Doctor Who: 7 Supportive Women Seared Onto Our Hearts
3. Joan Redfern
Episodes: Human Nature / The Family of Blood (series 3) Joan Redfern is another love interest - not of the Doctors but rather his human counterpart John Smith. The Doctor is forced to disguise himself as a human while fleeing the Family of Blood, and even he does not remember his true Time Lord identity. Hes a bit rubbish as a human, timid and bumbling and not especially brave but certainly endearing and his romance with Joan is unbearably sweet to watch. David Tennants understated performance is a joy, while Jessica Hynes brings a sad yet hopeful humanity to the character of Joan. Joan is very much a woman of her era and not always likeable. She is at times racist and elitist and yet at heart she is a good person despite her flaws. She struggles to break away from her upbringing when confronted with the Doctors true identity and encourages him to give up being human at the expense of her own happiness. In fact it is Joans very human weaknesses an ordinary person caught up in extraordinary events that move her from stereotypical woman of her age to a living, breathing individual we cant help but root for. We get to know Joan through her hopes and fears, and her disappointment and despair at the end when she refuses to travel with the Doctor is truly heartbreaking.