Christopher Franklin Boucher (15 February 1943 – 11 December 2022) was an English television screenwriter, script editor and novelist. He is known for his frequent contributions to two genres, science fiction and crime fiction, and worked on the series Doctor Who, Blake's 7, Shoestring, Bergerac, and The Bill. He also created the series Star Cops.
Early life
Boucher was born on 15 February 1943 in Maldon, Essex, the only child of Simpson and Alexandra Boucher (née Wheeler). He was educated at Maldon Grammar School. Prior to becoming a television writer, Boucher worked at Calor Gas as a management trainee and gained a Bachelor of Arts in economics at the University of Essex.
Career
Boucher began his work in television science fiction for the series Doctor Who, writing the serials The Face of Evil, The Robots of Death and Image of the Fendahl (all broadcast in 1977). Prior to his death in 2022, he was the last remaining living Doctor Who scriptwriter from prior to Season 18 in 1980. One of his contributions to Doctor Who was the creation of the companion Leela (Louise Jameson), the savage who featured in the series from 1977 to 1978. The character was inspired by the Palestinian terrorist Leila Khaled. Boucher was commissioned for the programme by script editor Robert Holmes, who suggested that Boucher should be appointed in that role for the science fiction series Blake's 7 (1978–81). He served in this role for the entirety of its four-series run, and also wrote several episodes himself, including the final episode. but has maintained a cult following among fans of science fiction.
Later works included several Doctor Who novels for BBC Books, all featuring the character of Leela, and a series of straight-to-CD full-cast audio dramas entitled Kaldor City, which combine elements from his Doctor Who serial The Robots of Death with his Blake's 7 work.
Views and advocacy
Boucher was an avowed atheist. He disapproved of the introduction of religion into government policy and the education of children.
Personal life and death
Boucher married Lynda Macklin in 1966. They had three sons: Luke, Nathan and Daniel. He was the last surviving Doctor Who scriptwriter from prior to the 1980s.