Doctor Who Magazine: 512

Thursday, 4 May 2017 - Reported by Marcus

Issue 512 of Doctor Who Magazine includes an exclusive interview with guest star David Suchet who plays the enigmatic Landlord in this weeks episode Knock Knock…

I suppose I so became so associated with Poirot, but when they invited me to Doctor Who, I said yes before I'd even read the script!

Because it's Doctor Who! It's the most iconic series, even more so than Poirot. To have that opportunity was the greatest privilege.

ALSO INSIDE THE ISSUE…

NEW EPISODE PREVIEWS!
NTERVIEWS WITH THE WRITERS!

Frank Cottrell-Boyce

Sarah Dollard

MEET THE DIRECTOR!

Lawrence Gough

THE SOUL GARDEN!

Scott Gray

Martin Geraghty

MONOID MANIA!

The Ark

REVIEWS
COMING SOON
PLUS! All the latest official news, the Watcher's column, competitions and the DWM crossword!

Doctor Who Magazine 512 is on sale from Thursday 4 May 2017, price £5.99.

The Essential Doctor Who: Robots (Credit: Panini)

Also Available

The Essential Doctor Who: Robots

Panini’s series of publications devoted to key aspects of the Doctor Who universe continues with an issue devoted to robots. The Doctor’s deadliest adversaries include mechanical killers such as the Yeti, the Voc robots and the clockwork droids. For more than five decades the series has realised some of our darkest fears about artificial intelligence and mankind’s relationship with its automated servants.

This 116-page bookazine includes interviews with:

Chris Boucher (writer of The Robots of Death)
Michael Kilgarriff (Robot)
John Leeson (voice of K9)
Tom MacRae (writer of The Girl Who Waited)
Dave Martin (K9’s co-creator)
Paul Murphy (director of The Caretaker and Robot of Sherwood)
Paul Tams (co-creator of the K9 television series)
Kate Walshe (visual effects producer)

The classic story guides include The War Machines, The Web of Fear, The Android Invasion, The Girl in the Fireplace, The Husbands of River Song and many more.

Among the other highlights are The Vampire Planet (an unproduced William Emms story from 1969), the strange story of the Mechonoids, a look at the Out of the Unknown episode that gave us the Mind Robber robots, Douglas Adams’ original notes for the Polyphase Avatron, the rise and fall of Kamelion and the history of robot comic strips.

Editor Marcus Hearn says:

2017 marks the 40th anniversary of K9’s first appearance in Doctor Who, so he looms large in our journey through more than 50 years of the series’ robots. It must be said that most of the mechanical characters we’re featuring aren’t quite as friendly as the Doctor’s dog...

The Essential Doctor Who: Robots is on sale now price £9.99.

Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition 46: Toys & Games (Credit: Panini)

Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition 46: Toys & Games

The latest Special Edition of Doctor Who Magazine is devoted to the many Doctor Who toys and games that have been released since the early 1960s.

One hundred pages of all-new content includes surveys of the items produced in each decade, a feature on the rarest Doctor Who toy of all, the untold story of 1965’s Zarbi puppets and a ringside seat at a board-game marathon.

Other highlights include a detailed analysis of Denys Fisher’s 1970s range of Doctor Who toys and exclusive interviews with the people behind the Dapol, Product Enterprise, Character and BIG Chief collectables.

Editor Marcus Hearn says:

It’s been more than 30 years since Doctor Who Magazine devoted an issue to merchandise, so it’s a subject well worth revisiting. This is the most ambitious Special Edition that I’ve worked on, and it was a real labour of love for all of us.

Bursting with new information, discoveries from the archive and specially commissioned photography, this is the surprising story of Doctor Who toys and games – told by the people who make, sell and collect them.

Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition: Toys & Games is on sale now price £5.99 (US: $11.99).

FILTER: - DWM

BBC Worldwide and Skype to launch Doctor Who Bot

Wednesday, 3 May 2017 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Doctor Who Bot (Credit: BBC Worldwide / Skype)

BBC Worldwide and Skype have today announced the launch of the first ever Doctor Who Bot. The Doctor will open the TARDIS doors and invite players to help him save the Universe in an exciting interactive digital experience titled The Saviour of Time. The brand new bot uses the latest technology to deliver a unique experience between the Doctor and the player.

In a world first, users get the thrilling opportunity to be the Doctor's companion as the bot immerses them in a specially-written six-part Doctor Who adventure. Players will experience the Doctor communicating with them directly and setting them challenges that can only be solved by the best companions.

Launching across multiple territories today, 3rd May, the bot includes challenges, logic puzzles, and quizzes, revolving around the search for a mysterious artefact known as the Key To Time. Scattered throughout time and space, users must locate all six segments of the Key and restore it, in order to save the Universe.

