Class - Press Reaction

Saturday, 22 October 2016 - Reported by Marcus

This item Contains Plot Spoilers

The first Doctor Who Spin-off aimed at a young adult audience launched yesterday, and press reaction has generally been positive.

Digital Spy praised the script by acclaimed writer Patrick Ness. "Ness's script zips all over the place, demanding a huge emotional range from Greg Austin (Charlie), Sophie Hopkins (April), Fady Elsayed (Ram) and Vivian Oparah (Tanya) and these kids knock it out of the park, nailing every single beat."

The Telegraph felt the first episode was rather clumsy and often fell flat, but was more impressed with the second. "Things pick up in the second episode, as the script becomes more sophisticated and the true, more adult nature of the series is revealed"

Flickering Myth disagreed about the first episode "For Tonight We Might Die is quite an effective pilot in terms of establishing the core cast, and endearing them to the audience. Certainly, there’s a strong basis here for subsequent episodes to follow, with engaging character arcs being teased for each individual."

CNET felt the cast was full of Tumblr-ready ship-worthy characters."The standout is smouldering Fady Elsayed as the cocky but conflicted Ram. Meanwhile, Katherine Kelly chews the scenery as vampy teacher Miss Quill".

Den of Geek felt the episode was witty and energetic and highlighted parallels with other young adult series. "Class arrived with the following quote from Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat, “I’ve always wondered if there could be a British Buffy - it’s taken the brilliant Patrick Ness to figure out how to make it happen.”

Wales Online explores the teenage angst felt by the main characters. "One thing that becomes apparent pretty early on, is the alienation each of the main characters feel. This is exactly how I would imagine growing up in this day and age to be like. Ness, incidentally, deals with the whole idea of time and space really well."

You can read the Doctor Who News review in our reviews section.

FILTER: - Class - Press

Doctor Who Magazine - 505

Friday, 21 October 2016 - Reported by Marcus

This month's Doctor Who Magazine celebrates the 10th Anniversary of Doctor Who's first ongoing spin-off series, when John Barrowman talks Torchwood...

Following Barrowman's comment at this year's San Diego Comic-Con that he was “working very hard” to return Torchwood to our TV screens", DWM asks he what that was all about...

Every production company I go into, I’m not kidding, they say, Is there any way we could get Torchwood back up and running?. I’ve heard this so many times that I thought, I’m going to find out if we can do it.

I started planting seeds, dropping a few hints, and it did exactly what I wanted it to: it blew up and everyone was like, Oh my God, Barrowman wants to bring back Torchwood! Which, I’ve got to be honest with you, I really do. Because I travel around the world, I go to all these conventions, I see all these people – and I speak to all these production companies – who are desperate for it to come back.

ALSO INSIDE THIS ISSUE…

ASK STEVEN

Steven Moffat

THE POWER OF THE DALEKS

The Power of the Daleks

CLASS PREVIEW

Patrick Ness

Class

THE ART OF THE DIRECTOR
BLOODSPORT
TIME TEAM
THE SAVAGES

The Savages

COMING SOON

PLUS! All the latest official news, reviews, competitions, and The DWM Crossword.

Doctor Who Magazine 505 is on sale now, price £5.99.

FILTER: - Class - DWM - Torchwood

BBC America schedules Christmas Special sneak peek

Thursday, 20 October 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

BBC America have made a late change in their schedules for this evening to include a five minute segment for this year's Doctor Who Christmas Special at 10:30pm EDT:

Doctor Who Sneak Peek (Credit: BBC America)

No other information is available at present, though it is possible that this will be a television screening of the recently released behind-the-scenes video.

FILTER: - BBC America - Broadcasting - International Broadcasting - USA

Mindgame Saga

Thursday, 20 October 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Koch Media are to re-release the spin-off features produced by Reeltime Pictures, Mindgame and Mindgame Trilogy, on DVD on 14th November 2016.

Mindgame Saga

Mindgame
Written by Terrance Dicks
Starring Sophie Aldred, Miles Richardson, Toby Aspin and Bryan Robson

The classic prison cell drama. Three warriors are forced to fight by an evil alien intent on testing the combat skills of creatures from our dimension. Can they trick him and escape back to their own timelines?

