Very sad today to hear of the death of Verity Lambert at the age of 71. Verity was the very first producer of Doctor Who when it first aired exactly 44 years ago today.

She was the first female BBC producer and the youngest – a year younger than I am now – when she took charge of steering such a ground-breaking drama serial through its first years. Many of the elements that featured in that first episode are present in the series today, so it’s no understatement to say that without her we probably wouldn’t have the hugely successful show we still have today.

Alex has written a lovely blog post already, and Russell The Davies’s tribute is worth repeating:

“There are a hundred people in Cardiff working on Doctor Who and millions of viewers, in particular many children, who love the programme that Verity helped create.

“This is her legacy and we will never forget that.”

As it’s Doctor Who’s birthday, I was due to head to the pub anyway to celebrate with The Fans. Tonight, we’ll be toasting Verity.