Nicola Jane Bryant (born 11 October 1960) is an English actress known for her roles as Peri Brown, a companion to both the Fifth and Sixth Doctors in the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, from 1984 to 1986 and as Martine Johnson the dance teacher in the school drama series The Biz from 1995 to 1997. She also played Miss Brown in The Stranger film series and Lana in Star Trek Continues. Early life Nicola Bryant was born and raised in a small village near Guildford in Surrey, the older of two daughters of Denis and Sheila Bryant. She has a younger sister named Tracy. She began taking dance classes at the age of three, and also took piano lessons. At the age of ten she auditioned to go to ballet schools, but was unable to take up places offered because of asthma. Upset by this development, she joined a local amateur dramatic group. On leaving school she auditioned for all of the London drama schools, and took up a scholarship to the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. In her final year there, she played the part of Nanette in a production of the musical No, No, Nanette. Career Bryant's first professional part was as Peri Brown in Doctor Who. She played the part from 1984 to 1986, first with Peter Davison, and then with Colin Baker as the Doctor. Bryant's tenure on the show was met with raised eyebrows in some quarters as series producer John Nathan-Turner admitted (in his book Doctor Who: The Companions and elsewhere) that his intention was to pump up the sex appeal of the ageing series by casting the young actress who was often seen wearing low-cut outfits in the show. Her character was American and for a while a publicity-driven fiction was maintained suggesting Bryant was also American, something Bryant had herself stated in press interviews when she landed the part. During her final series on Doctor Who, the actress was allowed to dress more conservatively on the show. Bryant appeared in the Doctor Who serial The Two Doctors (1985), and she enjoyed working with Patrick Troughton, who returned as the Second Doctor. During the programme's hiatus during 1985 and 1986, Bryant reprised the role of Peri in a BBC radio production entitled Slipback alongside Baker. After appearing in Doctor Who, Bryant spent nine months at the Savoy Theatre in