Revenge of the Judoon

Friday, 7 September 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

BBC Books have released details on the next Doctor Who Quick Reads novel, Revenge of the Judoon. Written byTerrance Dicks, this novel sends the Doctor and Martha to Balmoral in 1902. Revenge of the Judoon will be out on March 6th, 2008.
Here they meet Captain Harry Carruthers – friend of the new king Edward VII. Together they head for the castle to see the king – only to find that Balmoral Castle is gone, leaving just a hole in the ground. The Doctor realises it is the work of the Judoon – a race of ruthless intergalactic mercenary space police.

While Martha and Carruthers seek answers in London, the Doctor finds himself in what should be the most deserted place on Earth – and he is not alone.

With help from Arthur Conan Doyle, the Doctor and his friends discover a plot to take over the world. With time running out, who will fall victim to the revenge of the Judoon?




FILTER: - Books

Sarah Jane press release

Thursday, 6 September 2007 - Reported by Anthony Weight

September 6, 2007 • Posted By Paul Hayes
The BBC Press Office has today released a report promoting the forthcoming Doctor Who spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures, which it states will begin broadcasting at the end of September. The first story, "Revenge of the Slitheen", will feature the return of the Raxacoricofallapatorian family last seen in the 2005 series of Doctor Who. Details from the press release can be found in the box at the bottom of this article.

Executive producer Russell T Davies is quoted as saying that: "This is a wonderful opportunity, to use all our Doctor Who resources here in Cardiff for the making of a brand new drama for CBBC. We hope brand new viewers join us for ten full-blooded episodes of excitement and danger, headlined by a truly excellent cast."

Star Elisabeth Sladen adds: "It's great to be back enjoying Sarah Jane with some fantastic new adventures. There's still so much more to find out about her after all these years. I hope that viewers have as much fun watching the series as I did making it."

The BBC's Doctor Who website also has an item about Sarah Jane's upcoming encounter with the Slitheen.
The new series The Sarah Jane Adventures sees the return of some familiar alien enemies from Doctor Who as the Slitheen are back and out for revenge.

Coming to CBBC on BBC One and CBBC at the end of September 2007, The Sarah Jane Adventures stars one of Doctor Who's most famous former companions – investigative journalist Sarah Jane Smith.

The series is from the same people behind Doctor Who including multi-award winning writer Russell T Davies.

Having travelled the universe with The Doctor, Sarah Jane is used to dealing with alien encounters.

But when her young friends Maria, Luke and Clyde join her they soon become embroiled in a mysterious world of chases, danger, and monsters from outer space, discovering that life on Earth can be an adventure too.

In Revenge Of The Slitheen, the first two-part story from the new series, Maria, Luke and Clyde realise that all is not as it seems on their first day at their new school.

The food keeps going off, there's a funny smell and the new technology block is hiding some dark secrets. They soon find out that the Slitheen have disguised themselves as teachers as part of their deadly plan which threatens the future of Earth.

Will Sarah Jane and the gang be able to stop them all before it's too late?





FILTER: - Sarah Jane - Press

Fanzine Update

Thursday, 6 September 2007 - Reported by Mike Doran

The latest issue of Enlightenment, (#139), the fanzine of the Doctor Who Information Network -- North America's largest Doctor Who fan club -- features an interview with writer Steven Moffat (The Empty Child,The Girl In The FireplaceBlink) where he talks about his work on the series, what makes Doctor Who so great, and gives us a glimpse into writing Blink, an episode where the Doctor isn't around much. Also: DoesDoctor Who have an agenda? How does Doctor Who's changing cast connect to a new shipping fanbase? And can the Two-Four crew survive 15 episodes with the Roger Delgado Master? Enlightenment is available from the Doctor Who Information Networkwebsite.




FILTER: - Press

Tennant to be an Extra?

Wednesday, 5 September 2007 - Reported by Anthony Weight

What's On TV and The Sun are reporting that Doctor Who star David Tennant is to guest in an 80-minute Christmas special episode of the popular BBC Two / HBO sitcom Extras, playing himself. The series, written by and starring Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, features celebrity guests playing parody versions of themselves in each episode, and according to the What's On TV report: "TV bosses are keeping quiet about David's appearance in the final episode of the award-winning comedy - but insiders have hinted that it will be linked to his role as The Doctor."

Tennant's girlfriend, Doctor Who guest star Sophia Myles, appeared in an episode of the second series of Extras in 2006.




FILTER: - David Tennant - Press

Australian media coverage

Wednesday, 5 September 2007 - Reported by Adam Kirk

Perth Now has reported on the 'outrage' of local Torchwood fans at Channel Ten's decision to move the show to a midnight timeslot. A 'publicist' for Channel Ten is quoted as saying: 'Although 'Torchwood' launched to an impressive number it was not able to sustain ratings up against particularly tough competition. We thank loyal fans for their support and we will play out the series, albeit on Tuesday's late night.'

