Moffat talks to Radio Times

Tuesday, 16 March 2010 - Reported by Marcus
Radio TimesIn the run up to the launch of the New Series in April, Executive Producer Steven Moffat this week gives an interview to Radio Times.
Steven Moffat is Doctor Who’s new “showrunner” – the flashy American term, adopted over here, to describe a visionary writer/producer/TV seer who is charged with the creative evolution of a big series.

So what grand monsters (and tiny terrors) can we look forward to this series? Moffat doesn’t want to give too much away, but the new Doctor, Matt Smith, and his companion Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) are inevitably up against foes old and new, with a star-dusting of special guest-scarers, including Helen McCrory as “a sexy scary vampire-woman and Sophie Okonedo…” here Moffat pauses. As what? “I couldn’t possibly say. But she was in the trailer for the new series, and nobody noticed!”




FILTER: - Steven Moffat - Magazines - Radio Times

BBC7 reads Doctor Who

Friday, 12 March 2010 - Reported by Chuck Foster
BBC Radio 7BBC Radio 7 will be broadcasting a number of Doctor Who related programmes in their 7th Dimension science fiction segment in the coming months.

The memoirs of Barry Letts will be broadcast over seven weeks from the end of March; "Barry Letts - Who and Me" is read by the late producer himself, delving into his career up to and including Doctor Who. (The autobiography is still currently available in print from publisher Fantom Films.)

In April, three BBC Audio Books will be broadcast; The Giant Robot, The Brain of Morbius, Creature from the Pit are all adaptations of the original Target novelisations, and are read by the 'Doctor' himself, Tom Baker.

The 7th Dimension is presented by the modern voice of the Daleks and Cybermen, Nicholas Briggs; the strand in the past has often featured Doctor Who, including new adventures for the Eighth Doctor as portrayed by Paul McGann.




FILTER: - Radio

The Doctor and Douglas

Wednesday, 10 February 2010 - Reported by Anthony Weight
ZZ9, the official Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Appreciation Society, reports that BBC Radio 4 are currently preparing a documentary about former Doctor Who script editor Douglas Adams, entitled "The Doctor and Douglas". Produced by Simon Barnard and made for the BBC by the independent production company Wise Buddah, the documentary will apparently look at Adams's association with Doctor Who, from being a teenage fan of the programme in the 1960s to writing and script editing for it in the late 1970s.

This will be the fourth recent Doctor Who-related documentary to be broadcast by Radio 4, which last year transmitted programmes celebrating the Target novelisations of old Doctor Who episodes, and exploring the subject of the show's missing episodes. One of Adams's scripts for the series, Shada, featured heavily in a documentary which looked at 1970s television dramas which were abandoned during production. The network has also broadcast radio plays of the Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood.

"The Doctor and Douglas" is expected to be aired sometime in either March or April.




FILTER: - Documentary - Classic Series - Radio

Radio Times Covers Party

Thursday, 28 January 2010 - Reported by Marcus
Radio Times PartyDavid Tennant has attended the Radio Times Covers Party in London. The annual event is open to all those who have appeared on the cover of the UK listings magazine over the year. In 2009 Tennant appeared on three covers as the Doctor. A full report on the party is available on the Radio Times website, along with a short video shot at the occasion.

A tweet from drummer William Bowerman implies David Tennant and Catherine Tate will once more host Jonathan Ross's Radio show this weekend. This has not been confirmed by the BBC who still have Ross listed as presenter on their website.




FILTER: - Magazines - David Tennant - Radio Times

Tennant backs the Labour Party

Saturday, 9 January 2010 - Reported by Anthony Weight

Several news sources, including BBC News and The Mirror, have today picked up on comments by former Doctor Who star David Tennant in the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine, where he gives his backing to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the Labour Party. He also criticises the Conservative Party, particularly opposition leader David Cameron.