Mindgame Trilogy
Written by Terrance Dicks, Miles Richardson and Roger Stevens
Starring Sophie Aldred, Miles Richardson and John Wadmore

Continuing the individual stories of the three warriors.
BATTLEFIELD: Field-Major Sarg is in trouble. Trapped, wounded and alone on a battle-scarred planet, he is forced to accept he may die … but at least it will be a glorious death – or so he hopes.
PRISONER 451: To be or not to be, that is the question! On trial for subversion, Commander of Brigade Merc faces the ultimate penalty.
SCOUT SHIP: A dying ship drifting in space. The human mercenary pilot faced with certain death. Time may be relative… but it still runs out!

The DVD also includes a second disc with special features:

Mindgame Saga Retrospective (NEW)
Making of Mindgame
Making of Mindgame Trilogy
Mindgame & Mindgame Trilogy Slideshows
Mindgame script (including missing scenes)

Exclusive Trailer for Mindgame Saga

FILTER: - Blu-ray/DVD

Lethbridge-Stewart at Halloween: Eve of the Fomorians

Thursday, 20 October 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Candy Jar Books have announced their latest e-book in the Lethbridge-Stewart range for Halloween, free to anybody pre-ordering the next main book in the range, Times Squared:

Lethbridge-Stewart: Eve of the Fomorians (Credit: Candy Jar Books)

Eve of the Fomorians
Written by Robert Mammone
Cover by Paul Cooke

All Hallows’ Eve, 1969. En route back to Edinburgh, Anne Travers, William Bishop and Samson Ware come across a deserted village in the Scottish countryside. A village that is rotten to the core.

Range Editor Andy Frankham-Allen, says:

I was already familiar with Rob’s work, so when he emailed us out of the blue asking if we would consider him for our Short Story Incentive scheme, I was very willing to give him a shot. And he just happened to enquire as we were about to seek out a story for Halloween.

Robert Mammone says:

Once I knew it was going to be set around Halloween, I knew I wanted to do a Quatermass inspired story, with definite horrific elements, sourced back to a scientific explanation/basis.

Shaun Russell, head of publishing at Candy Jar, says:

There is something very John Wyndham about the story, which I know Andy especially appreciates, as do a lot of our readers.

This story is set shortly after Times Squared: Andy says:

Although you can easily read it without having read Times Squared, as it features Anne, Bishop and Samson who are not in that novel. Although it references Times Squared, it does so in a way that will not spoil that novel one bit. It also has a nice callback to the first novel of this year, Moon Blink. All that said, it is very deliberately written to be read on its own, with your feet up, candles lit and the rain lashing against the window.

Times Squared can be pre-ordered from the Candy Jar website.

The limited edition print-collection The HAVOC Files is now available to read on Kindle.

FILTER: - Books - Candy Jar Books - Lethbridge-Stewart

Class Comes to Comic Con

Thursday, 20 October 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

The BBC have announced that the writer and cast of the new BBC series Class will attend the MCM London Comic Con later this month.

Patrick Ness and the show’s cast including Ram (Fady Elsayed), Charlie (Greg Austin), April (Sophie Hopkins), Tanya (Vivian Oparah) and producer Derek Ritchie, will talk about Coal Hill Academy's first term in the Whoniverse giving give con-goers an insight into the series as well as presenting an exclusive screening of episode three.

The event takes place at Excel London at 15:00 on the Saturday of Comic Con which runs from 28-30 October.

FILTER: - Class - Special Events

Class Episode One Pictures

Tuesday, 18 October 2016 - Reported by Marcus

The BBC has released a new set of pictures from the first episode of the upcoming Doctor Who spin-off - Class

It's a new term at Coal Hill Academy, and students are preparing for their Autumn Prom. But when the school comes under attack from the monstrous Shadow Kin, four alienated students must form an unlikely alliance to defeat them.

