Australian overnight ratings for Hell Bent & final ratings for Face The Raven

Monday, 7 December 2015 - Reported by Adam Kirk

Hell Bent has debuted in Australia, averaging 534,000 viewers in the five major capital cities. The story was the highest rating ABC drama of the day and the tenth highest rating program of the day overall. These ratings do not include iview, regional or time-shifted viewers.

Meanwhile, including time-shifted viewers, Face The Raven averaged 657,000 consolidated viewers in the five major capital cities. With 175,000 extra viewers it was the highest time-shifted program of the day (the second highest time-shifted program only had 135,000 extra viewers) and the tenth highest rating program of the day overall. These ratings do not include iview or regional viewers.

Media Links: TV Tonight (Hell Bent ratings); TV Tonight (Face The Raven ratings)

FILTER: - Australia - Broadcasting - Ratings - Series 9/35

Hell Bent - Press Reaction

Sunday, 6 December 2015 - Reported by Marcus

Press reaction to Hell Bent is in and Radio Times thought the episode a definite hit. "If I was left unmoved by the predictable and, to my mind, tedious events of Face the Raven, episode 12 certainly does push my buttons. It touches me in unexpected ways; it convincingly opens up a well of sorrow and, yes, several times I had a tear in my eye. The first being when the Doctor strums “a sad song” on his guitar, a blues version of a familiar Murray Gold theme. “What’s it called?” “I think that it’s called Clara...” That really got me."

The Guardian called the episode "A psychedelic, head-spinning finale that piled twist upon revelation on top of rug pull." It highlighted the way the story treated the Doctor's home planet. "Moffat’s take on Gallifrey grows richer and more intriguing. We’d always presumed the place to be a fusty, ceremonial place, sort of a sci-fi House of Lords, watching over the universe from a considered distance. And as long as they’ve featured in the show, they’ve always been liable for corruption. But this Gallifrey is an altogether darker construction."

Digital spy however, thought the conclusion to Clara's story misfired. "'Hell Bent' is at points thrilling and affecting - and as ever is blessed by two sensational lead performances from Capaldi and Coleman, who not only anchor but pretty much carry the entire hour. But given that it brings Coleman's time on the series to a close, it's the shaky climax that people will remember, and unfortunately that could end up overshadowing the episode's (many and various) good points."

The reaction in Mashable was also mixed "The show gives us several vague answers to the question of who the hybrid is. We'll get to that. But the finale itself is a hybrid — both brilliant and unfocused, neat in some ways and messy in others. It manages to simultaneously build on and undo the finer points of the two near faultless episodes that proceeded it."

MTV disagreed "Doctor Who gave Jenna Coleman’s Clara not only the best Companion exit in the long history of the series, but one of the most unabashedly gleeful lady power moments on television". Den of Geek thought the final scenes of Clara were firmly aimed at the fans. "Moffat's almost winking at people here. Some haven't liked how Clara became more like the Doctor. Now she's nicked a TARDIS from Gallifrey, and is running in her own way from the Time Lords. Doesn't sound familiar at all, that."

io9 believed the ending saved the episode. "The plot of the episode (and the season) felt severely half-baked, to say the least, and great moments intermingled freely with a certain amount of WTF. But that ending? Was the greatest. That ending retroactively made the whole thing great." Meanwhile IGN called it "a great finish for the character. "

Finally Tv.com said it was "a very satisfying ending to a season that featured a few minor hiccups, but was an otherwise enjoyable and strong season in the TARDIS"

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

FILTER: - Press - Series 9/35

Hell Bent - Overnight Viewing Figures

Sunday, 6 December 2015 - Reported by Marcus

4.8 million viewers watched the series nine finale, Doctor Who: Hell Bent, according to unofficial overnight viewing figures.

The episode had a 21.5% share of the total Television audience.

Doctor Who's figure was slightly inflated by the late running of Strictly Come Dancing which was top for the day with 10.5 million watching. ITV managed 7.7 million for I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! which was ahead of The X Factor which had 6.8.million viewers.

