Radio Times Nominated for Cover of the Year

Tuesday, 28 April 2015 - Reported by Marcus

Radio Times (23-29 Aug 2014) (Credit: Radio Times)

The Radio Times cover, from the issue which announced the arrival of Peter Capaldi as The Doctor, has been nominated as the Cover of the Year by the PPA.

The Professional Publishers Association have listed the cover as one of ten nominated for the award. Radio Times was nominated last year for the cover celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who, but lost out to Metal Hammer when the results were announced.

This year Radio Times faces competition from The Big Issue, Crumbs, GQ, ShortList, Country Life, Elle, n, Red and Time Out.

Voting can be done via the PPA website.

The winner will be announced at the Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane in London's Mayfair on the evening of Thursday, July 9.

FILTER: - Awards/Nominations - Radio Times

Radio Times: Top Ten Episodes in Ten Years

Tuesday, 17 March 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster

The new edition of the Radio Times is out today, and features a Top 10 of episodes over the last 10 years, as voted by website readers.

Radio Times (21-27 March 2015) (Credit: Radio Times)

Radiotimes.COM readers vote blink the best episode of THE MODERN DOCTOR WHO ERA
Top 10 revealed to mark 10th anniversary of the iconic show’s relaunch

Radio Times readers have voted Blink as the best episode of Doctor Who in the modern era, in a poll conducted by RadioTimes.com to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the relaunch of Doctor Who.

The poll by RadioTimes.com, which received 280,859 votes, asked fans for their favourite episode of Doctor Who since it was relaunched by Russell T Davies on 26 March 2005, 16 years since the last full series. Blink topped the poll beating 2010’s Vincent and The Doctor to second place and The Stolen Earth/Journey’s End (2008) in third position.

Blink was first shown in June 2007 and was the tenth episode of the third series of the relaunched show. Starring David Tennant as the Doctor, alongside Freema Agyeman, as his companion Martha Jones, the episode also featured Carey Mulligan as Sally Sparrow, who thwarted the Weeping Angels in their terrifying, Bafta-winning debut. The episode was written by the current series showrunner Steven Moffat, directed by Hettie MacDonald, with Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner exec producers.

Speaking in the new issue of Radio Times, Steven Moffat says:

You know, when I wrote it, I thought Blink was a perfectly serviceable script. Nothing special, did the job – which, back then, was to have a Doctor Who story needing only two days’ shooting from David Tennant. I haven’t read the script in a long time, but I’m pretty sure I’d think the same now. What made it a little bit magical was, of course, the work of others…Some days everything just works. Sometimes you just stand in the right spot, all the windows align and the sunshine reaches you. I don’t think I can take a lot of the credit, but I’m very glad I was there when it happened.

Over the next ten days RadioTimes.com will be marking the 10th anniversary of the modern Doctor Who with a special mini-site celebrating the Doctors and companions from the last ten years, starting with the 9th Doctor Christopher Eccleston and his companion Billie Piper. There will also be rarely seen Doctor Who content from the Radio Times archive, quizzes and a very special surprise for Doctor Who fans on the actual anniversary, Thursday 26 March.

Tim Glanfield, Editor RadioTimes.com & Digital Products, says:

Doctor Who is unique in the world of television in its ability to regenerate and continually produce fresh and exciting adventures in space and time that appeal to old and young alike. But no such regeneration was as significant as the 2005 revival which has seen the show under the stewardship of first Russell T Davies and now Steven Moffat grow into a world beating powerhouse of quality British drama with an army of fans who will surely be celebrating many significant birthdays with the Doctor for (re)generations to come.

Top 10 Doctor Who Reboot episodes (2005-2015) as voted by readers of Radio Times.com

BLINK (2007)
DOCTOR: David Tennant / WRITER: Steven Moffat
VINCENT & THE DOCTOR (2010)
DOCTOR: Matt Smith / WRITER: Richard Curtis
THE STOLEN EARTH / JOURNEY’S END (2008)
DOCTOR: David Tennant / WRITER: Russell T Davies
THE DAY OF THE DOCTOR (2013)
DOCTORS: Matt Smith, David Tennant, John Hurt / WRITER: Steven Moffat
THE EMPTY CHILD / THE DOCTOR DANCES (2005)
DOCTOR: Christopher Eccleston / WRITER: Steven Moffat
ARMY OF GHOSTS / DOOMSDAY (2006)
DOCTOR: David Tennant / WRITER: Russell T Davies
THE GIRL IN THE FIREPLACE (2006)
DOCTOR: David Tennant / WRITER: Steven Moffat
BAD WOLF / THE PARTING OF THE WAYS (2005)
DOCTOR: Christopher Eccleston / WRITER: Russell T Davies
SILENCE IN THE LIBRARY / FOREST OF THE DEAD (2008)
DOCTOR: David Tennant / WRITER: Steven Moffat
THE END OF TIME (2009/10)
DOCTOR: David Tennant WRITER: Russell T Davies

Read Steven Moffat’s full comments on Blink in the latest issue of Radio Times, on sale now.

