Liz Shaw

Liz, as she appears in Doctor Who and the Silurians

Dr **Elizabeth "Liz" Shaw** was a companion of the Third Doctor.

An accomplished scientist, Liz became a civilian member of UNIT and an assistant to the Doctor before deciding to return to the University of Cambridge.

## Biography

### Early life

Liz studied at the Universtiy of Cambridge. She had a degree in Physics (TV: *Spearhead from Space*) and could speak French to at least a reasonable degree of proficiency. (TV: *The Ambassadors of Death*) Following her graduation, she remained at Cambridge leading research programmes. (TV: *Spearhead from Space*)

### Career at UNIT

#### Meeting the Doctor

Liz was called by Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart to UNIT headquarters in London and offered the job as their scientific advisor, an offer that she had no interest in accepting due to a lack of interest in security work. However, she changed her mind after meeting the Third Doctor, assisting him in investigating the Nestenes and killing them with a machine. (TV: *Spearhead from Space*)

#### Assisting the Doctor

At the Wenley Moor nuclear research facility, Liz, the Doctor and the Brigadier investigated the Silurians. Liz and the Doctor rushed to find a cure to a Silurian virus that Morka released into England, after which Liz gave the formula away to be mass-produced. She overloaded the Silurians' molecular disperser on the Doctor's instructions to save the van Allen Belt and watched with the Doctor as the Brigadier blew up the Silurians' base. (TV: *Doctor Who and the Silurians*)

She worked on Recovery 7 and was kidnapped by General George Carrington's men and forced to use her skills to monitor the life signs of the alien ambassadors and work on a communication device with the Doctor. The pair were rescued when the Doctor sent an S.O.S. to UNIT (TV: *The Ambassadors of Death*)

Liz investigated the Inferno Project with UNIT and looked after the Doctor when he returned form the Inferno Earth. (TV: *Inferno*) Upon returning back to UNIT HQ, she and the Doctor were attacked by anti-matter beings, in reality Cybermen looking to destroy the Doctor's timeline. She and the Doctor were saved by the timely arrival of Bernice Summerfield, whom they joined in order to rescue the Doctor's various other incarnations. During these events, she killed the partially converted Sontaran Srik by shooting him in his probic vent to save the Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith, and also helped Ace recuperate from an attack by the Body-snatchers. She eventually travelled to Old Marley to help the Doctor fight off the Cybermen, meeting an older Brigadier in the process. Following the Cybermen's defeat, she and the Third Doctor were dropped off at UNIT HQ by the Eighth Doctor, Benny and the Brigadier. (TV: *Destiny*)

### Legacy

The Seventh Doctor gave Liz's UNIT pass to Ace. It was stored in his hat. (TV: *Battlefield*)

## Alternate versions

On the Inferno Earth, Liz's counterpart worked under Brigade Leader Lethbridge-Stewart as Section Leader Elizabeth Shaw. (TV: *Inferno*)

## Personality

Liz was a sceptic who claimed to deal with facts, a trait which the Brigadier found could be aggravating. As she had not asked to be brought to UNIT, she initially acted severely and made her discontent known. She was vastly intelligent and learned in a number of different fields, although her intelligence did not make her immune to being tricked by the Doctor, who fooled her into giving him his TARDIS key. (TV: *Spearhead from Space*) The Doctor respected her for her intelligence, with the Eighth Doctor telling Norman Manning that she was "one of the smartest people I've ever known" when trying to convince him that he was not mad. (TV: *Nothing*)

## Appearance

Liz had blue eyes (TV: *Spearhead from Space*, etc.) and auburn (PROSE: *The Ambassadors of Death*) or reddish-brown hair. (PROSE: *Inferno*) She was serious-looking (PROSE: *Inferno*) and attractive "in a rather severe sort of way". (PROSE: *The Ambassadors of Death*)

## Behind the Scenes

* Liz Shaw is the first companion following the programme's move to colour, and as of 2022 the earliest companion without any missing episodes.
* Despite being a doctor, Liz was consistently referred to as "Miss Shaw" rather than "Dr Shaw" on the programme.
* Caroline John wore a blonde wig for *The Ambassadors of Death* and *Inferno*, and wore a darker coloured wig for the part of Section Leader Elizabeth Shaw.
* Caroline John took the time to learn terminology appropriate to Liz's background, only to find that *Doctor Who* barely took its science seriously.
* She was written out of the show because Barry Letts felt that she was too overqualified to be merely the Doctor's assistant. Caroline John misunderstood the reasons for her termination, assuming that Letts was dissatisfied with her acting; it was only years later that she learned the truth.

## Appearances

### Season 7

* *Spearhead from Space*
* *Doctor Who and the Silurians*
* *The Ambassadors of Death*
* *Inferno*