Donna Noble
Encyclopedia
Donna Noble is a fictional character played by Catherine Tate
in the long-running British
science fiction television
series Doctor Who
. A secretary from Chiswick
, London
, she is a companion
of the Tenth Doctor
, appearing in one scene at the end of the final episode of the 2006 series
, "Doomsday
", leading into the programme's second Christmas special, "The Runaway Bride
". When the character refused the Doctor's invitation to become a permanent travelling companion, for the programme's third series (2007)
, the Doctor travelled alongside medical student Martha Jones
(Freema Agyeman
). However, Donna returned as The Doctor's sole full-time companion for the whole of the fourth series
in 2008, and reprised the role once more in the 2009–10 special The End of Time
.
Within the series' narrative, Donna begins as an outspoken middle age
d Londoner, whose view of the universe is small in scope. Although she at first finds alien
time traveller
the Doctor terrifying, their initial encounter leaves her unsatisfied with her small little world, and she jumps at the chance to travel alongside him when the next opportunity arises. Her very human perspective saves the Doctor's life when they first meet, and persuades him to act more compassionately and make exceptions to the rules in order to save individual lives; in return, Donna becomes a more worldly and heroic individual. From humble beginnings, it is Donna who saves the universe in the fourth series' conclusion, although tragically at the cost of the memories of her travels with the Doctor, leaving her, once again, largely the woman she was before she met him. In a contrast to the Tenth Doctor's prior female companions, who both harboured romantic feelings for him, Donna and the Doctor shared a strictly friendly relationship; the Doctor refers to her as his "best mate".
. The scene was kept a secret until broadcast, filmed with minimal crew, and was a humorous juxtaposition to the sad farewell the Doctor shared with companion Rose
(Billie Piper
) moments prior. Donna's story is picked up in 2006 Christmas special "The Runaway Bride". Donna is a temporary secretary at HC Clements in London, a security firm which, unknown to her, is a front organization
for the alien-investigating Torchwood Institute
. Her parents are Geoff (Howard Attfield) and Sylvia Noble (Jacqueline King
). Donna discovers that she is a pawn in a scheme of the Empress (Sarah Parish
) of the alien Racnoss, having been manipulated by her fiancé, Lance (Don Gilet
). When the Doctor unleashes his fury upon the Racnoss, Donna snaps him out of it and together, they escape before the Torchwood facility floods. Donna is upset, having lost her job and her fiancé, and declines the Doctor's offer to become his companion, though she advises he find one. Donna does not appear in the 2007 series, but the character Wilfred Mott
(Bernard Cribbins
) appears in 2007 Christmas special "Voyage of the Damned
"; in the 2008 series, he is introduced properly as Donna's grandfather, following the death of actor Howard Attfield.
In series four premiere "Partners in Crime
" (2008), Donna has become dissatisfied with regular life and more interested in the bigger picture. When both are investigating the alien connection to Adipose Industries' Miss Foster (Sarah Lancashire
), she and the Doctor are re-united, and she joins him in the TARDIS as a regular companion. In "The Fires of Pompeii
", Donna shows her compassion when she argues and convinces the Doctor to save a family from the Pompeii
eruption of Mount Vesuvius
. In "The Doctor's Daughter
", it is Donna who names the eponymous character "Jenny
" (Georgia Moffett
). The episode "Turn Left
" features a parallel universe
wherein Donna never met the Doctor; consequently, the Doctor died and the world comes to an end much sooner. In finale episodes "The Stolen Earth
" and "Journey's End
", Donna touches the Doctor's energised
severed hand and is imbued with the totality of his knowledge, using which, she is able to stop Davros
(Julian Bleach
) and his plan to destroy reality. However, because her mind cannot handle the knowledge, the Doctor is forced to wipe her memory of him and hope that they never meet again, lest she remember and her mind "burn up". Donna reappears in the two-part The End of Time (2009–10). When every member of the human race becomes a clone of the Doctor's archnemesis the Master
(John Simm
), Donna's memories are nearly restored; however, a fail-safe
installed by the Doctor protects her. In the story's concluding moments, Donna marries new fiancé Shaun Temple (Karl Collins
), becoming Donna Temple-Noble; the Doctor delivers her a winning lottery ticket to ensure her financial future.
