Doctor Who Monopoly: 50th Anniversary Edition

Tuesday, 7 August 2012 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Winning Moves are to celebrate the impending 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who with the release of a special edition of the popular board game Monopoly:

Celebrate 50 years of the world's favourite time lord with this very special edition of Monopoly! Featuring all eleven doctors, the best loved companions and of course, the monsters and baddies from across space and time, from the Brigadier and Captain Jack to Jo, Susan and Ace. Play with extra special Dr Who tokens, including the Dr's scarf, designed just for this edition! It's an adventure like no other as you revisit 50 years of this amazing show!

The limited edition set is expected to retail from 28th August, and can be pre-ordered from online stores such as Forbidden Planet.

FILTER: - Merchandise - Games - WHO50

Character Group Issues Profit Warning

Friday, 3 August 2012 - Reported by John Bowman

Character Group – the company that produces Doctor Who action figures and toys – has issued a profit warning, blaming poor trading performance on a variety of factors including the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee.

A Trading Update states that although international sales have held up well, the UK side of things has proved much more difficult than the company had believed would be the case:

Retail trading conditions have remained difficult and have been further adversely affected by a number of factors and major events, namely, the Jubilee celebrations, the Euro 2012 Championship, the abnormally bad UK weather, the deepening Eurozone crisis and the on-going impact of the 2012 Olympics.

This has led to a rise in price cuts by retailers in a bid to persuade people to part with their cash, as well as some retailers delaying orders for new items. As a result, the company's directors have now told the City that they believe Character Group won't be able to achieve its forecasts for the current financial year, which ends on 31st August, and that the Group's results will therefore be below current market expectations.

In April, it was revealed that Character's pre-tax profits for the six months to the end of February 2012 fell by 16 per cent from £6.64m to £5.57m year-on-year, with executive chairman Richard King saying:

There is no disguising the fact that the retail trade is, with few exceptions, finding it difficult to work its way through the current trading climate.

However, Character still has high hopes for this year's autumn and Christmas selling period, boding well for the new financial year, which starts on 1st September.

Other product licences that Character has in its portfolio include Deadly 60, Bob the Builder, Mike the Knight, Fireman Sam, and Zhu Zhu Pets.

FILTER: - Merchandise - UK

Who Girls 2013 Calendar

Thursday, 2 August 2012 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Fantom Films have released a calendar for 2013 highlighting six of the Doctor's companions; Who Girls features fully endorsed images of Anneke Wills, Deborah Watling, Katy Manning, Sarah Sutton, Nicola Bryant and the late Mary Tamm.

The calendar is available directly from Fantom Films via their website.

Katy Manning and Deborah Watling will be signing copies of the calendar at the Forbidden Planet London Megastore on the 18th August between 1:00-2:00pm.

FILTER: - Merchandise

AudioGo: September Releases

Wednesday, 1 August 2012 - Reported by Chuck Foster

AudioGo have released details on audio titles in their spoken word range due to be released in September.

The latest adventure for the Eleventh Doctor will be The Empty House, written by Simon Guerrier and read by Raquel Cassidy; meanwhile, Torchwood continues with The Exodus Code written by Captain Jack himself, John Barrowman with his sister Carole. For the classic series, this month's Target novelisation will be The Highlanders read by Anneke Wills, whilst the soundtrack release of Horror of Fang Rock will include linking narration by Louise Jameson. Finally, the complete series of Serpents Quest starring Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor is to be released as a boxed set.

The Doctor Who adventures will be released on CD from 6th September, and can also be purchased as downloads from AudioGo from 1st September; Torchwood: The Exodus Code will be released in both formats from 13th September.

The Empty House
Written by Simon Guerrier
Read by Raquel Cassidy
Released 6th September 2012 (CD) (pre-order)

An exciting audio exclusive adventure for the 11th Doctor (as played by Matt Smith) and his companions Amy and Rory. When the TARDIS materialises in rural England in the 1920s, the Doctor and his friends discover a crashed spaceship nearby. It’s the beginning of a nightmarish adventure for them.

The story is read by Raquel Cassidy, who played Miranda Cleaves in the TV story The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People, with original sound design.

