhood, Sarah Jane realises that time is running out.
Sky decides to remain on Earth with Sarah Jane.
The Curse Of Clyde Langer
The Curse Of Clyde Langer by Phil Ford, directed by Ashley Way
When fish rain from the sky above Ealing, Sarah Jane and her friends are drawn to a recently-unearthed totem pole which is being displayed at a local museum. Clyde messes about with the exhibit, and winds up with a livid splinter. He thinks nothing of it until the next day, when everyone suddenly turns against him: Sarah Jane orders him out of her house, Rani says she hates him, and even his mum wants nothing to do with him. Only Sky is immune but, while she tries to get to the bottom of the strange sequence of events, Clyde is left to eke out a life for himself on the streets of London with the help of his new friend, Ellie.
The Man Who Never Was
The Man Who Never Was by Gareth Roberts, directed by Joss Agnew
Sarah Jane is invited to a special advance preview of the SerfBoard, a revolutionary new computer created by the reclusive Joseph Serf. She is accompanied by Luke and Sky, who are startled to spot Serf “glitching” during his presentation, as if he were some kind of hologram. More chillingly, some of the other journalists in attendance start to behave strangely, leading them to wonder if the SerfBoard is exerting an unnatural influence. Soon Sarah Jane and her family discover that there are aliens working in a secret subbasement at Serf Systems... but there is more to the Skullions' activities than they initially suspect.

Making History

For budgetary and logistical reasons, three of the six stories planned for the fifth season of The Sarah Jane Adventures were actually filmed alongside the 2010 run. They included the introduction of a new regular character, Sky Smith, who was created to provide a younger protagonist now that Luke, Clyde and Rani were growing up. Sadly, production on the season's latter half would never take place. A few weeks before filming was due to resume in Spring 2011, Elisabeth Sladen was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer; she died on April 19th. It was quickly decided that no further episodes of The Sarah Jane Adventures would be made, although the three remaining stories were broadcast in October 2011 as a tribute to the show's unforgettable star.