Bob Baker: Scriptwriter for Wallace & Gromit and Doctor Who dies at 82

A prolific scriptwriter best known for his work on Wallace & Gromit and Doctor Who has died at the age of 82.

Bob Baker had a career that spanned five decades, with credits that include popular TV shows such as Into the Labyrinth and Bergerac, and one-off dramas Thick As Thieves and Machine Gunner, which went on to win British Television Society Awards.

Alongside his late writing partner, Dave Martin, Baker was a stalwart of children’s TV in the 1970s, renowned for penning spine-tingling and often bizarre adventures – and the creation of the much-loved robot dog, K9, in Doctor Who.

Born in St George in July 1939, the renowned scriptwriter first trained and worked as a monumental stone mason before discovering a love for animation and turning his writing talent into a career.

The father-of-eight is remembered by his beloved wife of 30 years, Marie, his sons, Martin and Andy, his daughters, Cathy, Laura, Sarah, Rachael, Joanna and Clare, and his grandchildren, Holly, Amy, Ivan, Archie, Freddie, Ellie-May and Bea.

Posting a tribute, Baker’s family said he led a rich and eventfully varied life, continuing to create and write into his later years. He set up a production company that gave K9 a new audience and had recently completed scripts for both a new K9 film and TV series, which will continue in tribute to Baker and his legacy.

Speaking on behalf of the family, his daughter, Sarah Baker, told Bristol24/7: “It’s been genuinely lovely to read such wonderful tributes and hear such heartfelt stories from his many friends and fans.

“That he meant so much to so many and is remembered with such fondness makes us very proud. His legacy continues and that makes this sad and difficult time somewhat easier to bear. We miss him terribly. He was, quite simply, the very best.”

Baker’s autobiography, K9 Stole My Trousers, served as a tribute to some of the finest talents in British TV in the last 50 years featuring those he had worked with and others he considered himself lucky enough to know in his personal life as good friends.

Matthew Sweet interviews Bob Baker at Aardman Animations – photo by Paul Vanezis

The scriptwriter was first paired with the animator Nick Park to co-write The Wrong Trousers and the pair went on to collaborate on more Oscar-winning titles, including A Close Shave and The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.

Speaking to Robin Askew for Venue Magazine in 1998, Baker said of Bristol’s favourite clay duo: “I’ve sort of got into the minds of Wallace & Gromit because I had to. It’s my job.  I love them now. They’re my dear, dear friends. I feel I know what makes them tick. We’ve been doing this for so long that you get to know the kind of things that the characters he thought up might feel or do. That’s the art of good collaboration.”

At the time, one of the world’s most in-demand animation scriptwriters, he said of the industry: “It’s a strange world, the animation world.

“It’s a bit like the country and western world, in a funny kind of way. They’re all very close to one another and they all know each other’s work. I do still feel a bit of an outsider.”

Nick Park, Bob Baker and Peter Sallis during the voice recording for The Wrong Trousers – photo courtesy of Aardman Animations Ltd

Main photo by Paul Vanezis

Main photo of Nick Park, Bob Baker and Peter Sallis during the voice recording for The Wrong Trousers – courtesy of Aardman Animations Ltd

Read more: Sector spotlight on animation 

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