Companion (Doctor Who)

In the long-running BBC television science fiction programme Doctor Who and related works, the term "companion" refers to a character who travels with, and shares the adventures of the Doctor. In most Doctor Who stories, the primary companion acts as both deuteragonist and audience surrogate. He or she (more commonly she) provides the lens through which the viewer is introduced to the series. The companion character, many times, furthers the story by asking questions and getting into trouble, or by helping, rescuing or challenging the Doctor. This designation is applied to a character by the show's producers, and appears in the BBC's promotional material and off-screen fictional terminology. Until the modern revival of the series in 2005, the term was rarely used on-screen. The Doctor also refers to the show's other leads as his "friends" or "assistants"; the British press have also used the latter term.

History

When Doctor Who was created, the dramatic structure of the programme's cast was rather different from the hero-and-sidekick pattern that emerged later. Initially, the character of the Doctor was unclear, with uncertain motives and abilities. The protagonists were schoolteachers Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright, who provided the audience's point-of-view in stories set in Earth's history and on alien worlds. Ian in particular served the role of the action hero. The fourth character was the Doctor's granddaughter Susan, who (though initially presented as an "unearthly child") was intended^{[citation needed]} as an identification figure for younger viewers.

Carole Ann Ford, who played Susan Foreman, became unhappy with the lack of development for her character,^{[citation needed]} and chose to leave in its second series. The character of Susan was married off to a freedom fighter and left behind to rebuild a Dalek-ravaged Earth. Doctor Who's producers replaced Susan with another young female character, Vicki. Similarly, when Ian and Barbara left, the "action hero" position was filled by astronaut Steven Taylor. This grouping of the Doctor, a young heroic male and an attractive young female became the programme's pattern throughout the 1960s.

When the programme changed to colour in 1970, its format changed: the Doctor was now Earth-bound, and acquired a supporting cast by his affiliation with the paramilitary organisation United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT). The Third Doctor, more active and physical than his predecessors, made the role of the "action hero" male companion redundant. In the 1970 season the Doctor was assisted by scientist Liz Shaw and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, along with other UNIT personnel (such as Sergeant Benton). The intellectual Shaw was replaced by Jo Grant in the 1971 season, and as the programme returned to occasional adventures in outer space, the format shifted once more: while UNIT continued to provide a regular "home base" for Earth-bound stories, in stories on other planets the Doctor and Jo became a two-person team with a close, personal bond. This pattern, the Doctor with a single female companion, became a template from which subsequent episodes of Doctor Who rarely diverged. The "heroic male" type occasionally returned (for example, Harry Sullivan, Adric, Turlough, Mickey Smith, Jack Harkness and Rory Williams), but the single female companion was Doctor Who's staple.

The character of Harry Sullivan was created by the production team when it was expected that the Fourth Doctor would be played by an older actor who would have trouble with the activity expressed by his predecessor. In the event, the Fourth Doctor part went to 40-year-old Tom Baker and the part of Harry, no longer required for the action role, was reduced.^[1]

In the final season for the Fourth Doctor, he acquired three companions (Adric, Tegan and Nyssa) and this situation continued under the Fifth Doctor for a while. Adric was written out by the unusual method within the series of being "killed off". By the Sixth Doctor, the Doctor was down to a single companion again.

Definition

Although the term "companion" is designated to specific characters by the show's producers, and appears in the BBC's promotional material and off-screen fictional terminology, there is no formal definition that constitutes such a designation. Stephen Brook in The Guardian newspaper's Organgrinder blog discounted Michelle Ryan as a likely next companion but said that "what constitutes a Doctor Who companion is no longer clear"^[2] The definition of who is and is not a companion becomes less clear in the newer series.^[2] During the Doctor's three latest incarnations, his primary companions (Rose Tyler, Martha Jones, Donna Noble, and currently Amy Pond) have fulfilled a distinct dramatic role, more significant than other, less-prominent TARDIS travellers such as Adam, Jack, and Mickey. The British press referred to Martha as the "first ethnic minority companion in the 43-year television history of Doctor Who"^[3] and the "first black assistant",^[4] despite the presence of Mickey Smith in the previous season—including several episodes in which he travelled in the TARDIS with the Doctor.

The Brigadier was included as a companion in the Making of Doctor Who, published in the 1970s.^[5]

The opening credits do little to clarify the situation. In the first two series of the renewed programme, the only supporting actor to receive a title credit is Billie Piper. In subsequent series, Freema Agyeman and Catherine Tate are credited in all episodes in which they appear. In the third series John Barrowman receives a title credit for his return to the show. Series Four gave Agyeman, Piper, Barrowman, and Elisabeth Sladen title billing for each of their reappearances. Noel Clarke reprised his role in the Series Four finale; although listed as a companion alongside the other actors on the BBC Doctor Who website,^[6] Clarke is not credited in this way. In The End of Time John Simm receives title billing for his antagonist role as the Master, ahead of Bernard Cribbins as companion Wilfred Mott.