Torchwood: The Exodus Code
Written by John and Carole Barrowman
Reader tbc
Released 6th September 2012 (CD) (pre-order)

A brand new novel written by John Barrowman (Captain Jack in the hit BBC TV series) and Carole E. Barrowman. It starts with a series of unexplained events - earth tremors across the globe and people being driven insane by their heightened and scrambled senses. Then the world starts to notice - the number one Twitter trend is #TheLoco. Governments and scientists are bewildered and silent. The world needs Torchwood, but there's not much of Torchwood left. Captain Jack has tracked the problem to its source: a village in Peru, where he's uncovered evidence of alien involvement. Back in Cardiff, Gwen Cooper has discovered something lurking inside the Torchwood software - something alien and somehow connected to Jack. If the world is to be restored, she has to warn him - but she's quickly becoming a victim of the madness, too!

The Highlanders
Written by Gerry Davis
Read by Anneke Wills
Released 6th September 2012 (CD) (pre-order)

An unabridged reading of a classic Doctor Who novelisation, the Second Doctor (as played by Patrick Troughton) and his companions Ben and Polly find that the TARDIS have brought them to Culloden in 1746, during the famous battle between the Scots and the English. There they become embroiled in events and meet a new friend: Jamie McCrimmon.

The story is read by Anneke Wills, who played Polly in the original TV episodes, with original sound design.

Horror of Fang Rock
Written by Terrance Dicks
Narrated by Louise Jameson
Released 6th September 2012 (CD) (pre-order)

A narrated full-cast TV soundtrack of a classic 1977 adventure, starring Tom Baker as the Doctor. The TARDIS arrives on Fang Rock, somewhere off the South Coast of England in the early 1900s, just as the lighthouse comes under attack by an unseen force. The Doctor and Leela join the lighthouse keepers in a battle for survival through the night.

Louise Jameson, who played Leela in the TV series, provides linking narration, and recalls her time on Doctor Who in a 20 minute bonus interview. Also included are pdf files of the original TV camera scripts.

Serpent Quest - The Complete Series
Written by Paul Magrs
Released 6th September 2012 (CD)

A handsome box set containing five multi-voice adventures for the 4th Doctor, played by Tom Baker, with his companions Mrs Wibbsey and Mike Yates. The guest cast includes Susan Jameson, David Troughton, Richard Franklin, Michael Jayston, Simon Shepherd, Terrence Hardiman, Joanna David, Sophie Ward, Andrew Sachs, and Nerys Hughes. Written by Paul Magrs, with full sound design.

FILTER: - Merchandise - Torchwood - Audio - Classic Series

Sonic Screwdriver Remote Control Fun Days

Wednesday, 1 August 2012 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Forbidden Planet are to hold a number of Doctor Who Fun Days to celebrate the release of the Sonic Screwdriver Universal Remote Control, with the launch event taking place in the Shaftsbury Avenue London Megastore on Saturday 25th August from 11am to 4pm, a week before the device's official release:

Forbidden Planet invites you to be a part of the World Premiere Launch of the Doctor Who Eleventh Doctor’s Sonic Screwdriver Universal Remote Control by The Wand Company.

See it, touch it, try it, BUY IT!

For one day only you will have the chance to get your hands on a limited quantity of this officially licensed prop grade replica universal remote control before anyone else.

Step inside our Mega Store in London’s Shaftesbury Avenue and immerse yourself in everything Doctor Who as we celebrate the launch of this amazing new product.

From 11am on Saturday 25th August you can see the Sonic Screwdriver Universal Remote Control in action for the first time and get the chance to take control for yourself!

Live Demonstrations

Richard Blakesley and Chris Barnardo the creators of the Sonic Screwdriver Universal Remote Control - as seen on Dragons Den - will be performing live demonstrations and answering all your questions.

Dress Up Competition

Come down dressed up as ANY character from Doctor Who and be in with a chance to win a special numbered version of the Sonic Screwdriver Universal Remote Control, courtesy of The Wand Company.

Other activities on the day include:

Goody Bags given out throughout the day
Jelly Babies and Jammy Dodgers to keep you going
Have your photo taken with a ‘Life-Sized’ Tardis in store
Special Offers on selected Doctor Who products

Friday 31st August will see events taking place at the Bristol (Clifton Heights) and Birmingham (Priory Queensway) Megastores between midday to 5pm to celebrate its official release; then Saturday 1st September sees events in Cambridge (Burleigh Street), Coventry (Cross Cheaping), Liverpool (Bold Street), Newcastle (Grainger Street) and Southampton (Hanover Buildings) - all between 11am and 5pm.

The Sonic Screwdriver Universal Remote Control is available to pre-order from their website.

FILTER: - Merchandise

Big Finish's Licence Is Extended

Monday, 30 July 2012 - Reported by John Bowman

Big Finish has had its licence to make Doctor Who audio adventures extended to December 2015.

