Children in Need Roundup

Sunday, 9 November 2014 - Reported by Ben Morton

The fundraising telethon Children in Need is to return on Friday (14th November) on BBC One at 7pm. The BBC has confirmed that there will be a segment for Doctor Who. This has been the case since the show's revival back in 2005. Whether it will be in the form of a trailer or a mini-episode is currently unknown.

Children in Need have also launched an online auction on eBay, offering a once-in-a lifetime trip to the Doctor Who set in Cardiff and the chance to experience the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.

An exclusive Doctor Who behind the scenes set visit!

The Doctor Who production team are kindly offering an incredible once-in-a-lifetime experience for two lucky Whovians! The winning bidder plus a friend will go behind the scenes of filming for an episode of the next series, and see Peter Capaldi in action in his latest outing as The Doctor.

The winner of this package will experience:

Watching filming for an episode of the new series of Doctor Who
A conducted VIP tour of the set
Meeting the cast of the show (this is dependent on schedules, specific requests unfortunately cannot be guaranteed)
Having a photo taken on the set
A nice lunch with the crew

The location for filming will be confirmed at a later date by the Doctor Who production team. You will need to arrange your own transport to and from the experience plus any accommodation. The experience will take place on a date determined by the production team in 2015. The winning bidder will also need to sign a non-disclosure agreement to ensure that the new series remains a secret!

The winning bidder will be contacted by BBC Children in Need within 5 working days of payment reaching our PayPal account to confirm your package. Your details will then be passed on to the Doctor Who production team who will arrange the day with you. The BBC reserves the right to change the package.

Every single penny raised by the auction will go towards making a positive difference to the lives of disadvantaged children and young people right here in the UK.

Thank you for supporting BBC Children in Need

Happy Bidding!

Another Doctor Who experience up for auction is to spend a day with the BBC National Orchestra as they rehearse for Symphonic Spectacular tour.

BBC National Orchestra Of Wales - 19/20 May 2015

Place your bids to experience a day with Radio 3’s Orchestra in Wales, BBC National Orchestra of Wales:

On either 19th or 20th May 2015 in Cardiff you and a guest will sit in on a rehearsal with BBC NOW and Conductor Ben Foster, see how the orchestra rehearses and get a sneak preview all of your favourite Doctor Who themes, first hand, ahead of our Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular Arena Tour.

Then get the chance to ask all of those questions you’ve been storing up over coffee with Ben Foster. After coffee you’ll be whisked off to join the BBC National Chorus of Wales in their seats and experience the rehearsal from within, make sure you’re nicely warmed up as you’ll even get the opportunity to sing along if you wish (subject to date/rehearsing schedule).

You’ll have plenty of time to fit in a visit to the Doctor Who Experience in Cardiff Bay and receive a goody bag of BBC NOW merchandise, including a Doctor Who Soundtrack signed by the composer, Murray Gold.

To top off your BBC NOW experience we’re offering a pair of tickets to one of the Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular arena performances. In addition we’re offering the chance to see the orchestra doing something completely different with a pair of tickets to a BBC NOW concert broadcast live on BBC Radio 3. (Excludes Christmas Celebrations and St David’s Day).

Please note that transport and overnight accommodation are not included in this prize.

The winning bidder will be contacted by BBC Children in Need within 5 working days of payment reaching our PayPal account to confirm your package. Your details will then be passed on to a representative from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales who will arrange the experience with you.

Every single penny raised by the auction will go towards making a positive difference to the lives of disadvantaged children and young people, right here in the UK.

Signed Pudsey bears by numerous Doctor Who cast are up for auction: Catherine Tate (Donna Noble), Simon Callow (Charles Dickens), Bradley Walsh (Elijah Spellman), Professor Brian Cox (Himself, The Power of Three), Matt Baker (Himself, Aliens of London / World War Three) and Greg James (Shopper, Closing Time).

Signed Pudsey t-shirt by Kylie Minogue (Astrid Peth).
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All profits made from the auctions are 100% donated to BBC Children in Need.

