AudioGO has launched their second ever Doctor Who at the BBC Appeal and are keen to hear from anyone who has off-air recordings of Doctor Who-related items from BBC Television and radio programmes, particularly those recorded in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. These could include interviews with the cast and crew of Doctor Who, features on the making of the series, discussions about Doctor Who, or even comedy sketches.

Any useable contributions will be gathered together in a new volume of Doctor Who at the BBC to be published as a CD or download in 2013. The original appeal in 2005 led to several rare finds, some of which appeared on Doctor Who at the BBC Volume 2.

Commissioning Editor Michael Stevens said, If you have something which you think might be of interest, please drop an email to info@audiogo.co.uk, with the subject header 'Doctor Who at the BBC Appeal'. All you would have to do is send AudioGO either a copy or your original on loan.

The Ambassadors of Death:

The British Board of Film Classification have passed the special features for the forthcoming DVD release of the Jon Pertwee adventure The Ambassadors of Death:.

00:01:27:01 (DOCTOR WHO - THE AMBASSADORS OF DEATH) (TRAILER)
00:13:05:07 TOMORROW'S TIMES - THE THIRD DOCTOR
00:04:24:15 THE AMBASSADORS OF DEATH - PHOTO GALLERY
00:25:49:16 MARS PROBE 7: MAKING THE AMBASSADORS OF DEATH

The DVD has yet to be formally scheduled, though it is believed to be due in Autumn this year.

Special Editions:

The BBFC have also passed features due to appear on September's special edition of Vengeance on Varos (tape 1 and 2):

00:01:07:01 (NEWS) (TELEVISION NEWS CLIP)
00:15:07:11 (SATURDAY SUPERSTORE) (TELEVISION CLIP)
00:05:41:15 BBC BREAKFAST TIME (TELEVISION CLIP)
00:01:37:07 (ACID BATH SCENE) (ALTERNATE MUSIC TRACK)
00:29:37:17 NICE OR NASTY? - THE MAKING OF VENGEANCE ON VAROS
00:07:29:11 THE IDIOT'S LANTERN (FEATURETTE)
00:12:54:03 TOMORROW'S TIMES - THE SIXTH DOCTOR (FEATURETTE)
00:07:31:05 (FRENCH AND SAUNDERS) (TELEVISION CLIP)
00:17:42:04 (EXTENDED & DELETED SCENES)
00:06:38:08 VENGEANCE ON VAROS - PHOTO GALLERY

Speaking at the Utopia convention, Steve Roberts confirmed that another story to get the special edition treatment will be Jon Pertwee's adventure Inferno; the episodes are to be 're-coloured' using the black and white film prints and the NTSC reverse standard conversions recordings to create a better quality image to the original 2006 release. The project will also include a 'secret project' alongside the range's commentary moderator and presenter Toby Hadoke. The DVD is expected to be released in 2013.

Actor John Levene also reported that he had recently recorded a documentary which, though unconfirmed, could feature on this DVD.

The two recovered Doctor Who episodes Galaxy 4 - Air Lock and The Underwater Menace episode 2 were shown to an appreciative audience in Cardiff on Wednesday evening.

Both episodes were recovered from a collector last year and their existence was revealed at a screening at the BFI in London last December. The episode of The Underwater Menace was shown in full at the Missing Believed Wiped event but only an excerpt of about 10 minutes from Galaxy 4 was played, making the Cardiff screening the first time the whole episode had been seen in the UK since its initial transmission in September 1965.

The event was attended by Peter Purves, who played Steven in Galaxy 4, along with Anneke Wills and Frazer Hines, who played Polly and Jamie in The Underwater Menace. Following the screening, all three joined current show-runner Steven Moffat to answer questions about their time on the programme.

The panel was hosted by Gary Russell, and the event was attended by many other luminaries from the Doctor Who world, including some of the Restoration Team, who were greeted with much applause.

There is no news as to when the episodes will be released on DVD, although the BBC has said it is considering releasing them on iTunes.