FILTER: - Polls - Radio Times

Last Christmas - Preview

Thursday, 25 December 2014 - Reported by Harry Ward

The BBC have released preview clips from Last Christmas and the accompanying Doctor Who Extra.

Last Christmas: Preview - Santa arrives!:

Doctor Who Extra: Preview Clip 1:

Last Christmas: Preview - Clip 2:

Meanwhile the latest Radio Times free downloadable retro poster, created by designer Stuart Manning is now available.

Manning told Radio Times:

The title for this episode provided an idea almost immediately. The Tardis trapped in the hourglass is a little nod to the Radio Times Doctor Who Christmas cover from 2005. The typography owes a debt to 1960s cocktail-era design, drawing on Christmas cards from the time. I wanted it to look a bit like an old Christmas card – pleasant at first glance, but more sinister when you look more closely...

Last Christmas - Radio Times Poster (Credit: Radio Times/Stuart Manning)

FILTER: - Radio Times - Series Specials

Radio Times at Christmas

Tuesday, 9 December 2014 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Radio Times (13-19 Dec 2014) (Credit: Radio Times)

Doctor Who on Christmas Day is now a firm tradition on British television, and the Radio Times has been there each year to celebrate with the Doctor; 2014 will be no exception as the 13th-19th December issue's front cover features the tenth festive adventure for the Doctor, Last Christmas.

This issue features an interview with guest star Nick Frost, during which he discusses the iconic character he brings to life in the episode:

My Santa is cross, mean and curt as well as cheery and funny. He's got a little bit of Robert De Niro in Mean Streets. And he has history with the Doctor: it's not talked about explicitly but they have a beef with each other from way back.

He also is very supportive of the show's writer:

Steven Moffat is a very clever man - taking Doctor Who somewhere completely different isn't easy. And he was happy to allow me to improvise on set and push things out a bit.

Moffat himself comments on the Doctor's latest encounter and his performer:

It does look like the most insane moment when Santa turns up, but we haven't gone off our rockers. No, Santa is written in properly, in a science-fiction way, into Doctor Who. I've always had a very clear impression of Santa, but when we got Nick Frost, well, first of all how perfect is his name! Nicholas Frost. It's the nom de plume that Santa Claus would use, isn't it? Nick is ideal. He's what Santa should be in Doctor Who land.

Radio Times (20 Dec 2014 - 2 Jan 2015) (Credit: Radio Times/Judith Kerr)

Meanwhile, the magazines 'legendary' double issue features an interview with the Doctor himself, Peter Capaldi, who reflects on his first series and the attention it has brought:

What’s now shocking is I can’t say anything publicly without it having a life. Not because I have extraordinary views but because people are keen on conflict, so they’ll make that the story. They love to make out that Steven Moffat and I have disagreements. But that’s business as usual. It made me realise how awful it must be to be a politician. I’m a lot more sympathetic to Malcolm Tucker’s views now.

He also comments on the whirlwind World Tour that preceeded the series' broadcast:

That was extraordinary. People tell you the show’s successful abroad but until you actually see it, you don’t realise. You’re effectively joining a boy band or the Beatles. You arrive at the airport and there are packs of people screaming and holding up pictures of you. We’d do press events all day and then in the evening a public screening and Q&A, and people went bananas. In South Korea the venue seated 1,500 people, and 50,000 people applied for tickets. I was benefitting from Chris Eccleston, David Tennant and Matt Smith making the show so beloved – I swept in on their coat-tails and got all the adoration and BA first-class treatment.

The full interviews can be found in their respective editions of the Radio Times, with the 13th-19th December issue in the shops now and the double issue covering 20th December - 2nd January due out tomorrow.

Christmas Covers in Previous Years

FILTER: - Peter Capaldi - Radio Times - Series Specials - Steven Moffat

Timeless art fit for a Timelord

Monday, 1 December 2014 - Reported by Marcus

Big Chief Studios have announced that they will be releasing copies of the Stuart Manning designed posters, celebrating Series 8 of Doctor Who, as a collection of high-quality prints.

The set of posters were commissioned especially for publication in the Radio Times, released weekly in time for each episode. The posters were all individually designed in a retro style with particular attention paid to create striking imagery combined with period typography.

This art will be available to order very soon and will be sold separately as Limited Edition Art Prints, as well as a portfolio collection.

Ordering will be via the Big Chief Website.

