History EnsembleDarkHorse / DoctorWho

** Grace, Ryan's grandmother and Graham's wife. Her loving nature and the fact she immediately jumped to the call to help the Doctor defeat Tzim'Sha endeared her to many fans who naturally saw her as companion material, and where left broken heart when [[spoiler: she gave her life trying to stop an alien monster from killing her grandson.]]

* Rory Williams is either one of these, or a blatant example of the writers deliberately manipulating a character to make them go in this direction: from someone who looked like he was going to be a dorky Mickey Smith clone, to a character with far more appeal (right before killing him), to a badass and UnbrokenVigil.

* Both the Daleks and ''Sir'' Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart. Both originally intended as one-off characters in the 1960s. Guess what? They've both appeared on television since ''Doctor Who'''s revival (the latter on the SpinOff ''Series/TheSarahJaneAdventures'' in 2008, fifteen years after his last televised appearance).

* The Zygons only appeared once during the Classic Series (and a few times in the Expanded Universe) but are one of the most popular monsters, Creator/DavidTennant having cited them as his favorite monster. They were the main monsters in the 50th anniversary special, in which Tennant guest-starred.

** Yet another creation from "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E10Blink Blink]]" is also widely beloved: Sally Sparrow. The character is often mooted as a possible future companion of The Doctor.

* Jenny [[Recap/DoctorWhoNSS4E6TheDoctorsDaughter the Doctor's Daughter]] is one of the most influential characters both in-universe and out-of-universe. Many are still vouching for her return as a companion. Finally it was confirmed that Jenny would return in 2018 in [[https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/jenny---the-doctor-s-daughter-1701 four Big Finish audio stories]] with the original actress voicing her.
* Wilfred Mott. He attacked a Dalek with a ''paint gun''. He was so popular that he was brought back as the Doctor's companion for "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E17E18TheEndOfTime The End of Time]]".

** Madame Vastra, the [[TryToFitThatOnABusinessCard Lesbian Victorian Silurian Detective]] and her wife/servant Jenny are incredibly popular, with the fandom begging for a spin-off.

* Of the many original characters introduced in the ComicBook/DoctorWhoTitan lines, Time Surgeon -- a punk rock corruption of the Twelfth Doctor who is the subject of an in-universe comic book and is PlayedForLaughs -- may be the only one who has ''cosplayers'' in the real world.

* Erica the botanist from [[Recap/DoctorWhoS36E7ThePyramidAtTheEndOfTheWorld "The Pyramid at the End of the World."]] She was widely noted as being far more likable and competent than Bill in this particular episode, and accordingly a lot of fans wished she could become a companion at some point. Also very popular was the casting of dwarf actress Rachel Denning, despite the role as written having nothing requiring a non-average height.

* The Celestial Toymaker. His only appearance was in ''one'' story in the Classic Series, of which three of its episodes are now lost, but he's still one of the most iconic villains in the franchise.

* The War Doctor is very popular even if he was only created exclusively for the 50th Anniversary - the fact he's played by Sir Creator/JohnHurt no doubt helps also.

* Jenny [[Recap/DoctorWhoNSS4E6TheDoctorsDaughter the Doctor's Daughter]] is one of the most influential characters both in-universe and out-of-universe. Many are still vouching for her return as a companion. Finally it was confirmed that Jenny would return in 2018 in [[ https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/jenny---the-doctor-s-daughter-1701 four Big Finish audio stories]] with the original actress voicing her.

* Jenny [[Recap/DoctorWhoNSS4E6TheDoctorsDaughter the Doctor's Daughter]] is one of the most influential characters both in-universe and out-of-universe. Many are still vouching for her return as a companion.

* The Eighth Doctor, despite only having 2 on-screen adventures, amounting to less than two hours of screentime, is very well liked due to Creator/PaulMcGann's performance. This is probably helped by his extensive audio adventures as well as the fact that his unexpected reappearance in "[[Recap/TheNightofTheDoctor The Night of the Doctor]]" drummed up interest in the character to the point that there were some fan petitions floating around trying to get back on TV with his own prequel show to the revival.
** Likewise, the War Doctor is also very popular even if he was only created exclusively for the 50th Anniversary - the fact he's played by Sir Creator/JohnHurt no doubt helps also.

* Captain Jack Harkness was popular enough to get his own show after just five episodes.

* Bernice Summerfield made her debut in Literature/DoctorWhoNewAdventures and proved so popular that she got her own book series - Literature/TheBerniceSummerfieldAdventures.

* Craig Owens, the Doctor's roommate in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E11TheLodger The Lodger]]", who gained a lot of popularity based on the excellent chemistry between Creator/JamesCorden and Creator/MattSmith. People were happy when it was announced that the Doctor would go back and visit him.

* Brian Williams, Rory's BumblingDad.