Phil Davis talks about what roles interest him the most: "I like films and plays that are about real life, I'm not interested in superheroes or things going to the moon and all that. What I like is films about real people, dealing with real problems and what it's like to be alive in London in 2012 – well, not just in London, in this country. Those are the things that interest me, things that are genuine." [Independent, 29 Apr 2012]

Frances Barber found herself involved in a hostage situation in Tottenham Court Road, with the actress reporting: "am in middle of hostage sitch in Tott. ct. Road. Can't get out. We are all hostage inside.« Tott ct rd deserted. All shops, cafes, etc evacuated.police everywhere.we are not allowed out. «" Later, she said: "For what it's worth I think the Police were ace today in Tottenham Court Rd. They had it sorted they get a rough time. But I only saw good. «" (Footnote: A man has been charged with various offences and remanded in custody following the incident. [BBC News, 30 Apr 2012])

Georgia Moffett is listed as "one to watch" by The Independent. [Independent, 28 Apr 2012]

Former co-executive producer Piers Wenger has been made head of drama at Channel 4. He became a Film4 senior commissioning executive after leaving Doctor Who and said of his impending move to Channel 4: "It's a hugely exciting time to be taking on this role and I can't wait to start work . . . on developing a new generation of drama for Channel 4. I'm also greatly indebted to Tessa Ross and all at Film4 for the expertise they have shared in the last six months and it's a dream come true to be able to continue those relationships into my new role." [Radio Times, 1 May 2012]

Bernard Cribbins has given an interview to The Guardian in which he talks about his novelty records of the 1960s. [The Guardian, 2 May 2012]

Outgoing Doctor Who co-star Karen Gillan is Scotland's "sexiest woman" in a poll by FHM Magazine, which ranks her in 36th place overall (six places up from last year). Meanwhile, incoming co-star Jenna-Louise Coleman has entered the chart for the first time at number 91. [STV, Easier, 2 May 2012]

John Barrowman talks about his confidence: "I'm a good actor! [Laughs] No, I'm passionate about what I do, I'm very opinionated, I'm very driven, I have an ambition -- I have a healthy ambition. I'm not rude to people, I know what I want, I'm generous -- these are things I'm saying I feel I am that I've also been told I am. I don't want it to sound in any way egotistical. But there's a fine line between ego and confidence. When confidence becomes ego and egotistical, you can tell it right away. I've always said to people around me if ever that verge goes across, smack me." [Comic Book Resources, 3 May 2012]

Orbital's Paul Hartnoll has been talking about Matt Smith's guest appearance during their set at Glastonbury in 2010. It all started with a chance encounter at a party following the Coachella festival that year . . . "I was approaching the fridge to go and get a beer, and I thought 'That bloke in front of me looks like Doctor Who'. I tapped him, and I said, 'Excuse me, are you Doctor Who?'. He just turned round to me with the biggest grin and said, 'Well actually, yes I am'. We just had a beer together and a chat and he said 'Oh, I'd love to come on stage and introduce you one time'. Our lighting guy who was with us said, 'Why don't you come on at Glastonbury?' He sort of flipped out and said, 'Oh my god, I've never been to Glastonbury, that'd be brilliant'. So we just kept in touch. He said if you can get me and five friends into Glastonbury, I'll do it, so we did. He had a great time. That was brilliant. He was absolutely peaking." [Digital Spy, 30 Apr 2012]

James Bond director Sam Mendes likens the movie franchise's longevity with Doctor Who: "That's why I mentioned the word in the press conference, 'regeneration' rather than 'evolving', because I feel it is like, you know, we have Doctor Who ... there's a geek answer ... and I was brought up on the idea of Doctor Who, who at the end of his final episode, he dissolves and a new actor pops up and he regenerates and it's a whole other character: sometimes it's an old man, sometimes it's a young man, but he just changes. I've always loved that idea." [Collider, 1 May 2012]

David Tennant has been reported as being in talks with director Justin Lin over a role in Fast 6. [Latino Review, 3 May 2012]

In Memoriam:

The visual effects designer Peter Wragg has died following a short illness. His work on Doctor Who spanned from The Visitation to Mindwarp (the latter story being part of the Trial of a Time Lord season). As well as working on Doctor Who, he also lent his name to cult TV shows such as Red Dwarf, Thunderbirds, Joe 90, UFO, and Captain Scarlet, as well as the comedy series 'Allo, 'Allo and the harrowing documentary-style drama Threads. [reddwarf.co.uk, 20 Apr 2012]

BBC Worldwide have released details about the forthcoming stories on DVD due out over the summer:

10th September: Vengeance on Varos - Special Edition:

The new edition of Doctor Who Magazine has revealed details of the special features on the re-release of Vengeance on Varos, starring Colin Baker as the Doctor with Nicola Bryant as Peri. Originally released on DVD in 2001, this special edition features additional material to complement the earlier version:

