The latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine, out this week, features an interview with the Next Doctor himself, actor David Morrissey, who talks about his role in the forthcoming Christmas Special.

Was David surprised at the reaction to his casting? "I wasn't expecting that level of interest, really, but it's come thick and fast. I don't think you can be aware of the world of Doctor Who until you're in it, really, and I hadn't been aware of what a huge show it is, not in the sense of people's interest, how deep that goes. And I was quite surprised by the amounts of texts and emails I got from people asking me if I was the next Doctor."

The issue takes an exclusive look at Christmas Special, with cast and crew interviews, and Russell T Davies looks forward to next year's specials. And DWM look back fondly on what happened during 2008.

Margot Van der Burgh has died at the age of 73. She had two roles in classic Doctor Who. Appearing with William Hartnell in the 1964 story The Aztecs she played Cameca, who provided a rare love interest for the Doctor. She later appeared with Tom Baker in the 1981 story The Keeper of Traken, in which she played Katura. Margot Van der Burgh had a long and distinguished career in British television appearing in many classic serials such as Anna Karenina, Edward the Seventh and Great Expectations.

The Doctor Who Sound team of Julian Howarth, Tim Ricketts, Paul McFadden and Paul Jefferies won the Royal Television Society award for Best Sound on a Drama for the episode Midnight. The judges said "The winning entry delivered its dramatic impact through an impressive and sophisticated soundbed of interwoven sounds. The jury felt this was both innovative and masterly in its execution."

Student Times has an interview with Noel Clarke, while The Rutherglen Reformer has a rare interview with Andrew Smith who wrote the 1980 story Full Circle.

Advertising in the UK for the release of the Season Four DVD boxset featured large images of Dalek smashing through the wall on a variety of buildings in Cardiff and London. One building featured was Battersea Power station which featured in the second Dalek story The Dalek Invasion of Earth as well as the 10th Doctor story The Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel.


Thanks to Zoidberg, Tom Lingwood, ksmith

BBC News, The Telegraph and many other media sources are reporting the Royal Shakespeare Company's press release that David Tennant will not be able to return to the role of Hamlet for the play's run at the Novello Theatre in London before Christmas. The Tenth Doctor actor will undergo surgery on Thursday for a back condition.

There is no news yet as to whether Tennant's injury will affect his participation in filming for Doctor Who from January. In Hamlet, his understudy Edward Bennett has won favourable reviews.

BBC News reports that David Tennant was unable to take part in last night's performance of the current Royal Shakespeare Company production of Hamlet at the Novello Theatre in London, due to what is described as "a long-standing back injury".

The play transferred to London last week following a successful run at Stratford-Upon-Avon. Tennant's understudy Edward Bennett took the role for last night's performance.

UPDATE: The Guardian and many other sources are reporting an official RSC press release that Tennant has not been well enough to resume the role for this evening's press night. The performance will once again see Bennett as Hamlet.

This year's Radio Times Christmas issue is now on sale across the UK. The magazine contains a written piece by Russell T Davies, where he previews the Christmas special and talks about plans for Doctor Who. There are also short interviews with both David Tennant and David Morrissey.

Also, the magazine features a special poster offer. Fans can collect a token from the Christmas issue and a token from the issue of Radio Times out on 27th December to get a double-sided A1-sized poster (supplied in a tube) with two Radio Times images. One side shows the Cyberleader and the Cybermen, while the reverse has the two Doctors, Miss Hartigan and the Cybermen. Postage and Packing costs apply.

To mark Doctor Who's 45th birthday, the Radio Times website is launching a comprehensive story guide, listing episodes, transmission dates, production details, cast and crew. It starts at the beginning with An Unearthly Child and will build week by week to cover all transmitted Doctor Who stories; the first ten up to and including The Dalek Invasion of Earth are already online. There will be in-depth RT Choice analyses by Radio Times journalists Patrick Mulkern and Mark Braxton, and links to original RT covers, articles, occasional billings and readers' letters. Radio Times historian Ralph Montague will also be assisting on the project.

The BBC Press Office has confirmed that The Next Doctor will air on BBC One on Christmas Day. It is scheduled to go out at 6pm and will last an hour.

Doctor Who At The Proms, which features highlights from the concert that took place at the Royal Albert Hall in London on July 27, will be broadcast on New Year's Day on BBC One. It starts at 1.50pm and, again, lasts an hour. The programme will include Music of the Spheres - the specially-filmed scene featuring the Doctor and the Graske, which was written by Russell T Davies.

The Doctor Who Restoration Team website has published an article detailing the contents of the forthcoming E-Space Trilogy DVD box set, containing the linked stories "Full Circle", "State of Decay" and "Warriors' Gate" from season eighteen of the series.

The stories, which were originally broadcast between October 1980 and January 1981, introduced the companion Adric and saw the departure of the characters of Romana and K9. The three four-parters - along with various commentaries, documentaries and other extra features as detailed in the article - will be available on DVD in the UK in the new year. The actual date of release has yet to be confirmed.

The official BBC YouTube page has put online a trailer showing various highlights from the drama programming to be broadcast on BBC One this Christmas holiday season. Only available to viewers in the UK, the trailer shows various clips from the forthcoming Doctor Who Christmas special episode, "The Next Doctor", interspersed with highlights from various other programmes.

It should be noted that a shot some fans have mistakenly assumed to be of Billie Piper, seen peering through a letterbox, is in fact actress Sheridan Smith from the "Jonathan Creek" Christmas special.

It's December, and as is now a traditional festive treat, the official BBC Doctor Who website presents the Advent(ure) Calendar for 2008!

Today sees a special Christmas message from David Tennant.