Events in Doctor Who are coming to a Head -- Anthony Stewart Head. The actor who played Giles in Buffy The Vampire Slayer will be a guest star in the second season of the British SF show, according to SciFi Wire.

Head first became familiar to British television viewers in commercials for Maxwell House instant coffee. Apart from Buffy, though, he is probably best known for his portrayal of the British Prime Minister in the BBC comedy series, Little Britain.

In the episode in which Head will appear, the Doctor, David Tennant, encounters the Krillitanes, aliens that have been up to no good at a public high school. The Time Lord will also be reunited with two old friends, Elisabeth Sladen and K9.

From 1973 to 1977 Sladen played Sarah Jane Smith, companion to John Pertwee and then Tom Baker in their incarnations as the Doctor. She reprised the role in Doctor Who: The Five Doctors in 1983 and again in 1995 in Downtime, an independent video spin-off.

K9 was at the Doctors heels from 1977 to 1981. The robot dog was voiced by John Leeson. He also played the role in another Who spin-off, K9 and Company, and in Doctor Who audio adventures produced by Big Finish. Hes returning, too.

"I am delighted to have been invited back on board the series, he said, and a little gathered rust is no object to a fully functional K9."

Sladen is also excited. "Toby Whithouse's script is wonderful -- it's an absolutely truthful progression of Sarah, she says on the BBC website. I just hope I can live up to their expectation, and I hope I can still run as fast after 30 years!

Doctor Who returns to British television for a Christmas Special in December. The second season begins in the spring.

Michael Simpson is a writer and science fiction fan living in Canada.