• 5.1 mix of the soundtrack
• mono audio track featuring raw studio sound during the recording of the episode
• isolated music score, both original and 5.1 mix
• Nice Or Nasty, a feature on the production of the story, which includes contributions from Nabil Shaban (Sil), Sheila Reid (Etta), Philip Martin (writer), Eric Saward (script editor), and Jonathan Gibbs (composer)
• The Idiot's Lantern, on how Doctor Who has used television
• Tomorrow's Times, with Sarah Sutton presenting media coverage of the Sixth Doctor
• excerpt from Saturday Superstore
• French and Saunders, unused sketch filmed on The Trial Of a Time Lord trial set (originally released with The Curse of Fatal Death on VHS)
• BBC News reporting on the casting of Colin Baker
• Breakfast Time, with Frank Bough interviewing Colin Baker
• The "acid bath" scene from episode two with alternative music

Future History ...

The number of unreleased adventures is diminishing rapidly, with three of the above stories drawing eras to a close - at least for complete serials; here are the remaining adventures of the Doctor to be seen on DVD:

• The First Doctor: The Reign Of Terror - to be released with animated episodes 4+5, currently expected for release in late 2012
• The First Doctor: Galaxy 4: Air Lock - recently recovered episode alongside The Underwater Menace to feature on a forthcoming release. Dan Hall told DWM: "There's one release that hasn't been announced yet which will provide a home for one of them. And there's a potential release that will provide a home for the other one as well. People aren't going to see them out on DVD in 2012, though. But they are on our schedule."
• The First Doctor: The Tenth Planet - missing episode four, current release status unannounced
• The Second Doctor: The Underwater Menace: Episode 2 - see Galaxy 4 above
• The Second Doctor: The Ice Warriors - missing episodes 2+3, current release status unannounced. Michael Troughton reported at GallifreyOne in February that he had recorded a commentary on the life of his father for the story
• The Third Doctor: The Ambassadors of Death - originally to be released with The Sunmakers, but delayed due to colour recovery issues for episodes 2-7. Current release status unannounced
• The Third Doctor: The Mind of Evil - originally mooted to be released with Terror of the Autons, but dropped due to colour recovery issues for episodes 1-6. In February Steve Roberts reported to Radio Free Skaro that episode one (which does not have a print containing the chromadot information used for the colour recovery process) will be colourised by Babelcolour, using motion-estimation techniques to aid the process
• The Fourth Doctor: Terror of the Zygons, currently expected for release in 2013
• The Fourth Doctor: Shada - existing footage to form part of the provisionally entitled Legacy Boxed Set alongside documentary More Than Thirty Years In The TARDIS

For other "missing" stories, the existing isolated episodes from the Hartnell and Troughton years were released in the Lost In Time boxed set back in 2004.

DVD range producer Dan Hall has also indicated that further special edition DVDs are possible in the future.

The British Board of Film Classification have passed the special features that will appear on the forthcoming DVD release of the final complete Patrick Troughton adventure, The Krotons:

00:52:20:21 SECOND TIME AROUND - THE TROUGHTON YEARS
00:17:25:02 DOCTOR WHO STORIES - FRAZER HINES (PT 1)
00:07:16:08 THE DOCTOR'S STRANGE LOVE: THE KROTONS
00:05:24:24 THE KROTONS - PHOTO GALLERY

The commentary for the episode was cleared by the BBFC on 5th April, and includes cast members Philip Madoc (Eelek), Gilbert Wynne (Thara), Richard Ireson (Axus), with production represented by Bobi Bartlett (costumes), Sylvia James (make-up), David Tilley (assisant floor manager), and Brian Hodgson (special sound), plus moderation by Toby Hadoke - you can also read about commentary production in an interview with Hadoke and producer John Kelly via SFX.

A clean version of the cover art by Lee Binding for the DVD has been published via the Tea-Lady Design Facebook page (where the artwork of many of the recent releases can also be viewed).


The DVD is expected to be released in the UK on 9th July and in North America on 10th July.

Former Head of BBC One Michael Grade had been talking about Doctor Who, discussing the reasons for puting the show on hold in 1985 and the events leading up to the return of the series in 2005.

In the BBC Radio 2 show, On The Box, Grade tells the inside story of Britain's television industry as seen from his personal viewpoint. In this week's edition, Dishing the Dirt, he talks to key players involved in the decisions about the show, including Jonathan Powell, who was Controller of BBC One when the series was axed and Lorraine Heggessey who held that role when the series came back in 2005.

