Interactive Producer role for Doctor WhoBookmark and Share

Sunday, 15 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Last month we reported on the role of producer being advertised for Doctor Who. The BBC has now provided details for another position to accompany the show, that of Interactive Producer.

As the job title implies, the role revolves around the media aspect of the show; in context: "BBC Wales successfully produces a wide range of network commissions such as Doctor Who, Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures, Amazon and Last Chance to See. These productions increasingly include enhanced interactive content for digital TV, online and mobile platforms. The Interactive Producer is dedicated to producing innovative and compelling high quality content across interactive television, mobile and web platforms."

Like the producer's position, this one is once again a 12-month contract. The closing date is 27th February, and full details may be found on the BBC Jobs website.




FILTER: - Production

DVD extras passed by BBFCBookmark and Share

Friday, 13 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
The BBFC have passed the following extras for release on the forthcoming DVDs for Attack of the Cybermen and Image of the Fendahl.

Attack of the Cybermen:
00:22:48:18 THE CYBER STORY (FEATURETTE)
00:01:03:17 THE CYBERNETIC AUTONOMOUS DALEK (EASTER EGG)
00:08:06:21 HUMAN CYBORG - THE CYBERNETIC EXPERIMENTS (FEATURETTE)
00:08:09:03 ATTACK OF THE CYBERMEN - PHOTO GALLERY
00:07:47:22 THE CYBER-GENERATIONS (PHOTO GALLERY)
00:03:08:22 DOCTOR WHO (TRAILS AND CONTINUITY)
00:27:25:05 THE COLD WAR (FEATURETTE)

Image of the Fendahl:
00:26:19:01 AFTER IMAGE (MAKING OF)
00:11:26:18 IMAGE OF THE FENDAHL - DELETED AND EXTENDED SCENES
00:05:34:07 IMAGE OF THE FENDAHL - PHOTO GALLERY
00:00:37:07 (EASTER EGG) (LOUISE JAMESON INTERVIEW)
00:00:19:10 DR WHO - NEXT SATURDAY - 6.10 (TRAILER)

Attack of the Cybermen is due to be released on the 16th March, withImage of the Fendahl following later in the year.




FILTER: - Blu-ray/DVD

Filming in DubaiBookmark and Share

Friday, 13 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
The BBC Press Office have confirmed that filming has now begun in the United Arab Emirates for the forthcoming special Planet of the Dead.

Says producer Tracie Simpson: "We rarely take Doctor Who abroad although we did visit Rome for series four's The Fires Of Pompeii which gave us some spectacular footage. The locations in Dubai are a perfect match for writer Russell T Davies's vision of the episode and we expect to film some incredible scenes while we are here."

Additional photos from filming are available on the BBC's offical Doctor Who website for download as wallpaper.

News on filming has also been mentioned in the local Dubai paper The National: "While filming in crippling sandstorms in Dubai this week may have proved troublesome for mere mortals, the cult sci-fi figure the Doctor, hero of the popular BBC programme Doctor Who, emerged victorious over the climatic horrors of planet Earth. Hundreds of production crew descended on the desert around the city this week to film part of an episode of the programme. The location remained a closely guarded secret despite being in the wide open desert, with production company staff and all technical crew from Dubai required to sign confidentiality agreements."

Further media coverage from: CBBC, WalesOnline, Scottish Herald, Daily Record, Evening Post, Press Association, and Arabian Business.




FILTER: - Specials - Series 4/30 Specials - Press

Hayward LectureBookmark and Share

Friday, 13 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Further to our news article on the Mark Wallinger exhibition taking place at the Hayward Gallery in London over the next few weeks, a lecture has now been announced for Friday 27th February which will feature writer and script-editor Gary Russell talking about the secrets of the TARDIS: "Blackboard lectures unveil the secrets, enigmas and stories behind works and objects featured in Mark Wallinger's show with a wide range of experts including artists, writers, mathematicians or sport and art historians."

Admission to the lecture, taking place at 7:00pm, will be free with an exhibition ticket. Further details are on the Gallery website.

Meanwhile, the Yorkshire Evening Post has reported on the exhibition moving to Leeds and Swansea in the future. It will be at the Leeds Art Gallery from May 16 to June 28 and then the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery in Swansea from July 18 to September 20. It is at the Hayward from February 18 to May 4.

(with thanks to Vin)




FILTER: - Special Events

Sarah Jane Adventures meets Comic ReliefBookmark and Share

Friday, 13 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
The offical Doctor Who site reports that there will be a special Red Nose Day version of The Sarah Jane Adventures. The mini-adventure will feature an old enemy, and the return of K9.

