Ben and Polly (Doctor Who)
This article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. (February 2022) |
notability.(July 2023) ) |
Ben | |
---|---|
Jared Garfield (2017) | |
Duration | 1966–1967, 2017 |
In-universe information | |
Species | Human |
Affiliation | First Doctor Second Doctor |
Home | Earth |
Home era | 1966 |
Polly | |
---|---|
Doctor Who character | |
First appearance | The War Machines (1966) |
Last appearance | "Twice Upon a Time" (2017) |
Portrayed by | Anneke Wills (1966–1967) Lily Travers (2017) |
Duration | 1966–1967, 2017 |
In-universe information | |
Species | Human |
Affiliation | First Doctor Second Doctor |
Home | Earth |
Home era | 1966 |
Benjamin "Ben" Jackson and Polly, sometimes called Polly Wright in spin-off material, are fictional characters played by Michael Craze and Anneke Wills, in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.
Ben and Polly, both from the year 1966, were
Fictional character biography
Television
Ben and Polly first appeared in the First Doctor serial,
Polly, in contrast to Dodo, is a more sophisticated and hip young woman of the 1960s — vivacious, attractive, and alternately shy and aggressive. She and Ben make an odd couple but she is receptive to Ben's protective urges, and he in turn finds her elegant and posh, giving her the nickname "Duchess".[4] Polly is present with Ben when the Doctor regenerates for the first time into a new form (Patrick Troughton), and they continue to travel with him. In The Highlanders (1966–67), Polly and Ben are joined on the TARDIS by Jamie McCrimmon (Frazer Hines). Eventually, the TARDIS finds its way back to 1966 London (in The Faceless Ones) on the very day Ben and Polly had left (although about a year had passed for them). They decide to remain behind to resume their lives without disruption as the Doctor and Jamie travel on.
What happens to the duo after their return to Earth is not certain. The Doctor seems to think that Ben will become an Admiral and that Polly will look after Ben,[5] but it is unclear if this is a prediction or simply wishing them well. In The Sarah Jane Adventures story Death of the Doctor (2010), Sarah Jane mentions that Polly is now working at an orphanage in India with Ben.
Ben and Polly appear in the 2017 Doctor Who Christmas special "
Other media
In the
List of appearances
Television
- Season 3
- Season 4
- The Smugglers
- The Tenth Planet
- The Power of the Daleks[a]
- The Highlanders
- The Underwater Menace
- The Moonbase
- The Macra Terror
- The Faceless Ones[b]
- Series 10
Novels
- The Murder Game by Steve Lyons
- The Roundheads by Mark Gatiss
- Dying in the Sun by Jon de Burgh Miller
- Ten Little Aliens by Stephen Cole
Short stories
- "Mondas Passing" by Paul Grice (Short Trips)
- "That Time I Nearly Destroyed the World Whilst Looking For a Dress" by Short Trips: Past Tense)
- "Pluto" by Short Trips: The Solar System)
- "Do You Dream in Colour" by Short Trips: The Ghosts of Christmas)
- "The Slave War" by Short Trips: The Quality of Leadership)
Comics
- "The Tests of Trefus" by David Brian (Doctor Who Annual 1968)
- "World Without Night" by David Brian (Doctor Who Annual 1968)
- "Food for Thought" by Nicholas Briggs and Colin Andrew (Doctor Who Magazine 218–220)
Audios
- Resistance
- The Three Companions
- The Forbidden Time
- The Five Companions (with the Fifth Doctor)
- The Selachian Gambit
- The House of Cards
- The Light at the End (cameo)
- The Yes Men
- The Forsaken
- Lost and Found
- The Mouthless Dead
- Falling
- The Bonfires of the Vanities
- The Plague of Dreams
- The Night Witches
- The Outliers
- The Morton Legacy
Development
Polly
Polly was never given a last name in the series. According to production notes, she was meant to be Polly Wright, but this was not used to avoid confusion with the Doctor's earlier companion Barbara Wright. In The Faceless Ones, a double of Polly is named Michelle Leuppi; an apparent mishearing of this and misinterpretation of the context led to some reference works giving Polly the last name of "Lopez".[8][9] In the Virgin Missing Adventures novel Invasion of the Cat-People by Gary Russell, Wright is expressly given as Polly's last name, as it was supposedly given in Gerry Davis's character breakdown and audition script sample when, as story editor, he and producer Innes Lloyd created Ben and Polly in 1966.[10]
Notes
References
- ^ a b "Doctor Who – Classic Series – Companions – Polly". BBC. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
- ^ "BBC One - Doctor Who, Season 4 - Ben Jackson".
- ^ "BBC - Doctor Who - Classic Series - Companions - Ben Jackson".
- ^ "The Duchess of Chelsea".
- ^ "Doctor Who (1963-1996), Season 4 - Ben Jackson". BBC. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
- ^ Fullerton, Huw (24 August 2017). "Hollyoaks star Jared Garfield to play classic Doctor Who companion in Christmas special". radiotimes.com. Radio Times. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
- ^ "8 questions we have about the new Doctor Who Christmas special trailer". Radio Times. 24 July 2017. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
- ISBN 0-426-20342-9.
- ISBN 0-426-20370-4.
- ISBN 0-426-20440-9.
External links
- Ben Jackson on Tardis Wiki, the Doctor Who Wiki
- Polly Wright on Tardis Wiki, the Doctor Who Wiki
- Ben Jackson on the BBC's Doctor Who website
- Polly on the BBC's Doctor Who website