Clara Oswald (2024)

Clara Oswald is a major character in the Eleventh Doctor's era and the deuteragonist of the Twelfth Doctor's era of the revival series of Doctor Who, specifically as the deuteragonist of Series 7, 8 and 9. She was a companion of the Eleventh and Twelfth Doctor and when not traveling with him was a teacher at Coal Hill School which, by some bizarre coincidence, was the same school the Doctor's granddaughter Susan attended and his first human companions Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright worked.

She was played by Jenna Coleman, who also voices Melia Antiqua in the Xenoblade Chronicles series.

Biography[]

Clara was born on 23 November 1986 to Dave and Ellie Oswald as their only child. She briefly encountered the Eleventh Doctor twice in childhood: first with her parents and second at a swing park where he (unaware who she was) told Clara about a friend he was looking for. On 5 March 2005, Clara was saddened when Ellie died at aged 44 (as shown on her gravestone) and was comforted by Dave at the graveyard whilst being watched from a distance by the Doctor's eleven incarnation.

Initially invited on board the TARDIS by the Doctor due to the latter's desire to uncover the mystery behind her (he had noticed her twice before in different times and she had died both times), it was eventually revealed this was the result of her entering the Doctor's timeline to reverse the work of the Great Intelligence, creating thousands, if not millions of copies of herself to undo all the damage.

In Series 8, Clara was at first uneasy with the Doctor regenerating and being different from his previous incarnation. However, she was contacted by the Eleventh Doctor (who was nearing regeneration) who convinced her to give his new incarnation a chance. Also in this series, Clara met and started a relationship with Coal Hill's new maths teacher Danny Pink. But in the episode Dark Water, Danny dies after being hit by a car whilst crossing a road whilst talking to Clara on his mobile, to Clara's sadness.

However, he was revived as a Cyberman, but he sacrificed himself to stop the Cybermen taking over Earth and used Missy's bracelet to send a young boy he accidentally killed during his days as a soldier, back to Earth rather than himself. After being attacked by a Dream Crab (Kantrofarri), Clara dreamt about spending Christmas with Danny and believed it was real until the Doctor appeared and told her it was a dream. After the Dream Crabs (Kantrofarri) were defeated, Clara accepted the Doctor's offer to continue travelling with him.

In the Series 9 episode Face The Raven, Clara died after sacrificing herself to an alien being called The Quantum Shade (which had taken the form of a raven) in place of her friend Rigsy. She appeared in the Doctor's imagination in the following episode "Heaven Sent".

However, in the Series 9 finale Hell Bent, the Doctor traveled to his home planet Gallifrey and was able to save Clara by removing her from her own timeline, but this resulted in her being without a pulse, heartbeat or needing to breathe and also made her ageless. The Doctor had planned to erase Clara's memories of him with a neutral block to protect her from The Time Lords, but due to Clara reversing the polarity of the neutral block (which the Doctor thought was impossible), the Doctor's memories of Clara were erased instead (with the exception of her name and bits of their adventures together). Following this, Clara along with Ashildr (an immortal Viking she and the Doctor met in the episode "The Girl Who Died") went on travels in their own Tardis (which took the form of an American diner the Doctor went to with his previous companions Amy Pond and Rory Williams) after deciding to go back to Gallifrey (as her death is a fixed point in time) "the long way round".

In the 2017 Christmas special "Twice Upon A Time", a glass avatar of Bill Potts restored memories of Clara to the Doctor (who was nearing regeneration), causing him to see a vision of her wishing him a Merry Christmas and tells him not to forget her again.

Personality[]

Clara was a very feisty, brave, clever and warm-hearted young lady with a sharp wit and a thirst for adventure. During her first encounter with the Doctor from her point of view, she was somewhat reserved and didn't reveal her true feelings easily. Although she was noted for being very clever, she had nocomputerskills at first, only becoming a computer genius after being uploaded into theWi-Fi by aSpoonhead. She was wary of the Doctor at first, believing him to be some kind of internet freak. She was also very good at looking after children. She followedMerry Galel, a small lost child, to help her find her way. This demonstrated her impulsive inclination to help children, also proved by her becoming a nanny (and later a school teacher). However, she thought things through carefully at first, as shown when she didn't instantly agree to join the Doctor on his adventures and told him to come back the next day. Clara was also quite cautious at first and was unsure what to make of the Doctor's bizarre personality. Clara was flirtatious, but during her first adventure with the Doctor she seemed to react to situations rather than initiate them, unlike her other more proactive incarnations. She seemed touched that the Doctor was guarding her, although she was unsure what the danger was. As time went on, however, and she adapted to life with the Doctor, she developed a reckless streak; when the Doctor told her that that anything could happen to her when traveling with him, she merely replied "That's what I'm counting on." She also became more curious, as shown when she opened a door with an explosion, which she admitted to herself was a bad decision.