* Perkins the train engineer from [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E8MummyOnTheOrientExpress "Mummy On The Orient Express"]] is very popular, with many wishing he had accepted the Doctor's offer and became a companion.
* Clara's sort-of companion Rigsy, from [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E9Flatline "Flatline"]] and [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E10FaceTheRaven "Face the Raven"]], has quite a few fans.
* Bonnie, the Zygon leader from "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E7TheZygonInvasion The Zygon Invasion]]" / "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E8TheZygonInversion The Zygon Inversion]]", is loved both by fans and the cast. Her "Evil Clara" masquerade might just be Creator/JennaColeman's most popular character on the show, with even Clara haters taking a liking to her! And with [[spoiler: her Heel-Face Turn turning her into the new Osgood "sister"]], Bonnie will have a special place in expanded universe media for years to come.

* Erica the botanist from [[Recap/DoctorWhoS36E7ThePyramidAtTheEndOfTheWorld "The Pyramid at the End of the World." She was widely noted as being far more likable and competent than Bill in this particular episode, and accordingly a lot of fans wished she could become a companion at some point. Also very popular was the casting of dwarf actress Rachel Denning, despite the role as written having nothing requiring a non-average height.

* Despite the fact that only under a minute of footage of the villainous duo of Quill and Oak survives from the missing episode "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS5E6FuryFromTheDeep Fury from the Deep]]", the chilling scene of them [[spoiler:attacking Maggie Harris]] has cemented them as two of the most iconic villains in the show's history.

* Griffin the Chef from "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS5E4TheEnemyOfTheWorld]]". His constant pessimism and regarding the crazy world around him with resigned acceptance does a quite lot to endear him to the audience.

* Despite Sharaz Jek only appearing in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS21E6TheCavesOfAndrozani The Caves of Androzani]]" [[spoiler:and dying in the final episode]], he's arguably one of the most popular side characters in the show's history.

* Despite Sharaz Jek only appearing in ''[[Recap/DoctorWhoS21E6TheCavesOfAndrozani The Caves of Androzani]]'' [[spoiler:and dying in the final episode]], he's arguably one of the most popular side characters in the show's history.
* Bill Filer and Pigbin Josh of "The Claws of Axos" have received their own little fan-gatherings.

* The Eighth Doctor, despite only having 2 on-screen adventures, amounting to less than two hours of screentime, is very well liked due to Creator/PaulMcGann's performance. This is probably helped by his extensive audio adventures as well as the fact that his unexpected reappearance in ''[[Recap/TheNightofTheDoctor The Night of the Doctor]]'' drummed up interest in the character to the point that there were some fan petitions floating around trying to get back on TV with his own prequel show to the revival.

* Despite the fact that only under a minute of footage of the villainous duo of Quill and Oak survives from the missing episode "Fury from the Deep," the chilling scene of them [[spoiler:attacking Maggie Harris]] has cemented them as two of the most iconic villains in the show's history.
* Jago and Litefoot from "The Talons of Weng-Chiang" were basically the Vastra and Jenny of the era. The BBC even considered giving them a spin-off. And they ended up getting one in ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho''.

* The Adipose babies from "Partners in Crime". Tumblr fans post pictures of themselves with the cute little walking fat!
* Within just one episode, the Weeping Angels were heavily regarded as the show's most terrifying villains. Even more so than the Daleks, just from the sheer [[ParanoiaFuel paranoia factor]]. Time of the Angels/Flesh and Stone only ''increased'' their popularity (except among certain fans who screamed "ruined" at some of the changes).
** Yet another creation from "Blink" is also widely beloved: Sally Sparrow. The character is often mooted as a possible future companion of The Doctor.
* Jethro Cane. "We've broken down! ''In the middle of nowhere!''" Possibly due to the fact his actor is Series/{{Merlin|2008}}.
* "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead"'s MonsterOfTheWeek, the Vashta Narada, have turned out to be one of the most popular in the ''entire new run'', arguably only being bested by the Weeping Angels. A loyal section of the fanbase has been clamoring for their return.

* Wilfred Mott. He attacked a Dalek with a ''paint gun''. He was so popular that he was brought back as the Doctor's companion for ''The End of Time''.

* Craig Owens, the Doctor's roommate in "The Lodger", who gained a lot of popularity based on the excellent chemistry between James Corden and Matt Smith. People were happy when it was announced that the Doctor would go back and visit him.

* Canton Delaware III, partly because it's very hard to forget an ex-FBI agent from 1969 who wants to marry a ''black man''. The fact he's a competent and intelligent American (See AcceptableTargets above) may help.

* Journey Blue from "Into the Dalek". She proved to be so immensely popular after the episode's release that a not-insignificant number of fans have since been calling for her to become a companion -- which is to say nothing of the people who took immediately to shipping her with Clara.
* Rusty the good-not-good Dalek from the above episode. The fact that the scene featuring [[spoiler: the character's death]] was removed from the final cut suggests the writers were aware of this.
* Robin Hood from "Robot of Sherwood", due to his LargeHam tendencies and HiddenDepths at the end of the episode.
* Adding to the list of Darkhorses provided by Series 8, there's both Psi and Saibra from ''Time Heist'' and Shona from "Last Christmas", the latter especially being pegged as a potential future companion.

