Doctor Who star Mary Tamm loses cancer fight aged 62

Mary Tamm, who played the Doctor’s companion Romana alongside Tom Baker, has died this morning after a long battle against cancer at hospital in London. She was 62.

Tom Baker, who played the fourth Doctor, said : ‘ She was a darling companion and wonderfully witty and kind. I’m so sorry to hear of her death ‘. The actress Mary Tamm has played Romana, a Time Lady for the Doctor’s home planet of Gallifrey, alongside Tom Baker’s fourth Doctor and his robot dog K-9 in a season of 6 connected stories in 1978-9.

Mary Tamm’s first story, The Ribos Operation, saw her join the Tardis crew on a quest to find the six scattered segments of the Key to Time. Romana’s other adventures included a story called The Pirate Planet, written by Douglas Adams, and The Stones of Blood, which was the 100th story since the sci-fi show started in 1963. When actress Mary Tamm left Doctor Who the role of Romana was taken over by Lalla Ward.

Tamm’s family, including husband Marcus Ringrose, daughter Lauren and 7-year-old grandson Max, paid tribute to the actress. Her autobiography was published 3 years ago.

Doctor Who actress Mary Tamm died after cancer at the age of 62

Barry Langford, Mary Tamm’s agent of 22 years, has said: ‘ She had a great zest for life. She was a fantastic actress – she played stage parts of such range, parts that would take your breath away. She could play any role, and do so wonderfully. ‘

Mary Tamm, who lived in Battersea, south London, trained at Rada, where she mentored students and was involved in fundraising for the Eve Appeal, the gynaecology cancer research fund.

The Bradford-born actress Mary Tamm had been suffering from cancer for 18 months and was said to have been upset after the recent deaths of her contemporaries Angharad Rees and Elisabeth Sladen, the latter of whom played Sarah Jane Smith in Doctor Who.