Doctor Who: 8 Spin Off Characters Who Became Canon
8. The Children Of Time
During the Russell T Davies era, Doctor Who took an approach that fans would see Marvel repeat several years later. Two spin off shows were created taking place in the Whoniverse that contained elements that would crossover and interconnect. One was the kid-friendly CBBC series The Sarah Jane Adventures and the other was a gritty adult drama and BBC Three's flagship show Torchwood. Whilst the respective lead character of each show - Sarah Jane Smith and Captain Jack Harkness - had been originated in the parent show, they were surrounded by a supporting cast of original characters like Sarah Jane's son Luke and Jack's coffee-making beau Ianto Jones. With both shows being entirely Earth-based (and the Doctor having often-homesick human companions), it was inevitable that they would all meet on the neutral ground of the parent show, given their obverse target audiences, before long. As well as Luke and Ianto, fellow Torchwood member Gwen Cooper and Sarah Jane's alien supercomputer Mr Smith also appeared in the main show during the Series 4 finale. Being referenced by name, you could also add Gwen's boyfriend Rhys, fellow Torchwooder Owen Harper and Luke's schoolchums Maria and Clyde to the list. Toshiko was also mentioned but she had started in the main show all the way back in Series 1's Aliens of London. There was a third spin off, the short-lived 2009 series K-9, which was originally produced in Australia and broadcast in the UK by Disney after a short stretch in development hell. Since legal constraints meant that references to the BBC show were limited, there was never any direct crossover except the title character. Anyone who's aware of it probably doesn't worry about it too much as far as canon goes. On a related note, while no characters from that pilot ever made it to Doctor Who, the fact that the Doctor had given K-9 Mark III to Sarah Jane in the 1981 spin-off K-9 and Company was addressed in the 20th anniversary special The Five Doctors. When Sarah Jane returned again in 2006, she was still in possession of the K-9 model that had since broken down.