Companions in the new series also have a more flexible tenure than their classical predecessors. Several companion characters have returned to the series after leaving the Doctor's company, most notably in the Series Four finale "The Stolen Earth" / "Journey's End", which features the return of Rose, Martha, Jack, Sarah Jane and Mickey. This tendency, plus the increase in "one-off" companions like Astrid Peth and Jackson Lake, has further obscured the matter of who is and is not a companion, and when.^[2]

Role

Companions have assumed a variety of roles in Doctor Who, as involuntary passengers, as assistants (particularly Liz Shaw), as friends, and as fellow adventurers.

The Doctor regularly gains new companions and loses old ones; sometimes they return home, or find new causes—or loves—on worlds they have visited. A few companions (most notably Katarina, Sara Kingdom and Adric) have died during the course of the series.

Most companions travel in the TARDIS with the Doctor for more than one adventure, although there are exceptions. Sometimes a guest character will take a role in the story similar to that of a companion, such as photographer Isobel Watkins who plays a significant role in The Invasion in the classic series, or Lynda in "Bad Wolf" and "The Parting of the Ways" in the revived series.

Despite the fact that the majority of the Doctor's companions are young, attractive females, the production team for the 1963–1989 series maintained a long-standing taboo against any overt romantic involvement in the TARDIS: for example, Peter Davison, as the Fifth Doctor, was not allowed to put his arm around either Sarah Sutton (Nyssa) or Janet Fielding (Tegan).^[7] However, that has not prevented fans from speculating about possible romantic involvements, most notably between the Fourth Doctor and the Time Lady Romana (whose actors, Tom Baker and Lalla Ward, shared a romance and brief marriage). The taboo was controversially^{[citation needed]} broken in the 1996 television movie when the Eighth Doctor was shown kissing companion Grace Holloway. The 2005 series played with this idea by having various characters think that the Ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler were a couple, which they vehemently denied. Since the series revival, the Doctor has kissed companions Rose, Jack, Mickey (on the forehead), Martha, Astrid, Donna, Amy, and River Song although each instance was not necessarily in a romantic context (see also "The Doctor and romance"). Donna Noble vehemently denied a sexual interest in the Doctor when he invited her to join him and explained "I just want a mate," which she misheard as "I just want to mate."^[8] Rose and Martha each developed romantic feelings toward the Doctor who remained platonic toward Martha, but probably fell in love with Rose. This is evidenced in his decision to leave his second self with Rose in a parallel universe in "Journey's End." On the opposite side of the same coin, Amy reacted to the stress of her adventures by aggressively trying to seduce the Doctor despite being in love with her fiancé Rory; the Doctor forcibly pushed her off of himself.^[9] The Eleventh Doctor romantically kissed sporadic companion River Song in "Day of the Moon", married her in "The Wedding of River Song."

Previous companions have reappeared in the series, usually for anniversary specials. One former companion, Sarah Jane Smith (played by Elisabeth Sladen), together with the robotic dog K-9, appeared in four and two episodes, respectively, of the revived series^[10] more than twenty years after their last appearances in the 20th anniversary story The Five Doctors (1983). The character of Sarah Jane also heads up a Doctor Who spin-off, The Sarah Jane Adventures with K-9. Another companion, Captain Jack Harkness, is the lead character in the spin-off BBC science fiction programme Torchwood. Not only have these former companions continued to make appearances on Doctor Who, they have sometimes been accompanied by some of their own companions from the spin-offs when doing so, including Jack's colleagues Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones, and Sarah Jane's 'family' Mr Smith, Luke Smith and K-9 Mark IV. Other former companions from both the classic era and revived series have also returned as guest stars in the spin-offs, including Martha Jones on Torchwood, and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart and Jo Grant on The Sarah Jane Adventures. K-9 Mark I has also been spun off into its own series with an independent continuity.

When Doctor Who returned to television in 2005, the companion characters played a slightly different role, partly due to a strong focus on the character of Rose Tyler and characters connected to her. For example, although Adam Mitchell was a companion by the standard definition, he appeared in only two episodes and was arguably a less significant part of the 2005 series than Rose's sometime boyfriend Mickey Smith, who was not technically a companion but appeared in five episodes (or six, including a brief appearance as a child in "Father's Day"). Mickey later gained full-fledged companion status when he travelled in the TARDIS in the 2006 episode "School Reunion". In that episode, Sarah Jane Smith referred to Rose as the Doctor's "assistant", a term to which the latter took offence. This exchange might be regarded as indicating the new series' shift in approach to the companion role.

