10 Times Doctor Who Actors Took On Another Cult Franchise

8. Eve Myles In Merlin

Eve Myles is known and loved for her portrayal of Gwen Cooper in Torchwood but her Doctor Who journey actually began a year before the spin off's inception when she appeared as the psychic maid Gwyneth alongside Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper in Series 1's Dickensian tale The Unquiet Dead. This was the first time Eve lit up BBC One on a Saturday night but it wasn't going to be the last, much like her co-star John Barrowman (although Eve didn't return to our screens as the host of her own entertainment show in which she vowed to make viewers' dreams come true - 'entertainment' being the operative word there). In fact, in 2008 she popped up in another BBC cult teatime drama, Merlin, as Lady Helen of Mora, a famous singer who was on her way to Camelot to perform at King Uther's festival before she was possessed and ultimately killed by one of the show's antagonists. Awkward. Eve only appeared in one episode of this particular cult franchise but that never hurt her before. Something tells us she won't be able to return to the Merlin universe, though, seeing as her character is dead and all. The show has also been axed indefinitely which makes the chances of Lady Helen getting her own spin off even more unlikely. Still, stranger things have happened. Eve is keeping herself busy though, in Series 2 of Broadchurch (Mondays at 9pm on ITV) in which her character, Claire, is confusing and enthralling us in equal measure. Coincidentally, she stars in that alongside David Tennant who has also taken on a fair share of cult franchises in his time. Speaking of which...