Doctor Who: 10 Most Traumatic Companion Departures

9. Sarah Jane Smith (The Hand Of Fear)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRzNUNESH04 Sarah Jane Smith is one of the iconic companions of Doctor Who. In fact, she's possibly the most iconic of the classic era. An extremely popular character, she appeared alongside both the third and fourth Doctors and returned several times in varying capacities. She first appeared in the attempted spinoff K-9 and Company, and later in the Sarah Jane Adventures. She also appeared in The Five Doctors and Dimensions in Time and of course, School Reunion. But her original departure had a lingering surprise. You see, the Doctor left her behind because he couldn't take her with him to Gallifrey. She was last seen in The Hand of Fear, but once the Gallifrey story was over the Doctor didn't go back. This point was raised in School Reunion €“ the fact that she just seemed to be so carelessly dumped by the Doctor rankled with her greatly. The point was that if the Doctor could just dump Sarah Jane Smith, then who wouldn't he just ditch in an instant.