Doctor(s): 1st Doctor (William Hartnell)
Traveled: November – December 1965 (roughly 5 episodes)
Actor: Adrienne Hill (22 July 1937 – 6 October 1997)
Episodes & Stories
The Myth Makers (final episode, introduced), The Daleks’ Master Plan (episodes 1-4).
Personality
A handmaiden from ancient Troy, Katarina is devout, gentle and utterly bewildered by the TARDIS, believing the Doctor to be a god and the TARDIS a temple.
Interesting Facts
- Katarina is the first companion in Doctor Who history to die.
- She was intended as a brief transitional character, with her lack of contemporary knowledge making her impractical to write for long-term.
- Her death was considered shocking for 1965 family television.
What Happened to the Character
In The Daleks’ Master Plan, a criminal takes Katarina and the Doctor hostage; she sacrifices herself by opening an airlock, ejecting herself and the criminal into space.
The Actor Today
Adrienne Hill later retrained as a drama teacher. She died of cancer on 6 October 1997, aged 60.