Please note: the following round-up focuses on interview discussions of tonight's episode, The Angels Take Manhattan, which could be considered as spoilers.


Karen Gillan talks about life after Amy: "Well, I feel like I’m prepared for all the possible genres after playing Amy. And I certainly want variety, that’s for sure. What I enjoy most about acting is being versatile. I like actors like Robin Williams, who can do crazy, absurd characters. I would love to be an actor like that. The one I am really getting into recently is Olivia Colman. She does Peep Show and is brilliant at comedy, but I just watched Tyrannosaur – oh my god! I was on a train going through the Highlands of Scotland crying my eyes out. I want to play character roles, generally. That is my main ambition." And on how she'd want Amy remembered: "I love this girl. I would be too scared to act like her, but I get this artistic licence playing her. I love her dry sarcasm, wit and grumpiness. I'm not a grumpy person. I want to see her go out in flames of glory, where we see her at her absolute best. I just want people to look back over the Pond era fondly. I have had the best years of my life on this show, hand on my heart..." [Big Issue, 24 Sep 2012]

Similarly, Arthur Darvill on his departure from the show: "I can't really conceive that I've even been in it, yet! Do you know what I mean? When we're filming we concentrate so much on making each moment good. Then you see a screen with your face on or a big poster and you're like, 'Oh, that doesn't quite compute in my mind.' I just get on with my job, I don't think it will hit any of us – all three of us, really – until we’ve been a few years out it. Then we’ll realise what we’ve been doing for the last few years. I can't really speak for anyone else but I'm so proud of what we've done on this show, and it's been the best job I've ever had." And next: "I don't know if you can have a plan really. I do have a vague plan – I want to play some horrible people and I want to do some comedy, and I want to do some more theatre. Variety." [TV Choice, 25 Sep 2012]

Matt Smith got some parental feedback on the episode: "I showed my mum some of the rushes, the last couple of scenes, and she was in tears ... so that's good. That's a good sign. I think it's a fantastic farewell. I think it's hugely dramatic. There are wonderful twists. There's a great backdrop for a city. I think it's a fitting end to two of our greatest companions ever. ... I think Steven has written them out heroically, which is fantastic. You sort of want to go with a bit of a bang, don't you?" [TV Guide, 28 Sep 2012]

Steven Moffat talked about writing the final episode for Rory and Amy at the BAFTA preview in Cardiff earlier in the week: "After showing Amelia Pond in the garden as a young girl in The Eleventh Hour, Karen's first episode, the final shot in Saturday's The Angels Take Manhattan is a punchline I have been waiting to tell for two and a half years. This weekend's episode is more devastating for the Doctor, at certain points he becomes useless and emotional. It was torment and hell trying to write the episode, I struggled for ages to work out a fitting ending and changed my mind until I finally got it right." [Press Association via Google, 28 Sep 2012

The writer continued: "I must have rewritten it 20 odd times. I kept changing my mind about the exact way they’d leave, alive or dead? One or both of them? Their fates kept changing every five minutes until I hit on what I thought was right. Hopefully, there are scares AND emotion." [Daily Record, 29 Sep 2012]

David Tennant has been elected onto the board of the Royal Shakespeare Company. The board is made up of 15 non-salaried people, chosen for their skills and experience, who work closely with the senior management team in leading and steering the company. The actor, who did much to promote the RSC when he took on the role of Hamlet in 2008, will be in the post for three years. [Daily Record, 17 Sep 2012]

Christopher Eccleston is one of a number of new people making claims against the media company News International over allegations of phone-hacking. Other celebrity claimants include Davina McCall, Jessie Wallace, Peter Andre and Katie Price. [Guardian, 17 Sep 2012]

John Barrowman is to front a new reality show in the United States. Make My Musical from Vinnie Potestivo Entertainment is currently taking applications from Broadway performers who, if successful, will be have their troupe followed as they prepare to mount a musical theatre review in New York City Theatre. Barrowman is on board as part of a panel of experts to help the group along the way. [Broadway World, 11 Sep 2012]

The performer also made a surprise visit to Millport on the Isle of Cumbrae with his sister Carole last week; the town and island form the inspiration for the fictional location of Seaport on Auchinmurn in their novel Hollow Earth. [Largs and Millport Evening News, 17 Sep 2012]

Illustrator Ben Morris has announced: "I've just signed the contract to be the sole illustrator on a new Doctor Who book for BBC Books in 2013. Really looking forward to getting started on it next month!". He has previously contributed artwork for The Brilliant Book, and is regular for Doctor Who Magazine and Doctor Who Adventures. [Facebook, via Vitas Varnas, 18 Sep 2012]