FILTER: - Children in Need - Special Events

Death In Heaven comes to Bletchley Park

Monday, 3 November 2014 - Reported by Ben Morton

Bletchley Park, home to Second World War codebreakers, is to screen Peter Capaldi’s series finale Death In Heaven at a film event this Saturday (8th November).

The event at Bletchley Park called Station X is presented by the Cambridge Film Trust and funded by the BFI with 14 classic Sci-Fi films being shown around the venue.

Bletchley Park is based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire and is home to the National Museum of Computing.

Tickets for Station X are now on sale through Eventbrite.

FILTER: - Series 8/34 - Special Events

Paddington Who?

Monday, 3 November 2014 - Reported by Harry Ward

A Paddington Bear statue designed by Peter Capaldi has been unveiled today at a press launch for the The Paddington Trail. The statue, called Paddington Who?, will be located at Greenwich Meridian from 4th November – 30th December 2014.

Paddington Who? by Peter Capaldi (Credit: London & Partners)

Peter Capaldi, the current Doctor Who, and who also stars in the new Paddington movie has combined the bear with The Doctor to create a thrilling marmalade-eating time traveller. Has there ever been a more intrepid, daring and sure-to-find-trouble combination? One word of warning though: beware of the Dalek on his back!

The TARDIS is known to transport The Doctor and his companions through time and space on the TV series, so where better for Paddington Who to end up than right where time begins and ends each day: on the Prime Meridian line?

From here there are a number of ways to explore the world’s history, and possibly its future, with attractions to enjoy such as the Royal Observatory, the National Maritime Museum and Queen’s House. Just make sure you pack enough sandwiches under your hat before you leave home.

Other Paddington Bear statues designed by actors who have appeared in Doctor Who include Bear Necessities by John Hurt (The War Doctor), The Journey of Marmalade by Hugh Bonneville (Captain Avery), Shakesbear by Michael Sheen (Voice of House) and Paddington Jack by Davina McCall (Voice of Davinadroid). A full list of bears can be found here.

All the statues from the trail will be auctioned at Christie’s from 10th December 2014 – 7th January 2015 where the money raised will go to help the NSPCC and ChildLine. Bids for the statues will be starting from £500. Anyone who is interested in bidding for a Bear can register their interest in the online auction at christies.com/paddington.

FILTER: - People - Peter Capaldi - Special Events - UK

Peter Davison to present UK Symphonic Spectacular

Monday, 3 November 2014 - Reported by Marcus

BBC Worldwide have announced that Peter Davison, the fifth Doctor, is to join the Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular UK tour.

Davison has presented the tour in Australia and New Zealand in the past and made an appearance at the 2013 Doctor Who Prom Concert. Vision Nine and BBC Worldwide have today confirmed that he will host the UK events in May 2015 as well as the previously announced Australisian part of the tour.

In addition, given the very strong demand for tickets, one additional matinee performance has now been confirmed for Sunday 24th May at the SSE Arena, Wembley.

The Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular, which celebrates the world’s longest running science fiction TV series, showcases the music written by Murray Gold for the series since 2005 and features over 100 performers including the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and members of the BBC National Chorus of Wales, conducted by Ben Foster. The first ever UK shows will be staged from Saturday 23rd May 2015 to Friday 29th May 2015.

Looking forward to the tour Davison said

I’m very excited to be hosting the Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular in the UK in 2015. Doctor Who fans are an extraordinary, wonderful bunch, who are very passionate about the series. The Symphonic Spectacular has already proved to be a monster hit down under with thousands of fans packing into arenas across the southern hemisphere and the UK’s first ever tour promises to be even bigger. I can’t believe that I will be taking the stage at some of the UK’s biggest arenas like Wembley’s SSE Arena and the First Direct Arena in Leeds. With Murray Gold’s amazing music performed live by the programme’s ‘house band’, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, I’m also looking forward to reuniting on stage with conductor Ben Foster.

Tickets for the additional matinee performance on 24th May 2015 go on sale at 10am on Wednesday 5th November. Tickets for the other performances are on sale now.

