Sergeant Benton - Character History

Character History

Levene portrayed an unnamed soldier (possibly Benton) in The Web of Fear. Benton first appeared by name in the Second Doctor serial The Invasion (1968), when he was just a Corporal in UNIT. By the time of his next appearance in The Ambassadors of Death (1970) he had been promoted to Sergeant and quickly formed a close relationship with the Doctor, Captain Mike Yates and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, the latter usually calling first for Benton when an order needed to be carried out. Benton's tour in UNIT also coincided with the tenure of the Third and Fourth Doctors as its Scientific Advisor and his promotion to WO1 came in Robot (1974).

During his time with UNIT, Benton faces several alien invaders, including the Cybermen, the Daleks, and the Nestine forces. He had many run-ins with the renegade Time Lord known as the Master. Benton was always a down-to-earth example of a British infantryman and non-commissioned officer, being reliable, loyal, uncomplicated and possessing a good dose of common sense. When the Doctor asked him if he was going to comment that the TARDIS was bigger on the inside than on the outside (since everyone else has), Benton's classic reply was, "Well, that's pretty obvious, isn't it?" Aside from the regular companions and the Brigadier, Benton is the only reoccurring character in the classic series to travel in the TARDIS.

While not understanding the specifics of what the Doctor was doing or any of his explanations, Benton always took the Doctor at his word and trusted him implicitly. Benton was loyal, not just to the rank but also to the people he worked with, and was willing to disobey orders to help them (in Invasion of the Dinosaurs, he allowed the Doctor to knock him out and "escape" after the Doctor was falsely accused). He even willingly offers himself as a test subject for the Doctor's Psychic-scanner, remarking that unlike the Doctor, he is expendable (Planet of the Spiders).

Very little is known of Benton outside of his UNIT duties, other than the fact he has a younger sister and is apparently fond of ballroom dancing. In fact, his first name was never revealed in the television series. He flirted briefly with Jo Grant, the Third Doctor's assistant, and also Sarah Jane Smith, but neither appeared to get beyond good-natured bantering.

Benton's last on-screen appearance in the series was in The Android Invasion. In Mawdryn Undead, set in 1983, he was said by the retired Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart to have left the British Army in 1979 and become a used car salesman.

As one of the most popular recurring supporting characters in the television series, Benton is often listed as a companion of the Doctor and indeed is listed as such on the official BBC Doctor Who website. However, he is not always listed as such - the John Nathan-Turner penned book of companions, for instance, excludes Benton.