# From the CHARACTER'S point of view: which companion travelled with the Doctor for the longest time? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 20, 2014, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190 "2014-11-20T19:41:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2014, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/41 "2014-11-22T20:29:57Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > River is the HOTTEST companion These words do not make sense in the way in which they are arranged. You mean ol’ horse-face? ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2014, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/42 "2014-11-23T02:35:02Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > These words do not make sense in the way in which they are arranged. You mean ol’ horse-face? I believe that title would better fit Donna. River’s hotness is the one thing I like about the character post-Davies. She was also the hottest on _ER_. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2014, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/43 "2014-11-23T04:24:20Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > **Jamie McCrimmon** joined the Doctor a few days after the beginning of his second regeneration and traveled with him non-stop until the Time Lords finally caught up with them both and forced the Doctor into his third regeneration. > > So Jamie’s time in the Tardis is equivalent to the duration of the doctor’s second regeneration, whatever that is. Years at least, maybe decades. Which makes sense. Jamie was the closest friend the Doctor ever had. Since Jamie doesn’t age noticeably in the series, it would seem that would be about 3 years, same as for the audience. If you believe the fan [season 6b theory](http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/season6b.shtml), Jamie was returned to the TARDIS for another 20 years of travel. Romana, however, could have travelled with the Doctor for decades, without ageing noticeably. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2014, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/44 "2014-11-23T05:37:15Z")
:considers defending Billie Pipers’ hotness: :remembers that Skald also considers Michelle Trachtenberg unattractive: :no possible convergence of views possible: :also, Martha, obviously: ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2014, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/45 "2014-11-23T05:42:48Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > So you’re all just ignoring plastic Rory. That’s fine. He’s used to it. He’ll just be standing here, edited out of the universe, don’t mind him. The [del]Iron[/del] Plastic Woobie. > [@Miller](#): > > Sure you have. He showed up twice during Matt Smith’s run. Three times. We get an archive flash in the, “Basically, run,” scene. We see that the Doctor’s library card still looks like Wm Hartnell in a later ep. And a whole bunch of Doctors sort of pop up on video screens and as computer sculptures in the big anniversary special with Wm Hurt and Tennant. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2014, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/46 "2014-11-23T05:48:57Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Idris was with him from the beginning. I think Idris was the woman who got the TARDIS’s consciousness downloaded in, not the TARDIS itself? > [@GuanoLad](#): > > Russell T Davies has a strange fixation on the surname Jones. Well, he’s Welsh, you see, so it’s not strange. Much of Wales is named Jones anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2014, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/47 "2014-11-23T14:36:17Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > [QUOTE=JohnT] > These words do not make sense in the way in which they are arranged. You mean ol’ horse-face? I believe that title would better fit Donna. River’s hotness is the one thing I like about the character post-Davies. She was also the hottest on _ER_. [/QUOTE] Hey everyone, there’s a couple of guys here who want you to know that there are women on TV that don’t make their dicks hard. Just so you know. We’d better pay attention, it might be relevant to the conversation. :rolleyes: If we’re counting actual logged TARDIS time, the answer is probably Jamie, or possibly Sarah Jane. Of course, we don’t know how long Ace traveled with the Doctor before going back home. If the extended universe is any indication, quite a while. New series, Amy and Rory have to be the longest (if we count each Clara as an individual companion). ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2014, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/48 "2014-11-23T15:29:20Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > :considers defending Billie Pipers’ hotness: :remembers that Skald also considers Michelle Trachtenberg unattractive: :no possible convergence of views possible: :also, Martha, obviously: This needs to be posted in every Skald thread that devolves into a discussion of hotness. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2014, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/49 "2014-11-23T17:43:31Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > :considers defending Billie Pipers’ hotness: :remembers that Skald also considers Michelle Trachtenberg unattractive: :no possible convergence of views possible: :also, Martha, obviously: I have nothing against Billie Piper’s hotness. I just have an irrational hatred of Rose. Probably the eyeliner. As for Michelle Trachtenberg, she’s not ugly; she just looked 12 years old when last I saw her, on that nurse show. I think Catherine Tate was chosen because she isn’t pretty, though playing Smart!Donna she was certainly hot. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/50 "2014-11-24T00:22:02Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > Well, he’s Welsh, you see, so it’s not strange. Much of Wales is named Jones anyway. Yes, that was going to be my point, until they informed me Jo was named by somebody else. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/51 "2014-11-24T19:19:46Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I have nothing against Billie Piper’s hotness. I just have an irrational hatred of Rose. Probably the eyeliner. As for Michelle Trachtenberg, she’s not ugly; she just looked 12 years old when last I saw her, on that nurse show. > > I think Catherine Tate was chosen because she isn’t pretty, though playing Smart!Donna she was certainly hot. The thing I always liked about Rose, Donna, and Martha is that they’re all pretty, but they’re pretty in the sense of “that hot girl over in accounting”. BBC level hotness. Amy and Clara are Hollywood level hot, which is ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/52 "2014-11-24T19:25:10Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > The thing I always liked about Rose, Donna, and Martha is that they’re all pretty, but they’re pretty in the sense of “that hot girl over in accounting”. BBC level hotness. Amy and Clara are Hollywood level hot, which is ridiculous. Martha, I would say, is on the same level of beauty as Amy & Clara. Donna isn’t at all pretty, but she is quite hot once they let her be smart (read: once her character developed into a smart person). ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/53 "2014-11-24T19:38:21Z")
