The 18th-century Scot who accidentally joined the TARDIS crew… and somehow stayed for three Doctors.
Character Overview
Meet James Robert McCrimmon — but everyone just calls him Jamie. Played by Frazer Hines, Jamie first stumbled into the Doctor’s life in The Highlanders (1966), a story about Jacobites, Redcoats, and one very confused young Scotsman. Originally, Jamie was only meant to stick around for that serial, but Hines had such great chemistry with Patrick Troughton’s Doctor that the production team basically shrugged and said, “Yeah, let’s keep the guy in the kilt.” Thus, one of the longest-running companions in the show’s history was born.
Jamie is a time-traveling paradox: he’s a scrappy 18th-century Highlander who never quite understands the advanced technology around him… yet somehow rolls with it better than most 20th-century characters. Drop him on a spaceship? Fine. Throw Daleks at him? No problem. He might not know how the TARDIS works, but he’s great at charging headlong at the monster-of-the-week with nothing but a dirk and an impressive amount of Scottish indignation.
His dynamic with the Doctor was pure gold — Patrick Troughton’s mischievous, cosmic hobo paired with Jamie’s loyal, perpetually bewildered bravery. Jamie was also fantastic with the female companions, often serving as their protective “big brother” (while also occasionally flirting shamelessly).
Jamie eventually left in The War Games (1969), when the Time Lords erased his memories of all his adventures beyond his first. Tragic, yes, but also neat and tidy, like the Time Lords always are. Of course, he’s popped back up a few times in later specials, proving that you can take the Scot out of the TARDIS, but you can’t keep him away forever.