From A to 7Q - Companions

The role of the companion is a vital one. These characters are present either to attract viewers - as in the kilted Jamie or leather-clad Leela - or to provide a viewpoint with which the viewers can relate. In the original TARDIS crew, Ian and Barbara represented the average adult viewer by posing questions to the Doctor and needing to have things explained to them. Teenagers, meanwhile, related to Susan.

Over the years, things changed little. The need for companions that viewers could identify with diminished, but the need for characters that demanded explanations did not. Thus, companions became both a ready reason for describing the plot and, sometimes, a way to establish a secondary plotline.

It has been stated that there are three requirements for being a companion - one must be able to scream well, run down endless corridors, and convincingly ask "What is it, Doctor?" Although there have been several exceptions to the screaming rule, the other two generally hold true. Another, usually unspoken, rule seems to be that a companion must have a penchant for getting into trouble, therefore furthering the plot.

Despite the similarities, no two companions are exactly alike. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses. Some are traditional screamers, others are unconventional mold-breakers. Some are sweet and inoffensive, others are brash or vicious. Why, even a few are male! Browse through the list of the Doctor's fellow travellers, and discover just what it is that makes the role of the companion so vital and irresistible.

Susan
Carole Ann Ford

Ian Chesterton
William Russell

Barbara Wright
Jacqueline Hill

Vicki
Maureen O'Brien

Steven Taylor
Peter Purves

Katarina
Adrienne Hill

Sara Kingdom
Jean Marsh

Dorothea "Dodo" Chaplet
Jackie Lane

Ben Jackson
Michael Craze

Polly Wright
Anneke Wills

James Robert "Jamie" McCrimmon
Frazer Hines

Victoria Waterfield
Deborah Watling