In the interest of gender equality, I’d like to note that the only doable Doctors are Ten and Eight, and both of them are debatable. It depends on your tolerance for hyperactive stick men, or men who look a bit like Guy Smiley in a wig. Tom Baker, of course, actively frightens my vagina. You know, since every conversation about the companions devolves into which one we all want to bend over the console the most, it seems fair. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/54 "2014-11-24T19:53:38Z")
> [@Small\_Hen](#): > > In the interest of gender equality, I’d like to note that the only doable Doctors are Ten and Eight, and both of them are debatable. The Fifth Doctor isn’t included? I always understood that Peter Davison as a young man was considered more-or-less “cute.” ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/55 "2014-11-24T20:42:07Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > The Fifth Doctor isn’t included? I always understood that Peter Davison as a young man was considered more-or-less “cute.” Yeah, he’s okay. A little beige. Clearly balding. ---
**Author:** ![CaptMurdock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/captmurdock/32/11736_2.png) [@CaptMurdock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptMurdock)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/56 "2014-11-24T21:56:54Z")
Conjecture warning… Given that Romana, companion to the Fourth Doctor, was like him a Time Lord and therefore aged as slowly as he did, she could have spent a century with him. And probably did. The 4th on several occasions gave his age as being in the mid-seven-hundreds. However, by “Time and The Rani” (the first episode of the Seventh) he states his age as 953. (Yes, I know this is contradicted by the new series, particularly the Tenth stating he was 904 years old in “Day of the Doctor.” I think, post-Gallifrey/Time War, he began to lose track of how old he was.) Also, between “Time-Flight” and “Arc of Infinity” Nyssa travelled alone with the Fifth Doctor, before picking Tegan up again. I don’t know what kind of lifespan Trakenites have, but it’s conceivable that Nyssa could have spent 20-30 and not aged appreciably. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/57 "2014-11-24T22:21:58Z")
> [@CaptMurdock](#): > > Conjecture warning… > > Given that Romana, companion to the Fourth Doctor, was like him a Time Lord and therefore aged as slowly as he did, she could have spent a century with him. And probably did. The 4th on several occasions gave his age as being in the mid-seven-hundreds. However, by “Time and The Rani” (the first episode of the Seventh) he states his age as 953… > > …Also, between “Time-Flight” and “Arc of Infinity” Nyssa travelled alone with the Fifth Doctor, before picking Tegan up again. I don’t know what kind of lifespan Trakenites have, but it’s conceivable that Nyssa could have spent 20-30 and not aged appreciably. Good point. The same could be said of Turlough post Resurrection of the Daleks, pre Planet of Fire. I don’t recall Trion lifespan getting a mention, though it’s been a few years since I’ve watched that era. ---
**Author:** ![Swamp\_Adder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@Swamp\_Adder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swamp_Adder)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/58 "2014-11-25T15:15:17Z")
> [@CaptMurdock](#): > > Conjecture warning… > > Given that Romana, companion to the Fourth Doctor, was like him a Time Lord and therefore aged as slowly as he did, she could have spent a century with him. And probably did. The 4th on several occasions gave his age as being in the mid-seven-hundreds. However, by “Time and The Rani” (the first episode of the Seventh) he states his age as 953. I wrote a long post talking about this, but you beat me to it. I also wanted to point out that Jamie didn’t actually spend as much time in the TARDIS as you might think. In the First and Second Doctor eras every serial pretty much ran directly into the next, with no gaps – meaning we see basically every day Jamie spends in the TARDIS on screen, and it really doesn’t add up to more than a few weeks. They were just very action-packed weeks! And yes, that means the Doctor’s second incarnation didn’t live very long at all. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/59 "2014-11-25T15:28:09Z")
That isn’t necessarily true. \*Some \*of the adventure ran directly from one to the next. Others there was a definite gap between stories, where you could have months or years and any number of unscreened adventures. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2014, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190/60 "2014-11-26T01:58:01Z")
> [@Suburban\_Plankton](#): > > He was never technically a ‘Companion’, but I don’t think we can let this thread go without at least mentioning Brigadier Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart. He first appeared with the Second Doctor (when he was himself only a mere Lieutenant Colonel), then they they had doings off and on through to the run of the Seventh Doctor, 21 years later. Since the Brigadier, to the best of my recollection, never left Earth, we can consider his tenure to be in ‘real time’. > [@Bricker](#): > > And he even steps in after death. > > But he’s not a companion, in the sense that Rose, Martha, Donna, etc. were. The Brigadier has always been an anomaly. As **Bricker** points out, he’d never travelled with the Doctor - I don’t even know if he’d ever even been inside the TARDIS. So he’s certainly not a companion in the classic sense. OTOH, he saw more of the Doctor’s faces than any one else. He was the longest-running, most consistent presence in the Doctor’s life. Going meta, Nicholas Courtney has to have been the actor with the longest association with the show; his only possible rival being Elizabeth Sladen. > [@Small\_Hen](#): > > In the interest of gender equality, I’d like to note that the only doable Doctors are Ten and Eight, and both of them are debatable. It depends on your tolerance for hyperactive stick men, or men who look a bit like Guy Smiley in a wig. Tom Baker, of course, actively frightens my vagina. > > You know, since every conversation about the companions devolves into which one we all want to bend over the console the most, it seems fair. Really? Most of the female Who fans I know consider Nine to be the most beddable. Different strokes, I guess. So to speak. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/from-the-characters-point-of-view-which-companion-travelled-with-the-doctor-for-the-longest-time/705190.md?page=4)