The BBC's Doctor Who website has announced that the writers of Doctor Who Series 3have won the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award for Best Soap or Series (TV). (The other nominated series were New Tricks Series 4 and Life on Mars Series 2.)

All the writers of Series 3 (Chris Chibnall, Paul Cornell, Russell T. Davies, Stephen Greenhorn, Steven Moffat, Helen Raynor and Gareth Roberts) were honored. Cornell, Greenhorn, Moffat and Roberts were in attendance at the ceremony, which was held at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).

Further details of the award ceremony are available at the Writers' Guild blog.

The Media Guardian reports that Doctor Who show-runner Russell T. Davies is currently developing a new project for BBC, which will occupy the executive producer's time during Doctor Who's 2009 break.

"It's going to be about fortysomething gay men and how jealous they are of gay teenagers," Davies said in an interview with the Guardian on Saturday. "I've been longing to write something for adults."

In the interview, Davies said that the inspiration for the new drama is a friend, a former Mr Gay UK, who split up from his boyfriend.

"He asked me: 'Why are so many gay men so glad we split up?' That remark's stayed with me for six years. I think there's a self-punishing streak in that gladness and I want to explore it."

An unnamed BBC spokeswoman said that it was "too early" to say which channel might show the drama or whether it will be produced in-house or by an independent production company.

Following media speculation, the BBC have confirmed future plans for Doctor Who in a press releasetoday.

After the fourth series airs in 2008, David Tennant will continue in the role of the Doctor for a Christmas special at the end of 2008. After that, instead of a full series beginning filming, the production team, with Tennant still in the role, will be working on three Doctor Who specials, led by Russell T Davies, to be shown on BBC1 throughout the year of 2009. A fifth full series is scheduled for 2010, though asBBC News point out, casting is unconfirmed for that far ahead.

Media speculation was sparked by reports that Tennant had been cast in the title role of Hamlet, in a production for the Royal Shakespeare Company from July to November 2008. This would have conflicted with filming a fifth series for airing in the spring of 2009. The RSC 2008 Flyer and BBC News are confirming Tennant's role in the play.

Rumors over the past several months have suggested that the show would be going on a sort of 'temporary hiatus' after the fourth series, though the BBC has emphasized the series' return for a full fifth year. It is not known whether Davies will continue in the helm of the series when it does return on a weekly basis, however.

The press release included the following quotes:

The following has been reported by United Press International:

MediaGuardian.co.uk, the media news-focused section of The Guardian newspaper's website, has today run a story(subscription link) by reporter Ben Dowell speculating about the possible future of Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies.

The piece, in reponse to a story published in this morning's edition of the tabloid newspaper The Sun, contains a quote from an unnamed "BBC drama spokeswoman", stating that: "Discussions have not begun so we cannot say if Russell will be involved or not" with Doctor Who beyond the end of the fourth series in 2008.

However, the report specifically denies The Sun's story that Davies and other staff on the show have a plan to end the programme at the conclusion of the fourth series. MediaGuardian quotes another source, a similarly unnamed "senior BBC Wales drama source", as telling them that:

"Russell has always said that he wouldn't be with the show forever and he has made no secret that the hours are quite exhausting... But there isn't any way it would be axed even if he left. He loves the show and he does feel that maybe it would benefit from some new blood."

The MediaGuardian states that "if Mr Davies does leave Doctor Who, the BBC will want to keep such a popular show going by bringing in a new executive producer to take over his creative responsibilities."

Doctor Who executive producer and chief writer Russell T Davies has dismissed the rumour spread by several media sources this week that Australian pop singer and actress Kylie Minogue was to appear in the 2007 Christmas special of the show.

The rumour originally appeared in last Sunday's edition of the News of the World newspaper, as reported at the time by Outpost Gallifrey, and was subsequently picked up by several websites and other newspapers. However, speaking to the BBC's weekly in-house magazine Ariel, Davies has rubbished the suggestion.

"Don't be stupid," he told the publication. "I haven't even written the script yet, and a woman like that is booked up two years in advance."

In an interview in Sunday's Observer, Russell T Davies suggests he may be planning a few more series of Doctor Who beyond Series Three.

The article states that "Davies will not be writing Doctor Who forever, of course, and that is a major headache for the BBC". It then goes on to quote the writer and producer as saying, "I'm not going to go on and on ... I wouldn't want to do series seven. There are other things I want to do."

This is the second of recent broadsheet interviews with RTD that focuses on what this much-in-demand writer might do next.

"One thing that people have been saying is that it's like a Comic Relief sketch, but it's not," says producer Russell T Davies of the casting in The Runaway Bride. "It's a proper hour-long drama and Catherine Tate has a proper part. She's amazing in it, her and David Tennant together are a joy."

Interviewed by Jonathan Wright for the Media Guardian, the interview does include spoilers, but also features the following questions on novelty casting and other series that Davies might like to revive...