It isn't Freema's fault, OK? In her defence, she didn't really stand a chance when she was enlisted to step aboard the TARDIS as Rose's otherwise respectable replacement. Her subsequent short-lived jaunt as the Time Lord's amicable associate was made even more turbulent by the fact she spent most of it trying to escape the shadow of her persistent predecessor. Nobody could really blame her when she decided to call it a day after just one series, but at least Freema was leaving as an honorary household name with an abundance of reputable roles ready for her choosing. Right? Wrong. Unfortunately, there hasn't really been much of Freema to go around since she turned down the opportunity to become a fully fledged member of Torchwood to star in ITV's reboot of Law & Order instead. It hasn't helped that two of her projects, Survivors and The Carrie Diaries, were axed due to low ratings. Since she hasn't been given many opportunities to break the Martha mould, she'll always be that unlucky in love medical student to us. Which makes the task of watching her character's shenanigans in Netflix's new original series Sense8 even more soul destroying. Seriously. There aren't enough retcon pills in the world. What did you think of this list? Are there any other actors who will never escape their Doctor Who roles? Let us know in the comments section below!
Dan Butler is the Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture.com. When he isn't writing his own articles or editing other people's, he can be found trawling the internet for gifs of Steven Moffat laughing. Contact him via dan.butler@whatculture.co.uk.