In the magazine, published last Thursday, Tennant is quoted as saying:

"I would still rather have Gordon Brown than David Cameron... I would rather have a prime minister who is the cleverest person in the room, than a prime minister who looks good in a suit. I think David Cameron is a terrifying prospect... a regional newsreader who will jump on whatever bandwagon flies past. I get quite panicked at the notion that people are buying his rhetoric, because it seems very manipulative to me. Clearly, the Labour Party is not without some issues right now and I do get frustrated. They need to sort some stuff out, but they are still a better bet than the Tories."

Tennant appeared in a party political broadcast on behalf of the Labour Party during the 2005 General Election campaign. Although he has made critical comments about the Conservative Party in the past, including in the Radio Times, this is the first time that his political stance has been widely reported by the mainstream media.




FILTER: - David Tennant - Press - Radio Times

One to Watch

Wednesday, 30 December 2009 - Reported by Marcus
LogoThe new Radio Times marks Matt Smith out as one of the ten people to watch in 2010. In the magazine, new executive producer Steven Moffat tells why viewers will be transfixed by Smith's portrayal of The Doctor. He describes him as a strong quiet man who conveys gravitas perfectly. "His most powerful moments are when he is very very quiet. in a way that a very powerful person can be... It's all implied strength rather than demonstrated bluster."

Moffat describes Smith as very much the 'nutty professor' Doctor whom the camera adores. "You'll be seeing a lot of that face, suffering, in close-up."

Smith's first series as the Doctor is due to be aired in the UK in the spring.




FILTER: - Steven Moffat - Matt Smith - Magazines - Radio Times

Tennant and Tate interview Cribbins and Davison

Saturday, 26 December 2009 - Reported by Marcus
Radio 2David Tennant and Catherine Tate today stood in for Jonathan Ross on his Radio 2 show.

Guests included Bernard Cribbins and fifth Doctor Peter Davison.

The programme is available worldwide via the BBC iplayer for the next seven days.




FILTER: - Catherine Tate - Radio

Radio Times Tribute

Thursday, 24 December 2009 - Reported by Marcus
Radio TimesRadio Times is marking the end of the Tenth Doctor’s tenure with a souvenir of the David Tennant and Russell T Davies years by releasing a 164-page glossy tribute book complete with episode guides and photos shot exclusively for Radio Times, many never seen before.

This book will not be in the shops – available only through an order form in Radio Times magazine or via the 24-hour order line 0844 543 9822 (calls cost 5p per minute at all times from a BT landline). The book is £6.99 including P&P.

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FILTER: - Russell T Davies - Magazines - David Tennant - Radio Times

Moffat announces monster return

Tuesday, 15 December 2009 - Reported by Anthony Weight

Interviewed by writer and journalist Matthew Sweet in tonight's edition of Night Waves on BBC Radio 3, new Doctor Who lead writer and executive producer Steven Moffat announced the return of a race of monsters to face new Doctor Matt Smith in the next series of the programme in 2010. After discussing various aspects of what it was like being in charge of Doctor Who, at the end of the interview Sweet asked Moffat if he could reveal one piece of information known to nobody outside of the production team, as a "teaser" for the next series. Moffat's answer is given in the spoiler box below.


"The Weeping Angels are coming back!"






FILTER: - Steven Moffat - Production - Radio - Series 5/31

Steven Moffat on Radio 3

Friday, 11 December 2009 - Reported by Anthony Weight

Steven Moffat, the new lead writer and executive producer of Doctor Who, will be interviewed on BBC Radio 3's Night Waves programme this coming Tuesday, the 15th of December. The programme is presented by Matthew Sweet, runs from 9.15-10pm, and according to Sweet "He's one of a series of people we're talking to next week who have also recently taken over important cultural appointments."

Sweet is himself a long-term Doctor Who fan, who has written several articles about the programme in the mainstream British press in the past decade, particularly for The Independent newspaper. He has also written professional Doctor Who fiction himself, in the form of audio dramas and short stories for Big Finish Productions.

Night Waves can be heard live worldwide on the internet, and listened to again on the BBC iPlayer. You can keep track of all major Doctor Who-related programmes on British TV and radio this Christmas with our broadcast summary.




FILTER: - Steven Moffat - People - Radio