'Doctor Who': 10 Best Relatives Of Companions

Russel T. Davies second tenure at the helm of Doctor Who has officially begun. With the three 60th anniversary specials starring David Tennant and Catherine Tate, and more recently, a Christmas special officially introducing Ncuti Gatwa as The Fifteenth Doctor, it's already been a wild ride. With a new Who era comes new characters to fall in love with, both leads and supporting players. Fans loved getting to know Rose Noble, the teenage daughter of former companion Donna Noble, while Carla and Cherry Sunday, the adoptive Mother and Grandmother of The Fifteenth Doctor's new companion Ruby Sunday, are already becoming fan favourites.

In the classic era of Doctor Who, the family and friends of The Doctor's travelling companions were not really a part of the show. They were occasionally mentioned in passing, but almost never physically appeared. This changed with the beginning of the revival series, or NuWho era, in 2005. More often than not, the companions of NuWho Doctors have families waiting for them at home. These family members usually become recurring characters on the show for the duration of that companion's travels with The Doctor, and even become directly involved in an adventure or two. A few have even attained fan-favorite status.

Let's take a look at some of the best, and most memorable, family members of Doctor Who companions.

1. Wilfred Mott

Donna Noble's Grandfather Wilfred Mott, played by the late, great, Bernard Cribbins, is now so deeply loved among Whovians that it is hard to believe that he almost never became a regular part of the show. His role was initially to be filled by Donna's Father, Geoff Noble, but when Howard Attfield, the actor who had played Geoff in 'The Runaway Bride', passed away before series four began filming, Cribbins' surprisingly popular minor guest character from the most recent Christmas Special, 'Voyage of the Damned', was retconned as being Donna's Grandfather, and officially named Wilfred Mott.

The quick thinking paid off. Wilf was an immediately loveable character, sympathetic and supportive of Donna and her dream to reunite with The Doctor. During his time as a Doctor Who supporting player, Wilf made a valiant attempt at blinding a Dalek, and even, briefly, became a companion himself, accompanying the Tenth Doctor on his final adventure.

Wilfred Mott was a rare Doctor Who character who was near universally loved. Many Whovians shed a tear when his final scene, filmed shortly before Cribbins' death at age 93, aired at the end of the second 60th Anniversary special, 'Wild Blue Yonder'.

2. River Song

When the character of River Song was introduced in the series four two-parter 'Silence In The Library'/'Forest of The Dead', she was an instant mystery. Just who was this woman who knew The Doctor's future, and even his real name? As River began appearing regularly from the beginning of The Eleventh Doctor's run, her out-of-order relationship with him growing closer and more intimate than we had come to expect, the mystery of River's identity was one fans were increasingly eager to solve. Was she The Rani? The Master? A future Doctor? His wife?

Eventually, River Song was revealed to be Melody Pond, the grown baby daughter of The Doctor's companions Amy and Rory. She was kidnapped and raised to become The Doctor's assassin, a plan that failed when she fell for, and ultimately married her target.

While The Doctor often becomes fond of his companion's families, his marriage to River makes him officially part of the Pond family, even if only for a tragically short while.

3. Jackie Tyler

Rose Tyler, the first companion of the NuWho era, was also the first to have people waiting for her at home. The most notable of these was her sometimes overbearing but deeply devoted Mother, Jackie. Jackie's relationship with The Doctor is initially a fraught one, due to his mistake in timing leaving her to believe Rose had been missing for a year, and then believing that Rose's adventuring with The Doctor put her in danger.

With time, and one or two adventures of her own, Jackie's stance on The Doctor softens, as she comes to realize that when trouble is afoot, by The Doctor's side may actually be the safest place to be. By the end of her time on the series, she and The Doctor have developed a quiet fondness for one-another.

Jackie Tyler has now become a regular presence in Big Finish audio dramas, often an accidental hero.

4. Luke Smith

While Luke Smith most prominently appeared in Doctor Who spin-off The Sarah Jane adventures rather than the parent show, he still counts as a Companion's relative. Making his debut in the first episode of the spin-off as The Archetype, a genetic experience of alien invaders The Bane, Luke is adopted by Sarah Jane at the conclusion of the episode. Luke and his new friends Clyde, Maria, and later Rani, join Sarah Jane on her adventures defending Earth from alien threats. While Luke's enhanced intelligence aids the group, he struggles in social situations.

Luke meets The Tenth Doctor in person twice, first in the SJA episode 'The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith', in which The Doctor helps rescue Sarah from The Trickster, and again in Doctor Who special 'The End of Time' part two, in which the soon-to-regenerate Doctor saves Luke from being struck by a car. He also encounters The Eleventh Doctor in the SJA episode 'Death of The Doctor'.

Many retrospective reviews of The Sarah Jane Adventures interpret Luke's social difficulties as low-spectrum neurodivergence. The series has subsequently been praised for its positive portrayal of such a character, particularly in the way Luke is embraced by his friends despite his differences.

5. Brian Williams

While The Eleventh Doctor's original companions, Amy Pond and Rory Williams, do make occasional trips home between adventures, these periods are not given much screentime in series five or six, so it is not until quite late in their run that we truly meet any of their family. Rory's Father, Brian Williams, is introduced in the episode 'Dinosaurs on a Spaceship', with the Tardis materialising around him accidentally when The Doctor decides to save time when picking Amy and Rory up for a trip.