Miss Quill (KATHERINE KELLY), The Doctor (PETER CAPALDI) (L-R) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Corikinus (PAUL MARK DAVIES), The Doctor (PETER CAPALDI) (L-R) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Corikinus (PAUL MARK DAVIES), The Doctor (PETER CAPALDI) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Charlie (GREG AUSTIN) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Miss Quill (KATHERINE KELLY), April (SOPHIE HOPKINS), Charlie (GREG AUSTIN) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

April (SOPHIE HOPKINS), Charlie (GREG AUSTIN) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Ram (FADY ELSAYED) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Ram (FADY ELSAYED), Rachel (ANNA SHAFFER) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

April (SOPHIE HOPKINS), Miss Quill (KATHERINE KELLY), Charlie (GREG AUSTIN) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Jackie (SHANNON MURRAY) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Miss Quill (KATHERINE KELLY), Charlie (GREG AUSTIN) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Matteusz (JORDAN RENZO) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

April (SOPHIE HOPKINS) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Miss Quill (KATHERINE KELLY) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Tanya (VIVIAN OPARAH) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Jackie (SHANNON MURRAY), April (SOPHIE HOPKINS) (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgeway)

Class is due to be released on the BBC Three channel next weekend, as well as being screened in Australia, Canada and the Middle East.

A set of Character Portraits have also been released

Character Portraits

Charlie (GREG AUSTIN) (Credit: BBC/Todd Antony)

Tanya (VIVIAN OPARAH) (Credit: BBC/Todd Antony)

Ram (FADY ELSAYED) (Credit: BBC/Todd Antony)

Matteusz (JORDAN RENZO) (Credit: BBC/Todd Antony)

Miss Quill (KATHERINE KELLY) (Credit: BBC/Todd Antony)

FILTER: - Class - Production

New Titan Comics Out This Week

Monday, 17 October 2016 - Reported by Marcus

This week sees Titan Comics release a trio of Doctor Who comics featuring the Third, Tenth and Twelfth Doctors, as well as the latest in the Summer special Supremacy of the Cybermen and the second in the new Torchwood series.

All comics are published on Wednesday 19th October.

THIRD DOCTOR #2

Writer: Paul Cornell
Artist: Christopher Jones
Cover A: Claudia Ianniciello, Cover B: PHOTO, Cover C: JAKe, Cover D: Arianna Florean

The Doctor and Jo Grant are left reeling by the revelations at the end of the first issue, and they still have a mysterious extraterrestrial object to analyse and defeat! Does the real danger come from the Doctor's latest team-up? Of course -- but in ways he'll never see coming...!

TENTH DOCTOR #2.15

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Artist: Giorgia Sposito
Cover A: Wheatley, Cover B: Photo, Cover C: JAKE

The tension mounts in the penultimate episode of the Tenth Doctor's second year! Has Anubis fallen to the darkness in his family tree? Can Gabby and Cindy staunch the corruption in an entity powerful enough to snuff them out with a thought? If you think you know where this year's finale is going... Think again!

TWELFTH DOCTOR #2.10

Writer: George Mann
Artist: Rachael Stott
Cover A: Laclaustra, Cover B: Photo, Cover C: Collins, Cover D: Pleece

Trapped in a dying, mysterious maze of a house, the Twelfth Doctor and his latest traveling companion face a world where the laws of physics have broken down. As the Doctor fights to save a family cashing in on an ancient promise, the secrets of the house battle to overwhelm him!

Doctor Who: TWELFTH DOCTOR #2.10 (Titan)

SUPREMACY OF THE CYBERMEN #4

Writer: George Mann, Cavan Scott
Artist: Ivan Rodriguez, Walter Geovani
Cover A: Vitti, Cover B: Photo, Cover C: Listran

The penultimate chapter of the Doctor Who event of 2016! Things get worse for the Doctor - across four separate time zones! The ninth Doctor gets too close to the enemy. The tenth Doctor's companions offer a terrifying sacrifice. The eleventh Doctor digs deep and gives back with interest, and the twelfth Doctor is faced with the most momentous choice of his life!