New Series Adventures novels, alongside the Tenth Doctor, in stories set in-between episodes of series four. Donna first appears in Ghosts of India
by Mark Morris
, The Doctor Trap
by Simon Messingham
and Shining Darkness
by Mark Michalowski
in September 2008. She makes a fourth and final appearance in the novels in Beautiful Chaos
by Gary Russell
in December 2008; subsequent Tenth Doctor novels in the New Series Adventures range feature the Doctor travelling alone. Despite the few novel appearance, Donna does feature in a number of Doctor Who short stories, in Doctor Who Annual 2009, and The Doctor Who Storybook in 2007 and 2009, as well as one online short story appearance "The Lonely Computer" (the events of which are briefly alluded to in the episode "The Unicorn and the Wasp
"). The character also features prominently in comic books and comic strips featured in Doctor Who Magazine
, the younger-audience Doctor Who Adventures
and Doctor Who: Battles in Time, online comic book features, comics featured in the Annual and Storybook, as well as two arcs of American comic book company IDW Publishing
's Doctor Who ongoing series.
(October 2008) and The Nemonite Invasion
(February 2009).
in his series two video diary (included in the DVD box set), the casting of Catherine Tate was kept secret; her scene in "Doomsday" was filmed with minimal crew. His series 3 video diary mentions that this instance was one of the few occasions where the element of surprise was successfully maintained without it being revealed in advance by the media. Tate became the first guest star to be named in the show's opening credits; John Barrowman
, Kylie Minogue
, Peter Davison
, Elisabeth Sladen
and John Simm
have since been credited in this manner. Her character was considered by the production team to have companion
status long before the announcement of the character's return.
Executive producer Russell T Davies at one time dismissed Donna's potential as an ongoing companion due to her abrasive personality, saying that "she'd get on your nerves". In fact, the character was not originally scheduled to return at all. In Davies' original conception of the fourth season, it was one-off character Elton Pope (Marc Warren
) from 2006's "Love & Monsters
" who was to become the Tenth Doctor's last ongoing companion. Donna did not even appear in his original conception of reunion episode "The Stolen Earth", despite planned reappearances from Martha, Captain Jack
(Barrowman), Sarah Jane
(Sladen), Rose (Piper) and Jackie Tyler
(Camille Coduri
), as well as Mickey Smith
(Noel Clarke
) and the cast of spin-off series Torchwood
. Later still, Davies had intended the series four companion to be "Penny", a Northern woman with whom the Doctor would share a romantic attraction; actor David Jason
might have played the character's father. After a conversation between Catherine Tate and the BBC's Jane Tranter
, in which Tate expressed an interest in returning, Davies rewrote season four to feature Donna instead.
Tate looked to her own full-time casting as a "gamble" on the part of executive producer Russell T Davies; Tate attributes this to being "known, by the vast majority of people, for wearing wigs and comedy teeth" (in her sketch comedy
The Catherine Tate Show
). The actress was grateful to Davies for casting her, and joked about the prominence eventually afforded her character: " "For one brief moment I was the most important woman in the whole of the universe." Digital Spy
also comments on the riskiness of Tate's full-time casting, and the worries of the show's fans when it was first announced. Ben Rawson-Jones attributes the character's success to her boisterous personality being toned down for her first 2008 appearance, "Partners in Crime."
opined "At the core was Catherine Tate's excellent performance as Donna Noble, epitomising the intricate fusion of fun, adventure, sadness and a desire to belong." Digital Spy noted that fans initially worried about Tate's full-time casting, as she is known for her role as a comedian
and comic actor. They attributed the character's success to the modification of the much more brash and boisterous character she appeared to be in "The Runaway Bride". The character's comedic elements continued ("the occasional... misfire") in the form of her tendency to shout, but Digital Spy was praising of many of the character's comedic moments. They praised, moreso, Tate's crying scenes "The Fires of Pompeii", which "gave the visually impressive episode much-needed depth", as well as her sensitivity and emotionality at the mistreatment of the alien "Ood
" in "Planet of the Ood
". Cult Editor Ben Rawson-Jones also praised the character's "tragic" scenes, such as losing her fake children and ideal man in "Forest of the Dead
", and the "emotional wringer" of Donna-centric episode "Turn Left".