Following the launch today, a new Chapter will be released every Sunday at 6 PM (BST), shortly after episodes of Doctor Who series 10 air on BBC One, BBC AMERICA (USA), Space (Canada), ABC (Australia) and in other key international markets.

Jaclyn Lee-Joe, Chief Marketing Officer at BBC Worldwide said:

It’s hugely exciting to be launching a Doctor Who Bot on Skype - which gives us the opportunity to deliver a new form of digital story-telling with our cutting-edge brand. Through this new innovation we get to experience first-hand how bots can help deliver digital first content, and immerse audiences, old and new, in the Doctor Who universe like never before.

Steven Abrahams, Group Product Manager, Studios and Strategic Partnerships for Skype said:

Our goal is for everyone in the world to experience the best Skype has to offer and the Doctor Who bot with BBC Worldwide brings a range of new features and functionality. We’re excited to see the bot bring users and fans one step closer to meeting the iconic Doctor.

The bot will feature exclusive voice-over from Twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi, and is creatively developed by writing talent Joseph Lidster (The Sarah Jane Adventures, Torchwood).

The Doctor Who Bot builds upon existing relationships between BBC Worldwide and Skype, working together to uncover exciting new ways to reach audiences. In 2015 Skype launched the shareable, movie and TV clips initiative, Skype Mojis – featuring exhilarating short-form content from Top Gear, Doctor Who, and Sherlock.

To add the Doctor Who Bot manually, users need to search for “Doctor Who Bot” in the Skype Bot Directory, read the bot’s profile and terms, and then click “Add to Contacts”. To see new updates as they begin to roll out, users need to be on the latest Skype app for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, or Web.

The Doctor Who Bot will be available from the Skype Bot directory in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, Republic of Ireland, New Zealand, India, Singapore, Italy, Spain, France, Netherlands, Austria, Sweden, Czech Republic, Estonia, Portugal, Russia, Mexico, and Brazil.

Click here to add the Doctor Who bot to Skype and start saving the universe! Visit the Skype blog for more information on the bot and click here for a step-to-step guide on how to use the bot.

FILTER: - BBC Worldwide

Moray Watson 1928-2017

Wednesday, 3 May 2017 - Reported by Marcus

The actor Moray Watson has died at the age of 88.

Moray Watson appeared in the 1982 Doctor Who story Black Orchid, where he played Sir Robert Muir, the Chief Constable of Oxfordshire and a friend of the Cranleigh family.

Watson was born in Berkshire in 1928. He trained at The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art and made early appearances in London's West End. In 1953 he made his Television debut, appearing in the much acclaimed BBC series The Quatermass Experiment. A long career in British Television followed including a regular role as the Art Editor, Richard Lowe, in the BBC series Compact. He appeared in Silas Marner, No Wreath for the General, Laughter from the Whitehall, Z Cars and Upstairs, Downstairs as well as many appearances in one-off plays in series such as Thirty-Minute Theatre and The Wednesday Play.

In 1971 he played Lord Collingford in the children's series Catweazle and in 1974 played Barrington Erle in the BBC adaptation Anthony Trollope's The Pallisers. He played Angus Kinloch in the Cold War thriller series Quiller and Chief Constable Chubb in Murder Most English

In the 1980's he played Mr. Bennet in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and Wordsworth in the comedy Union Castle. Other notable apperances included parts in Agatha Christie's Miss Marple: The Body in the Library, Minder, Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years, The Professionals, Rude Health, Rumpole of the Bailey and The House of Eliott.

In 1991 he played the Brigadier in the ITV version of The Darling Buds of May .

He appeared in several films, including Operation Crossbow and The Grass Is Greener, in which he played opposite Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum and Jean Simmons.

Moray Watson appeared in several one-man shows, including The Incomparable Max based on the life and work of Max Beerbohm and Ancestral Voices, based on the diaries if James Lees Milne. His final show, Looking Back and Dropping Names was written and devised by himself based on his own life as an actor. It was published in book form in September 2016.

FILTER: - Classic Series - Obituary

Knock Knock - Binaural Edition

Tuesday, 2 May 2017 - Reported by Marcus

The BBC has confirmed that this week's episode of Doctor Who, Knock Knock, will be available on the BBC iPlayer in special binaural edition, available immediately after the episode has broadcast on BBC One.

Binaural is a method of sound reproduction that is intended to replicate the way the human brain understands sound to give the listener as natural an experience as possible. Rather than using a series of speakers to reproduce a soundscape, the Binaural process records sound using two microphones separated by the width of a human head. When listening to the replay through headphones, the effect is to replicate the sound going into each ear giving the listener the effect of actually being in the room where the sound was recorded.