FILTER: - Merchandise - Radio Times

Death in Heaven - Preview

Friday, 7 November 2014 - Reported by Harry Ward

The BBC have released a preview clip of the second part the Series 8 finale, Death in Heaven, which premieres tomorrow night at 8:00pm on BBC One. Full global broadcast details here. They have also released a behind the scenes clip from the Doctor Who Extra episode which accompanies Death in Heaven.

Death in Heaven: Preview - A Revelation
Doctor Who Extra: Preview - Casting Missy

Meanwhile the latest Radio Times free downloadable retro poster, created by designer Stuart Manning is now available.

Manning told Radio Times:

It's the finale! I wanted to do something really simple and stark for this, which was absolutely in no way dictated by stringent embargoes and a lack of advance plot info.

I love Rorschach-style inkblots, not least because they look like 1960s Doctor Who title sequences, and they dovetail nicely with the symmetrical shapes of the Cybermen.

It only occurred to me afterwards that the whole image is loosely influenced by Daniel Kleinman's amazing title sequence for Skyfall – if you're going to steal, steal from the best. I expect it's how the opening titles to the new exciting spin-off series Missy Master will look…

Death in Heaven - Radio Times Poster (Credit: Radio Times/Stuart Manning)

FILTER: - Radio Times - Series 8/34

Dark Water - Preview

Friday, 31 October 2014 - Reported by Harry Ward

The BBC have released a preview and an introduction to the latest episode of Doctor Who, Dark Water, which premieres tomorrow night at 8:15pm on BBC One. Full global broadcast details here.

Dark Water: Preview, Introduction, TV Trailer, Next Time Trailer

Meanwhile the latest Radio Times free downloadable retro poster, created by designer Stuart Manning is now available.

Manning told Radio Times:

A retro Art Deco-style poster seemed like a perfect match for the current Cyberman designs. I actually wanted to do something like this for the Mummy episode earlier in the series, but rough-edged mummies and clean Deco lines just didn't get along.

Here I've drawn on the title sequences of 1930s Universal films and Republic Pictures serials – lots of simplified sweeping shapes with a slightly coarse airbrushed look, with perhaps a touch of Metropolis if you squint.

FILTER: - Radio Times - Series 8/34

Radio Times

Tuesday, 28 October 2014 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Next week's edition of the Radio Times features Peter Capaldi as the Doctor on its front cover as the magazine looks at the two-part series finale which starts this Saturday with Dark Water at 8:15pm on BBC One.

Famous fans, TV critics, children, and personalities share their thoughts on the latest incarnation, as played by Capaldi, including Professor Brian Cox, writer Armando Iannucci, singer/songwriter Marc Almond, Keeley Hawes, and even a former Doctor in the form of Tom Baker, who said:

He’s a wonderful choice to play the Doctor. Instantly one felt: this fellow comes from far far away, he’s strange. An instant frisson. And what’s the word? Yes, got it! Alien, he’s an alien. I salute him.

There is also a "Master Quiz" enabling readers to test their Doctor Who knowledge.

In addition, the digital version of the magazine includes a 30 page Monster supplement, featuring pictures of the Doctor’s greatest foes from the Radio Times archive.

Radio Times - Digital Edition (1-7 Nov 2014) (Credit: Radio Times)

The Radio Times, covering television and radio programming for 1st-7th November, is available online and in shops now.

FILTER: - Peter Capaldi - Radio Times - Tom Baker

Flatline Preview

Saturday, 18 October 2014 - Reported by Marcus

The BBC have released an introduction to the latest episode of Doctor Who, Flatline, which premieres tonight on BBC One. Full global broadcast details here.

Introduction to Flatline Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman and Steven Moffat introduce ‘an extraordinary episode…

Meanwhile the latest Radio Times free downloadable retro poster, created by designer Stuart Manning is now available.

Manning told Radio Times:

A Doctor Who story involving street art, set in Bristol – no inspiration necessary, so just a case of picking up on the same influences as the episode itself. A Banksy-style stencil of the Doctor was just an obvious visual and it's always nice to be able to sum a story up in a single image

Flatline - Poster (Credit: Radio Times/Stuart Manning)

FILTER: - Radio TimesSeries 8/34

Radio Times - Retro Poster

Saturday, 11 October 2014 - Reported by Marcus

The latest Radio Times free downloadable retro poster, created by designer Stuart Manning, for Mummy On The Orient Express is now available.

Manning told Radio Times:

I've really been looking forward to this episode. Agatha Christie meets Universal Horror is such a brilliant combination of influences. I've based this one on old crime hardback covers, also incorporating some of the art deco-style type of Universal's classic horror posters. It's not every day you get to combine Jazz Age glamour with the looming undead

Mummy On The Orient Express will be broadcast at 8.35pm on BBC One. Full broadcast details here.