When the BBC revived the popular television program Doctor Who back in , it quickly transcended its campy history and became an international pop-culture phenomenon. Almost always, The Doctor travels with a human companion, and together they fight villains most notably, the robotic and tank-like Daleks , aid the people of Earth during their times of need which is often , and partake in fun adventures together. More than often, the companion is a young woman.
As of last year, Blackpool-raised, year-old British actress Jenna Coleman has played that coveted role. Following her acting debut and three-year tenure in the long-running British soap opera Emmerdale and a short stint in the television drama Waterloo Road, Coleman packed up and relocated to Los Angeles to try her luck in America.
In , she turned up in a blink-and-you-missed-it role in Captain America: The First Avenger as Connie, a sweet girl with a s transatlantic twang. Albeit brief, this exposure was exactly what she needed. Flash-forward or, rather, re-materialize in the TARDIS a year later, and with a little perseverance and luck, she landed one of the most iconic roles in the sci-fi universe.
As Clara Oswald, Coleman is a fierce, fast-talking and headstrong companion whose no-nonsense and flirty demeanor has earned her massive praise in the Who-niverse. We spoke with the charming and slightly jet-lagged actress last week at the Bryant Park Hotel in Manhattan. When I was 14, I moved to a different school and they had a theater company there. So we use to put on plays, but kind of operated outside of the school, like a touring theater company. I auditioned for drama school and then, luckily, I got my first job.
IVIE: Did you look up to any actors as inspiration during that development period in your youth? I actually went to see this actress that I knew in it, called Helen McCrory. She was absolutely electrifying.