The special is written by Gareth Roberts and Clayton Hickman, and will see Elisabeth Sladen, Tommy Knight, Daniel Anthony and Anjli Mohindra reprising their roles, with special guest Ronnie Corbett. It will be broadcast as part of Comic Relief on the 13th March.




FILTER: - Sarah Jane

Doctor Who Adventures #102Bookmark and Share

Friday, 13 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
This week, Doctor Who Adventures has a fascinating fact file about the actor who has been chosen to be the Eleventh Doctor -- Matt Smith.

Also, do you suspect your friend is an alien? Some creatures are masters of disguise and it's difficult to tell what they really look like. We've got a feature all about the monsters that look human and are therefore very dangerous.

Also in the magazine:
  • What mystery gift will you find inside this week's Doctor Who Adventures? There's something special with every issue.
  • Posters: Martha Jones poster and the Doctor and the Gelth from The Unquiet Dead.
  • News: Pictures from the Easter special, Planet of the Dead.
  • Monsters: The ultimate guide to Sontarans.
  • Tale from the TARDIS: DWA readers' favourite scene from The Next Doctor. The CyberKing rises!
  • Puzzles: Fun things to work out!

  • Reader survey: Tell us what you think of Doctor Who Adventures!
  • Colour it!: The Dalek Sec Hybrid is waiting for you!
  • Comic strip: The Doctor and Heather land in the largest supermarket in the universe.
  • Subscription offer: Subscribe today and get a Dalek adventure on CD!


Doctor Who Adventures issue 102 is out now.




FILTER: - Magazines - DWA

Torchwood Books for MayBookmark and Share

Friday, 13 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
BBC Books have provided details for the three new Torchwood novels due to be published in May.
Bay of the Dead – Mark Morris

When the city sleeps, the dead start to walk…

Something has sealed off Cardiff, and living corpses are stalking the streets, leaving a trail of half-eaten bodies. Animals are butchered. A young couple in their car never reach their home. A stolen yacht is brought back to shore, carrying only human remains. And a couple of girls heading back from the pub watch the mysterious drivers of a big black SUV take over a crime scene.

Torchwood have to deal with the intangible barrier surrounding Cardiff, and some unidentified space debris that seems to be regenerating itself. Plus, of course, the all-night zombie horror show.

Not that they really believe in zombies.

Mark Morris is the author of fourteen novels, including two Doctor Who books, and numerous novellas, short stories, articles and reviews, which have appeared in a wide variety of anthologies and magazines. This is his first Torchwood novel. His website can be found here.


The House That Jack Built – Guy Adams

Jackson Leaves - an Edwardian house in Penylan. Built 1906, semi-detached, three storeys, spacious, beautifully presented. Left in good condition to Rob and Julia by Rob’s late aunt.

It’s an ordinary sort of a house. Except for the way the rooms don’t stay in the same places. And the strange man that turns up in the airing cupboard. And the apparitions. And the temporal surges that attract the attentions of Torchwood.

And the fact that the first owner of Jackson Leaves in 1906 was a Captain Jack Harkness…

Guy Adams has written books about Life on Mars including the bestselling Rules of Modern Policing, written as DCI Gene Hunt. He's the author of the British Fantasy Society Award nominated Deadbeat series and a handful of children's books, and is currently working on a thirteen-volume horror series for young adults and a replica scrapbook of John Watson MD's time with Sherlock Holmes. This is his first Torchwood novel.


Into the Silence – Sarah Pinborough

The body in the church hall is very definitely dead. It has been sliced open with surgical precision, its organs exposed, and its vocal cords are gone. It is as if they were never there or they’ve been dissolved…

With the Welsh Amateur Operatic Contest getting under way, music is filling the churches and concert halls of Cardiff. The competition has attracted the finest Welsh talent to the city, but it has also drawn something else – there are stories of a metallic creature hiding in the shadows. Torchwood are on its tail, but it’s moving too fast for them to track it down.

This new threat requires a new tactic – so Ianto Jones is joining a male voice choir…

Sarah Pinborough is the author of five horror novels, two of which have been short-listed for the British Fantasy Society Award for Best Novel in 2007 and 2008. She currently lives and works in Milton Keynes. You can find out more about her here.




FILTER: - Merchandise

New Comics: The Time Machination and Doctor Who OngoingBookmark and Share

Friday, 13 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
A number of new Doctor Who-related comics were announced during the recent New York ComicCon during a panel held by IDW Publishing.

