i have been racking my brains trying to remember the circumstances in how tegan left the doctor for good. i hav even tried google searching, so asking in this forum is my last option! i wasnt even born in her era, but i watched loads of them on UK gold back in the day, and have a few VCR's, but i seem to remember Tegan leaving twice...? did she leave then return?

She left in "Resurrection of the Daleks" in 1984, having had enough of the death and destruction which follows the Doctor.

She did totter back after the Tardis dematerialised so... maybe she changed her mind?

Yep, she left twice.

She left at the end of one series (i'll have to look up the story) but then returned in the first story of the next series (Arc of Infinity).

She left a 2nd time in Ressurection of the Daleks.

Edit
The first time she left was in Time Flight, though it was more the Doctor assuming she wanted to stay in her own time than her choice.

Time-Flight.

I thought Tegan's departure was quite well done and convincing - indeed, both her departures were.

But she was such a stroppy cow that I never knew quite why she wanted to go travelling in the Tardis anyway.

Peri was the same in Season 22. It was like "not another alien planet!"

Oh god, yes. All she did was whine!

Agreed!

I found Tegan a little on the wooden side to begin with, but, as a character, she was well-developed and I was genuinely moved by her departure at the end of 'Resurrection'. A superb performance from Janet in that final scene!

Regards,

Cypher

maybe but she had damn fine legs

I think stroppiness was just Tegan's nature whether she wanted to be where she was or not (and remember during her first spell on the TARDIS she didn't want to be there; she wandered into it by accident and wanted the Doctor to return her to her own place and time. He wasn't too successful at getting there, though; he did get her to Heathrow once, but in the 17th century)

But did she have to nag, question and argue with him quite so much? About the only time I came close to liking or feeling sorry for her was in Resurrection of the Daleks when I did understand why she really wanted to leave. And even then she may have changed her mind afterwards.

I agree, fantastic legs!

No more stroppy than any of the new series companions IMO- I think she was a product of her time as they all are.

i think the dynamic between her and the Dr was fab

She comes back in the Big Finish audio drama "The Gathering".

She runs off in a huff at the end of Resurrection of the Daleks - the Doctor practically bundles Turlough into the TARDIS so they can leave before she changes her mind.

Tegan's character was one of the biggest surprises when I did my Big Rewatch a couple of years ago - I seem to recall liking her in 1981, but pretty much her only character trait was her ability to complain incessantly. Even after she leaves and returns, she's STILL whining all the time. And her costumes are awful (except that one in Enlightenment).

She looked stunning when she smiled, though - but Tegan never smiled if she could help it.

I was also surprised to find that I didn't like Jo Grant either, possibly as I knew the character from the books rather than the TV series and didn't have to put up with Katy Manning's excruciating wittle girl act.

I wasn't particularly surprised to learn that I still didn't like Adric, though...

Thinking about it, the only companion that actually works with the Fifth Doctor is Peri, who isn't around very long. Unfortunately, Peri doesn't work with the Sixth Doctor at all well, but then again, who would...?

Sadly, true. Though given what she was forced to wear, she didn't have a lot to smile about...
Maggie Stables as Evelyn Smythe in the audios. She and Colin are a great team. It helps that Colin has toned his performance down a notch, too.

so what were the circumstances around her first leaving then coming back again? its odd that she left at the end of an episode only to return the next! what was the point?

Contract negotiations?

Having spent a year whining about getting back to Heathrow Airport in 1981 as she had important Air Hostessing to do, the Doctor manages to do exactly that at the end of Time-Flight. He then practically bundles Nyssa in to the TARDIS and leaves without saying goodbye in case Tegan changes her mind.

Taking up her Air Hostessing job, Tegan is almost immediately sacked as her only personality traits are being stroppy and whining. She then goes to visit her cousin who for some reason is in Amsterdam involved in the malevolent machinations of the Renegade Time Lord, Omega, and his Giant Anti-Matter Chicken Man. The Doctor puts a stop to this sort of thing, and Tegan returns to the TARDIS crew. 'You're not getting rid of me that easily!' she says, to the Doctor's horror...

And ours...

Presumably yes, she hadn't signed for the next season yet when Time Flight was filmed.

And a few more stories later this year.

is time-flight released on dvd? if so wheres best to buy?

as usual Amazon or play.com (or lovefilm and a VCR)..
e.g.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000R20VK...SIN=B000R20VKA