Bill Potts

Bill Potts was a companion of the Twelfth Doctor.

When she first encountered the Doctor, Bill was working as a canteen assistant at St Luke's University, seemingly destined for an unprivileged life. When free from work, she attended some of the Doctor's lectures at the university. The Doctor saw her unfulfilled potential and invited her for a series of personal tutoring sessions.

Following an encounter with a time-travelling puddle that was piloted by her friend Heather, Bill discovered who the Doctor really was — an alien time-traveller, guarding a secret vault beneath the university campus. The Doctor invited her to join him on a journey through space and time.

Before the Doctor
Bill's mother died when she was young, so she was brought up by a foster mother called Moira. (TV: The Pilot)

At St Luke's University
Later in life, Bill served chips at St Luke's University in Bristol, and — despite not being a student — attended some of the Doctor's lectures. Noticing her potential, he became her personal tutor.

During Christmas, Bill mentioned to the Doctor that she was "supposed to look" like her mother, but, as her mum rarely had any picture taken, Bill didn't really knew if she looked like her. When she went to the flat where she lived with her mother, Moira told her she had found a box with pictures of Bill's mum. On one of the photos, Bill could see the Doctor's reflection.

Over the course of her tutoring, Bill developed a crush on another student, Heather, who showed her a puddle that cast a reversed reflection. Bill asked Heather not to leave without her. As a result, when Heather was taken over by the puddle, she followed Bill home, so as not to leave without her.

Bill went to the Doctor's office, and then he brought her into the TARDIS. He tried to outrun the water creature, and finally travelled to a war zone in the Dalek-Movellan War. Bill realised she was being pursued as Heather had promised not to leave without her. On the Doctor's advice, she released Heather from her promise.

The Doctor took her back to the university, where Bill expressed regret at having turned down Heather's offer, with the Doctor telling her it was unlikely they would ever see each other again. When Bill knowingly looked at the TARDIS, the Doctor realised what she was suggesting and made her stand close to him, intending to wipe her memory of these events, but she convinced him not to. He then agreed to take Bill with him on his travels, acknowledging that they might run into Heather one day. (TV: The Pilot)

Travelling with the Doctor
Choosing to travel to the future with the desire to see if it was happy, Bill visited Gliese 581 D with the Doctor. After saving the awoken colonists from the Vardy and the Emojibots, the Doctor attempted to return to the University in the present, but ended up at the River Thames in the past. (TV: Smile) She later helped investigate and stop the Shining Men (PROSE: The Shining Man), visited Kollo-Zarnista Mining Facility 27 above Saturn (PROSE: Diamond Dogs) and, with both the Doctor and Nardole, saved Edinburgh in 1645. (PROSE: Plague City)

Personality
Bill was very smart and very inquisitive. She asked questions that most people didn’t ask and came to conclusions in a different way that other people normally did. She loved science fiction and was open to the idea that concepts of science fiction were real and affected the lives of those around her. When Heather introduced her to a strange puddle, she was open to the idea of alien lizard possession, no matter how preposterous the Twelfth Doctor found it. (TV: The Pilot)

Bill had a crush on a girl who attended the Doctor’s lectures, and developed an interest in another young woman, Heather. (TV: The Pilot) She considered the first girl so attractive that eye contact between her was a "perversion" so she gave her extra chips each day as a reward. Eventually, the girl noticed Bill's extra servings and Bill then realized that the girl had become overweight as a result.

Skills
to be added

Appearance
Bill was a young woman with dark skin and Afro-Caribbean hair. (TV: The Pilot)

Behind the scenes
Bill Potts shares her name with William Hartnell, who was often known as Bill or Billy, while Bill's first love interest shares her name with his wife Heather.

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