The binaural edition of Knock Knock will be available on BBC iPlayer from 8.10pm on Saturday, 6 May.

The binaural process can be heard on the preview clip on the official BBC Doctor Who page. To experience it you need to listen to the clip on headphones.

FILTER: - Production - Series 10/36

Smile - Official Ratings

Tuesday, 2 May 2017 - Reported by Marcus

Official figures released by the Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board or BARB, gives Doctor Who - Smile an official rating of 5.98 million viewers.

The rating includes all those who recorded the programme and watched it within 7 days.

Doctor Who is the 23rd most watched programme for the week, and 8th most watched on BBC One

Top for the week was incoming showrunner Chris Chibnall's Broadchurch, starring David Tennant, which beat ITV's Britain's Got Talent, to take the top place with 11.61 million watching. Unlike last week , Doctor Who sliped behind the soaps EastEnders and Emmerdale as well as Coronation Street.

Doctor Who remained the top BBC One programme for Saturday night, just ahead of the entertainment show All Round to Mrs Brown's

FILTER: - Ratings - Series 10/36 - UK

Knock Knock - New Images

Tuesday, 2 May 2017 - Reported by Marcus

The BBC have released a number of new publicity images to promote this week's episode of Doctor Who, Knock Knock

Knock Knock

Writer: Mike Bartlett
Director: Bill Anderson

Bill is moving in with some friends and they’ve found the perfect house - so what if it’s strangely cheap to rent, and the landlord is a little creepy?
The wind blows, the floorboards creak, and the Doctor thinks something is very wrong. What lurks in the strange tower at the heart of the building - and why can’t they find any way to enter it?

"We Should Get The Doctor" - Knock Knock Preview

BBC One continues to show Doctor Who at 7;20pm, with BBC First simulcasting the episode across the Middle-East

Thin Ice: Known Broadcast Details
United Kingdom	BBC One	Sat 6 May 2017	7:20pm BST
Middle East	BBC First	Sat 6 May 2017	9:20pm AST	(Sat 7:20pm BST)
United States of America	BBC America	Sat 6 May 2017	9:00pm EDT	(Sun 2:00am BST)
Canada	SPACE	Sat 6 May 2017	9:00pm EDT	(Sun 2:00am BST)
Finland	YLE2	Sun 7 May 2017	11:00am EEST	(Sun 9:00am BST)
Australia	ABC	Sun 7 May 2017	7:40pm AEST	(Sun 10:40am BST, also on ABC ME)
Brazil	SyFy	Sun 7 May 2017	8:00pm BRT	(Sun 11:00pm BST)
Latin America	SyFy	Sun 7 May 2017	11:00pm CDT	(Mon 4:00am BST)
New Zealand	PRIME	Sun 7 May 2017	7:30pm NZST	(Mon 8:30am BST)

FILTER: - Press - Series 10/36

Thin Ice - Audience Appreciation:84

Monday, 1 May 2017 - Reported by Marcus

Doctor Who - Thin Ice had an Audience Appreciation or Ai figure of 84

The Appreciation Index in an indication of how much viewers enjoyed the episode. It is based to the reactions of a selected panel of viewers, who rate the episode shortly after transmission.

84 is considered a good score, roughly similar to the scores achieved by the last series of the show,

The highest score for the evening on the two main channels was achieved by Casualty on BBC One which scored 87.

FILTER: - Ratings - Series 10/36 - UK

Australian overnight ratings for Thin Ice & final ratings for The Pilot

Monday, 1 May 2017 - Reported by Adam Kirk

Thin Ice has debuted in Australia, averaging 473,000 viewers in the five major capital cities. The story was the second highest rating ABC drama of the day and the eleventh highest rating program of the day overall. These ratings do not include iview, regional or time-shifted viewers.

Meanwhile, including time-shifted viewers, The Pilot averaged 594,000 consolidated viewers in the five major capital cities. With 99,000 extra viewers it was the second highest time-shifted program of the day (the highest time-shifted program had 116,000 extra viewers) and the seventh highest rating program of the day overall. These ratings do not include iview or regional viewers.

Media Links: TV Tonight (Thin Ice ratings); TV Tonight (The Pilot ratings)

FILTER: - Australia - Broadcasting - Ratings - Series 10/36

Thin Ice - Press Reaction

Sunday, 30 April 2017 - Reported by Marcus

Press reaction for Doctor Who - Thin Ice is in with most reviewers enjoying the spisode and the performances.

Radio Times praised the story for its multi-layered structure, exploring the hidden depths in the characters. "Sarah Dollard accomplishes this beautifully in Thin Ice. She wipes away a dusting of frost to give us a window into the Doctor’s soul and examines his moral code; the ideals he aspires to and the crimes and misdemeanors he’s prepared to indulge."