Carey Mulligan talks about becoming an ambassador for The Alzheimer's Society, a role she's taken on after her own experiences with the disease that affects her grandmother: "I reach a different demographic than some of the other wonderful ambassadors because I'm a bit younger. Overall, the thing I'm most excited about working with the Alzheimer's Society is the idea of just making people aware in the communities. The more people who understand that dementia is not just people being old and forgetful and a product of old age, but is actually a disease and people can be more caring and aware in the community." The actress is also taking part in the Society's Memory Walk this weekend. [You and Yours via Kenny Davidson, 21 Sep 2012]

If anyone should bring closure to the long-lived Scottish detective series Taggart it should be Steven Moffat, say series star John Michie. The actor, who played DI Robbie Ross in the series before it was dropped last year, said: "I'm still extremely loyal to the character and I really hope I'll be back playing it one day, as part of a series or a one-off. One way to round it off could be to get a really top writer in, a big name, and who could be better than Steven Moffat? Everything he touches turns into gold, it would be a great way to sell it." [Daily Record, 10 Sep 2012]

The following round-up includes interview discussion of the current series which may be considered spoilers for upcoming episodes.

Matt Smith is a guest on Alan Carr: Chatty Man this coming Friday on Channel 4, 10:00pm. The show was recorded on Tuesday, during which the actor commented about his lack of interest in the Internet, daytime television and insomnia. A woman taking on the role inevitably cropped up too, with host Carr commenting: "I'd like to see Julie Goodyear as The Doctor. After all, she has been around for 900 years like he has." [Daily Star, The Sun, 20 Sep 2012]

Speaking of Internet technology, Steven Moffat has abandoned Twitter for the time being. His wife Sue Vertue commented: "For all asking he is well and currently having a family lunch but he's got a huge amount on and twitter was proving a distraction." [Twitter, 9 Sep 2012]

Ashley Walters has revealed that he got into trouble with the show's producers on his first day of filming for episode 11: "I wasn't even allowed to tweet pictures or anything, I was really upset about that. I did tweet one picture in my trailer and I got in huge trouble with the producers on my first day so I'm not saying anything any more about it. But it was amazing working with Matt Smith for a few weeks." [What's On TV, 19 Sep 2012]

Lora Munro, creative director at The Theatre Workshop, commented on young actress Daniella Eames and her casting in Doctor Who alongside Matt, Karen and Arthur: "Daniella is a gifted actress who really loves to perform. This is a great opportunity for her and we are all really excited Daniella will be gracing our television screens very soon." [Portsmouth News, 13 Sep 2012]

Business tycoon Alan Sugar is to have a cameo in this weekend's The Power of Three, with a 'reality' segment based around the popular show The Apprentice. An insider said: "Getting someone like Lord Sugar on the show was a real coup for us. He is a big fan and thought it was a giggle to film a clip from The Apprentice for it." [The Star, 13 Sep 2012]

Toby Whithouse talked about the origins of A Town Called Mercy: "It was Steven's idea – he said he wanted to do a Wild West episode because this year, certainly for the first half of the series, it's these big kind of movie marquee ideas. The pitch he gave was just, "There's a town that is being terrorised by some kind of robot." I thought about what it was in the town that the robot wants. What if it’s a person? Then the idea kind of fell out from there." [SFX, 10 Sep 2012]

Meanwhile, Chris Chibnall talks about what makes The Power of Three a little different to the normal narrative: "It’s Doctor Who from Amy and Rory's point of view. We're in the last days of the Ponds as everybody keeps saying, and it was really a chance to see where they've got to in their lives since The Eleventh Hour, and to see what it’s like to be them. And I think what’s interesting is that the companion/Doctor relationship in this series is very different to any we’ve seen before because really, they're part-time travellers. They’re living at home, and the Doctor pops in and goes, "Shall we go somewhere?", and they're off. That's very new, because they're not permanently with him, and I wanted to see what that would mean. I think it's very different to pretty much any other episode of Doctor Who ever, which is both wonderful and terrifying." [SFX, 16 Sep 2012]

Matt Smith seems to be angling for another continental filming experience "I think New Zealand would be an absolutely wonderful place to film Doctor Who... there's clearly a great film industry out there. It’s something I would be very interested in it’s just whether we can persuade the producers to fly us all over." With the country home to The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, he also said: "Hey, let's get Peter Jackson to direct one and go and make it in New Zealand. I would love to, I will campaign endlessly to come over and film there." ... to which the director responded: "Do it mate, do it. Come on.. I'm a huge Doctor Who fan, and I think Matt’s fantastic. Just name a time and place, and I'll be there!" [Waikato Times, 19 Sep 2012]