Brian, surprisingly accepting when he learns the truth behind Amy and Rory's frequent 'holidays', proves an asset during the adventure, first helping the group tame Tricey the triceratops with his golf balls, and then when his shared gene-chain with Rory allows the two of them to pilot Solomon's ark to safety. He shares at least one offscreen journey of his own with The Doctor, transporting the ark's dinosaur residents to Siluria. In 'The Power of Three', Brian earns The Doctor's praise for maintaining his vigil over the cubes long after everyone else had given up.

Despite appearing in only two episodes, Brian quickly became a fan favourite. According to some expanded universe content, Brian continues to diligently maintain Amy and Rory's house, in the small hope they may one day return.

6. Sylvia Noble

In her early appearances, Sylvia Noble is not necesarily an easy character to like. She looks down upon many of the decisions made by her daughter, Donna, and dismisses Donna's desires to meet The Doctor again. She also often appears exasperated with her Father, Wilf. Despite her faults, Sylvia truly loves Donna, as evidenced by her response to The Doctor's explanation that Donna had briefly been the most important woman in the universe.

"She still is. She's my daughter."

To which The Doctor replies that she should actually tell Donna this once in a while. This is where the most special, memorable part of Sylvia's character emerges. She takes The Doctor's words to heart. When the Noble Family is revisited in Doctor Who's 60th anniversary specials, Sylvia's relationship with Donna is much improved. Though they still bicker like any Mother and Daughter, there is a greater warmth behind Sylvia's interactions with her daughter and granddaughter, Rose, and with this warmth, Sylvia becomes a more pleasant person to be around.

Just like Donna, Sylvia's life was changed for the better by her The Doctor's presence.

7. Pete Tyler

When The Ninth Doctor reluctantly takes Rose Tyler back in time to meet her Father, Pete, who died when she was a baby, she is somewhat confused and a little disappointed by the man she finds. It seems that Jackie had spoken of Pete, and their relationship, through rose-coloured glasses. Still, Rose is unable to stop herself from preventing Pete's death, causing a timeloop that can only be ended by the restoration of the correct order of events. Pete ultimately sacrifices himself to save the world for Rose, in the most memorable and heartbreaking moment in early NuWho.

An alternate Pete Tyler exists in Pete's World, a parallell world visited by Ten and Rose where Pete survived and one of his get-rich-quick schemes paid off, but Rose was never born. This Pete is initially resistant to Rose's attempts to connect with him, but eventually becomes a hero in 'Doomsday' when he makes a heroic move to pull Rose into Pete's World rather than let her fall into the void.

Pete Tyler is the only Doctor Who character to have a whole parallell world named after him, just one of many reasons he deserves to be remembered.

8. Umbreen

When Yasmin Khan's Grandmother, Umbreen, gifts her a mysterious watch and claims to have been the first woman married in Pakistan, Yaz convinces a slightly reluctant Thirteenth Doctor to take her back into Umbreen's past to investigate. They discover the Muslim Umbreen about to marry a Hindu man, Prem.. who is definitely not Yaz's Grandfather. The plot thickens when the Fam discover they have arrived on the day of Partition, when India was divided into India and Pakistan as a way to divide Muslims from Hindus.

Despite the extra difficulties the Partition will cause for her Inter-Faith union, Umbreen is determined to forge ahead with her marriage to Prem, with The Doctor stepping in to officiate the marriage. Tragically, The Doctor learns that Prem is destined to die at the hands of pro-partition militants, and in order to preserve Yaz's future existence, cannot intervene.

Umbreen's story, set during a historical tragedy very rarely depicted onscreen, makes her a highly memorable character despite only appearing in a single episode.

9. Rose Noble

Introduced in the first 60th anniversary special, 'The Star Beast', Rose Noble is the teenage daughter of former companion Donna Noble and her Husband, Shaun Temple. Rose inadvertently aids The Doctor back into Donna's orbit when she befriends an alien creature known as The Meep and vows to help protect it from the pursuing Wrarth Warriors. Unfortunately, The Meep turns out to be the true villain.

Rose proves vital in the resolution of the episode, when her genetic connection to Donna and non-binary gender identification allow her to inherit a partion of the Metacrisis, slowing it's deterioration of her Mother's brain. It is also Rose who realises that she and Donna can simply choose to let go of the Metacrisis energy.

Doctor Who has been praised for it's positive portrayal of Rose as a Trans/non-binary youth, and her supportive interactions with her family. Eagle-eyed fans have briefly spotted Rose in the trailer for the upcoming new season, and can't wait to see where the character goes next.

10. Clara's Gran

Despite her Mother's death forming an important part of Clara's backstory, it is sometime before we officially meet any of her family in the present day. The 2013 Christmas special, 'Time of The Doctor', finally introduces her Father, Dave, Stepmother Linda, and unnamed Grandmother. Clara's Gran plays the most pivotal role in the episode, telling a sweet story of how se met Clara's Grandfather to lift Clara's spirits after the aging Eleventh Doctor sent her home a second time.. although apparently not the story Dave had originally encouraged her to tell.

Many fan theories emerged around the identity of Clara's Gran, mostly because she had gone unnamed, and told the 'wrong' story to Clara. In the end, she never turned out to be anyone special. However, she is still the most memorable of Clara's relatives, and also the only one to get a second appearance, comforting Clara after the death of Danny Pink.