H is for... Hedin

A senior Time Lord who was a member of the High Council. He was an old friend of the Doctor's, and was the only member of the Council to oppose its decision to execute him following an attempt by an anti-matter entity to bond with the Doctor and so cross over into this universe. Hedin's motives were not as friendly towards the Doctor as they seemed. He was actually in league with the entity, and wanted his old friend alive and well so that the crossover would be a success - for the entity was really Omega. Hedin had established contact with him in his exile in the anti-matter universe due to a weak point between the two known as the Arc of Infinity. Hedin helped prepare a base on Earth for Omega, in the Dutch city of Amsterdam, and was prepared to resort to murder when it looked as if his plans might be uncovered. He later attempted to divert suspicion onto the President of the High Council, Borusa. When the Castellan attempted to arrest Borusa and shoot the Doctor, Hedin threw himself in front of the blast - sacrificing himself as he knew the Doctor was needed alive for Omega to make his successful transition into this universe.

Played by: Michael Gough. Appearances: Arc of Infinity (1983).

• Gough had appeared in the programme once before, when he played The Celestial Toymaker. At the time he was married to companion actress Anneke Wills. He had enjoyed his time on the show and so encouraged her to go up for the part of Polly - though he did warn her about William Hartnell's temperament. He was due to return to the Toymaker role in 1986 in the story "The Nightmare Fair", but this was axed when the programme was put on an 18 month hiatus.
• Gough's lengthy movie career saw a late revival when he became part of director Tim Burton's 'repertory company', which included his old friend from Hammer days, Christopher Lee. Gough was the only consistent actor across the original run of Batman movies, playing butler Alfred.