Catherine Tate
Catherine Tate is an English actress, writer, and comedian. She has won numerous awards for her work on the sketch comedy series The Catherine Tate Show as well as being nominated for an International Emmy Award and four BAFTA Awards...
in the long-running British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television
Science fiction on television
Science fiction first appeared on a television program during the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary world not limited by the constraints of reality; this makes television an excellent medium...
series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. A secretary from Chiswick
Chiswick
Chiswick is a large suburb of west London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located on a meander of the River Thames, west of Charing Cross and is one of 35 major centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, with...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, she is a companion
Companion (Doctor Who)
In the long-running BBC television science fiction programme Doctor Who and related works, the term "companion" refers to a character who travels with, and shares the adventures of the Doctor. In most Doctor Who stories, the primary companion acts as both deuteragonist and audience surrogate...
of the Tenth Doctor
Tenth Doctor
The Tenth Doctor is the tenth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He is played by David Tennant, who appears in three series, as well as eight specials...
, appearing in one scene at the end of the final episode of the 2006 series
Doctor Who (series 2)
The second series of British science fiction series Doctor Who began on 25 December 2005 with the Christmas special "The Christmas Invasion". Following the special, a regular series of thirteen episodes was broadcast, starting with "New Earth" on 15 April 2006...
, "Doomsday
Doomsday (Doctor Who)
"Doomsday" is the thirteenth and final episode in the second series of the revival of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on 8 July 2006 and is the conclusion of a two-part story; the first part, "Army of Ghosts", was broadcast on 1 July 2006...
", leading into the programme's second Christmas special, "The Runaway Bride
The Runaway Bride (Doctor Who)
"The Runaway Bride" is a special episode of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, starring David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor...
". When the character refused the Doctor's invitation to become a permanent travelling companion, for the programme's third series (2007)
Doctor Who (series 3)
The third series of British science fiction series Doctor Who was preceded by the 2006 Christmas special "The Runaway Bride". Following the special, a regular series of thirteen episodes was broadcast, starting with "Smith and Jones" on 31 March 2007...
, the Doctor travelled alongside medical student Martha Jones
Martha Jones
Martha Jones is a fictional character played by Freema Agyeman in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. She is a companion of the Tenth Doctor in Doctor Who, replacing Rose Tyler...
(Freema Agyeman
Freema Agyeman
Freema Agyeman is a British actress who is best known for playing Martha Jones, former companion of the Tenth Doctor in the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, and itsspin-off series Torchwood...
). However, Donna returned as The Doctor's sole full-time companion for the whole of the fourth series
Doctor Who (series 4)
The fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who began on 25 December 2007 with the Christmas special "Voyage of the Damned". Following the special, a regular series of thirteen episodes aired, starting with "Partners in Crime" on 5 April 2008 and ending with "Journey's End"...
in 2008, and reprised the role once more in the 2009–10 special The End of Time
The End of Time
The End of Time: The Next Revolution in Our Understanding of the Universe, also sold with the alternate subtitle The Next Revolution in Physics, is a 1999 science book in which the author Julian Barbour argues that time exists merely as an illusion.-Auto-biography:The book begins by describing how...
.
Within the series' narrative, Donna begins as an outspoken middle age
Middle age
Middle age is the period of age beyond young adulthood but before the onset of old age. Various attempts have been made to define this age, which is around the third quarter of the average life span of human beings....
d Londoner, whose view of the universe is small in scope. Although she at first finds alien
Time Lord
The Time Lords are an ancient extraterrestrial race and civilization of humanoids in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, of which the series' eponymous protagonist, the Doctor, is a member...
time traveller
Time travel in fiction
Time travel is a common theme in science fiction and is depicted in a variety of media. It simply means either going forward in time or backward, to experience the future, or the past.-Literature:...
the Doctor terrifying, their initial encounter leaves her unsatisfied with her small little world, and she jumps at the chance to travel alongside him when the next opportunity arises. Her very human perspective saves the Doctor's life when they first meet, and persuades him to act more compassionately and make exceptions to the rules in order to save individual lives; in return, Donna becomes a more worldly and heroic individual. From humble beginnings, it is Donna who saves the universe in the fourth series' conclusion, although tragically at the cost of the memories of her travels with the Doctor, leaving her, once again, largely the woman she was before she met him. In a contrast to the Tenth Doctor's prior female companions, who both harboured romantic feelings for him, Donna and the Doctor shared a strictly friendly relationship; the Doctor refers to her as his "best mate".