Clara had close relationships withher motherandfather, and kept the leaf that had started their relationship for many years after her mother's death. Clara had a great strength of character and was very brave and selfless, even more so than the Doctor at times. She was easily willing to give up things extremely important in order to save people she hardly knew. Although she was frightened of Akhaten, she showed great courage by standing up to it and helping the Doctor defeat it. She gave up both her leaf and her mother's ring in order to defeat the Old God, although she later got the ring back. Clara's selfless and loyal nature led her to make a huge sacrifice for the Doctor by jumping into his time stream to save him from the wrath of theGreat Intelligence, even afterRiver Songtold her that her real self would die (which she admits not long after as an erroneous estimate of the situation), leaving only echoes. The Doctor shortly thereafter jumped in to save her. Her selflessness was reflected by her echoes, especially her Dalek-self who brought down the shields of the Asylum, allowing the Doctor to complete his mission of destroying it and escaping with Amy and Rory. Clara was also humble and had no interest in being queen of the galaxies, gently refusingPorridge's offer ofmarriage

Clara was also very caring and compassionate. She felt genuinely sorry for theIce WarriorSkaldak when she was told about the death of his daughter and later managed to convince him not to destroy theEarthby reminding him of how many daughters he would kill. She was also disgusted byWinifred Gillyflower's abuse of her daughter,Adaand comfortedPorridgewhen he said he felt like a monster. She also assuredRobin Hoodthat he would be reunited with his love, an instinct that turned out to be correct.

Clara was willing to stand up to people to defend her rights and disliked being seen as anything less than a person. When the Doctor later revealed that she reminded him of a "friend" who had died (actually the Victorian-era version of Clara herself), Clara told him that she would be happy to travel with him, but not if she were viewed as aghostof someone else. She said that she was a separate, unique individual, and wanted to be treated as such. Clara again showed her dislike of being seen as a "ghost" by the Doctor when the two travelled throughout theEarth's history, and the Doctor compared life in the TARDIS to being outside of time. She felt rather emotional about seeing the entire life cycle of Earth and wondered if her body was in the ground somewhere. Her willingness to defend her rights was also shown when she scolded theTwelfth Doctorfor abandoning her and forcing her to make an extremely difficult decision about whether or not to let the creature that emerged fromthe Moonlive, especially since he knew all along that the creature was harmless. She claimed that it wasn't his right to patronize humanity and that, since he breathed their air, it was his responsibility to help them out when they needed it. This shows that she was willing to be blunt towards a friend when she felt that they had crossed a line.

Clara initially dislikedthe TARDIS, calling her a "grumpy oldcow", in reaction to the TARDIS' apparent dislike of her. Clara once confided to the Doctor that she felt the TARDIS was looking at her. However, she did try to be civil to the TARDIS, unless she was frustrated or desperate like when the Doctor was trapped in apocket universe, and apologised when she shook water all over her floor from her umbrella. She later kissed the TARDIS console when she thought that the TARDIS had brought her to the control room. After sacrificing herself for the Doctor on Trenzalore, Clara finally managed to earn the TARDIS' respect, being the only person apart from the Doctor known to be able to open and close her doors with a snap of her fingers. The TARDIS also extended its shields to protect her when she hung on to return to the Doctor, despite the fact that doing so slowed the TARDIS' travel severely.

Clara was quite observant, being the first person to notice that the ghost inCaliburn Housewas always in the same position and easily recognising a romantic attraction between two people, saying that Alec Palmer's feelings forEmma Graylingstuck out like "a big chin". Clara's keen sense of observation made her the first person to realise that Sweetville had a chimney that didn't blow smoke. She was also very resourceful and could use anything to her advantage, as shown by her use of a chair to smash Winifed Gillyflower's machine. Her resourcefulness was even enough to impress the Doctor, who remarked that 'chairs are useful'. Clara also had a knack for playing politics, as shown when she reminded Skaldak that he listened to her when she begged him to spareGrisenko's life and convinced theHalf-Face Manthat killing her would not help it in the slightest.