May will see The Time Machination by Tony Lee with art by Paul Grist; this is a 22 page issue that the author revealed will involve Victorian London, and will be the first Doctor Who comic to mention Torchwood.

From July, a new monthly anthology, also by Lee, will commence; entitledDoctor Who Ongoing, it aims to be a 'season' to portray new tenth Doctor adventures, with all-new companions, through to the arrival of his eleventh incarnation in issue 18 (December 2010). Lee commented: "It’s the best fun I’ve ever had." The first two issues will be set in Hollywood in 1927.

(reported by Comic Book Resources, with thanks to Matt Marshall and Craig Andrews)




FILTER: - Merchandise

Doctor Who Books for SeptemberBookmark and Share

Friday, 13 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
BBC Books have announced details for the two new Doctor Who books due to be published in September
The Dalek Project

1917: The Great War is at its fiercest and most terrible. But things are about to get even worse… When the Doctor arrives at Hellcombe Hall in England he discovers a house full of mystery. There are locked doors and forbidden rooms, dustsheets cover guilty secrets, the maid Mary Carter is scared of the ghosts… And that’s before Corporal Anderson finds that his muddy corpse-filled trench ends in the drawing room. Armaments manufacturer Lord Hellcombe has a new secret weapon he believes will win the war. But when the Doctor witnesses the final demonstration he begins to realise how much danger everyone is in. Because Lord Hellcome claims to have invented the Dalek. Except, of course, that nothing is quite what it seems. The Doctor and his new friends must draw on every type of early 20th century technology and every element of human ingenuity and bravery if they are to discover the truth and to survive. If they are to prevent the entire Western Front of World War One from becoming part of The Dalek Project.

The book will be written by Justin Richards, Creative Consultant for the BBC’s Doctor Who Books and illustrated by Doctor Who Magazine veteran Mike Collins, with an introduction by Russell T Davies. Justin Richards commented, "At BBC Books, we're all very excited about publishing our first graphic novel. We're been keen to move into this area for a long time, and it's taken a lot of planning and preparation. Mike Collins' artwork, as readers of his DWM comic strips already know, is so stunning that it's been a real challenge to come up with a script that will do his work - and the Doctor himself - justice. The graphic novel format lends itself to storytelling on an epic scale - so expect to see the Daleks at their most cunning and awesome, and the Doctor at his most brilliant and heroic."

Doctor Who: The Ultimate Monster Guide

The ultimate guide to the monsters the Doctor has encountered in centuries of travelling space and time

For The Ultimate Monster Guide, Doctor Who historian Justin Richards has completely revised and updated entries from his first three bestselling reference books – and included a wealth of new material from both the current and the classic series – to create the most comprehensive guide to the Doctor’s enemies ever published. From Adipose and Autons to Zarbi and Zygons, this guide tells you everything you need to know about the many dastardly creatures the Doctor has fought over the 46 years since he first appeared on television.

The Guide also includes behind the scenes secrets of how the monsters were created, as well as design drawings and images. Find out how the Cybermen were redesigned over the years, and how Davros was resurrected to lead his Daleks once again. Discover the computer magic that made the Beast possible, and the make-up wizardry that created the Weeping Angels. Learn how many incarnations of the Master the Doctor has encountered, and which other misguided Time Lords he has defeated...

Lavishly illustrated with photos and artwork throughout, The Ultimate Monster Guide is essential reading for all travellers in time and space!




FILTER: - Merchandise

TARDIS at the Hayward GalleryBookmark and Share

Thursday, 12 February 2009 - Reported by Chuck Foster
London's Hayward Gallery on the South Bank will be opening a new exhibition from 18th February, entitled Mark Wallinger Curates: The Russian Linesman - a name inspired by a ruling made during the 1966 England v West Germany World Cup final and which reputedly changed the course of football history.

The exhibition will explore "notions of the liminal: thresholds between physical, political or metaphysical realms". Says Wallinger: "I have always been interested in how we define and are defined by thresholds and boundaries, the events of history. The works in the exhibition use illusion, artifice and dislocating devices to look at our accidental time and place in the world afresh."

For Doctor Who fans, the exhibition also includes Wallinger's own "Time and Relative Dimensions in Space", a reflective 'TARDIS' originally featured in 2001's Venice Biennale.

For more details on the exhibition visit the Hayward Gallery exhibition page, plus coverage in the Evening Standard and on the London SE1 website.




FILTER: - Special Events