10 Doctor Who Characters Who Nearly Got Their Own Spin Off

3. K-9

Elisabeth Sladen finally received the recognition she deserved when The Sarah Jane Adventures debuted to critical acclaim in 2007 but it wasn't the BBC's first attempt to launch the popular character in her very own fully fledged spin off. After leaving the TARDIS behind her at the end of the 1976 Fourth Doctor serial The Hand of Fear, the investigative journalist was due to appear alongside her beloved robot mutt in K-9 & Company which ultimately never got any further than its proposed pilot. The one off episode, A Girl's Best Friend, was broadcast in 1981 as a Christmas special but the subsequent adventures were scrapped before they even saw the light of day. It wasn't the end for Sarah Jane, of course, and it wasn't K-9's final attempt to make a name for himself away from the Whoniverse, either. He starred in an Australian series, aptly titled K-9, in 2010 and, although he was still voiced by John Leeson, that's as far as the comparisons go. In their defence, though, it wasn't a direct BBC production, so they were pretty limited in terms of how heavily they could reference the main show. More's the pity, really.