The cause has been taken up by Australian-based writer Neil Cross (whose second script for the 2013 half of the new series is about to go into production): "It would be awesome to see the Tardis materialise here - I suspect Steven and I will have a long conversation about this, one way or another. We will drink gin and talk a lot about bringing Doctor Who to New Zealand. Matt Smith and I just talked about what an amazing place New Zealand is and said it was amazing how this country did not have the biggest film industry in the world. He is such an extra-ordinary human being. I am not actually convinced that he's not actually the Doctor." [Waikato Times, 21 Sep 2012]

Smith has also been hinting at plans for next year: "Steven Moffat was pitching the 50th anniversary at the end of this series and what everything was going to be about and it was a very exciting meal. No doubt he’ll come up with something brilliant because that’s the sort of man he is... I hope that we mark it in the best way possible and we honour the people that have been in the show before us and we make it as grand and brilliant and inventive and as much an occasion as possible. What that is, I may have an idea, but I can’t tell you I'm afraid." [Waikato Times, 19 Sep 2012]

Back to the current series, and he commented on events in the finale of the current run of adventures, The Angels Take Manhattan: "I love the Weeping Angels and I loved filming in New York - the city added scale to the whole episode, which is just brilliant for Doctor Who. It was great to have River back, and to use filmic locations like Central Park and Times Square. It is a fitting ending for the Ponds, especially as the Weeping Angels are a Moffat creation." Steven Moffat himself added: "It is a heart-breaking farewell to Amy and Rory. We see the Doctor and his little Amelia Pond race through the streets of Manhattan to save Rory with help along the way as River Song charges back on to our screens, just in time to say goodbye. All stories have to end, and painful though that is, the most important thing about a story is how it finishes. I had over a year’s warning to get this sorted out, and I’m very proud of what we’ve done. A fitting end to the mighty era of the Ponds!" [BBC Press, 16 Sep 2012]

This year's MediaGuardian 100 continues to rank Steven Moffat amongst the industry's most powerful and influential people, with Doctor Who's lead writer and executive producer placed at number 87, up five places from his chart entry last year at 92.


BBC executives that have an influence on Doctor Who's future in the list include the new Director General George Entwistle in fourth place (last year 26), and BBC1 Controller Danny Cohen at number 13 (last year 14).


The Media 100 has been compiled every year since 2001 by the Guardian, and is a list of who they consider are currently the most powerful people in the UK media. Candidates for the list are judged on cultural influence, economic clout and political power over the course of the last year.

The new man in charge of the BBC has paid tribute to Doctor Who on his first day as Editor-in-Chief of the Corporation, the man ultimately responsible for everything broadcast.

George Entwistle took charge of the national broadcaster today as the 15th Director General, taking over from Mark Thompson who had been in charge since 2004 and who now leaves to become Chief Executive Officer of The New York Times Company.

Entwistle told staff he wanted the BBC to be one of the major international media brands with a vibrant presence in many markets built around major pieces of BBC content such as Top Gear, Doctor Who and Dancing With The Stars. In an interview with Radio Times he recalled how he fell in love with television drama as a child while watching Doctor Who with his family. "Jon Pertwee was my Doctor," he said, "I was a bit sceptical about the Tom Baker regeneration."

Entwistle praised the way the BBC produced its Olympic coverage, which managed to bring the nation together, and he looked ahead to events that would give the BBC the chance to take the Olympics formula and make it work again, including the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who next year.

The following round-up includes interview discussion of the current series which may be considered spoilers for upcoming episodes.


Matt Smith talks about the speculation over a future female Doctor: "I think there are many actresses that could play it because there are so many wonderful actresses. I mean, it would change the role because she would be a woman so when you put her in a room full of men, it's a different scenario than if you put a man in a room full of men, because she's a different sex. Would it change the fundamentals of the character? No. But it's an interesting idea, if the Doctor's a woman, does she have a Doctor baby? Is there a mini-Doctor? I don't know, who knows? What actresses could play her? Oh gosh, so many, so many could play her. It depends on what age you would want. It could be... Charlize Theron is pretty kick ass, isn’t she? They just have to find a brilliant actress. I never see that happening any time soon to be honest. I don’t think it will happen. And I'm not turning into a woman. [The Mary Sue, 1 Sep 2012]