Clara was happy to try alien food in theFestival of Offerings, though she didn't like it. She could frequently be found making and drinking tea, but consideredwhiskeyto be "the eleventh most disgusting thing ever invented".

When alone, Clara would sometimes talk to herself just like the Doctor. Her curiosity even led her to learn the Doctor's true name, although she forgot it when the Doctor rewrote time. Clara was terrified when she was cornered by a mysterious zombie creature, and after the Doctor rescued her she punched him on the arm. She was shocked and devastated when she realised the burning zombie that had chased her was herself from an alternate reality.

When left in charge of a group of soldiers by the Doctor, Clara showed that she was a natural leader, adapting to the situation very quickly and keeping the soldiers in line. However, she did seem unprepared for the possibility of someone disobeying her. She was a good strategist and could use anything available to her advantage, using a cable to electrocute the Cybermen in a moat, although this idea failed due to the Cybermen's ability to upgrade their defences on the spot. Clara was very protective ofAngieandArtie Maitlandand at one point even referred to them as "my children", suggesting that she considered them to be her daughter and son, despite Angie constantly pointing out that she wasn't their mother. .

Despite their rather uneasy start, Clara and the Eleventh Doctor formed a strong bond very quickly. She also showed great trust in the Doctor, even after Emma Grayling warned her that he had "a sliver of ice in his heart". She viewed him as her best and most trusted friend, even going so far to sacrifice her own life for his safety. Throughout their adventures, Clara and the Doctor apparently never discussed the Doctor's attraction to Clara, and she appeared to appreciate the signs of affection he occasionally showed her, although she once said in one of their earlier adventures that she didn't see the Doctor as a love interest. However, over the course of their adventures together, they developed something akin to a relationship. Clara also once remarked that she really enjoyed hugging the Doctor. The idea of personal space was constantly forgotten between the two of them. After the events that transpired at his tomb at Trenzalore, Clara and the Eleventh Doctor apparently grew much closer and trusting to each other, with the latter showing an enormous amount of trust in Clara. Although Clara was aware that he had wiped out his own people and the Daleks to end the Time War, she had never been able to picture his eleventh incarnation doing it, and persuaded him to reconsider the decision he made that day. She often poked fun at the Doctor with a flirtatious undertone, rather enjoying seeing him squirm. Clara later admitted she fancied the Doctor while under the influence of aTruth Field, however, she was able to lie in spite of the Truth Field, and refused to accept his impending death. Her pleading to the Time Lords to help caused them to intervene and save the Doctor by granting him moreregenerations, after what she tell that his name is the Doctor. However, his regeneration saddened her deeply, as she had formed a strong bond with this particular incarnation of the Doctor and the idea of the Eleventh Doctor dying distressed her greatly. Before he changed, she reached out for him and begged him not to change. TheTwelfth Doctorlater indicated that the Eleventh Doctor thought of himself as Clara's boyfriend as the Twelfth Doctor clarified to Clara that "I'm not your boyfriend" and that it wasn'ther mistake he was referring to when he said that. At the same time, Clara told him that she never thought the Doctor was.

According to Strax' medical evaluation, Clara had travelled with the Eleventh Doctor for approximately three years; by the time of the Eleventh Doctor's regeneration, she was 27 years old. She viewed this particular incarnation as "her" Doctor and shared a strong bond with him. However, this later transpired as a problem when his next incarnation proved to be vastly different than his predecessor. Clara appeared to be in slight denial of his regeneration and struggled for a while with losing "her" Doctor. She also appeared to have been ready to stop travelling with the Doctor after his regeneration and first adventure, claiming that she "[wasn't] sure who the Doctor [was] any more". However, the Eleventh Doctor phoned Clara, reassured her about his next incarnation and said his goodbyes to her. This led to Clara finally accepting the new Doctor and agreeing to stay on with him. However, she still took a while to get used to the new Doctor and even went so far as to slap him once.

Although River stated that her echoes were not therealClara, each of them still possessed similar personalities, notably her quick witted, intelligent, selfless, brave and flirtatious nature, her dedication to helping children and anyone else in need, and her love of soufflés. However, there were some subtle differences in each incarnation.

She wasn't a fan of boy bands in spite ofLindaclaiming that everyone her age was. In fact, she had had a poster ofRomanEmperorMarcus Aureliuson her bedroom wall when she was fifteen. (This fact she used when she as a proof that she was much elder than she look like).

Clara implied that her feistiness was partly due to her home town beingBlackpool. When questioned bySheriff of Nottinghamin1190, she told him that "you can take the girl out of Blackpool".

