<Tr> <Th> Home planet </Th> <Td> Earth </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Other portrayals </Th> <Td> Sophie Downham </Td> </Tr> <P> Clara Oswald is a fictional character created by Steven Moffat and portrayed by Jenna Coleman in the long - running British science fiction television series Doctor Who . First appearing in December 2012 in the show's seventh series, Clara served as a companion of the eleventh and twelfth incarnations of the alien time traveller known as the Doctor (portrayed by Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi, respectively). </P> <P> Clara is initially presented to the audience during the first half of Series 7 as three distinct, though similarly named, people living in different eras of time . The first two incarnations, Oswin Oswald and Clara Oswin Oswald, each die during the episode in which they appear . The third incarnation becomes the Doctor's companion, travelling with him for the remainder of the series as he tries to uncover the mystery of her multiple lives . The mystery is later resolved in "The Name of the Doctor" (2013). She continues to travel with the Doctor, witnessing him regenerate into his twelfth incarnation in "The Time of the Doctor" (2013). The pair have various adventures together in Series 8 and Series 9 until she departs the show in "Hell Bent" (2015). She reappears briefly in the 2017 Christmas special "Twice Upon A Time". </P>

When does clara first appear in doctor who