** Her right-hand woman Osgood, GenreSavvy {{Cosplay}}ing Fangirl [[AudienceSurrogate surrogate]] extraordinaire, is one in her own right, which led to a fan ''outrage'' when [[spoiler: she was killed off]] in Series 8. She returned for Series 9 despite this, with the reveal that [[spoiler: she and her Zygon double from "The Day of the Doctor" became "sisters", so there was still one around all along. Which one? She's not saying yet]], and got to be the Doctor's temporary companion for a two-parter. Now she's in Big Finish too!

* Bonnie, the Zygon leader from "The Zygon Invasion"/"The Zygon Inversion", is loved both by fans and the cast. Her "Evil Clara" masquerade might just be Creator/JennaColeman's most popular character on the show, with even Clara haters taking a liking to her! And with [[spoiler: her Heel-Face Turn turning her into the new Osgood "sister"]], Bonnie will have a special place in expanded universe media for years to come.

* Kate Stewart, because not only is she the Brig's daughter, she's a Badass scientist and quite the snarker. She even had the honor of being the first character from the revival to show up in the Big Finish 'verse in her very own UNIT based spinoff like her dad before her.

* Madame Vastra, the [[TryToFitThatOnABusinessCard Lesbian Victorian Silurian Detective]] and her wife/servant Jenny are incredibly popular, with the fandom begging for a spin-off.
* Strax, the disgraced Sontaran Warrior forced to become a ''nurse'', and later Vastra and Jenny's ''butler'' in Victorian London. Despite his new station he has lost ''none'' of his ProudWarriorRaceGuy tendencies and [[AffablyEvil casually informs]] people he's healing that he hopes to destroy them for the Empire one day. He's also been genetically altered to [[MrSeahorse produce breast-milk for infants]] and has ''[[CrowningMomentOfFunny declared war on the moon]].'' Pretty much any scene with him is an automatic laugh.
** The BBC clearly likes him too--he's been giving "field reports" on Youtube about how weird Earth is.

* Journey Blue from "Into the Dalek". She proved to be so immensely popular after the episode's release that a not-insignificant number of fans have since been calling for her to become a companion - which is to say nothing of the people who took immediately to shipping her with Clara.

* Adding to the list of Darkhorses provided by Series 8, there's both Psi and Saibra from ''Time Heist'' and Shona from ''Last Christmas'', the latter especially being pegged as a potential future companion.

** Her right-hand woman Osgood, GenreSavvy {{Cosplay}}ing Fangirl [[AudienceSurrogate surrogate]] extraordinaire, is one in her own right, which led to a fan ''outrage'' when [[spoiler: she was killed off.]] She returned for Series 9 despite this.

* Bonnie, the Zygon leader from "The Zygon Invasion", is loved both by fans and the cast. Her role as "Evil Clara" was Creator/JennaColeman's most popular character on the show for a long time, with even Clara haters taking a liking for her.

* Despite only appearing in one book, "Engines of War", Cinder the Dalek Hunter has become quite popular, [[spoiler:considering she gets killed off in that book]].

* Bonnie, the Zygon leader from "The Zygon Invasion", is loved both by fans and the cast. Her role as "Evil Clara" was Creator/JennaColeman's most popular character on the show for a long time.

* The Zygons only appeared once during the Classic Series (and a few times in the Expanded Universe) but are one of the most popular monsters, Creator/DavidTennant having cited them as his favorite monster. They were the main monsters in the 50th anniversary special [[spoiler:and will return for the 2015 series]].

* Jethro Cane. "We've broken down! ''In the middle of nowhere!''" Possibly due to the fact he's Series/{{Merlin}}.

* Eleven's Fez.
** And his bow tie. [[MemeticMutation Both are cool.]]

* Madame Vastra, the [[TryToFitThatOnABusinessCard Lesbian Victorian Silurian Detective]] and her wife/servant are incredibly popular, with the fandom begging for a spin-off.
* Strax, the disgraced Sontaran Warrior forced to become a ''nurse'', and later Vastra and Jenny's ''butler'' in Victorian London. Despite his new station he has lost ''none'' of his ProudWarriorRaceGuy tendencies and [[AffablyEvil casually informs]] people he's healing that he hopes to destroy them for the Empire one day. He's also been genetically altered to [[MrSeahorse produce breast-milk for infants]] and has ''[[CrowningMomentOfFunny declared war on the moon]].'' Pretty much any scene with him is an automatic CrowningMomentOfFunny.

** Her right-hand woman Osgood, GenreSavvy {{Cosplay}}ing Fangirl [[AudienceSurrogate surrogate]] extraordinaire, is one in her own right, which led to a fan ''outrage'' when [[spoiler: she was killed off. So much so that an announcement was made that she would be back for the next season!]]

* Bonnie, the Zygon leader from "The Zygon Invasion", is loved both by fans and the cast. Her role as "Evil Clara" was [[Creator/JennaLouiseColeman Jenna Coleman's]] most popular character on the show for a long time.

[[folder: Extended Universe Debut]]