Clara loved Sunday School, but hated snakes. She also enjoyed reading books, as various tabletops in her room were covered with them. One of her favourite books was101 Places to See, a keepsake book that previously belonged to her mother. She was also an admirer of the children's novelSummer FallsbyAmelia Williams(unaware that it was written by a former companion of the Doctor's). She had a keen interest to travel, as that was what she intended to do after her brief visit to the Maitlands, although after the children's mother died, she decided to stay and help look after the children in return. Clara enjoyed baking too, determined to master her mother's soufflé frequently, although the results never turned out how she planned. She insisted that she would be "soufflé girl" and that "the soufflé [wasn't] the soufflé; the soufflé [was] the recipe", something that she had learnt from her mother, to whichAngie Maitlandreacted saying that she thought her mother was "deep on puddings". That love of soufflés carried over to her Oswin Oswald echo and proved pivotal to forcing her to remember what had happened to her and, to a lesser extent, her Clara Oswin Oswald echo. Likewise, she had trouble cooking a Christmas turkey for her family, and had to call the Doctor for help. Clara showed an interest in the life of the pilotAmy Johnson, and her knowledge that Johnson's body had never been found allowed the Doctor to rescue her as she drowned.

Despite her compassion and strong morals, her travels with the Doctor changed her, numbing her in a way to the requirements and challenges of a normal human life, such as when she declared Danny's death to be boring, or when she eagerly jumped on the TARDIS to witness the solar storm, forgetting her duties to her students. Some of the Doctor's inhuman traits rubbed off on her, especially in moments where she took on the role of the Doctor. She told Rigsy to forget George when he was taken by the Boneless. When Clara usedRudy Zoom's mind and its absence of self-loathing as a weapon against theUmbra, she didn't know for certain if the plan would have worked, but knew it was at least worth a try. The Twelfth Doctor, claiming that Clara wasn't aware of this, pointed out that she was "definitely" starting to think like him. Her grief over Danny's death drove her to the limits of her loyalty and enabled her to betray the Doctor's trust for her own selfish reasons. In the end, she resembled the Doctor at his darkest, using her clever mind in a ruthless manner, though this is lessened somewhat by the fact that she blamed herself for Danny's death. Furthermore, she immediately regretted her decision afterwards, believing that she had betrayed the Doctor which he acknowledged although he assured her that it didn't make a difference. After this incident, she made a vow to never compromise her kindness and honesty to others ever again.

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

• Clara has some heteroflexible interest in women; having said Jane Austen was a phenomenal kisser. Her splinter self Oswin mentioned dating a girl named Nina, but it was "a phase".
  • When Strax saw into her subconscious, he saw "muscular young men doing sport"; seeing as Strax has the gender names reversed, it implies Clara finds well toned women attractive.
• Two things that were left unstated about Clara's loved ones
  • What her mother died of. Many assume the Auton attack in Series One was the cause; the date of the attack IS the date Mrs. Oswald died.
  • If Mrs. Maitland was the woman in the cemetery with Clara when she stood by her Victorian era copy's grave.
• Clara mentions the Twelfth Doctor leaving her in Glasgow was "dead in a ditch"; implying her family thought she was dead on Christmas due to being a fourth of the day away from her home.
• Clara is a good example of what happens to companions with the Doctor who are the singular passenger on his travels; having more than one companion helps maintain their sensitivity. She's become so desensitized to death that when Danny, her boyfriend, died all she could say that it was boring.
• The reason Clara ended up with the Doctor was all due to Missy and the Hybrid Prophecy. It nearly drove the Doctor insane as he attempted to save her life after the Time Lords indirectly killed her in a convoluted plan to Interrogate the Doctor about the prophecy; bringing it to fruiton.
  • Ironically Romana similarly ended up in the Doctor's company, but in the reverse of many aspects.
  • This is why the TARDIS didnt like her at first, since it knew the future. But it ceased hostility after Clara helped get the Doctor more regenerations.
• Clara learned several lessons from the Doctor in how to deal with people in their adventures: especially when she had to take on his role in "Flatline".
  • Technically don't lie; use the truth in an obscure manner.
  • When a group is frightened and confused, assert strong confidence to make your authority be recognized; last thing you need is idiots making their own plans.
  • Trick your enemies into using their own resources against themselves.
  • It's okay to be compassionate, but not during a crisis; mourn losses after the threat is over with.

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