Television
Donna Noble makes her first appearance, credited as "The Bride", in the closing scenes of 2006 series finale "Doomsday"; she appears in a wedding dress, outraged to be inexplicably aboard the Doctor's TARDISTARDIS
The TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
. The scene was kept a secret until broadcast, filmed with minimal crew, and was a humorous juxtaposition to the sad farewell the Doctor shared with companion Rose
Rose Tyler
Rose Marion Tyler is a fictional character portrayed by Billie Piper in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was created by series producer Russell T Davies...
(Billie Piper
Billie Piper
Billie Paul Piper is an English singer and actress.She began her career in the late 1990s as a pop singer and then switched to acting. She started in acting and dancing and was talent spotted at the Sylvia Young stage school by Smash Hits magazine who wanted a "face" for their magazine...
) moments prior. Donna's story is picked up in 2006 Christmas special "The Runaway Bride". Donna is a temporary secretary at HC Clements in London, a security firm which, unknown to her, is a front organization
Front organization
A front organization is any entity set up by and controlled by another organization, such as intelligence agencies, organized crime groups, banned organizations, religious or political groups, advocacy groups, or corporations...
for the alien-investigating Torchwood Institute
Torchwood Institute
The Torchwood Institute is a fictional secret organization from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-off series Torchwood. It was established in 1879 by Queen Victoria after the events of "Tooth and Claw". Its prime directive, is to defend the earth against...
. Her parents are Geoff (Howard Attfield) and Sylvia Noble (Jacqueline King
Jacqueline King
-Career:King trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. After training she worked as an actor in Africa, Canada, America, Sri Lanka and UAE.On returning to the UK, she appeared in several Alan Ayckbourn productions, including the original runs of Comic Potential and the Damsels in Distress...
). Donna discovers that she is a pawn in a scheme of the Empress (Sarah Parish
Sarah Parish
Sarah Parish is an English actress.Parish is known for her work on such TV series as: Peak Practice, Hearts and Bones, Cutting It, Doctor Who, Mistresses, Merlin and the new ITV medical drama Monroe....
) of the alien Racnoss, having been manipulated by her fiancé, Lance (Don Gilet
Don Gilet
Don Gilet is a British actor, best known for his roles in BBC productions Babyfather, EastEnders and 55 Degrees North. Don's surname is actually pronounced 'Gillit' but takes the stage name 'Jillay'.-Personal life:...
). When the Doctor unleashes his fury upon the Racnoss, Donna snaps him out of it and together, they escape before the Torchwood facility floods. Donna is upset, having lost her job and her fiancé, and declines the Doctor's offer to become his companion, though she advises he find one. Donna does not appear in the 2007 series, but the character Wilfred Mott
Wilfred Mott
Wilfred "Wilf" Mott is a recurring fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, played by Bernard Cribbins. He is the maternal grandfather of the Tenth Doctor's companion Donna Noble, and father of character Sylvia Noble...
(Bernard Cribbins
Bernard Cribbins
Bernard Cribbins, OBE is an English character actor, voice-over artist and musical comedian with a career spanning over half a century who came to prominence in films in the 1960s, has been in work consistently since his professional debut in the mid 1950s, and as of 2010 is still an active...
) appears in 2007 Christmas special "Voyage of the Damned
Voyage of the Damned (Doctor Who)
"Voyage of the Damned" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. First broadcast on 25 December 2007, it is 72 minutes long and the third Christmas special since the show's revival in 2005...
"; in the 2008 series, he is introduced properly as Donna's grandfather, following the death of actor Howard Attfield.
