Doctor Who (series 4) Astrid Peth, who died during the events of the episode. The companions in the regular series had all been in the lead companion role previously: the primary role of Donna Noble, who was introduced in "The Runaway Bride", was played by Catherine Tate for all thirteen episodes. Her return was announced by the BBC on 3 July 2007. Freema Agyeman, who portrayed the Doctor's companion Martha Jones in series three, returned for "The Sontaran Stratagem", "The Poison Sky", "The Doctor's Daughter", "The Stolen Earth" and "Journey's End". Billie Piper, who played Rose Tyler from the first episode of the new
Rose (Doctor Who episode) first appeared in the serial "Spearhead from Space" (1970), then reappeared on-screen in "Terror of the Autons" (1971). "Doctor Who" originally ran from 1963 to 1989, when it was cancelled after its twenty-sixth season. Television producer Russell T Davies had been lobbying the BBC in an attempt to revive the show from the late 1990s, and reached the discussion phase in 2002. It was announced in September 2003 that Doctor Who was returning and would be produced by BBC Wales via a BBC press release. The format of the programme was changed to 45-minute episodes, lightening the pace. Davies was