Karen Gillan Karen Sheila Gillan ( born 28 November 1987 in Inverness , Scotland ) played the Soothsayer in the " Doctor Who " television story " The Fires of Pompeii " and Amy Pond between series 5 and 7 of " Doctor Who " . She was the first companion actress since Billie Piper to appear as a regular in two consecutive seasons and the first since Sophie Aldred to appear with the same Doctor for more than one season . Biography . Early life . Gillan was born and raised in Inverness , Scotland . Her father , Raymond John , a day centre manager , and mother , Marie , lived in Kinmylies . She attended school at Charleston Academy , formally known as Inverness High School . When she was sixteen , Karen decided to pursue her acting career . She studied acting at Edinburgh ' s Telford College . Later , she secured a place at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts drama school in London on the BA ( Hons ) Acting degree course . Career . Before " Doctor Who " . Gillan gained her first television role in Rebus while still studying at Italia Conti , and has since had parts in " The Kevin Bishop Show " , Channel 4 ' s " Stacked " and James Nesbitt ' s forthcoming film " Outcast " . On " The Kevin Bishop Show " , Gillan played several roles in skits , including one in which she parodied both Angelina Jolie and Jolie ' s interpretation of video game heroine Lara Croft . She has also lampooned Julia Roberts ' role in " Pretty Woman " and pop singer Katy Perry . Standing 5 ' 10 , Gillan is the tallest actress to be cast in the companion role . When not acting , she has taken advantage of her height to take on occasional modelling roles , including 2007 London Fashion Week for designer Allegra Hicks ' autumn / winter catwalk show . " The Well " . Gillan also starred in the BBC ' s interactive digital thriller " The Well " in 2009 as Coll with Jo Woodcock , ( Beth ) Issac Ssebandeke , ( Ivan ) and Greg Foreman ( Luis ) . " Doctor Who " . In 2008 , Gillan had her first direct involvement with the " Doctor Who " franchise when she portrayed the Soothsayer in the series 4 episode " The Fires of Pompeii " . Following the departure of Catherine Tate from the series and the announcement that David Tennant was leaving the programme in 2009 , speculation ran rampant as to who might play the Eleventh Doctor ' s companion . This speculation increased when young actor Matt Smith was cast as the Doctor . Gillan ' s casting as companion Amy Pond was announced on 29 May , 2009 by the BBC . When she went to be cast she had to use the words " panic moon " ( an anagram of companion ) . Writer and executive producer Steven Moffat described her as being " funny , and clever , and gorgeous , and sexy " . No further details of her character were released and , in fact , for several weeks only a first name was known , until the BBC later indicated the character ' s last name . Gillan said she won the audition hands down . She said she is thrilled to have been cast for the part . She is one of only a handful of actors to return to televised " Doctor Who " in an ongoing role after having previously appeared in a guest role . Others have included Colin Baker , Peter Purves , Jean Marsh , Nicholas Courtney , Ian Marter , Lalla Ward , Freema Agyeman , and Peter Capaldi ( plus David Tennant , who provided voice acting for Big Finish Productions audio dramas ) . Gillan shares some similarities with her predecessor , Catherine Tate . Aside from both being redheads , Gillan is also known for her comedy impersonations and had appeared on comedy TV series before joining the cast of " Doctor Who " . Gillan is not the only member of her family appearing on " Doctor Who " as her nine - year - old cousin , Caitlin Blackwood , portrayed Amy Pond as a child in " The Eleventh Hour " , " The Big Bang " , and " Let ' s Kill Hitler " . Gillan and Blackwood had never met before " Doctor Who " ; Blackwood grew up in Ireland and Gillan in Scotland . They first met at the first readthrough of series 5 . Gillan left " Doctor Who " along with her co - star Arthur Darvill at the end of the series 7 episode " The Angels Take Manhattan " , although the last episode she filmed was " The Power of Three " . She stated that she wanted Amy ' s departure to be " final " , thereby ruling out a return appearance . However , this turned out to be wrong as she did briefly return for a cameo in the 2013 Christmas special " The Time of the Doctor " to say goodbye to her co - star Matt Smith . After " Doctor Who " . Gillan ' s next big role was in " Marvel ' s Guardians of the Galaxy " , released in 2014 , playing Nebula . This required her to shave her hair off , causing a dramatic moment at the 2013 San Diego Comic Con when she removed her wig to reveal her bald head . In 2014 , she starred in a pilot for American network ABC called " Selfie " , a modernised version of the George Bernard Shaw play " Pygmalion . " The series premiered on 30 September , 2014 , but was cancelled on 7 November of that year after only part of the season had been broadcast . The remaining episodes were made available on VOD services . She is currently ( October 2016 ) filming the sequel to " Jumanji " in which she plays a character called Ruby Roundhouse .