The Essential Doctor Who: Davros and other Villains

Friday, 20 November 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster
The latest of the "Essential" special edition magazines from the makers of Doctor Who Magazine has been published, focussing on masterminds and megalomaniacs...

The Essential Doctor Who: Davros (Credit: Panini)Panini’s lavish series of bookazines – The Essential Doctor Who – continues with a 116-page issue devoted to Davros and Doctor Who’s other notorious villains.

Editor Marcus Hearn said:
The last issue dealt with monsters, so this time we’re turning our attention to the Doctor’s humanoid adversaries. Davros made a huge impact in the recent story The Magician’s Apprentice/The Witch’s Familiar, so he leads the charge!

Davros and Other Villains includes exclusive interviews with Davros actors Terry Molloy and David Gooderson, Andy Wisher (son of original Davros actor Michael Wisher), Peter Miles (Nyder in Genesis of the Daleks) John Challis (Scorby in The Seeds of Doom), Paul Darrow (Tekker in Timelash) and 1960s companion Anneke Wills. We reveal the story behind the stage play The Trial of Davros and examine the careers of Kevin Stoney (Mavic Chen in The Daleks’ Master Plan and Tobias Vaughn in The Invasion), Michael Gough (the Toymaker in The Celestial Toymaker), Tony Beckley (Harrison Chase in The Seeds of Doom) and Roger Lloyd Pack (John Lumic in Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel).

The centrepiece of this issue is an epic countdown of the 50 most villainous plots in Doctor Who history, from the early black-and-white episodes to the most recent series. What will be number one?

The Essential Doctor Who: Davros and Other Villains is on sale now.




FILTER: - DWM - Magazines

Big Finish audios to be released in Germany

Friday, 20 November 2015 - Reported by Pascal Salzmann
German book distributer Bastei Lübbe is going to release audio adventures of Big Finish on the German market in 2016. In its recent sales magazine for German bookstores, Lübbe announced six releases for 11th March 2016. All stories will be in English and priced 14.99 EUR.

Stories announced so far:
  • The Light at the End by Nicholas Briggs
  • Blood of the Daleks Part 1 by Steve Lyons
  • Blood of the Daleks Part 2 by Steve Lyons
  • The Juggernauts by Scott Allen Woodard
  • Destination Nerva by Nicholas Briggs
  • Short Trips - Volume 1 by Scott Allen Woodard
So far it is not known whether these releases are a one-off or if Lübbe plans to continue the releases on a regular basis. A spokesperson from Lübbe told Doctor Who News that they cannot announce further plans right now but that there will be more Big Finish releases should these audios sell well.

Bastei Lübbe ad (Credit: Bastei Luebbe)




FILTER: - Big Finish - Germany

Doctor Who Festival - Pictures

Thursday, 19 November 2015 - Reported by Marcus
The BBC has released a large number of pictures taken at last weekend's Doctor Who Festival, held at the ExCel Centre in London.

15,000 fans attended across the weekend to an extravaganza of cast and crew panels, behind-the-scenes demonstrations, workshops, stunts, explosions, sets, monsters, props and costumes.

Paula Al-Lach, Head of Exhibitions and Events at BBC Worldwide, told Doctor Who News
We were incredibly pleased with how it went, and the feedback from fans has been overwhelmingly positive. We had over 15,000 fans attend across the weekend, and have had an overwhelming response on email of great customer feedback. The fans particularly loved the Cosplay Showcase Competition, which 600 fans took part in over the weekend.

What were the highlights? The creativity and obvious excitement from fans is always the highlight of an event like this. The fans love the Festival – 600 ticket holders took part in the Cosplay Competition and look AMAZING. It‘s always great to see how dedicated the fans are to the show and how they interact with all the content that was at the event. Many shared their love of the Festival through social media and the response has been fantastic. Other highlights include seeing visitors act with a Dalek coached by Nick Briggs and Barnaby Edwards and being directed by Director Douglas Mackinnon in a scene from Listen. Of course the emotional farewell to Jenna Coleman as she bowed out as Clara was sad but a memory that I’ll take away from the weekend.
The Festival now moves to Sydney, where it opens this weekend.





FILTER: - Festival

Lethbridge-Stewart: Mutually Assured Domination

Wednesday, 18 November 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Candy-Jar Books will be releasing the fourth story in their Lethbridge-Stewart series of novels, Mutually Assured Domination by Nick Walters, on the 20th November; those who pre-order the book before relaease date will also receive an additional free short e-story on PDF, The Dogs of War, by Andy Frankham-Allen.

Lethbridge-Stewart: Mutually Assured Domination (Credit: Candy Jar Books)Mutually Assured Domination
Written by Nick Walters
Cover by Adrian Salmon
Published on 20th November 2015

The Dominators, the Masters of the Ten Galaxies, have come to Earth, and brought with them their deadly robotic weapons, the Quarks!

