For 60 years now the BBC’s “Doctor Who” has fascinated viewers with its high-concept sci-fi storytelling, unparalleled mythology/world-building, and inadvertently terrifying bad special effects.
Fans of the show know that the Doctor and his/her rotating cast of companions have been present for and even played key roles in some of the most significant events in human history. It goes without saying that they must have been heavily involved with first-wave punk.
We’ve put together a list of every Doctor incarnation and companion, and ranked them by how frequently they could be spotted hanging out at the cradle of punk, CBGB, during its most important decades.
52. Dan
Okay look, we watched every episode this dude is in, and we have no idea who he is, okay?
51. 1st Doctor
The OG Doctor wasn’t much one for punk or anything really. It seems like Time Lords have a weird Benjamin Button thing going on where they start out as cantankerous oldsters and grow younger and more hip as they age.
50. Nardole
Nardole’s whole role was actively shaming the Doctor for traveling anywhere, constantly reminding him of his obligations on 21st-century Earth, but he particularly hated the 12th Doctor’s frequent trips to CBGB. He’s not big of loud noises, shoving, or anything remotely fun.
49. Donna Noble
Donna is way too posh for the early punk scene, she wouldn’t be caught dead anywhere near the Bowery.
48. Katarina
CBGB was no place for the religiously devout. Everyone knows that. Just thinking about some of the things members of the Ramones were doing in the bathroom at CBGB is enough to send you to hell.
47. Ian Chesterton
Ian is a straight-up coward, and the only time he even saw a punk he handed his wallet over without being told to do so.
46. Yaz
Narc.
45. Nyssa
The Doctor can be pretty aloof, but he knew well enough that his stuffy aristocratic companion would not feel at home in the Bowery.
44. Liz Shaw
We know what you’re thinking, “How could Liz Shaw have traveled to the future and gone to CBGB when she was the companion of the third Doctor after the Time Lords forced him to regenerate and crippled his TARDIS rendering it incapable of leaving Earth or traveling through time?” Well, guess what NERD… you are absolutely correct, she never went there, have a pleasant day.
43. Susan Foreman
One of the Doctor’s few Galifreyan companions, Susan just wasn’t much of a music person. She thrived more with complaining and just sort of being there.
42. 8th Doctor
He made a big splash on the New York punk scene at first but quickly disappeared due to licensing issues with FOX.
41. Barbara Wright
The punks scared her more than the Daleks.
40. 3rd Doctor
This was the Doctor in his most “foppish dandy meets someone’s dad” “-like incarnation. He materialized the TARDIS once in the middle of a Ramones set, stuck his head out, shook it disapprovingly, and never went back. More of a Beatles guy.
39. Clara Oswin Oswald
She never went to CBGB, instead using her TARDIS privileges and strong influence over the Doctor to see the entire Taylor Swift “Eras” tour twice.
38. Adric
He was just too arrogant for the scene. He kept saying things like “I don’t get it, they aren’t even playing the instruments with competency!” and then rushing the stage, grabbing a guitar, and shredding some technically proficient Jimmy Page-type solos. Read the room Adric, not gonna fly.
37. Dodo Chaplet
Or maybe she should be higher, it’s hard to say. Dodo only visited CBGB in the TARDIS once, and it was the last time anyone saw her.
36. 2nd Doctor
The first, and to date the last flute player for Dead Boys, but his tenure in the band was extremely short.
35. Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart
The Doctor took Stewart to CBGB once and he immediately called for reinforcements.
34. Ben Jackson
Ben was a British Navy man born in the ’40’s and took to the infant punk scene about as well as you would expect.
33. Kamelion
Never went to CBGB but, fun fact was a founding member of Daft Punk.
32. 11th Doctor
He didn’t not like punk, but the 11th Doctor liked way too many things to commit to any one thing for very long. He put in a few appearances at CBGB but spent just as much time with Elvis, The Rat Pack, The Beatles, The Temptations, he kinda treated pop culture like a bingo card he was trying to fill.
31. Polly Wright
She was one of the first human beings to witness the regeneration of a Time Lord and one of the few people to have seen Television’s infamous third show, both pretty significant milestones.
30. Melanie Bush
Her ability to scream drew attention and there was talk of building a band around her, but ultimately she couldn’t find the right vehicle. She was however and early pioneer in introducing veganism to the punk scene.