FILTER: - Music - Peter Davison - Special Events

Time of the Doctor on DVD and Blu-Ray in Germany

Monday, 27 October 2014 - Reported by Pascal Salzmann

German DVD distributer Polyband is going to release Die Zeit des Doktors (Time of the Doctor) on DVD and Blu-Ray on 22nd December 2014. Additionally to the Christmas Special from last year, the disc will include over 100 minutes of special features.

Polyband orginally held back from releasing the Special after its german broadcast on FOX last year. They repeatedly stated on their Facebook page that they were planning to include it on the upcoming Series 8 boxed set. However, due to unforeseen problems with the German dub of Series 8, they had to pull back the release date of the boxed set and change their schedule accordingly.

Doctor Who - Die Zeit des Doktors can be pre-ordered from Amazon Germany on DVD and Blu-Ray.

FILTER: - Blu-ray/DVD - Eleventh Doctor - Germany - Matt Smith

Merchandise Roundup

Saturday, 25 October 2014 - Reported by Harry Ward

The siege mode TARDIS from Flatline is to be released by official Doctor Who prop makers Rubbertoe Replicas.

TARDIS Siege Mode Cube

The Tardis in 'siege mode' been one of our favourite prop makes of the recent series of Doctor Who. The Tardis has shrunk and is in trouble; it's just about to be flattened by a train! The Doctor pulls an emergency lever to transform the Tardis into its rawest form, no way in, no way out.
It's a beautiful prop to look at, and fits in so well with the Rubbertoe range that when we had the design we knew it was meant to be! We hope you enjoy owning it as much we enjoyed making it.

As with all Rubbertoe Replicas, the Tardis Cube is made using the same techniques and materials as the original prop. To see a detailed account of how we made the original, with step by step pictures of the prop's construction, click here.

The cube comes packed in its own Doctor Who themed gift box.

Available to order now from Rubbertoe Replicas

The Seventh Doctor's Umbrella

Most people think umbrellas are for shielding them from the elements, such as rain or sun or snow. Yet an umbrella can just as easily save you from a fate such as slipping off a sheer ice cliff. A more mundane, yet handy tool is the umbrella when used to measure objects.

You can do both of these tasks (although I wouldn’t suggest you try the former) with your new Seventh Doctor’s Umbrella, AbbyShot’s latest addition to their officially licensed Doctor Who Collection.

Precise measurements were taken and various elements were put together to get the most representative version of this umbrella. It’s made of metal, with solid fiber glass ribs, customized iconic handle with matching tip and black polyester fabric, all of which give it strength while still keeping one dry and passersby safe.

More than just a hat stand decoration, the Seventh Doctor’s Umbrella will be a great addition to any household!

Available to pre-order now from BBC Shop and AbbyShot

Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol Vinyl

Here on vinyl for the first time is Murray Gold’s immaculately crafted original soundtrack to the 2010 Doctor Who Christmas Special. Featuring opera diva Katherine Jenkins as Abigail Pettigrew, Matt Smith as the 11th Doctor, and Michael Gambon as Kazran Sardick, A Christmas Carol was the third most watched programme on December 25th 2010. Katherine Jenkins’ special appearance was crowned with her performance of Abigail’s Song (Silence Is All You Know) on Side B, Track 14.

Available to pre-order now from Amazon UK and Silva Screen

FILTER: - Audio - Merchandise - Murray Gold - Seventh Doctor

Welsh Screenings Announced

Saturday, 25 October 2014 - Reported by Marcus

BAFTA Cymru, BBC Cymru Wales and Film Hub Wales have announced a series of special Doctor Who events in the nation including a special premiere of the current series finale Death in Heaven.

A series of six screenings will feature episodes from Doctor Who that have been filmed in Wales throughout Doctor Who's 50 year history.

The programme of events, devised and coordinated by Film Hub Wales and BAFTA Cymru, and hosted in partnership with BBC Cymru Wales, will offer fans of the series a chance to see monsters from key episodes of the cult classic on the big screen and hear from the creative team working on the series.

The events will be held between November 2014 and January 2015 and will be part of Sci-Fi: Days of Fear and Wonder, the BFI’s landmark season dedicated to cinema’s most spectacular genre, presented together with 02. Tickets will be available to BAFTA members and the general public.