Executive producer Jason Haigh-Ellery said:

I'm so excited that we can continue our voyages with the Doctor for at least another three years, and so pleased that AudioGO and the BBC continue to trust us with the telling of these stories.

Fellow executive producer Nicholas Briggs commented:

It's been a privilege and a pleasure for me to have worked on the Doctor Who audio range since 1999. I'm looking forward to continuing the excellent relationship we have with AudioGO and the BBC – and, of course, to the many exciting adventures for the Doctor I'll be working on over the next three years or more.

Line producer David Richardson added:

We're already making plans for 2015, which will be the sixteenth year of Doctor Who audio productions from Big Finish and will include our landmark 200th main range play!

In addition to the Doctor Who main range and Companion Chronicles, we are working through ideas for an exciting new range which we hope to announce during 2013.

FILTER: - Merchandise - Audio - Big Finish

50th Anniversary Stamps

Friday, 27 July 2012 - Reported by Chuck Foster

The Royal Mail is to release a set of stamps to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who next year, with the first day cover reportedly due on 8th January 2013.

No other details are available at present, with the Royal Mail informing us:

Unfortunately it is too soon to have or to send out any information regarding an issue in January 2013. Probably around end of November or start of December we should have a FIRST publication that we can send.

It won't be the first time that Doctor Who has been officially recognised in such a prestigious way. A Dalek was chosen by Royal Mail to represent television in The Entertainers' Tale issue that was released on 1st June 1999. The set also comprised Bobby Moore (sport), Charlie Chaplin (cinema), and Freddie Mercury (popular music).

(with thanks to: Richard Thomas)

FILTER: - Merchandise - WHO50

Doctor Who Magazine 450

Thursday, 26 July 2012 - Reported by Chuck Foster

The new issue of Doctor Who Magazine - out today - has a "Patrick Troughton" flavour to it, with a number of features on the actor and his Doctor's adventures. To mark this, an exclusive brand new interview imagines what would happen if the current Doctor Matt Smith were to talk to him ...

MATT: Patrick has a very Doctory face. Everything about Patrick is Doctory! He is peculiar without ever asking you to find him peculiar. All the elements were right. I loved his costume.

PATRICK: Well, you go along to the costumiers and they produce various things, and you say, "Ahh, that would be good..."

Also in this issue:

Do You Want To Know A Secret? Head writer and executive producer Steven Moffat drops his guard and reveals what's happening with the next 14 episodes of Doctor Who, exclusively in Production Notes!
Dinosaurs on a Spaceship! DWM talks to writer Chris Chibnall and grills him about his forthcoming scripts in the new season of Doctor Who – Dinosaurs on a Spaceship and the "very different" Episode 4...
Remembering Carry: DWM pays tribute to the late Caroline John, the much-loved actress who played the Third Doctor’s assistant Liz Shaw and died in June – and looks back over her life and times.
Recollections of the Daleks: seasoned Dalek operators Nicholas Pegg and Barnaby Edwards give DWM readers on a unique, Dalek-eye view of the making of 2005’s Bad Wolf/The Parting Of The Ways – accompanied by photos from their private collections!
When Pat met Colin: stern Sontarans, ambitious Androgums and fantastic food! Yes, it’s time to uncover the fascinating details of what really happened when the Second and Sixth incarnations met, as The Fact of Fiction looks back at the 1985 adventure The Two Doctors
Doctor Who's Replacement? DWM investigates Starwatch, a sci-fi series that, had it been made in the 1990s, would have starred Jon Pertwee. With never-before-published images from the project, DWM talks to the people who tried to make it happen...
When Pat Met Jon... and Peter and Richard and Tom: Countdown to 50 takes a nostalgic look back at the story which celebrated Doctor Who’s 20th anniversary with some old friends – and some ever older enemies! – as it remembers The Five Doctors.
Treasures Beyond Imagining... The Doctor, Amy and Rory face up to a ruthless collection of alien criminals within a mysterious ziggurat stuffed with priceless treasures in The Cornucopia Caper, the latest DWM comic strip, written by Scott Gray with art by Dan McDaid!
Find the Doctor! The Time Team convenes to watch one of the most innovative and controversial Doctor Who stories of all time – 2006’s Love & Monsters. But what will Emma, Chris, Will and Michael make of it...?
The Bare Essentials: DWM strands Toby Hadoke and Johnny Candon on a desert island, with only eight Doctor Who stories each to keep them company. But which episodes will they choose? And whose selection do you agree with? Find out, in A Battle of Wits!
Wotcha: the mysterious Watcher marvels at the TARDIS’ food machine, challenges readers with his Six Faces of Delusion, and champions another Supporting Artist of the Month in Wotcha!