As of the end of the fifth series, Sarah Jane Smith is the only classic era companion to have been asked to travel again by the Doctor in the revived series. She declined his invitation in "School Reunion", but subsequently met up with the Doctor aboard a Dalek ship in "Journey's End" and travelled with him, several other companions, and Rose's mother Jackie Tyler in the TARDIS as they towed the Earth back to the solar system. Sarah Jane, Jo Jones (nèe Grant), and their own respective companions also momentarily travelled in the TARDIS with the Eleventh Doctor in The Sarah Jane Adventures serial, Death of the Doctor.

List of television companions

First Doctor

Companion	Actor/Actress	Seasons	First serial	Last serial	Appearances with the First Doctor
Susan Foreman	Carole Ann Ford	1–2, 1983 Special	An Unearthly Child[nb 1]	The Five Doctors[nb 2]	11
Barbara Wright	Jacqueline Hill	1–2	An Unearthly Child	The Chase	16
Ian Chesterton	William Russell	1–2	An Unearthly Child	The Chase	16
Vicki	Maureen O'Brien	2–3	The Rescue	The Myth Makers	9
Steven Taylor	Peter Purves	2–3	The Chase	The Savages	10
Katarina	Adrienne Hill	3	The Myth Makers	The Daleks' Master Plan	2
Sara Kingdom[11][12][13][14][15][16][17][nb 3]	Jean Marsh	3	The Daleks' Master Plan	The Daleks' Master Plan	1
Dodo Chaplet	Jackie Lane	3	The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve	The War Machines	6
Polly	Anneke Wills	3–4	The War Machines	The Tenth Planet	3
Ben Jackson	Michael Craze	3–4	The War Machines	The Tenth Planet	3

1. ^ Susan travelled with the Doctor prior to the events of An Unearthly Child.
2. ^ Susan leaves the Doctor in The Dalek Invasion of Earth, later appearing in The Five Doctors as companion to the First Doctor (then played by Richard Hurndall).
3. ^ The inclusion of Sara Kingdom as a companion varies; e.g. she does not appear on BBC website list of companions.

Second Doctor

Companion	Actor/Actress	Seasons	First serial	Last serial	Appearances with the Second Doctor
Polly	Anneke Wills	4	The Power of the Daleks	The Faceless Ones	6
Ben Jackson	Michael Craze	4	The Power of the Daleks	The Faceless Ones	6
Jamie McCrimmon	Frazer Hines Hamish Wilson[nb 1]	4–6, 22	The Highlanders	The Two Doctors[nb 2][nb 3]	21 (20 as companion)
Victoria Waterfield	Deborah Watling	4–5	The Evil of the Daleks	Fury from the Deep	7[nb 4]
Zoe Heriot	Wendy Padbury	5–6	The Wheel in Space	The War Games[nb 3]	9 (8 as companion)
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart	Nicholas Courtney	1983 Special	The Five Doctors[nb 5]	The Five Doctors[nb 6]	3 (1 as companion)

1. ^ Jamie is played by Hamish Wilson in parts of The Mind Robber episodes 2 and 3, while Frazer Hines was suffering from chickenpox.
2. ^ Jamie returns to his own time in The War Games, but later appears in the Sixth Doctor-era story The Two Doctors, again as the Second Doctor's companion.
3. ^ ^{a b} Also makes a cameo appearance in The Five Doctors
4. ^ Not including The Wheel in Space, where Deborah Watling is credited for a brief reprisal from Fury from the Deep.
5. ^ First appears in The Web of Fear (as Colonel) and The Invasion alongside the Second Doctor, before appearing as a semi-regular character throughout the Third Doctor's era. He further appears in Robot and Terror of the Zygons alongside the Fourth Doctor, and Mawdryn Undead alongside the Fifth Doctor before serving as the Second Doctor's companion in The Five Doctors.
6. ^ The Brigadier later appears in Battlefield alongside the Seventh Doctor, and The Sarah Jane Adventures story Enemy of the Bane.

Third Doctor

Companion	Actress	Seasons	First serial	Last serial	Appearances with the Third Doctor
Liz Shaw	Caroline John	7	Spearhead from Space	Inferno[nb 1]	5 (4 as companion)
Jo Grant	Katy Manning	8–10	Terror of the Autons	The Green Death[nb 2]	15
Sarah Jane Smith	Elisabeth Sladen	11, 1983 Special	The Time Warrior	The Five Doctors[nb 3]	6

1. ^ Liz also makes a cameo appearance in The Five Doctors.
2. ^ Jo also appears in The Sarah Jane Adventures story Death of the Doctor, alongside Sarah Jane Smith and the Eleventh Doctor.
3. ^ Sarah continues to travel with the Doctor following his regeneration in Planet of the Spiders, and after her later departure from the series serves as the Third Doctor's companion once more in The Five Doctors.

