Leslie Bates is one of the perennial extras of Doctor Who. He began as the shadowy figure seen in the last moments of An Unearthly Child - the very first episode of the series. He was also a tribesman in the episode titled The Cave of Skulls.

In Marco polo he was credited as ‘Man at Lop’ but was also a Mongol Warrior and Mongol Bandit.

In 1966 he returned as ‘second guard’ in The Massacre (1966) and a villager/pirate in The Smugglers.

He was an uncredited 1862 Confederate Soldier in two episodes of the epic War Games in 1969.

In 1974 he was an extra in Invasion of The Dinosaurs.