Geoffrey Bayldon


*The following article is written from an Out of Universe perspective.*

Geoffrey Bayldon (7 January 1924-10 May 2017) played Organon in the Doctor Who story The Creature from the Pit. He also played the Master between 2005 and 2007 starting with the Leftover Series 4 episode Future's Protector. Aged eighty years when his debut episode as the Master was produced, he is the oldest actor to play the Master.

Biography

Prior to Doctor Who

Bayldon was born in Leeds and attended Bridlington School and Hull College of Architecture. Following service in the Royal Air Force during World War II, he appeared in amateur theatricals and then trained at the Old Vic Theatre School.

Bayldon enjoyed a substantial stage career, including work in the West End and for the RSC. He made several film appearances in the 1960s and 1970s, including King Rat (1965), To Sir, with Love (1967), Casino Royale (as Q) (1967), the Envy segment of The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins(1971), the Marc Bolan/T. Rex film Born to Boogie (1972), The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976), as well as the film versions of Steptoe and Son, Steptoe and Son Ride Again (1973) as the vicar, and Porridge (1979) as the Governor. Bayldon also appeared in several horror films; Dracula and Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed for Hammer Film Productions and The House That Dripped Blood, Asylum and Tales from the Crypt for Amicus Productions.

He was the longtime partner of fellow Doctor Who guest star Alan Rowe. He is perhaps best remembered as the title character in the ITV series Catweazle (1970-71), and as the Crowman opposite Jon Pertwee in the ITV series Worzel Gummidge (1979-1981).

Bayldon's other television roles include, ITV Play of the Week (1957, 1959, 1964, 1967), The Avengers (1961 and 1967), Z-Cars (1963, 1968), Theatre 625 (1964–1968), The Wednesday Play (1968, 1969), ITV Sunday Night Theatre (1970, 1972), Space: 1999 (1976) and The Tomorrow People (1976),

Work on Doctor Who

He appeared in Doctor Who with a guest appearance as Organon in The Creature from the Pit opposite Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor.

Subsequently, he played a new incarnation of The Master in three episodes of the spin-off series Leftover, The Future's Truth, Mastermind Part I and Mastermind Part II. He then appeared as the Master in the final episode of the mini-series Rebel Zero and then at the very end of the Season 42 final and throughout Season 43 of Doctor Who.

Bayldon made one final appearance as the Master in Doctor Who: Revelation where he served as the primary antagonist and where it was revealed that his incarnation came before Roger Delgado's incarnation.

In 1963, Bayldon had been one of the first actors offered the role of the Doctor.

After Doctor Who

Bayldon went on to appear in Tales of the Unexpected (1980, 1983), Blott on the Landscape (1985), Star Cops (1987), Rumpole of the Bailey (1987), The Chronicles of Narnia (1989). He later took part in a number of BBC Schools programmes, where he displayed a number of otherwise unexploited talents (such as singing). In 1993, he played Simplicio in the Open University video Newton's Revolution.

In 1986, Bayldon provided the vocals on Paul Hardcastle's The Wizard which was also used (without the vocal) as the theme for BBC1's Top of the Pops.

In 2004, after many years of successful television work he appeared in the film Ladies in Lavender.

Among his later television appearances were the Five game show Fort Boyard (1998-2001), Waking the Dead (2004), Heartbeat (2004) and Casualty (2006, after previous appearances in 1991, 1997 and 2004). His final television appearances, before his retirement, were New Tricks (2007) and My Family (2010).

Personal Life

Bayldon died on 10 May 2017, aged 93, from undisclosed causes. His partner of many years, fellow actor Alan Rowe, had predeceased him in 2000.

Selected Credits

Doctor Who

As Actor

The Creature from the Pit - Organon

as The Master

Leftover

as The Master

Rebel Zero

As The Master

On the Eve of War, Here I Am

Movies

as The Master

Doctor Who: Revelation