Meanwhile, Judy Adamson of the Sydney Morning Herald writes, in a review of 'Blink', that 'the monsters are not only fabulously inventive, they're uncomfortably scary.' The Melbourne Herald-Sun also writes of the 'downright scary' statues in 'Blink', describing it 'the best episode of the series so far' and gives it four stars.Greg Hassall, also of the Sydney Morning Herald, gives 'Utopia' a thumbs up, writing that 'it's a great episode, with plenty of wickedly barbed dialogue between Harkness, Martha and the Doctor. The pay-off comes at the end, setting up a stellar conclusion to the season.'

Finally, in the ratings, Doctor Who has risen again: 'The Family of Blood' scored 865,000 viewers in the 5 major capitals, while 'Blink' was also the ABC's top rating Saturday programme, scoring 873,000 viewers. Meanwhile, Torchwood'sratings have remained steady in the Tuesday midnight timeslot on 'Channel Ten'. 'Combat' received 147,000 viewers while 'Captain Jack Harkness' received 151,000 viewers. For more ratings details see the Sydney Morning Herald’s Tribal Mind.

Thanks to Kamelian for the 'Perth Now' story.




FILTER: - Press - Australia

TV Quick / TV Choice Awards

Tuesday, 4 September 2007 - Reported by Anthony Weight

For the second year running, Doctor Who and its star David Tennant have won prizes at the annual television awards ceremony run jointly by British TV Quick and TV Choice magazines, the results of which are voted on by readers of those publications.

ITN reports that the series won Best-Loved Drama at last night's ceremony at the Dorchester Hotel in London, with Tennant taking home the prize for Best Actor. Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood was also a success at the ceremony, winning the award for Best New Drama.

The BBC News Online report on the awards features a comment from Tennant on his forthcoming stage role as Hamlet for the Royal Shakespeare Company next year, which he describes himself as being "very excited and very scared" about. The report further states that on the subject of the 2010 series of Doctor Who, he commented that he did not know if he would be starring in it as "it's in 2010".




FILTER: - Series 3/29 - Awards/Nominations

Sarah Jane Adventures DVD Cover

Tuesday, 4 September 2007 - Reported by Kenny Davidson

Virgin Megastore has released the apparent cover for the DVD release of "Invasion of the Bane", the pilot episode ofSarah Jane Adventures. Click on the thumbnail below to see a larger version.

The DVD is due in UK shops from 29th October.




FILTER: - Sarah Jane - Blu-ray/DVD

"Gap Year" and Fifth Series Plans Announced

Monday, 3 September 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Following media speculation, the BBC have confirmed future plans for Doctor Who in a press releasetoday.

After the fourth series airs in 2008, David Tennant will continue in the role of the Doctor for a Christmas special at the end of 2008. After that, instead of a full series beginning filming, the production team, with Tennant still in the role, will be working on three Doctor Who specials, led by Russell T Davies, to be shown on BBC1 throughout the year of 2009. A fifth full series is scheduled for 2010, though asBBC News point out, casting is unconfirmed for that far ahead.

Media speculation was sparked by reports that Tennant had been cast in the title role of Hamlet, in a production for the Royal Shakespeare Company from July to November 2008. This would have conflicted with filming a fifth series for airing in the spring of 2009. The RSC 2008 Flyer and BBC News are confirming Tennant's role in the play.

Rumors over the past several months have suggested that the show would be going on a sort of 'temporary hiatus' after the fourth series, though the BBC has emphasized the series' return for a full fifth year. It is not known whether Davies will continue in the helm of the series when it does return on a weekly basis, however.

The press release included the following quotes:
Jane Tranter, Controller, BBC Fiction, says: "Doctor Who is one of the BBC's best loved and most successful dramas. Its journey over the past three series has been one of the most ambitious and exciting that we have had, and I'm delighted to be able to confirm not only three exciting specials for 2009, but a fifth series in 2010."

Menna Richards, Controller, BBC Wales, says: "The success of Doctor Who is a fantastic tribute to the dedication and expertise of the production team at BBC Wales who have worked on the project from the outset. This announcement is marvellous news for all involved, and more importantly for the programme's amazing fan base and audience. BBC Wales is looking forward to producing the fifth series."





FILTER: - Specials - Russell T Davies - Press

Infinite Quest - Repeat

Saturday, 1 September 2007 - Reported by Marcus
Viewers in the United Kingdom can see a repeat of the animated Doctor Who Story,The Infinite Queston Sunday morning, at 9.10 on BBC2.

The Infinite Quest was originally shown as part of the CBBC series Totally Doctor Who.

Meanwhile BBC3 continues its repeat schedule with Season Three, showing weekday evenings at 7pm.




FILTER: - Animation - Broadcasting

Moffat wins second Hugo

Saturday, 1 September 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

The results of the 2007 Hugo Awards have been announced at Nippon 2007, the 65th World Science Fiction Convention, in Yokohama, Japan. The Hugo for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form went toThe Girl in the Fireplace by Steven Moffat.

This is Moffat's second Hugo win, following from last year's win for The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances. Other Doctor Who nominees in the category this year included Army of Ghosts/Doomsday by Russell T Davies and School Reunion by Toby Whithouse.




FILTER: - Steven Moffat - Production - Awards/Nominations