Katarina (Doctor Who)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Manbemel (talk | contribs) at 17:34, 27 October 2012. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Template:Infobox Doctor Who character Katarina is a fictional character played by Adrienne Hill in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who appearing in the programme from November to December 1965.

An inhabitant of ancient Troy, she was a brief companion of the First Doctor. The character was devised to act as a companion. However this was re-evaluated by the writers, and Katarina was killed off during the following serial having appeared in just five episodes. As such she was the first companion in the series to die.

Her role as companion within The Daleks' Master Plan was given to the character of Sara Kingdom, who was also killed off in the same story.[1]

Character history

Katarina is introduced in the serial The Myth Makers, which takes place during the siege of Troy. She is a handmaiden of the prophetess Cassandra, and helps the TARDIS crew survive the events of the siege. When Steven is wounded, she helps him into the TARDIS as Vicki decides to stay behind in Troy with the warrior Troilus.

A sweet, simple young woman who cannot really cope with the concept that the universe has suddenly opened up to her, Katarina believes that she is dead, and that the Doctor is a god transporting her to the next life. She refers to the TARDIS as a "temple", and literally worships the Doctor, referring to him as "Lord" (much to his annoyance) and having absolute faith in him.

During The Daleks' Master Plan, Katarina is taken hostage by the escaped prisoner Kirksen, who demands that the Doctor take him to Kembel, a planet taken over by the Daleks. To prevent the Doctor giving in to Kirksen's demands, she chooses to trigger the controls to the airlock she is being held in, propelling both herself and her captor into the vacuum of space.

Despite her brief tenure on the series, Katarina is significant for being the first of the Doctor's companions to die on-screen. However, she would not be the last. In some of the tie-in fiction, her death (and later that of Adric) is portrayed as weighing heavily on the Doctor's mind.

List of appearances

Television

Season 3

Surviving footage

Katarina appeared in just five episodes. The BBC junked many Doctor Who episodes in the 1970s, and only one episode featuring Katarina, Day of Armageddon (the second episode of The Daleks' Master Plan), exists in its entirety. Also extant is a single clip from each Devil's Planet and The Traitors (the latter being Katarina's death scene).

A brief 8mm clip from the end of The Myth Makers, when matched to the fully extant audio, reveals Katarina talking off-screen to the Doctor.

Short stories

Comics

Audio drama

Notes

  1. ^ Howe, Stammers [page needed]

References

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Katarina_(Doctor_Who)&oldid=520141432"