Life After Doctor Who: Where Are The Companions Now?

Billie Piper in Doctor Who Season 4. (Photo: BBC)

Billie Piper

It’s been ten years since Rose Tyler got herself trapped in an alternate dimension and Billie Piper left Doctor Who behind. She was the first Companion to leave the reboot, though not the first person to do so. (Thanks a lot for that, Christopher Eccleston!)

Since her original exit, Piper has actually come back to Doctor Who several times. Rose had a key role in the Season 4 finale and made a super brief appearance in Tenth Doctor David Tennant’s farewell episode. Piper also played magical time avatar “The Moment” in the show’s 50th anniversary special.

After Who, she headlined Showtime’s racy drama Secret Diary of a Call Girl until 2011. She was most recently seen in the network’s Gothic monster drama Penny Dreadful. There Piper played Lily, a former prostitute who died and was reanimated as a sort of feminist avenging angel with a particularly enjoyment of violence and misandry. (Lily, btw, was awesome and Piper received much deserved critical acclaim for her performance.)

Piper is becoming a regular fixture on the geek convention circuit, often appearing with Tennant at various events. She has also done a fair amount of stage work in recent years. She earned critical praise and a Best Actress Olivier nomination for her role in the 2012 National Theatre’s The Effect. She’s currently starring in the Young Vic’s production of Yerma in London. (Fingers crossed we’ll get a Broadway show someday?)

Next: Freema Agyeman