PLUS! All the usual features, latest official news, TV and merchandise reviews, previews, competitions, a prize-winning crossword - and a giant-sized, double-sided poster featuring the Ninth, Tenth and Eleventh Doctors, and "every Dalek ever"!

FILTER: - Merchandise - Magazines - DWM

Big Finish: July Releases

Monday, 23 July 2012 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Big Finish have now released the latest adventures for the Doctor and his companions for July; producer David Richardson said:

We’re really proud of this month’s releases. A brand new trilogy starts for the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Hex with Protect and Survive, and so begins a journey that will be packed with scorching surprises...

The latest Lost Story is The First Sontarans by Andrew Smith, and it's probably my favourite from the entire range. You’ll discover the secret of the Sontarans – and it's a secret so significant that I hope listeners will help us keep it under wraps until everyone gets a chance to hear it...

Finally Ian Chesterton is back in The Time Museum, caught up in a vast exhibit dedicated to... Himself. It's a glorious script from James Goss, that takes a nostalgic foray into the early days of Doctor Who.

In addition, the first episode of The First Sontarans is currently available to listen to for free, via the Big Finish podcast feed.

Protect and Survive (available to order)
by Jonathan Morris
starring Sylvester McCoy, Sophie Aldred and Peter Oliver

If an attack with nuclear weapons is expected, you will hear the air attack warning. If you are not at home, but can get there within two minutes, do so. If you are in the open, take cover in the nearest building. If you cannot reach a building, lie flat on the ground and cover your head and your hands.

Arriving in the North of England in the late 1980s, Ace and Hex seek refuge at the home of Albert and Peggy Marsden... in the last few hours before the outbreak of World War Three.

Meanwhile, the Doctor is missing. Will there be anyone left for him to rescue, when the bombs begin to fall?

The First Sontarans (available to order)
by Andrew Smith
starring Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant

1872. After finding a strange signalling device on the moon, the Doctor and Peri travel to the depths of the English countryside to track down the source of its transmissions. But they're not the first aliens to arrive on the scene.

Old enemies of the Doctor are drawing their battle lines in the forest and the local humans will be lucky to escape the conflagration unscathed.

For hidden within this village is a deadly secret - a secret that could destroy the entire Sontaran race... and reveal the terrible mystery of their creation.

The Time Museum (available to order)
by James Goss
starring William Russell

"This is The Chesterton Exhibition. A series of breathtakingly faithful tableaux, painstakingly detailed to the nth degree. Dedicated to the life of that most extraordinary time traveller, Ian Chesterton!"

Ian finds himself in a shrine to his own past, and on the run with a man named Pendolin.

From Coal Hill School to Jobis Station, from Totter’s Yard to the Crusades, Ian’s history is unfolding.

And a confrontation with a deadly enemy with a voracious appetite awaits…

FILTER: - Merchandise - Audio - Big Finish

The Wibbly-Wobbly, Timey-Wimey Reader

Monday, 23 July 2012 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Bigger Inside Press have announced that a new book is to be compiled for release during the show's 50th Anniversary year, and the authors are soliciting material from contributors:

Seeking Original DOCTOR WHO Essays For 50th Anniversary Book!

2013 will mark the 50th anniversary of the debut of Doctor Who, the longest running sci-fi show on television. To commemorate this historic milestone, Bigger Inside Press is compiling The Wibbly-Wobbly, Timey-Wimey Reader, a collection of insightful and entertaining essays about the greatest show in the galaxy! Spearheaded by Don J. Krouskop, author of the acclaimed best seller The Wibbly-Wobbly, Timey-Wimey Trivia Quiz (2011 BearManor Media), this volume will contain the best critical, expository, and anecdotal writing on this amazing program ever penned by its loyal fans.

If you'd like to contribute to this historic tome (and get paid for writing about Doctor Who!), you can submit your original essay via email. It can be a review of your favorite story or season, a general overview of the series, a retrospective of cast & crew, an exploration of the show's deeper themes, a personal memory of the show and its impact on your life, or just about anything else Doctor Who-related that catches your fancy (NO FAN FICTION!). Submissions should be between 2500 - 8000 words in length. Authors whose entries are selected will receive a royalty of 5% of net sales of the book.

Don't miss out on this chance to contribute to a once in a lifetime publication!

(with thanks to: Don J. Krouskop)

FILTER: - Merchandise - Books

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