Doctor Who: 10 Worst Things That Have Happened To The Doctor At Christmas

The Doctor loses companions, friends, and acquaintances in almost every episode, and Christmas is no different. The Doctor is a beacon of hope, yes, but they're also a beacon of danger and death, something that many characters find out the hard way.

That's certainly true in the cases of Astrid Peth and Victorian Clara Oswald, two one-and-done companions who the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors lost in Voyage Of The Damned and The Snowmen, respectively.

Astrid worked as a waitress aboard the space Titanic, and joined with the Doctor to get the surviving passengers to safety after the ship was hit with an asteroid strike. This resulted in her sacrificing herself to defeat the villain who was responsible for said strike - the moustache-twirling Max Capricorn - leaving the Doctor totally stunned.

As for Victorian Clara, she met the Doctor in 19th century London, becoming his companion for a short time to help him take down the Great Intelligence, which led to her death at the cold, merciless hands of the Ice Governess.

Even though they didn't know him for very long, both characters were hugely important to the Doctor. They impressed him with their courage and quick-thinking, and he was so fond of them that he wanted them to become full-time companions once their current adventures were over - which, of course, never happened.

Instead, the Doctor was left with two more deaths to weigh on his soul.