Doctor Who: SUPREMACY OF THE CYBERMEN #4 (Titan)

Torchwood #2

Writers: John Barrowman, Carol Barrowman
Artist: Antonio Fuso
Cover A: Blair Shedd Cover B: Will Brooks Photo Cover C: Simon Myers

Far away from Cardiff and the Hub, Captain Jack and Gwen dive deep to unravel the secrets of an ancient, extinct civilisation, whose colossal megaweapons are being primed to affect the Earth. Caught between human agencies, infiltrating aliens, a unknowing public and an uncertain future, can a Torchwood stripped of its resources and staff still save the day?!

FILTER: - Tenth Doctor - Third Doctor - Torchwood - Twelfth Doctor

The Power of the Daleks to be shown in US cinemas

Wednesday, 12 October 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

The Power of the Daleks (animated) - The Daleks (Credit: BBC Worldwide)

BBC America and Fathom Events have announced that the new animated version of The Power of the Daleks will be shown in cinemas across the United States on 14th November 2016, a few days before it premieres on television at 8:25pm on the 19th November. The showings will also feature bonus content, including interviews with members of the original cast.

Kymberli Frueh, Fathom Events Vice President of Programming, said:

We’re pleased to continue our long-standing and successful partnership with BBC AMERICA to bring more fantastic Doctor Who content to the big screen The Whovians are always one of our biggest and most passionate groups of fans at the cinemas.

Soumya Sriraman, EVP, Franchise and Digital Enterprises, BBC Worldwide North America, said:

Ahead of the premiere on BBC AMERICA, it is a rare treat to be able to bring the lost episode, Power of the Daleks, to life using modern animation techniques. Doctor Who cinema events have been incredibly successful, and this is extraordinary opportunity to allow a new generation of fans the opportunity to experience this classic adventure for the first time.

Tickets go on sale for the showings via Fathom Events and at participating cinemas from 14th October.

FILTER: - Cinema - Special Events - USA

Doctor Who meets The World of Hargreaves

Tuesday, 11 October 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Random House have announced a new range of books based upon the popular Mr Men created by Roger Hargreaves.

Puffin Books (a division of Penguin Random House Children’s Books UK), BBC Worldwide and Sanrio Global Ltd are delighted to announce a new partnership.

Doctor Who meets The World of Hargreaves brings to life Doctor Who characters in the distinctive story-telling and illustrative style of Roger Hargreaves.

Puffin Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House Children’s, will publish these stories in the UK.

Penguin Young Readers, a division of Penguin Random House is master publisher and will release twelve titles, one for each Doctor.

These storybook mash-ups, written and illustrated by Adam Hargreaves, combine the iconic storytelling of Doctor Who with the whimsical humor and design made famous by his father, Roger Hargreaves. The first four books will be available in Spring 2017.

Francesca Dow, MD of Penguin Random House Children’s Books, said:

As the global publisher of Doctor Who and champions of books which push creative boundaries, we are delighted to be publishing such unique and fun stories. We're confident and excited they will appeal to the thousands of Doctor Who and Mr Men fans around the world

Jan Paterson, Head of Book and Audio Publishing, BBC Worldwide commented:

We are thrilled to be teaming up with Sanrio on this fantastic project and think that fans will love these creative incarnations of the Doctor reimagined in the ‘Hargreaves’ style. We’re always looking for innovative ways to engage our fans so this is the perfect partnership for us.

Alastair McHarrie, Licensing Director of Sanrio Global Ltd added:

There is a wealth of unofficial fan-created content online. We wanted to give something back to these supporters so we’ve created the first official Hargreaves mash-up. Who better to partner with than another classic British property, Doctor Who. We couldn’t be more excited.

Francesco Sedita, President and Publisher of Price Stern Sloan, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers, added:

It is such a special moment for us to unite these two great properties. Our books bring Hargreaves’ wonderful, fun style to the mysterious, magical world of Doctor Who. I know we're going to delight fans of all ages!

FILTER: - BBC Books - Books

Previous 9 Stories

Class - Press Reaction

Doctor Who Magazine - 505

BBC America schedules Christmas Special sneak peek

Mindgame Saga

Lethbridge-Stewart at Halloween: Eve of the Fomorians

Class Comes to Comic Con

Class Episode One Pictures

New Titan Comics Out This Week

The Power of the Daleks to be shown in US cinemas

Doctor Who meets The World of Hargreaves

This Week in Doctor Who

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