On the overnight figures, Doctor Who was 5th for the day, behind Pointless Celebrities which had 5.5 million.

Final figures will be released next week based on the exact running time of the episode and the number watching within one week.

FILTER: - Ratings - Series 9/35 - UK

Advent Calendar - Day Six

Sunday, 6 December 2015 - Reported by Willy Phantom

A cheery Slitheen snowman has come to wish us well,
He hopes that we will stay a while if we can stand the smell

Willy Phantom, 6th December 2015

FILTER: - Advent

Advent Calendar - Day Five

Saturday, 5 December 2015 - Reported by Willy Phantom

Rose looks very festive in her new winter knit,
With the unusual design it seems the perfect fit.

Willy Phantom, 5th December 2015

FILTER: - Advent

The Husbands of River Song: latest publicity photos

Saturday, 5 December 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster

The BBC have released a number of new publicity images for the Christmas special, The Husbands of River Song, featuring Peter Capaldi as the Doctor, Alex Kingston as River Song, Matt Lucas as Nardole, Greg Davies as King Hydroflax, plus Phillip Rhys as Ramone and Rowan Polonski as Flemming.

FILTER: - Publicity - Series Specials

The Underwater Menace: North American Release Update

Friday, 4 December 2015 - Reported by Dan Collins

In a previous article Doctor Who News reported that The Underwater Menace would be getting a January 19, 2016 release date in North America. At the time BBC Home Entertainment and Warner Home Video, the North American distrubutor for Doctor Who, hadn't confirmed a release date. Tvshowsondvd.com is now reporting that Amazon.com has updated The Underwater Menace page to show a March 1, 2016 release. No official confirmation has been received from the BBC or Warner Home Video so all release dates will be considered tentative.

FILTER: - Canada - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD - Patrick Troughton - Second Doctor - USA

BBC Store: The Beginner's Guide To Doctor Who

Friday, 4 December 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster

BBC Store: The Beginnners Guide to Doctor Who (Credit: BBC Worldwide)

The BBC Store has organised a new collection of Doctor Who stories, The Beginner's Guide to Doctor Who, with the aim to introduce the series to new fans of the show. The collection is a selection of stories from throughout the show's history:

From the new era, fan favourite Blink starring Carey Mulligan introduces the terrifying Weeping Angels, Doctor Who’s return to BBC One in Rose with Billie Piper and Christopher Eccleston, and many of the much loved classic stories including Spearhead from Space, Genesis of the Daleks and Earthshock are all packaged together to give new fans an introduction to the longest running Sci Fi drama in the world.

BBC Store’s Simon Farquhar said:

Some people might feel a bit overwhelmed by Doctor Who and not know where to start exploring it. If you’ve ever found yourself wondering about the history of the Whoniverse and how it evolved, then our Beginners’ Guide is here to help audiences navigate time and space across the most imaginative world television has ever created. We’ve tried to select stories that exemplify the different eras the show has gone through, from the eerie black and white beginnings to the Gothic horror of the mid-Seventies and the fast-paced furore of today’s series . It’s been difficult with so many episodes and Doctors to choose from, but this collection is a fun way to begin exploring Doctor Who.

The complete list of stories in the package are: The Tomb of the Cybermen, Spearhead from Space, Genesis of the Daleks, The Talons of Weng-Chiang, Earthshock, Rose, Blink, The Day of The Doctor, and Mummy on the Orient Express. Keen-eyed readers will note that the very first story An Unearthly Child isn't available either in this set or on the BBC Store in general at present, which has been down to ongoing rights issues; BBC Worldwide told us:

The first story is a regrettable omission but yes, it still is not cleared.

FILTER: - BBC Worldwide - Online

The Husbands of River Song: guest star images

Friday, 4 December 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster

The BBC have released a couple of images featuring Matt Lucas and Greg Davies, who guest-star in this year's Christmas special, The Husbands of River Song, playing Nardole and King Hydroflax respectively.