Disputed

The following three characters, all associated with UNIT during the Third Doctor's exile to Earth, are sometimes considered his companions despite only appearing irregularly during his tenure.^[18][19]

Character	Actor	Seasons	First appearance	Last appearance	Appearances with the Third Doctor
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart	Nicholas Courtney	7–11	Spearhead from Space	Planet of the Spiders	16[nb 1]
Sergeant Benton	John Levene	7–11	The Ambassadors of Death[nb 2]	Planet of the Spiders[nb 3]	12
Mike Yates	Richard Franklin	8–11, 1983 Special	Terror of the Autons	The Five Doctors	10

1. ^ Not including The Five Doctors, where the Brigadier appears as the Second Doctor's companion.
2. ^ First appears (as Corporal) alongside the Second Doctor in The Invasion
3. ^ Subsequently appears with the Fourth Doctor in Robot, Terror of the Zygons and The Android Invasion as RSM Benton.

Fourth Doctor

Companion	Actor/Actress	Seasons	First serial	Last serial	Appearances with the Fourth Doctor
Sarah Jane Smith	Elisabeth Sladen	12–14	Robot	The Hand of Fear	13[nb 1]
Harry Sullivan	Ian Marter	12–13	Robot	Terror of the Zygons[nb 2]	7 (6 as companion)
Leela	Louise Jameson	14–15	The Face of Evil	The Invasion of Time	9
K-9 Mark I	John Leeson (voice)	15	The Invisible Enemy	The Invasion of Time[nb 3]	4[nb 4]
K-9 Mark II	John Leeson David Brierley (voices)	16, 18 17	The Ribos Operation The Creature from the Pit	Warriors' Gate[nb 5] The Horns of Nimon	10 3[nb 6]
Romana	Mary Tamm Lalla Ward	16 17–18, 1983 Special	The Ribos Operation Destiny of the Daleks	The Armageddon Factor The Five Doctors[nb 7]	6 12
Adric	Matthew Waterhouse	18	Full Circle	Logopolis	5
Nyssa	Sarah Sutton	18	The Keeper of Traken[20]	Logopolis	2
Tegan Jovanka	Janet Fielding	18	Logopolis	Logopolis	1

1. ^ Not including The Five Doctors, where Sarah Jane appears as the Third Doctor's companion.
2. ^ Harry also appears in The Android Invasion.
3. ^ This first incarnation of K-9 returns in the independent spin-off series K-9, regenerating into a newer form.
4. ^ Not including Image of the Fendahl, where the K-9 prop appears but has no lines.
5. ^ A further model of K-9, "Mark III", features in the pilot of K-9 and Company with Sarah Jane Smith, and Doctor Who episode "School Reunion" with the Tenth Doctor and Sarah Jane. Killed and replaced by K-9 Mark IV in the latter episode, he subsequently appears irregularly in The Sarah Jane Adventures, and also the Doctor Who episode "Journey's End".
6. ^ Not including Destiny of the Daleks, where the K-9 prop briefly appears and has no lines.
7. ^ Romana leaves the Doctor in Warriors' Gate, before appearing again as the Fourth Doctor's companion in The Five Doctors (played by Ward).

Fifth Doctor

Companion	Actor/Actress	Seasons	First serial	Last serial	Appearances with the Fifth Doctor
Adric	Matthew Waterhouse	19	Castrovalva	Earthshock[nb 1][nb 2]	8 (6 as companion)
Nyssa	Sarah Sutton	19–20	Castrovalva	Terminus[nb 2]	12 (11 as companion)
Tegan Jovanka	Janet Fielding	19–21	Castrovalva	Resurrection of the Daleks[nb 3][nb 2]	19 (18 as companion)
Vislor Turlough	Mark Strickson	20–21	Mawdryn Undead	Planet of Fire[nb 2]	11 (10 as companion)
Kamelion	Gerald Flood (voice)	20, 21	The King's Demons[nb 4]	Planet of Fire[nb 2]	3 (2 as companion)
Peri Brown	Nicola Bryant	21	Planet of Fire	The Caves of Androzani	2

1. ^ Adric also makes a cameo appearance in Time-Flight.
2. ^ ^{a b c d e} Also makes a cameo appearance in The Caves of Androzani
3. ^ Tegan is left behind by the Doctor at the conclusion of Time-Flight but returns in the next serial Arc of Infinity, set around a year later in her relative time.
4. ^ Without explanation, Kamelion is not featured in the five serials between his first and last stories (although he does appear in deleted scenes from The Awakening).

