Sadly, her eyesight is deteriorating these days and has problems reading scripts and recognising faces.

bring back Clara!

Jar Jar Binks

I always thought jemima rooper would have made a good assistant.

Well for me, i want a multiple companion crew, which isn't going to happen though. And the companions are just friends they aren't in a relationship. It'd be awesome if one was an alien, a human and The Doctor. That would be fun

That never stopped Katy Manning back in the day.
How about this for a twist. Played by Neve McIntosh but no heavy make up.

Abslutely not. We only just got rid of her.

After a last "night" with River lasting 24 years, I'm wondering if the next companion will perhaps be a son or daughter?

Interesting idea. I love River so would like her to be his companion. If it can't be her, I just hope it's someone who is fun and exciting.

Totally agree! River would be perfect.

Debbie Dingle.

Lenora Crichlow. then Damien Molony as the next Doctor.

It's a lot more serious than short-sighted-ness.

Olivia de Havilland

I would like to see the next companion be a women in her early 40s, her off-spring daughter/son has just recently left home and is in university, she split from her husband (father of their child) years earlier.. she's unsatisfied with life and disillusioned with the world.

Enter the Doctor who shows her the wonder of travelling through time and space, the first few adventures buck up her zest for life once more. Her and the doctor have sarcastic but warm interplay.

Though she becomes close to the Doctor in a alien friend who takes me through time and space kind of way, she is ultimately wary of him, she knows and acknowledges that she is playing with fire by sharing the Doctors way of life, its dangerous and this sentiment is backed by her off-spring who she confines in when pit stopping back home, the daughter/son doesn't want their mother to be putting themselves in danger.

Ultimately she keeps on going against her off-spring pleas to not go with the Doctor and indeed the part of her head that says not too as-well.. but the pull of the amazing wonders of space and going through time is to much, she gets to see and experience things that no one else does or could even dream of doing, that's worth the risk and its time for her to do what she wants to do, she's brought up her daughter/son who is now going off into the world for themselves, she tried hard to be a good wife and still her marriage failed and caused her hurt, she's fed up with her job where she's not appreciated, so in her mind the risk is worth it to experience a different kind of life a unique life full of beauty horror and adventure...... and then she gets zapped by a Dalek.... and the Doctor has to go and tell the daughter/son what happened (possibly)

Failing that as they are likely to go with a companion(s) in their twenties, as that's TV thinking for you, I would like to see a brother and sister duo travel with the Doctor.

Someone like Donna, who isn't in love with the Doctor and is 30+. Also someone who doesn't steal screentime and stories from him. And not a couple, that didn't really work for me.
Maybe a female actor in their 50s or 60s, to really annoy the ageism brigade who like to complain that PC is too old!

Reading through this thread, I've seen a lot of comments I agree with.

Sheridan Smith would be my choice. She's got Who experience from the Big Finish stories and she was absolutely awesome on TV as both Mrs Biggs and Cilla. The only thing is that those two shows and some others have risen her status quite considerably and maybe committing to a Series for nine months etc would stop her doing as many of those type of productions.

I also agree that whoever the new companion, be it male or female, just stays with The Doctor and not keeping hopping on and off as if it was a bus or something. Let's get back to both Classic and Early New Who Series where they at least went from place to place and story to story for a while.

I always like it when the story and the characters are central and The Doctor and Companion just meld in with those characters and their story. That's why I got annoyed with the Clara/Danny storyline in Series 8. It just so detracted from the main story a lot of the episodes, though it did improve in Series 9.

I loved Frank Skinner when he was on. I think he would be brilliant!

Preferably not another female and preferably a non-human character.

I'm sure I didn't imagine seeing a Moffat quote recently about being concerned whether the budget would allow for the idea behind the next companion.

Not that I can find it now. I may have made it up. Or I could just be lying. I could be lying without knowing that I'm lying. Perhaps my entire existence has been one carefully planned moment after another all leading to this particular moment when I am able to spring this malicious deception on this thread.

Or I just can't find the source right now.

A 9-headed Hydra would make a nice change for once.

Here here. Another season with her would be nice. She makes up for the totally idiotic senseless plots of the last series.

Would be good. Intelligent and a good all round character.

Bring back Captain Jack for a few episodes - we need the mood lightening and the some action.

Not sure he's got the acting skills to be in a series of episodes.