Brief UK Press Update

In addition to the Newsround and Wales Today programmes yesterday, there was additional Doctor Who coverage on the BBC's news channel, News 24 on Monday 1 August. Featured as the 'and finally' item at the end of the hourly news roundups, the report included the brief interview with David Tennant (as on Wales Today - but minus Billie) and a fan perspective from Anthony Wainer of DWAS, who noted Doctor Who "was all about change" when asked if the series would remain as popular with Tennant. At approximately 8.50pm, actor Nick Courtney from the classic series was live in studio talking about the success of the series against a new series logo backdrop.

More mentions of filming starting on the second series at BBC Radio 1, The Scotsman, IC Wales, The Daily Mail; more on the show being voted Best Fantasy TV Series by SFX at The Mirror.

Hollywood News previews Billie Piper's new movie "Spirit Trap": "Four young students move into an old unoccupied mansion. Tom is a smart and cocky drug dealer, and Adele is his feisty and sexual girlfriend. Jenny is a good-natured girl with clairvoyant powers, and Nick is a kind and sensitive art student. Inside, the four students meet their fifth housemate, Tina, a beautiful, exotic and mysterious girl. Strange things start to happen when Nick gets an old Russian Spirit Clock working again. Mobile phones stop working. They hear mysterious noises and Jenny begins to see things in the house --shadows of torches on the walls and an angry mob in Edwardian clothes that nails a man to the floor. The living nightmare deepens as Jenny, Nick and Tina try to escape the house but are transported back inside the moment they step out. The spirits pit the students against each other as we discover the dark secrets of their pasts. The boundary between the real world and the afterlife are no longer clear and as time runs out, they must find a way to escape and avoid being trapped with the spirits forever. ... I haven't got any stills from the film yet, but we're promised some by the end of the week, along with the poster, but here, we have a look at the first trailer for the film, which is going up against Michael Bay's THE ISLAND when it's released in the UK on August 12th. Beware, this baby contains acts of horror, a litte gore and nudity (wahey!)."

However, according to Wednesday morning's The Mirror, the producers of "Spirit Trap" "cannot get Dr Who star Billie Piper to attend the premiere of her debut movie -forcing them to scrap the glittering opening night. Billie, 22, takes the lead as a psychic student in Brit horror flick Spirit Trap and is its only big name. Director David Smith and the cast are said to be angry and upset after Billie would not be pinned to a date in London. A film source said: 'Billie has lots of commitments but that's cold comfort to her co-stars, crew and director. If she can't make the premiere, there's no point.' Some insiders fear Billie, right, wants to distance herself from the film because of weak reviews. Her spokeswoman declined to comment."

(Thanks to Steve Tribe, Paul Engelberg, Richard Allison)