Sixth Doctor

Companion	Actress	Seasons	First serial	Last serial	Appearances with the Sixth Doctor
Peri Brown	Nicola Bryant	21–23	The Twin Dilemma	The Trial of a Time Lord: Mindwarp	9
Melanie Bush	Bonnie Langford	23	The Trial of a Time Lord: Terror of the Vervoids[nb 1]	The Trial of a Timelord: The Ultimate Foe	2

1. ^ The series never establishes how the Doctor meets Mel, who first appears as part of the Doctor's future. Their first meeting is recounted in the Past Doctor Adventures novel Business Unusual. Note that the four adventures broadcast under the single title The Trial of a Time Lord are in this table each counted as separate appearances.

Seventh Doctor

Companion	Actress	Seasons	First serial	Last serial	Appearances with the Seventh Doctor
Melanie Bush	Bonnie Langford	24	Time and the Rani	Dragonfire	4
Ace	Sophie Aldred	24–26	Dragonfire	Survival[nb 1]	9

1. ^ Ace's fate is unknown past Survival as she does not appear in the following story, the 1996 film.

Eighth Doctor

Companion	Actress	Story	Appearances with the Eighth Doctor
Grace Holloway	Daphne Ashbrook	Television movie	1

Ninth Doctor

Companion	Actor/Actress	Series	First episode	Last episode	Appearances with the Ninth Doctor
Rose Tyler	Billie Piper[nb 1]	1	"Rose"	"The Parting of the Ways"	13
Adam Mitchell[21]	Bruno Langley	1	"Dalek"	"The Long Game"	2
Jack Harkness[22]	John Barrowman	1	"The Empty Child"	"The Parting of the Ways"	5

1. ^ A younger version of Rose is played by Julia Joyce in "Father's Day".

Tenth Doctor

Companion	Actor/Actress	Series	First episode	Last episode	Appearances with the Tenth Doctor
Rose Tyler	Billie Piper	2005 Specials–2, 4	"Doctor Who: Children in Need"[nb 1]	"Journey's End"[23][nb 2]	22[nb 3] (18 as companion)
Mickey Smith	Noel Clarke[nb 4]	2, 4	"School Reunion"[24][nb 5]	"Journey's End"[25][nb 6]	10 (5 as companion)
Donna Noble	Catherine Tate	2006 Special, 4	"The Runaway Bride"[nb 7]	"Journey's End"[nb 8]	16 (14 as companion)
Martha Jones	Freema Agyeman	3, 4	"Smith and Jones"	"Journey's End"[26][nb 9]	19 (18 as companion)
Jack Harkness	John Barrowman	3, 4	"Utopia"	"Journey's End"[nb 10]	6 (5 as companion)
Astrid Peth[27][28][29]	Kylie Minogue	2007 Specials	"Voyage of the Damned"	"Voyage of the Damned"	1
Sarah Jane Smith[30]	Elisabeth Sladen	4	"The Stolen Earth"[nb 11]	"Journey's End"	4 (2 as companion)
Jackson Lake[31]	David Morrissey	2008–10 Specials	"The Next Doctor"	"The Next Doctor"	1
Rosita Farisi[32][33]	Velile Tshabalala	2008–10 Specials	"The Next Doctor"	"The Next Doctor"	1
Lady Christina de Souza[34]	Michelle Ryan	2008–10 Specials	"Planet of the Dead"	"Planet of the Dead"	1
Adelaide Brooke[35][36]	Lindsay Duncan	2008–10 Specials	"The Waters of Mars"	"The Waters of Mars"	1
Wilfred Mott[37]	Bernard Cribbins	2008–10 Specials	The End of Time[nb 12]	The End of Time	8 (1 as companion)

1. ^ Lead-in to "The Christmas Invasion"
2. ^ Rose departs in "Doomsday", and makes brief cameo appearances in "Partners in Crime", "The Poison Sky" and "Midnight" before returning as a companion in "Turn Left". She also appears in The End of Time.
3. ^ Including the 2005 Children in Need scene and the three cameo appearances in series 4.
4. ^ Casey Dyer had previously played a young Mickey in "Father's Day".
5. ^ Mickey is introduced in "Rose" as Rose's boyfriend and recurs regularly before becoming a companion.
6. ^ Mickey departs in "The Age of Steel" and re-appears in "Army of Ghosts" / "Doomsday" before returning as a companion in "Journey's End". He also appears in The End of Time.
7. ^ Introduced in "Doomsday" as "The Bride"
8. ^ After initially refusing to join the Doctor on his travels in "The Runaway Bride", Donna returns as a regular companion from "Partners in Crime". She also appears in The End of Time.
9. ^ Martha departs in "Last of the Time Lords", but returns from "The Sontaran Stratagem" to "The Doctor's Daughter" and again for "The Stolen Earth" / "Journey's End". She also appears in The End of Time.
10. ^ Jack rejoins the Doctor in "Utopia" before departing in "Last of the Time Lords", but returns again for "The Stolen Earth" / "Journey's End". He also appears in The End of Time.
11. ^ Also appears in "School Reunion" and The End of Time. Additionally, the Doctor appears alongside Sarah Jane in The Sarah Jane Adventures stories The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith and Death of the Doctor, in his Tenth and Eleventh incarnations respectively.
12. ^ Wilf is introduced in "Voyage of the Damned", and recurs throughout series 4 as Donna's grandfather.

