KochMedia have now released a trailer for their forthcoming release of the unofficial Doctor Who spin-off from 1995, Downtime.

Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat, has responded to tabloid rumours stating that next years series of Doctor Who would be cut down to allow Peter Capaldi to pursue other projects.

Talking to RadioTimes.com Moffat confirmed that Series 10 of Doctor Who would consist of 12 episodes plus a Christmas Special. The comment came after today's Mirror Newspaper reported that the next series would consist of only 6 episodes due to Capaldi's work on other projects, and follows speculation in other papers that the series would be cut due to Moffat's commitment to the Sherlock series.

Peter Capaldi also addressed rumours of the cut when asked by the BBC Entertainment correspondent Lizo Mzimba if the reports of a half season next year were accurate. The actor told The Guardian that he was disappointed by the scheduling of this years series, with episodes currently following the dancing series Strictly Come Dancing. The timeslot was also addressed by the Showrunner, when asked about reports of falling viewing figures. The transmission date of the series 10 has not been confirmed, but production is not likely to begin until May next year, meaning the start date would be pushed back beyond Autumn 2016. A new Doctor Who spin off series Class is also due to enter production at BBC Wales next year using capacity currently occupied by the Doctor Who team.

Steven Moffat told Radio Times

On Saturday 6th November 1965, exactly fifty years ago today, we said goodbye to space orphan Vicki, when actress Maureen O'Brien appeared in Doctor Who for the very last time.

Vicki had joined the Doctor, Ian and Barbara in the story The Rescue, shown at the start of the year, filling the void left by the departure of the Doctor's granddaughter Susan. Together the crew had voyaged through space and time, from ancient Rome to medieval England, from mysterious Vortis to the deserts of Aridius and from the barren planet Xeros to the jungles of Mechanus. The four had fled from Daleks and Drahvins, battled Zarbi and Mechanoids and befriended Kings and peasants.

In the end it was love that saw Vicki leave the Doctor in the story The Myth Makers. When the TARDIS landed near Troy, she fell in love with Troilus, the son of the trojan King Priam, who changed her name to Cressida, She left the Doctor to forge a life with the trojan prince, thus earning a place in history and in time, becoming a character in a Shakespearian tragedy, based on events taking place some 3000 years before her birth.

While Vicki's departure was a concious decision for the character, it was a shock to the actor portraying her. Maureen O'Brien had returned from the summer break to attend rehearsals for the new series at the North Kensington Community centre, only to discover the character was being dropped at the end of the first story. Believing that O'Brien wished to leave the series, new producer John Wiles had decided to replace the character of Vicki, with a new character, Katarina, who would be introduced towards the end of the story. However nobody had thought to tell O'Brien. Script editor Donald Tosh took up the story Like many departing Doctor Who companions O'Brien found that staring in a weekly TV series, watched by up to 13 million viewers each week, was no guarantee of further work. Typecasting was a real problem and roles sparse. Before taking on the role she was became a founding member of the Everyman Theatre in her native Liverpool. Upon leaving the series worked as a supply teacher at a girl's school in Kennington, before returning to the theatre. Small TV roles followed in series such as Emergency-Ward 10 and Z Cars.

In 1979 O'Brien played Morgan le Fay in the BBC adaptation of The Legend of King Arthur and she later won the role of Elizabeth Straker in the medical drama Casualty. Other roles included appearances in Cracker, Bergerac, Jonathan Creek, The Bill, Heartbeat and A Touch of Frost.

In addition to televison work O'Brien has had an extensive career in the theatre both as a performer and a director. In 1986 she was awarded the Time Out's Critic's Choice for her production of Mike English's Getting In . She has twice won the Sony Best Actress award for her work on radio and also has awards for audiobooks of which she continues to record a huge range.

In 1989 she had her first novel published, Close-Up on Death featuring the character of Detective Inspector John Bright. Six more novels featuring the character followed. She is also a playwright with her play The Cutting nominated Best Play in the London Fringe Awards and Best Newcomer in the Evening Standard Drama Awards.

Maureen O'Brien has returned to the role of Vicki in the Companion Chronicles produced by Big Finish. In 2013 she appeared at the 50th Anniversary Festival in London talking about her time with the series and her affection for the first Doctor.

Following on from last year's design, the Doctor Who Appreciation Society have released a new Doctor Who themed Christmas card for the 2015 season, the profits of which are to be donated to the Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital Trust, whose vice president is sixth Doctor and the Society's own honorary president, Colin Baker.