Arthur Darvill talks about his decision to leave the show this series: "It does feel like the right time to move on. The worst thing you can do is outstay your welcome on something like this. We've had such a good run and such good stories, but the whole program is about change. It's about things changing and evolving. So it's sad to leave, but it feels like the right thing to do. ... It's one of the best things I've ever done in my life," said Darvill. "I think people, when they leave a show, they can kind of separate themselves from what they've done. But I'll always be proud of the work that I've done on Doctor Who. I've learned so much doing it and had such an amazing time doing it. It's given me such a great start in everything. I still feel fairly early on in my career, and it's a really good foundation." [Blastr, 31 Aug 2012]

Writer Chris Chibnall talks about bringing dinosaurs to the screen: "There were two sides to it, one of which was, you know going in that it’s not a Michael Bay budget. It’s a Doctor Who budget. A BBC budget, although a very good one. But you know you can’t do dinosaurs endlessly for 45 minutes, so there has to be a big ‘other’ story going on. That was my job really, to go, ‘Okay, this is the story I want to tell around the dinosaurs, why they’re there and who’s with the Doctor’ and all that kind of stuff." [SFX, 3 Sep 2012]

Steven Moffat talks about the introduction of a new companion for the Doctor: "“We are going to do the story properly of the Doctor having lost a friend and making a new one. We’re not taking that lightly. It's not in one door out the other. It’s the story of how all that affects him, why he engages with somebody else and what’s going on with that – that’s all important." [SFX, 3 Sep 2012]

Tom MacRae hinted about his forthcoming Doctor Who story: "I don’t know when you’ll see it, but you definitely will!" [On The Box, 7 Sep 2012]

Young actor Cameron Strefford landed a role in the Christmas Special, which has recently been filming. The ten year old's mother Anthea said: "I watched his takes on the monitor and members of the crew said he came over very well. It's not the way he says his lines, it is the way he comes over on camera. He is quite intuitive and has a good feel for the part." [This is Wiltshire, 30 Aug 2012]

Karen Gillan has been involved in a photo-shoot for fashion magazine Marie Claire in a project alongside This is Great Britain to place the UK's brightest stars in London's most historic locations. Karen appears in front of 10 Downing Street! Editor-in-chief Trish Halpin said: "To be the first fashion magazine granted access to these amazing London landmarks was a real honour." A video of the shoot is also available to watch. [Marie Claire, 5 Sep 2012]

The actress has also paid for her father to record an album. She said: "He's a singer, not professional, he just loves doing it. I got it as a Father's Day present. I'm thinking of doing a duet with him but he's far better than me." [Daily Record, 4 Sep 2012]

Matt Smith mentions one of his experiences in New York recently: In New York, Karen and I walked into this 'Doctor Who'-themed bar. It shows the appalling limits of our vanity that we wanted to go to a 'Doctor Who' bar. But our curiosity got the better of us. You could have heard a pin drop when we strolled in." [FemaleFirst, 3 Sep 2012]

Smith will be a guest on the Channel 4 chat show Alan Carr: Chatty Man on Friday 21st September at 10pm, according to a tweet by the programme's official Twitter feed.

Arthur Darvill talks about his departure from Doctor Who, and onto new projects such as the West End show Our Boys: "We all met up on Monday to do a publicity photoshoot for that, all in army gear. Everyone else had these really sharp uniforms and I was in cold weather gear, so I had a shirt, a polo neck, a jumper, a massive jacket on the hottest day of the year!" [GT Magazine, Oct 2012]

A host of photos during rehearsals and further information on the play can be found via the play's official Facebook page.

The first episode of the two-part BBC Four adaptation of Room At The Top starring Jenna-Louise Coleman as Susan Brown is set to air during the week beginning Saturday 22nd September. The drama, which co-stars Kevin McNally, was made in 2010 and should have been broadcast in April 2011 but the BBC was prevented from showing it because of a copyright wrangle, which was finally resolved earlier this year. The day and time of transmission is yet to be confirmed. [BBC Programme Information]

Alex Kingston traces her family history in a forthcoming edition of Who Do You Think You Are? on BBC One. It is likely to be shown on Wednesday 19th September at 9pm.