In series four premiere "Partners in Crime
Partners in Crime (Doctor Who)
"Partners in Crime" is the first episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 5 April 2008. The episode reintroduced comedienne Catherine Tate as Donna Noble, who previously appeared in "The Runaway Bride"...
" (2008), Donna has become dissatisfied with regular life and more interested in the bigger picture. When both are investigating the alien connection to Adipose Industries' Miss Foster (Sarah Lancashire
Sarah Lancashire
Sarah Lancashire is an English actress, probably best recognised for her role as Raquel Watts in Coronation Street. She graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1986.-Television:...
), she and the Doctor are re-united, and she joins him in the TARDIS as a regular companion. In "The Fires of Pompeii
The Fires of Pompeii
"The Fires of Pompeii" is the second episode of the fourth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 12 April 2008....
", Donna shows her compassion when she argues and convinces the Doctor to save a family from the Pompeii
Pompeii
The city of Pompeii is a partially buried Roman town-city near modern Naples in the Italian region of Campania, in the territory of the comune of Pompei. Along with Herculaneum, Pompeii was destroyed and completely buried during a long catastrophic eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius spanning...
eruption of Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius is a stratovolcano in the Gulf of Naples, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is the only volcano on the European mainland to have erupted within the last hundred years, although it is not currently erupting...
. In "The Doctor's Daughter
The Doctor's Daughter
"The Doctor's Daughter" is the sixth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 10 May 2008.- Synopsis :...
", it is Donna who names the eponymous character "Jenny
Jenny (Doctor Who)
Jenny, portrayed by Georgia Moffett, is a fictional character in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. She first appeared in the episode "The Doctor's Daughter", originally broadcast 10 May 2008...
" (Georgia Moffett
Georgia Moffett
Georgia Elizabeth Moffett is a British actress. Moffett was born in West London, the daughter of actors Peter Davison and Sandra Dickinson....
). The episode "Turn Left
Turn Left (Doctor Who)
"Turn Left" is the eleventh episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by showrunner Russell T Davies and broadcast on BBC One on 21 June 2008....
" features a parallel universe
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
wherein Donna never met the Doctor; consequently, the Doctor died and the world comes to an end much sooner. In finale episodes "The Stolen Earth
The Stolen Earth
"The Stolen Earth" is the twelfth episode of the fourth series and the 750th overall episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The episode was written by show runner and head writer Russell T Davies and is the first of a two-part crossover story; the concluding episode is...
" and "Journey's End
Journey's End (Doctor Who)
"Journey's End" is the thirteenth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who first broadcast on BBC One on 5 July 2008. It is the second episode of a two-part crossover story featuring the characters of spin-off shows Torchwood and The Sarah Jane...
", Donna touches the Doctor's energised
Regeneration (Doctor Who)
Regeneration, in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, is a biological ability exhibited by Time Lords, a race of fictional humanoids originating on the planet Gallifrey. This process allows a Time Lord who is old or mortally wounded to undergo a transformation into a new...
severed hand and is imbued with the totality of his knowledge, using which, she is able to stop Davros
Davros
Davros is a character from the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Davros is an archenemy of the Doctor and is the creator of the Doctor's deadliest enemies, the Daleks...
(Julian Bleach
Julian Bleach
Julian Bleach is an English actor who is best known as co-creator and "M. C." of Shockheaded Peter, a musical entertainment based on the works of Heinrich Hoffmann, which won the 2002 Olivier Award for Best Entertainment.Bleach trained at LAMDA...
) and his plan to destroy reality. However, because her mind cannot handle the knowledge, the Doctor is forced to wipe her memory of him and hope that they never meet again, lest she remember and her mind "burn up". Donna reappears in the two-part The End of Time (2009–10). When every member of the human race becomes a clone of the Doctor's archnemesis the Master
Master (Doctor Who)
The Master is a recurring character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is a renegade Time Lord and the archenemy of the Doctor....
(John Simm
John Simm
John Simm is an English stage and screen actor. In recent years he is best known for his roles as Sam Tyler in the detective drama Life on Mars and as The Master in the revival of the science fiction series Doctor Who, but he has also starred in many highly acclaimed award-winning television...
