Torchwood - September 8 on BBC AmericaBookmark and Share

Monday, 28 May 2007 - Reported by Benjamin Elliott

BBC America has started running trailers for Torchwood in its Doctor Who marathon today. Torchwood's US premiere is Saturday September 8 at 8PM Eastern Time (7PM Central, 6PM Mountain, 5PM Pacific).




FILTER: - Torchwood - USA - Broadcasting

Sunday RatingsBookmark and Share

Monday, 28 May 2007 - Reported by Marcus
The Sunday night BBC Three repeat of Episode 8, Human Nature, was watched by 0.81 million viewers, which was a4.5% share of the audience. On multichannel television, the programme was the second most watched of the day.

Doctor Who Confidential achieved an audience of 0.49 million, which was a 2.7% share.

Final overnight data now shows that Doctor Who was the thirteenth most watched programme of the week. Final figures will be released by BARB in nine days time.




FILTER: - Ratings - UK - Series 3/29

Overnight Ratings - Human NatureBookmark and Share

Sunday, 27 May 2007 - Reported by Marcus
Doctor Who was once more top of the charts with unofficial figures showing that Episode Eight, Human Nature, was watched by 7.1 millionviewers, a 36.3% share of the total television audience.

The programme was the most watched of the day, both by audience and by share, beating the second placed Lottery Drawby half a million viewers.

The opposition on ITV1, Vernon Kay's Gameshow Marathon
, got 4.5 million and was the highest rated programme on ITV1 for the day.

With one day to go, Doctor Who is currently the 11th most watched programme of the week.

Once again the programme was by far the most watched in the children's chart, with 1.5 Million 4-15 year olds watching, a massive 59% of that audience.

On BBC3 0.67 million watched Doctor Who Confidential, which was a 4.2% share of the multi channel audience. It was the most watched programme on multi channel television.






FILTER: - Ratings - UK - Series 3/29

Sea Devil Costume To Be AuctionedBookmark and Share

Sunday, 27 May 2007 - Reported by DWNP Archive

A complete Sea Devil costume is to be auctioned at Bonhams next month.

The auctioneers say it is believed to be the only existing outfit from the 1972 Jon Pertwee story.

It is listed as being complete with string vest, belt and a replica weapon, and comes with a letter of provenance. An estimate of 8,000 to 10,000 pounds has been placed on the lot.

The auction will take place on June 20 at Bonhams' Knightsbridge saleroom as part of a film and rock 'n' roll memorabilia sale.

Outpost Gallifrey reported on Friday that The Sea Devils is to be released on DVD.

(Thanks to Jonathan Wilkinson)

UPDATE - 8 June 2007: This item has now been withdrawn from sale.




FILTER: - Merchandise - Special Events

Friday Night RatingsBookmark and Share

Saturday, 26 May 2007 - Reported by Marcus
The Friday BBC3 repeat of Episode 7, 42 was watched by 266,000 viewers, a 1.6% share of the multi channel audience.




FILTER: - Ratings - UK - Series 3/29

Sun Casting Rumors (UPDATED)Bookmark and Share

Saturday, 26 May 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

The Sun has released an article today about a purported change of casting in Series 4.

UPDATE:
The BBC has given an official statement to FreemaAgyeman.com, calling the Sun's story "absolute rubbish".

To read the article, please click the spoiler link.
DOCTOR Who actress Freema Agyeman has been axed from the next series, The Sun can reveal.

Pretty Freema, 27, only joined the BBC1 sci-fi hit as the Timelord’s new companion Martha Jones at the beginning of the current series three.

We told how the struggling actress scooped the role after Billie Piper quit. But show chiefs think her performance is not as strong as in her earlier episodes.

And they are planning a storyline where the Doctor, played by David Tennant, will lose her and travel through the universe searching for her.
The decision to dump Freema comes as a bolt from the blue after her performance for the first couple of episodes was praised.

A source said: “Freema is very talented but we don’t think she is just right on Doctor Who. None of this is being done with any malice. Freema’s a lovely girl.”

Freema has previously admitted that she had a tough job to fill Billie’s boots. Billie, who played Rose Tyler, left at the end of the second series.

Christopher Eccleston stunned the BBC by quitting as the Timelord after the first series of the revamped drama in 2005.

Meanwhile current star Tennant is still believed to be making just part of series four, which starts filming in Wales this summer.

A spokeswoman for the show refused to comment.




FILTER: - Production - Press

Week Nine ScheduleBookmark and Share

Saturday, 26 May 2007 - Reported by Marcus
For the transmission of Episode Nine, The Family of Blood, Doctor Who stays at 7.10pm.

