Doctor Who showrunner Russell T. Davies has paid touching tribute to "wonderful" director Amanda Brotchie following her death from cancer. She helmed two episodes of the long running sci-fi show and Russell sung her praises on Instagram as he remembered the Australian born star. Alongside a black and white image of Amanda he penned: "So sad to hear that the wonderful Amanda Brotchie has died. We adored her on Doctor Who, every single department loved her. She directed two amazing episodes, Lux and The Well - both demanded so much precision and style and imagination, unlike any other episodes, and she knocked them out of the park. Brilliantly.

"And she was so much fun! Bright and sharp and kind and questioning and always determined to make things better, better, better. Ooh, she could be beady, peering at the script, niggling away at something... until we all realised she was right! God, we adored her," he wrote.

"An award-winning Australian film-maker, she had huge success over here with Gentleman Jack, Riot Women, tons of shows, everyone wanted her.

"And we got lucky. Knowing that she didn't have much time left, and at peace with that, she wrote to me last week about Doctor Who, 'I'm so glad I got to work with you and the team, it was a career and personal highlight.'

"For us, too. What a terrible loss. All the love to @zwarwood and family & friends. Good night darling xxx," he signed off.

Amanda was married to writer, producer and actor, Adam Zwar and along with producer, Nicole Minchin they co-created the multi-award-winning BBC4 series Lowdown through the company High Wire Films, which marked her huge breakthrough.

Fans rushed to pay tribute flooding the comments of Russell's posts with their condolences. "Oh my goodness that is so very sad. She got to work on Doctor Who and that's amazing. What a legacy," one wrote.

"What awful news! So sorry for all of you who knew her and worked with her. But her beautiful work will live on. What a talent!" another added. A third chimed in: "What a sad loss. Those two pieces of television were incredible. Amanda was a phenomenal talent."

A fourth shared: "I wanna thank Amanda Brotchie for directing the whole fourth wall scene in Lux, and for also directing the sequel to an episode that we thought we'd never get a sequel for."

A fifth penned: "R.I.P... she directed Lux and The Well with such a vision. Her mind and direction is forever immortalised on Doctor Who." Meanwhile a sixth commented: "Very sad news. Lux and The Well were two of the very best episodes of recent years, and Riot Women was brilliant. Rest in peace, Amanda."