It’s the summer of '69. Flower power is at its height, and nuclear power is in its infancy. Journalist Harold Chorley is out of work, and Colonel Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart is out of sorts. Dominex Industries are on the up, promising cheap energy for all. But people have started going missing near their plant on Dartmoor. Coincidence, or are sinister forces at work?

Join Lethbridge-Stewart and uneasy ally Harold Chorley as they delve into the secrets behind Dominex, and uncover a plan that could bring about the end of the world.

As the synopsis suggests, this sees the return of journalist Harold Chorley. Shaun Russell, Head of Publishing at Candy Jar Books, said:
Ever since we secured the deal with the Haisman Estate, we’ve been planning to bring back Harold Chorley. He was such a pain in Lethbridge-Stewart’s side in The Web of Fear it was a forgone conclusion that he’d return to give the colonel more grief. His return has been set up throughout the last few books, with hints as to his situation following The Web of Fear. Now we finally get to play it out properly, and Nick has done a great job with him!

The alien foe featured in the book is another creation of the Haisman/Lincoln partnership, as author Nick Walters observes:
I had a great time writing Mutually Assured Domination, taking as my inspiration the Cold War thrillers of John Le Carre and the 1985 BBC Drama Edge of Darkness. I have always loved the Dominators and their sinister robotic servants so it was great to be given the chance to make them live again! My favourite parts of The Dominators has always been the bickering between Rago and Toba and there's some of that in this book, in fact there is great comedy potential in the characters. But I also hope I have presented them as a credible threat and a worthy foe for Lethbridge Stewart. I hope people find my book is to be a good old-fashioned romp – and a wham-bam ending for the first 'season' of Lethbridge-Stewart novels!

The book also features a foreward by writer Paul Finch, who commented on the book's setting in the nuclear-overshadowed 1960s (and whose protagonists were themselves representative of that threat in the eponymous The Dominators):
In a twist that completely delighted me, (this book) is set in precisely that era: the late ’60s, with the protest movement still at full power and the anti-nuclear ticket a hot one. It even has its own desolate wilderness – Dartmoor. Though of course at the heart of this wasteland stands not the Doctor, but his unofficial deputy on Earth (at least, that’s always the way I used to think of him), and another fine creation of Messrs Haisman and Lincoln, Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, better known as ‘the Brigadier’, though for our purposes today he’s still a colonel.”


Accompanying the main release is The Dogs of War, a short story by Andy Frankham-Allen that takes place between the previous novel Beast of Fang-Rock and Mutually Assured Domination, and features a historic meeting between Lethbridge-Stewart and Group Captain Ian "Chunky" Gilmore. The author commented:
Since day one of this series I have been mindful that there are certain milestones in Lethbridge-Stewart’s life that need to be dealt with in these books in one way or another. His meeting with Gilmore is one of those. With the approval of Ben Aaronovitch, who created Gilmore back in ’88, and with thanks to Andrew Cartmel (Doctor Who script editor 1987-89), we are finally able to make that happen with our own spin. Hopefully we’ll offer fans a little bit more meet to their meeting. It’s been a real joy bringing these two iconic characters together and letting them play in each other’s sandpits – for one night only!

Lethbridge-Stewart: The Dog Of War (Credit: Candy Jar Books)The Dogs of War
Written by Andy Frankham-Allen
Cover by Will Brooks
Published on 20th November 2015

The London Event was only the beginning, or so Colonel Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart believed. Until he was ordered to meet with Air Vice-Marshal Ian Gilmore. It began in 1963 – for Gilmore, at least. But the alien codenamed Cosmic Hobo visited Earth a lot earlier than that.

It’s not only Lethbridge-Stewart who wishes to learn the truth of these visits. He is being watched, and soon Lethbridge-Stewart and Gilmore find themselves in the deserted tunnels of the London Underground chased by a familiar furry form…




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

Extended Episodes for Season Conclusion

Tuesday, 17 November 2015 - Reported by Marcus
Heaven Sent: The Doctor, as played by Peter Capaldi (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgway)The BBC has confirmed that the final two episodes of Series 9, Heaven Sent / Hell Bent will both run in extended timeslots.

The penultimate episode Heaven Sent will run for 55 minutes and has been confirmed for transmission at 8.05pm on BBC One on 28th November.

The series finale Hell Bent will then run in a 65 minute timeslot starting at 8pm on 5th December.

The two episodes will deal with the consequences of Episode Ten, Face the Raven, which can be seen this weekend.




FILTER: - Broadcasting - Series 9/35

Publicity: Face The Raven

Tuesday, 17 November 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster
A roundup of publicity for the next episode in the current series of Doctor Who, Face The Raven.