), Donna's memories are nearly restored; however, a fail-safe
Fail-safe
A fail-safe or fail-secure device is one that, in the event of failure, responds in a way that will cause no harm, or at least a minimum of harm, to other devices or danger to personnel....
installed by the Doctor protects her. In the story's concluding moments, Donna marries new fiancé Shaun Temple (Karl Collins
Karl Collins
Karl Collins is an English actor.He has played DC Danny Glaze in The Bill, and has appeared in Casualty, Dream Team, Holby City, As Time Goes By and 55 Degrees North...
), becoming Donna Temple-Noble; the Doctor delivers her a winning lottery ticket to ensure her financial future.
Literature
Outside of the television series, Donna appears in some of the BBC BooksBBC Books
BBC Books is an imprint majority owned and managed by Random House. The minority shareholder is BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation...
New Series Adventures novels, alongside the Tenth Doctor, in stories set in-between episodes of series four. Donna first appears in Ghosts of India
Ghosts of India
Ghosts of India is a BBC Books original novel written by Mark Morris and based on the long running science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Tenth Doctor and Donna Noble...
by Mark Morris
Mark Morris (writer)
Mark Morris is an author known for his series of horror novels, although he has also written two novels based on the BBC Television series Doctor Who. He currently lives in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, with his wife . He has used the pseudonym J. M...
, The Doctor Trap
The Doctor Trap
The Doctor Trap is a BBC Books original novel written by Simon Messingham and based on the long running science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Tenth Doctor and Donna Noble...
by Simon Messingham
Simon Messingham
Simon Messingham is a British science fiction writer who has written six Doctor Who novels and another story released as an BBC Audio Drama. He also wrote and performed in the cable television programmes The Dave Saint Show and Tales of Uplift and Moral Improvement.-Past Doctor Adventures:*Zeta...
and Shining Darkness
Shining Darkness (Doctor Who)
Shining Darkness is a BBC Books original novel written by Mark Michalowski and based on the long running science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Tenth Doctor and Donna Noble...
by Mark Michalowski
Mark Michalowski
Mark Michalowski is the editor of Shout!, "Yorkshire's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender paper", as well as being an author best known for his work writing spin-offs based on the BBC Television series Doctor Who...
in September 2008. She makes a fourth and final appearance in the novels in Beautiful Chaos
Beautiful Chaos
Beautiful Chaos is a BBC Books original novel written by Gary Russell and based on the long running science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Tenth Doctor and Donna Noble...
by Gary Russell
Gary Russell
Gary James Russell is a freelance writer and former child actor. As a writer, he is best known for his work in connection with the television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs in other media...
in December 2008; subsequent Tenth Doctor novels in the New Series Adventures range feature the Doctor travelling alone. Despite the few novel appearance, Donna does feature in a number of Doctor Who short stories, in Doctor Who Annual 2009, and The Doctor Who Storybook in 2007 and 2009, as well as one online short story appearance "The Lonely Computer" (the events of which are briefly alluded to in the episode "The Unicorn and the Wasp
The Unicorn and the Wasp
"The Unicorn and the Wasp" is the 7th episode in the revised fourth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was aired by BBC One on 17 May 2008 at 19:00. Perhaps due to its later broadcast, it received an overnight audience rating of 7.7 million, making it the...
"). The character also features prominently in comic books and comic strips featured in Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
, the younger-audience Doctor Who Adventures
Doctor Who Adventures
Doctor Who Adventures is a magazine based on the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. It is published by BBC Magazines and aimed at 6–13 year-olds, a different demographic from the Doctor Who Magazine readership...
and Doctor Who: Battles in Time, online comic book features, comics featured in the Annual and Storybook, as well as two arcs of American comic book company IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing, also known as Idea + Design Works, LLC and IDW, is an American publisher of comic books and comic strip collections. The company was founded in 1999 and has been awarded the title "Publisher of the Year Under 5% Market Share" for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 by Diamond Comic...
's Doctor Who ongoing series.