Hannah Raybould, BAFTA Cymru Director, said:

BAFTA Cymru exists to celebrate excellence in production in the moving art form and this new partnership with BBC Wales and venues around Wales – made possible by the funding received from Film Hub Wales, will allow us to offer new access to the amazing talent working on the Doctor Who series in Wales.

We are particularly pleased to be working with new venue partners – from Scala Cinema and Arts Centre in Prestatyn, Theatr Harlech in Gwynedd, Savoy Theatre in Monmouth and Y Ffwrnes in Llanelli, which expand the breadth of our offer, and add to our existing fruitful partnerships with the Film Hub lead organisation Chapter in Cardiff and Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

The first event in the series, to be held in partnership with Chapter pop up cinema on 4 November at the landmark National Museum of Wales in Cardiff, will be a preview of Death in Heaven, the current season finale, which will be screened ahead of its broadcast on BBC One and will be attended by cast and crew.

The wider programme of events includes The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe at Ffwrnes in Llanelli on 1 December ; The Sontaran Stratagem / The Poison Sky at Scala Cinema and Arts Centre, Prestatyn on 12 December; The Unquiet Dead at the Savoy, in Monmouth on 12 January; ending with The Five Doctors on 27 January at Aberystwyth Arts Centre. An additional double bill screening of The Masque of Mandragora and The Prisoner will be confirmed to take place in January at Theatr Harlech.

The events will each have a specific theme, focusing on one creative department within the Doctor Who production team.

Hana Lewis, Strategic Hub Manager, Film Hub Wales said

“We are delighted to offer this unique opportunity to Film Hub Wales member venues, including our Film Hub Lead organisation Chapter, as part of our exciting BFI Sci-Fi programme. We couldn’t imagine a Wales-wide Sci-Fi season that didn’t explore our cultural connections to Doctor Who and are thrilled to work with BBC Cymru Wales and BAFTA Cymru to bring these events to life.

We have a rich and diverse range of exhibitors developing audiences for film across Wales but many are divided by rural landscapes, limited capacity and lack of funding. Film Hub Wales exists to support a more sustainable independent film sector, bringing more film, to more people, in more places. We anticipate that special screenings of this cult classic can bring audiences together to experience the wondrous world of Doctor Who on the big screen.

Tickets for these special events will cost £12 and £8 (concessions) and are available exclusively from the venue websites.

(with thanks to Iain Gardner)

FILTER: - Series 8/34 - Special Events

BBC announce fan event for DVD Release

Friday, 24 October 2014 - Reported by Marcus

The BBC has announced a special fan event, held in London and hosted by Frank Skinner, will take place on Monday 17th November, to mark the release of the Series 8 DVD and Blu-ray set.

This will be the first chance the cast have had to reflect on the conclusion of Peter Capaldi’s debut series as the Doctor, in front of 140 lucky fans at a central London location.

BBC Worldwide is offering 70 pairs of tickets for this exclusive event. Fans will be treated to a special screening followed by a Q&A with members of the cast. All they need to do is visit doctorwho.tv and correctly answer the multiple choice question, when they will subsequently be entered into a prize draw. The competition is now open and will close at 23.59 on Wednesday 29th October. Winners will be selected at random and will be notified within seven days of the closing date. Unsuccessful applicants will not be contacted. Fans should only enter if they can travel to London for the afternoon of the 17th November. The event venue will be disclosed to winners on their invitation closer to the time.

Frank Skinner commented

When they asked me to host this event I was over the moon. Luckily the space-dragon incubation period is such that I was in no real danger. I have so many questions I want to ask and, when we're all talked out, I'm planning to finish off by crowd-surfing for 10 to 15 minutes, dressed as Chief Engineer Perkins.

This event continues BBC Worldwide’s celebration of a new Doctor in the world’s longest running sci-fi series. Earlier this year, Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman traveled the globe visiting Doctor Who fans in Seoul, Sydney, New York City, Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro and today the interactive and immersive attraction in Cardiff Bay – The Doctor Who Experience – will reopen with an updated adventure featuring the Twelfth Doctor.

