- After he left Doctor Who, he was replaced by Peter Purves in the "male companion" role. Upon the passing of Jon Pertwee in 1996, he became the oldest living cast member.
- Of the four original actors to travel in the TARDIS in Doctor Who (1963), he is the most recent one to make a reappearance in the series, in the 2022 Centenary special The Power of the Doctor (2022).
In the mid-1980s, writer Peter Grimwade originally envisaged him as returning to star opposite Peter Davison as the teacher in Mawdryn Undead: Part One (1983), but Russell proved unavailable due to theatre commitments. The story was then changed to bring back Nicholas Courtney as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. - He was portrayed in An Adventure in Space and Time (2013) by Jamie Glover. Jamie's father, Julian Glover, is also a Doctor Who (1963) veteran, having played Richard the Lionheart in The Lion (1965) and Count Scarlioni/Scaroth in City of Death: Part One (1979). The elder Glover also appeared in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) with Russell's son, Alfred Enoch.
- Is listed in the Guinness Book Of Records for the longest gap between TV appearances playing the character of Ian Chesterton on Doctor Who. His last regular appearance was on 26th June 1965 before his cameo in The Power of the Doctor (2022), a gap of 57 years 120 days.
- He was going to be the star of the 1956 TV series of The Buccaneers (1956) but the part went to Robert Shaw.
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