Eleventh Doctor

Companion	Actor/Actress	Series	First episode	Last episode	Appearances with the Eleventh Doctor
Amy Pond	Karen Gillan[nb 1]	5–	"The Eleventh Hour"	N/A[nb 2]	28+[38] (26+ as companion)
Rory Williams	Arthur Darvill[nb 3]	5–[39][40]	"The Vampires of Venice"[nb 4]	N/A[nb 5][nb 2]	22+[41] (19+ as companion)
River Song[42]	Alex Kingston[nb 6]	6–	"The Impossible Astronaut"[nb 7]	N/A[nb 8]	10+ (5 as companion)
Craig Owens[43]	James Corden	6	"Closing Time"[nb 9]	"Closing Time"	2 (1 as companion)

1. ^ Caitlin Blackwood plays a young Amy (as Amelia) in "The Eleventh Hour", "The Big Bang", "Let's Kill Hitler" and "The God Complex".
2. ^ ^{a b} Amy and Rory are left by the Doctor in "The God Complex". Both appear briefly in the following episode "Closing Time" and return as companions in "The Wedding of River Song".
3. ^ A younger Rory is played by Ezekiel Wigglesworth in "Let's Kill Hitler".
4. ^ Also appears in "The Eleventh Hour"
5. ^ Rory is killed in "Cold Blood", but returns in "The Pandorica Opens" as an Auton duplicate before being restored to humanity and resuming his travels with the Doctor and Amy in "The Big Bang".
6. ^ Earlier regenerations of River (as Melody Pond) are played by Sydney Wade in "The Impossible Astronaut" / "Day of the Moon" and Nina Toussaint-White in "Let's Kill Hitler", with a younger version of the latter regeneration played by Maya Glace-Green in the same episode.
7. ^ River first appears alongside the Tenth Doctor in "Silence in the Library" / "Forest of the Dead", introduced as a companion from his relative future who calls the Doctor to her aid. Progressively younger versions of River subsequently summon the Eleventh Doctor in "The Time of Angels" / "Flesh and Stone" and "The Pandorica Opens" / "The Big Bang", before the future Doctor summons her to his death in "The Impossible Astronaut".
8. ^ River refuses the offer to travel in the TARDIS in "Day of the Moon", but has repeatedly referred to several occasions in the Doctor's future and her past where they have travelled together. She returns as a companion in "A Good Man Goes to War", "Let's Kill Hitler" and "The Wedding of River Song", at various times in her personal timeline, and also appears in "Closing Time".
9. ^ Craig first appears in "The Lodger", and acts as the Doctor's companion in the absence of Amy and Rory in "Closing Time".

Death of a companion

During the course of the show's history, there have been rare occasions when companions have died while on adventures with the Doctor.

• Two companions are killed in the The Daleks' Master Plan. Katarina, who had been introduced at the end of the preceding story, was deemed by the production team to be an unsuitable character as a long-term companion,^[44] and so Katarina is killed when she opens the airlock of a spaceship. Sara Kingdom, who takes over Katarina's companion role for the remainder of the story, is also killed when she undergoes extreme aging as a side-effect of the First Doctor's activation of a "Time Destructor" device.^[45]
• Adric dies at the end of Episode 4 of Earthshock in the explosion of a bomb-laden space freighter in Earth's atmosphere.
• Kamelion, an android companion, is destroyed by the Fifth Doctor in Episode 4 of Planet of Fire as an act of mercy after Kamelion is taken over by the Master.
• K-9 Mark III sacrifices himself in "School Reunion" in order to save the Doctor and his friends from a group of aliens. The subsequent K-9 Mark IV that the Doctor leaves with Sarah Jane tells her that the Mark III's files have been transferred to the new machine.
• Astrid Peth sacrifices herself in order to kill Max Capricorn by driving him into a reactor core at the end of "Voyage of the Damned". The Tenth Doctor partially resurrects her and sends her atoms flying into space.
• At the end of "The Waters of Mars", Adelaide Brooke kills herself to preserve a fixed point in time.
• In "The Wedding of River Song", the Doctor telephones Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart's nursing home to have him made ready to travel, and is informed of his peaceful death some months earlier (paralleling the real-world death of actor Nicholas Courtney).
• River Song sacrifices herself in Forest of the Dead to save the Doctor's life, but he is able to upload a digital copy of her consciousness to the data core.

