Originally posted 23-24 May; updated 25-26 May with new press info & additional links

Actress Billie Piper will be playing Rose Tyler, the new Doctor Who companion in the forthcoming Doctor Who TV series. Below (end of this news post) is the official press release from BBC Television.

Piper was originally rumored as a possible companion as early as last September, after the announcement of the new series, in press put together by her agent. Piper has been speculated as a front-runner, especially earlier in the lead-up, but her name was recently away from the spotlight in deference to others thought to be finalists for the role, including Keeley Hawes, Anna Friel and Carla Henry. Indeed, in March, Piper's agent told the Radio Times: "It may be that the idea has been mooted, but it's not a conversation I have had." Radio Times went on to quote a "BBC spokeswoman" who said "an announcement wasn't expected for another two months".

Page 3 of the May 24 edition of the Daily Mail was one of the first sources (and actually the first online source) that stated Piper was in the role today; in an article 'Evans Moves a Few Rungs Down the Property Ladder' about Piper's husband Chris Evans, it also mentioned the following: "As well as winning the part of Dr Who's assistant in the new BBC series, the former pop singer has gained her first starring role in a movie." Today's Media Guardian also mentioned that "BBC drama bosses still want Mrs. Chris Evans, aka Billie Piper."

The May 25 edition of "The Independent" featured the following comment: "Billie Piper will play Doctor Who's assistant in the new BBC series. The 21-year-old said she was 'thrilled' to have landed the role of Rose Taylor [sic]" alongside Eccleston's Doctor.

The Cuttings Archive was updated late May 25 with press clippings from the various UK papers. Says Roger Anderson of the Archive, "The most notable coverage is in the Daily Express which not only has a large colour photo of Billie and a teaser headline on the front page also includes and excellent full page article on page 7." There is also a string of photos of previous Doctor Who companions.

The Daily Record (Scotland) includes a short piece in the "off the record" column which comments "SO Billie Piper is to be Dr Who's new assistant. Pretty young girl hooks up with old weirdo who wonders what planet he's on - inspired stuff. But hasn't she done that already?" Meanwhile, Metro, the free newspaper on British trains, mentioned the news on the cover on May 25, with a boxout in the top right corner that included a picture of Billie and the teaser tagline "Dr Who's new buddy ... all the way from planet pop page 3". The full story on page 3 covers most of the page and includes a rundown of "five of the Doctor's assistants", categorising them as follows: Sexiest - Jo Grant (Katy Manning); Brainiest - Barbara Wright (Jacqueline Hill); Most Loyal - Leela (Louise Jameson); Poshest - Victoria Waterfield (Deborah Watling); Coolest - Polly (Anneke Wills).

May 26th's Daily Express featured a long article entitled "Billie: Just What the Doctor Ordered," a long biographical article in the context of her being the new Doctor Who girl. "Whether they're escaping from Daleks, combating Sea Devils or helping to save Earth from an intergalactic war, the life of a Doctor Who companion has always been fraught with danger and full of adventure," writes Shaun Lyon Dunk. "It's safe to say ... that none has been quite as young or as nubile as Billie Piper." The article quotes Piper herself as saying, "Doctor Who is an iconic show and I am absolutely thrilled to be playing the part of Rose Tyler." The article then goes into her life, career and her marriage to Chris Evans, before getting reactions from two former Doctor Who companions, Nicola Bryant (Peri) and Louise Jameson. "It sounds like a cliche," Bryant says, "but when you join Doctor Who you are entering an extended family and every year I still attend conventions around the world and get incredible fan mail. I'm still in touch with the old Doctors and some of the assistants are among my closest friends. I imagine Billie won't have to put up with the outrageous costumes I wore. My first scene had me in a bikini and I seemed to wear revealing clothing for the rest of the series. Their budget will be bigger, too. We had to work very hard because whenever we blew anything up, we were only allowed one take. As an actress, nothing really compares with Doctor Who because its appeal is so overwhelming." Jameson told the Express, "I wanted Leela to be strong and tough, not some screaming girl who couldn't take the action. But I also had to wear a tight leather costume. I was disappointed my character exited the show by getting married - I'd have preferred to have died trying to rescue the Doctor. What's really incredible about Doctor Who is how loyal fans are. When there have been gaps in my work over the years I've always managed to get work that is a spin-off from those few months of doing Doctor Who. I still try to attend conventions and meet the fans of the show whenever I can. Billie should be aware of the huge interest. It can take you by surprise. But she's probably used to coping with the media by now." The article will be on the Cuttings Archive later today.

An article from Billie Piper's local paper from March 1995 which shows that she actually had a lot of acting experience prior to her brief period as a pop star, including winning a scholarship to one of London's leading stage schools, is available at This is Wiltshire. (Thanks to Mike Simpson)

Meanwhile, Russell T Davies spoke to the BBC Doctor Who site about the casting of Billie Piper as Rose. "It was a long, thorough search to find Billie - despite the fact that the tabloids have been touting her name for months now!" Davies said. "We auditioned all sorts of actors - some famous, some unknown - but we've now met with Billie three times, and she's absolutely perfect, and very close to the description of Rose on the page - I think Billie's 21, and Rose is 19, so that's a great fit! ... Over the course of 13 episodes, Rose will change and grow, and hopefully, we can keep that story going in the years to come."

