She was heavily solicited to convert Samantha into a regular companion to replace Polly. Despite personal appeals by Innes Lloyd and even Frazer Hines, however, she declined the offer. According to David Tennant on the DVD commentary for The Idiot's Lantern, she holds the record for the most amount of time between appearances on Doctor Who, narrowly edging Margaret John. She is one of the few Oscar-nominated actresses to appear in Doctor Who.