Life as the Doctor's coveted companion is difficult enough at the best of times but Martha's tenure aboard the TARDIS was a particularly turbulent affair owing to the fact that she spent most of it trying to desperately escape the shadow of her ever persistent predecessor. To a certain extent, the same can be said for Freema Agyeman, too. Taking over from Billie Piper, widely cited as one of the most popular Doctor Who companions to date, was no mean feat and it wasn't until Martha single handedly walked the entire Earth that our titular Time Lord finally started to accept her as an actual human being in her own right. It was too little, too late by that point, though, and Freema subsequently left the TARDIS with her head held high to enjoy pastures new. Martha's another example of a companion who just didn't know when to quit. After a short but eventful stint in Series 2 of Torchwood, Freema popped up in the period drama Little Dorrit as well as the short lived post-apocalyptic series Survivors. Back in Doctor Who, she summoned the Tenth Doctor to Earth in the midst of a Sontaran invasion and Freema would've then joined the Torchwood team full time had she not been contractually commited to the other side ('the other side' in this case being ITV, on which she was of the series regulars in Law & Order: UK). Freema's in LA at the moment trying to make a name for herself across the pond and it looked like her luck was in when she landed a leading role as the "hip, British, cutting-edge style editor" Larissa Loughlin in the hyped Sex and the City prequel The Carrie Diaries, which was subsequently axed after two seasons. Next up for Freema is a supporting role in Sense8, an upcoming American sci-fi series (she should fit right in, then!) which will premiere exclusively on Netflix this summer. It's been produced by the creators of The Matrix trilogy, but don't let that put you off...
Dan Butler is the Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture.com. When he isn't writing his own articles or editing other people's, he can be found trawling the internet for gifs of Steven Moffat laughing. Contact him via dan.butler@whatculture.co.uk.