Audio drama
Donna also appears in three original audiobooks published by BBC Books: Pest Control (May 2008), The Forever TrapThe Forever Trap
The Forever Trap is an exclusive to audio Doctor Who story, produced as part of BBC Books' New Series Adventures line, and the second entry in the series to be produced. Read by Catherine Tate, it is the second non-televised Doctor Who adventure to feature the companion Donna Noble. It was...
(October 2008) and The Nemonite Invasion
The Nemonite Invasion
The Nemonite Invasion is an exclusive to audio Doctor Who story, produced as part of BBC Books' New Series Adventures line, and the third entry in the series to be produced. Read by Catherine Tate, it is the third non-televised Doctor Who adventure to feature the companion Donna Noble. It was...
(February 2009).
Introduction and character development
As indicated by David TennantDavid Tennant
David Tennant is a Scottish actor. In addition to his work in theatre, including a widely praised Hamlet, Tennant is best known for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, along with the title role in the 2005 TV serial Casanova and as Barty Crouch, Jr...
in his series two video diary (included in the DVD box set), the casting of Catherine Tate was kept secret; her scene in "Doomsday" was filmed with minimal crew. His series 3 video diary mentions that this instance was one of the few occasions where the element of surprise was successfully maintained without it being revealed in advance by the media. Tate became the first guest star to be named in the show's opening credits; John Barrowman
John Barrowman
John Scot Barrowman is a Scottish-American singer, actor, dancer, musical theatre performer and media personality. Born in Glasgow yet growing up in Illinois after his family emigrated to the United States when he was eight years old, Barrowman was encouraged to further his love for music and...
, Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
, Peter Davison
Peter Davison
Peter Davison is a British actor, best known for his roles as Tristan Farnon in the television version of James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small and the fifth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, which he played from 1982 to 1984.-Early life:Davison was born Peter Moffett in Streatham,...
, Elisabeth Sladen
Elisabeth Sladen
Elisabeth Clara Heath-Sladen was an English actress best known for her role as Sarah Jane Smith in the British television series Doctor Who. She was a regular cast member from 1973 to 1976, alongside both Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker, and reprised the role many times in subsequent decades, both on...
and John Simm
John Simm
John Simm is an English stage and screen actor. In recent years he is best known for his roles as Sam Tyler in the detective drama Life on Mars and as The Master in the revival of the science fiction series Doctor Who, but he has also starred in many highly acclaimed award-winning television...
have since been credited in this manner. Her character was considered by the production team to have companion
Companion (Doctor Who)
In the long-running BBC television science fiction programme Doctor Who and related works, the term "companion" refers to a character who travels with, and shares the adventures of the Doctor. In most Doctor Who stories, the primary companion acts as both deuteragonist and audience surrogate...
status long before the announcement of the character's return.
Executive producer Russell T Davies at one time dismissed Donna's potential as an ongoing companion due to her abrasive personality, saying that "she'd get on your nerves". In fact, the character was not originally scheduled to return at all. In Davies' original conception of the fourth season, it was one-off character Elton Pope (Marc Warren
Marc Warren
Marc Warren is an English actor, known for his British television roles as Danny Blue in Hustle, Dougie Raymond in The Vice and Dominic Foy in State of Play.-Career:...
) from 2006's "Love & Monsters
Love & Monsters
"Love & Monsters" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. In this episode, an ordinary man named Elton Pope becomes obsessed with a man called the Doctor and his strange blue box, and joins a group of like-minded people in hopes of finding him...
" who was to become the Tenth Doctor's last ongoing companion. Donna did not even appear in his original conception of reunion episode "The Stolen Earth", despite planned reappearances from Martha, Captain Jack
Jack Harkness
Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. He first appeared in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and reappeared in the remaining episodes of the 2005 series as a companion of the ninth incarnation of the...
(Barrowman), Sarah Jane
Sarah Jane Smith
Sarah Jane Smith is a fictional character played by Elisabeth Sladen in the long-running British BBC Television science-fiction series Doctor Who and its spin-offs K-9 and Company and The Sarah Jane Adventures....
