Voyage of the Damned (Doctor Who) Who" by the Australian singer and actress Kylie Minogue, who plays the waitress Astrid Peth. Executive producer and writer Russell T Davies described her casting as a "very exceptional case", having written the part of Astrid specifically for Minogue. On its original airdate, "Voyage of the Damned" was watched by 13.31 million viewers, the highest viewing figure for "Doctor Who" since the 1979 serial "City of Death" and still the highest viewership of any episode since the show's revival. It was the second most-watched programme of 2007, beaten only by the episode of "EastEnders" which aired immediately after it. Critical
Astrid Peth be the next companion after Martha Jones (played by Freema Agyeman) on 14 August 2007. Astrid's surname, Peth, was confirmed in the Christmas edition of "Radio Times". Davies has stated that the character was always going to be a "one-off" even before Minogue was cast and that Astrid would demonstrate "a whole new take – again – on what a companion can be". The name Astrid Peth generated some speculation before the episode's broadcast over the findings that "Astrid" is an anagram of "TARDIS", and that "Peth" means "thing" in Welsh. However, the episode established no such connection. On "Doctor