Mitigated

• In The Trial of a Time Lord, Peri Brown is killed by King Yrcanos in Mindwarp, after her brain has been replaced by that of Kiv, a member of the Mentor race. However, in The Ultimate Foe it is revealed that Peri had not been killed and had instead become Yrcanos' consort.
• Grace Holloway is killed by the Master but revived by the TARDIS' link to the Eye of Harmony during the 1996 television movie.
• Jack Harkness is killed by Daleks but is brought back to life and given immortality by Rose Tyler in "The Parting of the Ways".
• The alternative timeline from "Turn Left" sees the off-screen deaths of Sarah Jane Smith and Martha Jones, but these events are undone by Donna Noble's own self-sacrifice at the episode's climax.
• Rory Williams is killed by the Eknodine in one of the dream worlds of "Amy's Choice". Realising it is her only chance of seeing Rory again, Amy Pond subsequently kills both herself and the Doctor in the same reality.
• Rory is also killed by the Silurian Restac at the conclusion of "Cold Blood", sacrificing himself to protect the Doctor. He is subsequently consumed by a crack in time, wiping him from existence. He reappears in "The Pandorica Opens" as an Auton duplicate, created from Amy Pond's memories, and is restored to his old life along with the rest of the universe in "The Big Bang".
• Amy Pond is killed by the Auton Rory in "The Pandorica Opens", but is restored by the Pandorica in "The Big Bang".
• Near the end of "The Girl Who Waited" an older Amy Pond, who existed in an alternative time line to Rory and the Doctor, sacrificed herself so her younger counterpart could regain the time with Rory she lost.

See also

BBC portal

• List of Doctor Who supporting characters
• List of companions in Doctor Who spin-offs