(Sladen), Rose (Piper) and Jackie Tyler
Jackie Tyler
In "Rise of the Cybermen" and "The Age of Steel" Coduri plays a parallel Earth version of Jackie. In this universe, she is still married to Pete, but they have no children, although she has a Yorkshire terrier named Rose. Despite Pete's success, which has led to Jackie becoming a celebrity, they...
(Camille Coduri
Camille Coduri
Camille Coduri is an English actress. She is best known for her role in Doctor Who as Jackie Tyler.-Career:She featured in the film comedies Nuns on the Run and King Ralph...
), as well as Mickey Smith
Mickey Smith
Mickey Smith is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, played by Noel Clarke.Mickey is introduced as the boyfriend of the Ninth and Tenth Doctor's companion Rose Tyler, and a recurring character on the programme...
(Noel Clarke
Noel Clarke
Noel Anthony Clarke is an English actor, director and screenwriter from London. He is best known for playing Wyman Norris in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet and Mickey Smith in Doctor Who...
) and the cast of spin-off series Torchwood
Torchwood
Torchwood is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. The series is a spin-off from Davies's 2005 revival of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who. The show has shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing audience, moving from...
. Later still, Davies had intended the series four companion to be "Penny", a Northern woman with whom the Doctor would share a romantic attraction; actor David Jason
David Jason
Sir David John White, OBE , better known by his stage name David Jason, is an English BAFTA award-winning actor. He is best known as the main character Derek "Del Boy" Trotter on the BBC sit-com Only Fools and Horses from 1981, the voice of Mr Toad in The Wind In The Willows and as detective Jack...
might have played the character's father. After a conversation between Catherine Tate and the BBC's Jane Tranter
Jane Tranter
Jane Tranter is an English television executive who has been the executive vice-president of programming and production at BBC Worldwide's Los Angeles base since January 2009...
, in which Tate expressed an interest in returning, Davies rewrote season four to feature Donna instead.
Tate looked to her own full-time casting as a "gamble" on the part of executive producer Russell T Davies; Tate attributes this to being "known, by the vast majority of people, for wearing wigs and comedy teeth" (in her sketch comedy
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
The Catherine Tate Show
The Catherine Tate Show
The Catherine Tate Show is a British television sketch comedy written by Catherine Tate and Aschlin Ditta. Tate also stars in all but one of the show's sketches, which feature a wide range of characters. The Catherine Tate Show airs on BBC Two and is shown worldwide through the BBC...
). The actress was grateful to Davies for casting her, and joked about the prominence eventually afforded her character: " "For one brief moment I was the most important woman in the whole of the universe." Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
also comments on the riskiness of Tate's full-time casting, and the worries of the show's fans when it was first announced. Ben Rawson-Jones attributes the character's success to her boisterous personality being toned down for her first 2008 appearance, "Partners in Crime."
Reception
In their review of the fourth series, Digital SpyDigital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
opined "At the core was Catherine Tate's excellent performance as Donna Noble, epitomising the intricate fusion of fun, adventure, sadness and a desire to belong." Digital Spy noted that fans initially worried about Tate's full-time casting, as she is known for her role as a comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
and comic actor. They attributed the character's success to the modification of the much more brash and boisterous character she appeared to be in "The Runaway Bride". The character's comedic elements continued ("the occasional... misfire") in the form of her tendency to shout, but Digital Spy was praising of many of the character's comedic moments. They praised, moreso, Tate's crying scenes "The Fires of Pompeii", which "gave the visually impressive episode much-needed depth", as well as her sensitivity and emotionality at the mistreatment of the alien "Ood
Ood
The Ood are a fictional alien species with telepathic abilities from the long running science fiction series Doctor Who. In the series' narrative, they live in the distant future ....
" in "Planet of the Ood
Planet of the Ood
"Planet of the Ood" is the third episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 19 April 2008. It features the return of the Ood, who appeared in the second series episodes "The Impossible Planet" and "The Satan Pit".The episode...
". Cult Editor Ben Rawson-Jones also praised the character's "tragic" scenes, such as losing her fake children and ideal man in "Forest of the Dead
Forest of the Dead
"Forest of the Dead" is the ninth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast by BBC One on 7 June 2008...
", and the "emotional wringer" of Donna-centric episode "Turn Left".