It once more follows The People's Quiz and is followed by The National Lottery Draws and the semi final of the search for a star show, Any Dream Will Do

ITV1 offers Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? as the main opposition, with Chris Tarrant, while BBC Two has The Culture Show where Paul McCartney meets up with Lauren Laverne to talk about his new album Memory Almost Full.

On Channel 4 viewers can see Lie Lab looking at new lie-detection technology using Magnetic Resonance Imaging, while on Channel 5 there is the 2003 film S Club: Seeing Double starring members of the pop group S Club.




FILTER: - Series 3/29 - Broadcasting

Sea Devils Planned For DVDBookmark and Share

Friday, 25 May 2007 - Reported by DWNP Archive

The Sea Devils is being prepared for release on DVD, the latest edition of the Royal Navy's official newspaper has revealed.

Navy News was contacted on behalf of the Restoration Team in the hope of tracking down naval personnel involved in or who witnessed the story's filming - in particular, the team hopes to find a rating believed to have shot some cine footage.

The June edition of the publication says that as part of the DVD, a documentary is being produced on the making of the Jon Pertwee six-parter. The adventure originally aired in 1972 and the location work was carried out in the Portsmouth area in October 1971.

A story about the location filming was done at the time by the local daily paper, The News, which photographed Pertwee chatting with three ratings at the Fraser gunnery range.

One of the ratings, an Able Seaman David King, pictured above right, who was then aged 26, appears to be capturing the moment for posterity on a cine camera.

In the Navy News piece, project team member Richard Bignell says: "If Mr King did take any cine film of the shoot, we would be very interested in talking to him!"

The documentary-makers also hope to track down people who took still pictures.

A release date for the DVD has yet to be confirmed.

Click on the thumbnail below for a larger version of the picture showing Pertwee with the ratings.

(Photo courtesy of and copyright The News, Portsmouth)




FILTER: - Jon Pertwee - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

Doctor Who Magazine 383Bookmark and Share

Friday, 25 May 2007 - Reported by Kenny Davidson

The new issue of Doctor Who Magazine will exclusively reveal the names of all eight writers for Doctor Who series four, as those penning the Doctor's adventures in 2008 are revealed by the production team at BBC Wales.

Also this issue; find out why the Doctor is to undergo his biggest challenge yet in the next Doctor Who story to hit your screens (see spoiler box). DWM goes behind the scenes on the thrilling new episodes Human Nature and The Family of Blood, also catching up with guest star Jessica Hynes, writer Paul Cornell, and showrunner Russell T Davies about this very different - and even more terrifying than usual! - Doctor Who adventure...

Plus: DWM spends an age with Professor Lazarus himself, alias actor Mark Gatiss; writer Steven Moffat explains why you should be keeping your eyes wide open for his spine-chilling new episode Blink; director James Strong recounts the second part of his blow-by-blow account of bringing the deadlyDaleks to Manhattan; and make sure you pack your sunscreen for a trip to the SS Pentallian and 42 fantastic facts about 42!

Meanwhile, the magazine unwraps the secret plans for the end of the current series, with previews of the final four fantastic episodes - BlinkUtopia,The Sound of Drums and Last of the Time Lords; Part 3 of the new comic strip adventure The Woman Who Sold the World; while Russell T Davies is flying the flag (for Who) in another unmissable Production Notes.

DWM 383 is on sale from Thursday 31 May
Also this issue; find out why the Doctor is to undergo his biggest challenge yet in the next Doctor Who story to hit your screens...

"Playing the same character every week in a long-running series is great, and very inspiring and exciting," David Tennant tells DWM, "but it's such an unexpected bonus to be asked to portray a whole new character, halfway through the shoot, which by definition must be unlike the character you're playing every other day."

So who, exactly, is this John Smith character? 

"He looks like the Doctor and doesn't sound much like him, but he must be a different man," says David cryptically. "Well, he must be a man, rather than a Time Lord..."




FILTER: - Magazines - DWM

Kylie Minogue speculation continuesBookmark and Share

Thursday, 24 May 2007 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Speculation over Kylie Minogue's potential appearance in the series continued yesterday with the free London paperStandard Lite carrying a photograph apparently showing the singer's "todo" list carried by her stylist William Baker, including a note to contact the show's executive producerRussell T Davies.

The note in question reads: "When Dr Who script arriving? Russell's number."

Its sister paper, the Daily Mail, also mentions the item this morning, and carries the respective photos in an online article (near the bottom of the page).




FILTER: - Production - Press