The cards are A5-sized and can be purchased worldwide - full details can be found via the DWAS website.

Two new comics are released this week, featuring the Eighth and the Eleventh Doctor's.

The BBC have launched the BBC Store, a new online "shop" aiming to open up a wealth of archive material, both old and new, to viewers in the United Kingdom to "buy and keep" digitally.

Marcus Arthur, MD of BBC Worldwide & ANZ, said:
Bal Samra, Commercial Director of the BBC said:
Dan Taylor-Watt, Head of BBC iPlayer said:


For Doctor Who the launch makes all nine series of the modern era available to purchase, either as each complete series or individual episodes (with the current series being added to as they are broadcast). The animated adventure The Infinite Quest is also available for purchase. For the 'classic' era there are currently an "editorial selection" available to represent each Doctor:

• First Doctor: The Edge of Destruction, The Aztecs, The Sensorites, Planet of Giants, The Rescue, The Web Planet, The Space Museum, The Ark, The Gunfighters, and The War Machines (The Daleks can also be found in the Search)
• Second Doctor: The Underwater Menace, The Tomb of the Cybermen, The Enemy of the World, The Krotons, The Seeds of Death
• Third Doctor: all, barring Day of the Daleks, and Planet of the Daleks (Inferno and Death to the Daleks can also be found in the Search)
• Fourth Doctor: all, barring Terror of the Zygons, The Android Invasion, The Seeds of Doom, Destiny of the Daleks, and City of Death
• Fifth Doctor: all, barring Enlightenment, The Five Doctors, and Resurrection of the Daleks
• Sixth Doctor: The Twin Dilemma and The Two Doctors only
• Seventh Doctor: all, barring Paradise Towers and Remembrance of the Daleks
• Eighth Doctor: the TV Movie is currently unavailable

For factual programming, you can also find the 50th anniversary documentary The Ultimate Guide and the three programmes that made up Doctor Who's Greatest Moments; the 50th anniversary drama An Adventure in Space and Time is also listed. For the spin-off series, Torchwood has Series One, Children of Earth and Miracle Day (but not Series Two!), whilst none of The Sarah Jane Adventures are currently available.

Prices can range from £1.89 for single episodes through to £21.99 for Series Nine.

Peter Capaldi today talked to The Radio 1 Breakfast Show with Nick Grimshaw about Jenna Coleman’s unexpected last Doctor Who scene and Maisie Williams teasing him with Game of Thrones spoilers.

Capaldi talked about the international success of the show and how much he is enjoying the role. He spoke about working with Jenna Coleman and how it was filming her departure from the series. Caplaidi also talked about working with Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams, confirming the character will return in episode 10 of the current series. An upcoming episode features just Capaldi as the Doctor, with no other characters in the story. Peter Capalid was also asked about the future of the Sonic Glasses and whether the Sonic Screwdriver would be back. You can listen to the whole interview on the BBC iPlayer (from 02:23:46 in)

BBC Worldwide have announced a new "pop-up" shop to open in Sydney, Australia for the rest of the year:

The actor William Byrd Wilkins has died at the age of 50.

William Byrd Wilkins played The Preacher in the 2012 Doctor Who story A Town Called Mercy.

Other TV roles included playing a crack dealer in 2006 Wayne Cramer film Running Scared and playing a bouncer in the 1998 comedy Overnight Delivery.

William Byrd Wilkins was born in Louisburg, North Carolina. After seeing the acclaimed African-American theatre company Penumbra perform locally, he moved to the company's base, Saint Paul, Minnesota, where he was determined to join the company, something he achieved after two years. His memorable roles at Penumbra included playing Boy Willie, a brother who wants to sell a family heirloom to fund a land-buying scheme, in August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson.

In recent years, he returned to his home town, teaching drama at Louisburg College.

Earlier this year he was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer. Wilkins declined chemotherapy saying he wanted to live out his days without Doctors and toxic chemo, and a fund was set up to raise money to allow him to enjoy his final few months.

William Byrd Wilkins died last Saturday, 31 October. He is survived by his mother, sister and two brothers.

BBC Worldwide have provided an update on guests who will be attending the forthcoming Doctor Who Festival, that takes place over the weekend of 13th-15th November:


Tickets are still available to purchase from the Doctor Who Festival website.

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The Festival will also be travelling to Australia a week later (21st-22nd November 2015), which will also be attended by Peter Capaldi and Steven Moffat.