References

1. ^ The Handbook: Fourth Doctor p?
2. ^ ^{a b c} Brook, Stephen (23 January 2009). "Michelle Ryan guest stars in Doctor Who. But would she make a good companion?". The Guardian (UK). http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/organgrinder/2009/jan/23/doctorwho-bbc. Retrieved 1 June 2010. "A minor factor in the continual swirl around Doctor Who is that what constitutes a Doctor Who companion is no longer clear. Sure, Rose, Martha and Donna were all companions. So was Captain Jack. But what about Mickey and Jackie? How do you qualify? Name in the opening credits, regular trips in the Tardis? The doctor kisses you? I'm no longer sure. Modern TV drama is so difficult." 
3. ^ Adam Sherwin (5 July 2006). "Sidekick whose time has come". The Times (UK). http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,23569-2256654.html. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
4. ^ Richard Simpson (5 July 2006). "Doctor Who gets first black assistant". Daily Mail (UK). http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/showbiz/showbiznews.html?in_article_id=394073&in_page_id=1773. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
5. ^ Dicks, Terrance and Hulke Malcom, The Making of Doctor Who Target 0426116151
6. ^ "BBC Doctor Who Series 4 Characters". http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/characters. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
7. ^ Commentary on DVD of Castrovalva
8. ^ "Partners in Crime"
9. ^ "Flesh and Stone"
10. ^ Sarah Jane Smith has appeared in "School Reunion", "The Stolen Earth", "Journey's End", and "The End of Time". K-9 has appeared in "School Reunion" and "Journey's End".
11. ^ Robinson, Nigel; Nathan-Turner, John (1981). The Doctor Who Quiz Book. Target Books. pp. 39 and 98. ISBN 0426-20143-4. 
12. ^ Lofficier, Jean-Marc (1994). The Doctor Who Programme Guide Third Edition. Virgin Publishing Ltd. pp. 16, 43 and 45. ISBN 0-426-20342-9. 
13. ^ Howe, David J.; Stammers, Mark and Walker, Stephen James (1994). Doctor Who The Handbook – The First Doctor. Virgin Publishing Ltd. p. 297. ISBN 0-426-20430-1. 
14. ^ Richards, Justin; Martin, Andrew (1997). Doctor Who The Book of Lists. BBC Books. pp. 13 and 218. ISBN 0-563-40569-4. 
15. ^ Pixley, Andrew (16 December). Doctor Who Magazine. p. 21 
16. ^ Campbell, Mark; Duncan, Paul (2000). The Pocket Essential Doctor Who. Pocket Essentials. pp. 20–21. ISBN 1-903047-19-6. 
17. ^ Cornell, Paul; M.Day, K. Topping, D. J. Howe and S. J. Walker (1995, 1998 and 2003). "The Daleks' Master Plan". Doctor Who: Classic Series Episode Guide. BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/daleksmasterplan/detail.shtml. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
18. ^ Haining, Peter (1983). Doctor Who: A Celebration – Two Decades Through Time And Space. Virgin Publishing Ltd. pp. 85. ISBN 0-86369-932-4. 
19. ^ "Companions". Doctor Who: Classic Series Episode Guide. BBC. 2007. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/companions/. Retrieved 14 September 2007. 
20. ^ "Doctor Who – Classic Series – Companions – Nyssa". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/companions/page25.shtml. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
21. ^ "Press Office – Doctor Who press pack phase six Episode Seven". BBC. 4 May 2005. http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2005/05_may/04/who_episode.shtml. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
22. ^ "Doctor Who – Captain Jack Harkness – Character Guide". BBC. 28 March 2008. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/characters/jack. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
23. ^ "Doctor Who – Rose Tyler – Character Guide". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/characters/rose. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
24. ^ "Doctor Who – News – Noel natters to DWM". BBC. 21 February 2006. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/news/cult/news/drwho/2006/02/21/29729.shtml. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
25. ^ "Doctor Who – Mickey Smith – Character Guide". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/characters/mickey. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
26. ^ "Doctor Who – Martha Jones – Character Guide". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/characters/martha. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
27. ^ "Companion Piece". BBC News. 14 August 2007. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/news/cult/news/drwho/2007/08/14/47874.shtml. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
28. ^ "Who Should Be So Lucky?". 19 December 2007. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/news/cult/news/drwho/2007/12/19/51611.shtml. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
29. ^ "Confidential at Christmas". Doctor Who Confidential. 25 December 2007. No. 1, season 4.
30. ^ "Doctor Who – Sarah Jane Smith – Character Guide". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/characters/sarahjane. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
31. ^ http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2009/07/whos-your-favorite-doctor-who-companion/
32. ^ "[Untitled]". Executive Producer Mark Cossey, Executive Producers For Doctor Who Russell T Davies, Julie Gardner, Producer Zoë Rushton, Series Producer Gillane Seaborne. Doctor Who Confidential. BBC. BBC Three, Cardiff. 25 December 2008. No. 14, series 4.
33. ^ Collins, Robert (16 December 2008). "Doctor Who: Velile Tshabalala". The Daily Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/3796265/Doctor-Who-Velile-Tshabalala.html. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
34. ^ Cook, Benjamin (9 January 2008 (cover date)). "Sands of time". Radio Times (11–17 April 2009): pp. 16–20 
35. ^ Friday, 30 October 2009, 12:28 GMT (30 October 2009). "TV – Tube Talk – Ten 'Waters of Mars' teasers". Digital Spy. http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/s7/doctor-who/tubetalk/a184457/ten-waters-of-mars-teasers.html. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
36. ^ "Lindsay Duncan to star in second Doctor Who Special of 2009". BBC. 19 February 2009. http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2009/02_february/19/who.shtml. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
37. ^ Davies, Russell T (7 April 2009). Dr Who's Easter special. BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7987179.stm. Retrieved 7 April 2009 
38. ^ http://www.doctorwhonews.net/2011/07/dwn240711212412-karen-gillan-stays-with.html
39. ^ Harrison, Mark (31 May 2010). "For Doctor Who: Cold Blood Viewers Only". Den of Geek. http://www.denofgeek.com/television/496221/for_doctor_who_cold_blood_viewers_only.html. Retrieved 1 June 2010. 
40. ^ Tribe, Steve (2010). Doctor Who: The TARDIS Handbook. London: BBC Books. p. 124. ISBN 978-1-846-07986-3. 
41. ^ "Doctor Who stars returning for a seventh series". Digitalspy. 15 August 2011. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/s7/doctor-who/news/a335136/doctor-who-stars-returning-for-seventh-series.html. Retrieved 27 August 2011. 
42. ^ Doctor Who: Best of the Companions (Television production). BBC America. 28 August 2011. 
43. ^ "Open All Hours". Gareth Roberts. Doctor Who Confidential. BBC. 24 September 2011. No. 12, series 6. 4:52 minutes in. "The Doctor allows Craig to come along and play the part of his companion [...]"
44. ^ "A Brief History Of Time (Travel): The Daleks' Master Plan". http://www.shannonsullivan.com/drwho/serials/v.html. 
45. ^ Doctor Who: Companions, 1995

Bibliography

• David J. Howe, Mark Stammers Doctor Who: Companions 1995 Virgin Publishing 1852275820

External links

• Guide to classic series companions on the BBC's Doctor Who site