The Mirror enjoyed the period nature of the show. "Any time Doctor Who dips a toe into period drama it really goes for it. It delivers a grand scale for the Frost Fair, with an army of extras, wonderful costumes, and sets filled with small touches that all come together to create a visually engaging 45 minutes."

The Telegraph, while enjoying the story, was disappointed by the ending and the effects. "Last week’s story, “Smile”, was let down by a rushed ending. The denouement here was almost as disappointing. Sutcliffe tried to blow up the ice for a reason that wasn’t entirely clear. When the creature swam off down the Thames to freedom, its strange scale and unconvincing appearance resembled a Fifties monster movie."

The Nerdist praises the work of writer Sarah Dollard. "With Thin Ice, we get the sense that she’s been able to explore the topics that are important to her, worth talking about, and don’t pull any punches. From the tackling of racism and classism to the moral dilemma of the Doctor being surrounded by death at all times and even being complicit, it’s all right there, and it’s refreshing.".

The writing was also praised by Ars Technica "The first two episodes struggled to dance between the mostly-excellent teacher/student friendship and somewhat inconsistent sci-fi plot lines. Thin Ice, however, skates through with ease. Writer Sarah Dollard—whose debut episode, Face the Raven, "killed off" Clara last season—ably steers the whole thing through a (Moby Dick)ensian world."

Digital Spy called the episode a fun romp with hidden depths. "Not only is the scenery of 'Thin Ice' visually rich, with circus folk and an elephant milling about on a frozen river, but there's also something innately odd about it. In other words, it's the perfect backdrop for one of this show's twisted trips into the past."

While Den of Geek looked at the various elements in the story. "There’s a bubbling racial and slavery subtext to the episode, and just when you think it’s going to stay there, Sarah Dollard brings it furiously to the surface."

Inverse.com looked at the relationship between The Doctor and the Companion. "Unlike more recent seasons of Doctor Who, this episode went out of its way to establish that the Last of the Time Lords himself feels like he works for the people of Earth. He calls Bill “boss” at the end of the episode and in a pivotal moment says “I serve at the pleasure of the human race.”

Screen Rant also investigated the impact of the new companion on the series. "Bill will be the first companion who is a product of Capaldi’s sometimes brusque but no less compassionate Doctor. As such, his actions at the beginning of their time together will forever shape Bill’s impression of the two-hearted alien moving forward, regardless the form he takes when it’s time to regenerate at the end of the season."

IGN looked at the structure of the story. "This third episode follows the pattern established by the previous two installments with a one-off adventure that feels in some ways like old-school Who. Here, as Bill wades deeper into the exciting insanity of the Doctor’s lifestyle, she also realizes that it’s not all fun and games and stealing pies. Ah yes, the life lessons of a companion."

AV Club admired the shift between serious and comic elements in the story. "Such sudden shifts between light and dark could undermine both aspects of the episode, but Dollard’s script is nimble enough to make keeping the audience off-balance into an asset. That can only work if the actors are confident enough in their performances to serve as an anchor for the various tones, and Capaldi and Mackie prove up to the challenge."

Finally Games Radar thinks this type of story is what Doctor Who was made for. "Unflinching storytelling at its finest, Thin Ice doesn’t shy away from the historical difficulties of taking a black companion to the 19th century. Pearl Mackie’s performance is fantastic from the get-go"

Our own review can be found in our Reviews section.

FILTER: - Press - Series 10/36

Thin Ice - Overnight Viewing Figures

Sunday, 30 April 2017 - Reported by Marcus

Doctor Who - Thin Ice had an overnight viewing audience of 3.76 million viewers, a share of 20.4% of the total TV audience, according to unofficial figures.

Top for the day was ITV's Britains's Got Talent, which had 8.27 million watching. Top on BBC One was the comedy series All Round to Mrs Brown's with 4.74 million viewers. Casualty just edged ahead of Doctor Who with 3.90 million, pushing Doctor Who into fourth place for the day, just ahead of Pointless Celebrities which had 3.73 million.

Final figures will be released next week, which should see Doctor Who increase its audience substantially.

FILTER: - Press - Series 10/36

Previous 10 Stories

Doctor Who Magazine: 512

BBC Worldwide and Skype to launch Doctor Who Bot

Moray Watson 1928-2017

Knock Knock - Binaural Edition

Smile - Official Ratings

Knock Knock - New Images

Thin Ice - Audience Appreciation:84

Australian overnight ratings for Thin Ice & final ratings for The Pilot

Thin Ice - Press Reaction

Thin Ice - Overnight Viewing Figures

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