The DVD and Blu-ray release of The Complete Eighth Series sees the Doctor and Clara encounter previously unimaginable wonders and horrors... The time travellers meet a fleet of Daleks as they attempt to rescue a stranded ship of human survivors, face ranks of Cybermen stalking Earth, go back in time and join Robin Hood in a fight with killer robots in Sherwood Forest, become outlaws when they break into the deadliest bank in the cosmos, face a Mummy on the Orient Express, discover a deadly horror dwelling on the Moon and meet the last man standing at the end of the universe.

The box set contains every explosive episode from Peter Capaldi’s debut series in the role and is also packed full of extras including:

DVD Exclusive: Doctor Who - Deep Breath Cinema panel session (1x 30’ feature)
DVD Exclusive: Audio Commentaries x 4 (episodes and participants TBC)
Doctor Who: The Ultimate Time Lord (1x45’ feature with Fifth Doctor Peter Davison)
Doctor Who: The Ultimate Companion (1x45’ feature with Fifth Doctor Peter Davison)
Doctor Who: Earth Conquest (1x45’ World Tour Documentary)
Doctor Who Exclusive (4x2’ cast interviews)
Doctor Who Extra (12x10’ behind the scenes)
FOXES – Don’t Stop Me Now (Music video from Mummy on the Orient Express).

Doctor Who: The Complete Eighth Series is available to pre-order now on Amazon.uk and amazon.com. There is also a BBC Shop exclusive edition featuring special artwork and art cards.

FILTER: - Blu-ray/DVD - Competitions - Merchandise - Series 8/34 - Special Events

Who stars’ Paddington Bear statues to appear in London

Friday, 3 October 2014 - Reviewed by Nathan Brown

Statue designs by (from left to right) Sheen, Michael Bond and Frankie Bridge. Photo: Joe Pepler.

The Twelfth Doctor, Peter Capaldi, is one of several Doctor Who stars whose designs for Paddington Bear statues are due to feature in a new London trail.

Hugh Bonneville (Avery in The Curse of the Black Spot and A Good Man Goes to War) and Michael Sheen (the voice of House in The Doctor’s Wife) are also involved in the project.

TV presenter Davina McCall, who can be heard in the Big Brother-inspired sequences of 2005 episode Bad Wolf, will be designing a Paddington too.

Statues featuring the creative work of the four Who stars - and a long list of other celebrities, artists and designers - will appear in a trail around the UK capital’s landmarks and attractions between November 4th and December 30th this year.

The trail is tied to upcoming film ‘Paddington’, in which both Capaldi and Bonneville appear.

Michael Sheen’s statue design, Paddington Shakesbear, has already been unveiled.

3DEye, a design company, is helping with the statues’ creation. Once the trail has closed, the pieces are set to be auctioned for the NSPCC and Action Medical Research For Children.

For more information about the trail, VisitLondon.com.

FILTER: - Special Events

Rare Doctor Who micro figures unveiled by Character Options

Saturday, 27 September 2014 - Reported by Marcus

Character Options has revealed details of a number of brand new super rare micro- figures amongst the latest Character Building Doctor Who Display Brix Series 4 collection, which is out now.

The assortment of 12 highly detailed and fully articulated figures features key characters Doctor Who. The first micro-figure for the Twelfth Doctor played by Peter Capaldi together with his companion Clara Oswald and many other classic characters monsters are included in the range. Each figure comes in its own transparent Display Brix casing that can be stacked and presented into one Doctor Who display.

Character Options can confirm that there are actually five further figures to hunt for; all super-rare with 100 or less of each to find.

Who to look out for…

100 of Clara Oswald in Bow Cardigan
75 of The Eleventh Doctor with Handles
75 of The Eleventh Doctor as he was seen in the episode “The Crimson Horror”
50 of Wooden Cybermen
50 of Captain Jack Harkness

Mark Hunt from Character Options commented:

At just £1.99 our Doctor Who Character Building Display Brix are already highly collectable for fans, but we like to throw in a little extra excitement by adding a number of super rare figures to each new Series of figures. The new collection is by far the coolest we’ve released, with a wide variety of new collectibles and rarer than ever special figures which will be a huge bonus for fans who are lucky enough to find them.

FILTER: - Character Options - Eleventh Doctor

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