The Doctor and Clara, with their old friend Rigsy, find themselves in a magical alien world, hidden on a street in the heart of London.

Sheltered within are some of the most fearsome creatures of the universe… and Ashildr (Maisie Williams)! With a death sentence hanging over their heads, not all of the intruders will get out alive.

Writer: Sarah Dollard
Director: Justin Molotnikov
Producer: Nikki Wilson
Cast: Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman
Guest cast: Maisie Williams, Joivan Wade, Naomi Ackie, Simon Manyonda, Simon Paisley Day, Letitia Wright, Robin Soans, Angela Clerkin, Caroline Boulton, Jenny Lee.

Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)Publicity Images: Face The Raven (BBC/Simon Ridgway)


Face The Raven: Known Broadcast Details
United KingdomBBC OneSat 21 Nov 20158:10pm
United States of AmericaBBC AmericaSat 21 Nov 20159:00pm EDT(2:00am GMT)
CanadaSPACESat 21 Nov 20159:00pm EDT(2:00am GMT)
Asia PacificBBC EntertainmentSun 22 Nov 201510:00am SGT(2:00am GMT)
New ZealandPRIMESun 22 Nov 20157:30pm NZDT(6:30am GMT)
AustraliaABCSun 22 Nov 20157:40pm AEDT(8:40am GMT)
Europe (Benelux)BBC FirstTue 24 Nov 20159:00pm CEST
United KingdomBBC TwoFri 27 Nov 20151:45am(British Signed Language)
South AfricaBBC FirstSat 28 Nov 20156:00pm SAST
IndiaFXSun 6 Dec 201511:00pm IST
FinlandYLE2Mon 7 Dec 20156:05pm EET
DenmarkDR3Fri 25 Dec 2015~8:00pm CET(unconfirmed broadcast)
GermanyFOXJan 20169:00pm CET(dubbed into German)






FILTER: - Publicity - Series 9/35

The Zygon Inversion - Official Rating

Monday, 16 November 2015 - Reported by Marcus
Series 9 - The Zygon Inversion
Doctor Who: The Zygon Inversion had an official consolidated rating of 6.03 million viewers.

The rating issued by the Broadcasters' Audience Research Board, or BARB, includes all those who watched the programme within one week of transmission. It does not include those watching online via iPlayer

Doctor Who was the 9th most watched programme on BBC Television, and third overall on Saturday. The episode finished at 24th in the chart.

The final episode of the ITV drama Downton Abbey topped the ratings for the week with 10.90 million viewers.




FILTER: - Ratings - Series 9/35 - UK

Sleep No More - AI:78

Monday, 16 November 2015 - Reported by Marcus
Sleep No More: Publicity Image (Credit: BBC/Simon Ridgway)
Doctor Who: Sleep No More had an Audience Appreciation or AI score of 78.

The score is the lowest the series has received since the 2006 story Love & Monsters which scored 76. It is only the second time the series AI has dropped below 80 since the introduction of the current AI system in 2005. Both Rose and The End of the World scored 76, but this was under the previous measurement system.

The low score is likely to be a result of the unusual nature of the story, filmed as a series of hidden camera recordings, and very different to the usual style of a Doctor Who episode.

The Appreciation Index or AI is a measure of how much the audience enjoyed the programme. The score, out of a hundred, is compiled by a specially selected panel of around 5,000 people who go online and rate and comment on programmes.

The highest score for Saturday, on the five main channels, was for the BBC Two Newsnight Special, reporting on the terror attacks in Paris which scored 87

With Sunday's overnight viewing figures now available, Doctor Who finished as the 48th most watched programme of the week. Consolidated figures will be published next week.




FILTER: - Ratings - Series 9/35 - UK

Australian overnight ratings for Sleep No More & final ratings for The Zygon Inv

Monday, 16 November 2015 - Reported by Adam Kirk
Sleep No More has debuted in Australia, averaging 506,000 viewers in the five major capital cities. It was the highest rating ABC drama of the day and the thirteenth highest rating program of the day overallThese ratings do not include iview, regional or time-shifted viewers. The program commenced 20 minutes later than scheduled due to extended news coverage of the recent events in Paris.

Meanwhile, including time-shifted viewers, The Zygon Invasion averaged 593,000 consolidated viewers in the five major capital cities. With 163,000 extra viewers it was the highest time-shifted program of the day and the tenth highest rating program of the day overallThese ratings do not include iview or regional viewers.




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

Drawing the Ninth Doctor

Sunday, 15 November 2015 - Reported by Marcus
Just how do you go about drawing the Ninth Doctor?

Artist Blair Shedd has released a Time Lapse video showing just how he goes about the task for Titan comics.





FILTER: - Comics - Ninth Doctor