David Tennant discussed how important the works of Shakespeare are: "I am on the board of the Royal Shakespeare Company and a huge part of what they do is education and outreach -- partly just to educate an audience for themselves but also just to teach that sort of language so kids can appreciate it. I think Shakespeare is one of those things that you get very excited about when you do it and when you love it and when you feel like you own that language. Often it's a difficult thing to teach to kids because it can feel like a slow and a difficult thing, but it can be really inspiring!" [TheaterMania, 29 Aug 2012]

The actor has also donated a signed copy of the Complete Second Series of Doctor Who an auction on behalf of The Alzheimer's Society - potential bidders can find the item on Ebay here over the next eight days. [Alzeimer's Society, 7 Sep 2012]

Digital Theatre and Routledge Publishing have made theatre performanances from the Routledge Performance Archive online; amongst the shows available for download/rental is David Tennant's Much Ado About Nothing, which co-starred Catherine Tate. [Standard, 6 Sep 2012]

John Barrowman commented on gay representation on American television: "America has the most gay men represented on television than any country in the world. The only thing I wish they would do more often is not stereotype those gay men and women. It's always the same type they choose. Rather than seeing camp, flouncy, girly men and butch heavy women, it would be nice to see other types. There are 'lipstick lesbians,' pretty girls. There are butch guys, guys who are into sports." [Desert Outlook, 4 Sep 2012]

Eve Myles has won the title role in the new six-part BBC One series Frankie, which will see her reunited with Torchwood director Mark Everest. The drama is described as "a modern and redemptive take on the life and work of a dedicated district nurse [Frankie Maddox] whose patients matter more to her than her personal life." Also appearing in it are Dean Lennox Kelly and Derek Riddell. Filming will take place in Bristol, where the series is set, with the drama due to air next spring. [BBC Media Centre, 6 Sep 2012]

Former executive producer and current Head of Drama at Channel 4 Piers Wenger has announced a new initiative to seek out original drama ideas for development on E4: "This is an exciting first step in the development of a slate of new drama series for E4. There is a wealth of British drama talent out there and I am thrilled to be able to green-light a drama pilot season and invite new and established writers to come to us with their big ideas. In the last few years, E4 has established an unrivalled reputation for launching young, ground-breaking drama series and we are looking for a range of original drama ideas which will allow audiences to connect with the channel now. We don't want to be prescriptive on genre, format or length of episode - the aim is to see a variety of home-grown and innovative drama on E4 in 2013 and beyond." [Televisual, 6 Sep 2012]

The BBC have released some new photos of Jenna-Louise Coleman, plus some details by Steven Moffat - please note that these may constitute a spoiler!


The photos are also available to download as wallpaper from the BBC website.

Karen Gillan was the main guest on BBC1's magazine programme The One Show this evening, during which she chatted about her time on Doctor Who, her new film Oculus and demonstrated her impression of a Dalek ordering chips and mushy peas!

Talking about her last day filming, she said:
And on her decision to leave:

Meanwhile, Nicholas Briggs paid a visit to Slough, where he put his own Dalek vocal talents into action 'terroring' passengers at the station and customers in Tesco.


Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the show for the next seven days via the BBC iPlayer.

David Tennant is to host a new panel show for Channel 4. Comedy World Cup will be a seven-part series in which comedians will use their stand-up to compete against one another in a knockout competition. Justin Gorman, the channel's Head of Entertainment, said: "Needless to say when we thought who could match, handle and wrangle some of the funniest and most talented comedians on TV, we decided it had to be David Tennant, so are thrilled he agreed". [Metro, 24 Aug 2012]

The actor recently appeared on G4's Attack of the Show!, chatting about the Olympics opening ceremony, The Spies of Warsaw, and his feelings on the 50th Anniversary.

Matt Smith can be briefly spotted in the "Don't Think" video from sports company Adidas, during which he was painted as a clown. Several photos of the actor in make-up can also be found via the Daily Mail, taken at a party in Shoreditch to celebrate the Olympics earlier this month.

Speaking at the BFI, Steven Moffat commented on the way in which children should be taught to read: "What makes people read a lot is books they like. I used to think when I was a school teacher that we shouldn’t give them the books they [education authorities] thought they ought to read – we should give them really cool books that they think are exciting. It doesn’t matter if they are good books as long as they read. Reading makes you better at English, reading a lot makes you want to read better books." [Standard, 15 Aug 2012]

Also at the BFI, Karen Gillan announced that she will feature in the third of Charlie Brooker's spoof series A Touch of Cloth, due to be shown in 2013. No character details have been revealed as yet. [Radio Times, 15 Aug 2012]

Freema Agyeman's commitments to the Sex and the City prequel The Carrie Diaries has led to the actress being unavailable to film Law and Order: UK for its 2013 series. Agyeman has been with the show since its creation in 2009. [TVWise, 24 Aug 2012]

Burn Gorman has been reported as joining the cast of HBO's Game of Thrones as a member of the Night Watch. The actor has most recently been seen in The Dark Knight Rises. [WinterIsComing, 8 Aug 2012]