Heggessey tells of the difficulties bringing the show back, with the rights being held by BBC Worldwide, but how she was determined to succeeed. "I just remembered it as an iconic show" she said, "I wanted popular drama at the heart of Saturday night."

In the programme Grade talks about the dislike he felt for the series in 1985, which he felt was dated and past its prime. He remembers how he was awarded the Horse's Ass award by Doctor Who Fans in America, an award which he still has sitting in his loo.

Also in the programme Grade talks to former showrunner Russell T Davies, BBC executive Jane Tranter and former Executive Producer Mal Young, as well as current showrunner Steven Moffat who talks about the expectations for the show as it approaches the 50th Anniversary next year. "It is a concern to stamp the word 50 on a series because it should be brand new every few years. But its great as it does give you an excuse for a party and an excuse to take over television again."

The programme can he heard Worldwide on the BBC iPlayer for the next week.

The cover and content details for the forthcoming UK DVD release of Death To The Daleks have been finalised.


The British Board of Film Classification classified the features on 30th March, revealing that a textless version of the title sequence will be included as an Easter egg:

26:44:24  BENEATH THE CITY OF THE EXXILONS - MAKING DEATH TO THE DALEKS
23:33:11  STUDIO RECORDING - 4 DECEMBER 1973
05:49:04  PHOTO GALLERY
01:26:05  (EASTER EGG) (TEXTLESS TITLE SEQUENCE)
07:47:22  ON THE SET OF DR WHO AND THE DALEKS

Feature Previews:

BBC Worldwide has released a number of clips from the recently released stories Nightmare of Eden and The Daemons on its Classic Doctor Who YouTube channel:

THE DAEMONS

• The Daemons on location - The BBC is shooting classic Doctor Who series 'The Daemons' in Aldbourne in 1971, in this rare clip of archive film.
• Aldbourne - Doctor Who cast members including Katy Manning and Damaris Hayman discuss their experience of filming The Daemons in Aldbourne in the classic 1971 series.
• A great working relationship - Often cited as one of the best of the Third Doctor's storylines, The Daemons owes much of its success to the great working relationship between producer Barry Letts and script editor Terrance Dicks. In this DVD extra, cast and crew explain the friendship.
• A stormy night's sky - Boasting some impressive location filming, the village of Aldbourne was the perfect setting for The Daemons. As the crew reveals, however, attempting a stormy night scene can be quite problematic on a calm night. Journey behind the scenes to find out how the crew managed to ratchet up the atmosphere.
• Exit Lines - Actors Richard Franklin and Katy Manning reveal the influence the cast had on the script, and how open Barry Letts was to adding extra dimensions to the characters.

NIGHTMARE OF EDEN

• Alan Bromly - Crew members recount their experiences of director Alan Bromly and his old-school techniques.
• Drug-smuggling storyline - Bob Baker reveals how his research of drug abuse for the production of BBC police drama series Target, which featured Katy Manning in the role of a drug addict, was to prove invaluable to the writing of the drug-smuggling storyline of Nightmare of Eden. (Target was created by Graham Williams, produced by Philip Hinchcliffe, and written by Baker and Dave Martin, with David Wickes. The theme music was by Dudley Simpson.)
  

Looking ahead:

• The Krotons: Ed Stradling commented on Twitter: "here's an image from my recent feature for The Krotons DVD. It's another long one!«"
• The Mind of Evil - Steve Roberts spoke to Radio Free Skaro, during which he indicated that all of the episodes for this story should be released in colour. Episode One (which does not have a print containing the chromadot information used for the recent colour recovery process) will be colourised by Babelcolour, using motion-estimation techniques to aid the process.

A profile and airdates guide to Australia has been added to BroaDWcast - the website documenting foreign screenings of 20th-century Doctor Who - helping to make the project nearly complete.

Jon Preddle, team member and brainchild behind the comprehensive and exhaustive project, said:

BAFTA Wales are to present a special event featuring the screening of the two recently rediscovered episodes, Galaxy 4: Air Lock and The Underwater Menace: Episode Two. The event will also feature a Q&A with stars Peter Purves, Anneke Wills and Frazer Hines, plus a guest from the current production.

The event is to take place at Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff on 9th May 2012, booking to open shortly.