To read more of Davies' comments, as well as a gallery of Piper's previous roles and some video clips, visit the official site.

Additional Press Coverage & Links from May 24 & 25:

BBC News The Sun Yahoo! News Big News Network The Scotsman The Guardian Hello Magazine Manchester Online Daily Mirror The Times Reuters The Guardian (#1) (registration only) The Guardian (#2) (registration only) BBC Companions Gallery Waveguide The Daily Record Daily Telegraph Newkerala.com Irish RTE GQ Magazine The Age ABC New South Wales Top of the Pops (BBC) Australia Advertiser

BBC Radio 1 News ITV News Stuff New Zealand Irish Independent Ananova Ireland Online Irish Examiner Sky News Teletext icSouth London NineMSN Seven.com.au 4ni.co.uk Brand Republic Los Angeles Times Irish Examiner Megastar.co.uk WebIndia This Is London News Wales icKent icEssex Daily Mail BBC Sport (Game)

There were also stories in MX Australia, Australian Associated Press Bulletins, the Daily Star, the Birmingham Post ("He's got two hearts, Doctor Who, and they can both be broken," Eccleston says about the Tyler character, obviously from an earlier interview), the Press Association (in which Piper's role is one of four quiz questions from yesterday: "who's playing the new Doctor Who girl?"), the Independent, the Western Daily Press, Bristol Evening Post, Yorkshire Evening Post, the Irish Independent, the Western Mail ("What's Up Doc?"), ABC Radio (Australia), the Melbourne Herald-Sun, the Newcastle Herald (Australia), the Adelaide Advertiser, the South Wales Echo, and the aforementioned Express ("Dr. Who and the Teenage Pop Star"). The ABC New South Wales article adds a curious (and laughable) comment: "The new BBC series of Doctor Who has been a bit slow in terms of getting organised but it will be on the small screen in 2005." (With thanks to Steve Tribe, Paul Engelberg, Paul Hayes, Tim Collins, Stephen Durrant, Robert Byrne, Chuck Foster, Andrew Harvey, Andrew Pierce, Roger Anderson, Mike Simpson and everyone else who's sent us info & links)

The Sunday issue of the Guardian features an obituary for Anthony Ainley, almost a week after the one came out last Monday in the "Independent" which was the first word that Ainley had died. Says the Guardian obit, "The Master was to BBC Television's Doctor Who what Moriarty was to Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes." Outpost Gallifrey has learned that Mr. Ainley's funeral was held the middle of last week. Meanwhile, the Doctor Who Appreciation Society has posted its own obituary and tribute for Mr. Ainley on their website. (Thanks to Chuck Foster, Andrew Harvey)

Shaun Sutton, the former Head of Serials at the BBC Television Drama Group from 1966 to 1969, where he was directly responsible for oversight of the Doctor Who program, died Friday, May 14. Says his obituary in the Telegraph, Sutton was "a tireless champion of quality television whose good fortune was to preside over what is regarded as the golden age of television drama." Sutton was a great patron of Doctor Who at the BBC, although he was not a science fiction fan per se, and as such was involved in such decisions as the casting of Frazer Hines as Jamie, and advised Jon Pertwee to play the Doctor "as Jon Pertwee" -- in fact, it was Sutton who took Pertwee out to dinner several times convincing him he should do it. Sutton was the one man producer Barry Letts and writer Terrance Dicks would have a drink with in the BBC bar - unthinkable during the 1980's. He would later also be among those who oversaw the casting of Tom Baker.

Sutton later moved to the position of acting Head of Drama Group, then was formally appointed to the position in 1969. Following his retirement he published his memoirs, "The Largest Theatre in the World: 30 years of Television Drama" (published in 1982), where he admitted his fondness for the show; he later participated in interviews with various Doctor Who outlets, including appearing alongside Brian Blessed in Bill Baggs' documentary video "The Doctors: 30 Years of Time Travel".

Sutton had been a writer and director of children's television and, later, successful dramas such as "Z Cars." Says the obit: "At the height of his career, Sutton exercised benevolent control over a national theatre of the air which each year produced 120 single plays and hundreds of hours of series and serials (none of which could be labelled 'soap')." Outpost Gallifrey salutes the many contributions Sutton made to British television and to Doctor Who specifically; his support of the show was one of the reasons it kept going for many years as a mainstay of the small screen. (Thanks to Chuck Foster, Matthew Kilburn, Anthony Flynn, Simon Burt)

Retailer Galaxy 4 has a blurb in their "coming soon" list about the rumored 'missing episodes' box set due out in November in the UK. According to Galaxy 4, it's called Doctor Who: The Orphan Collection and includes "18 episodes from incomplete 'lost' stories from the Hartnell and Troughton eras. Episodes include: The Daleks Masterplan 2, 5 and 10, The Faceless Ones 1 & 3, The Wheel In Space 3 & 6, The Moonbase 2 & 4, The Abominable Snowmen 2, The Web Of Fear 1, The Enemy Of The World 3, The Space Pirates 2, The Celestial Toymaker 4, The Crusade 1 & 3, Evil Of The Daleks 2 and The Underwater Menace 3. Also includes rare archive footage and clips from other missing episodes. All digitally remastered. This is the first chance to see the newly discovered episode 2 of The Daleks Masterplan- found in 2003 after being missing from the archives for 30 years!" Of course, BBC Video has yet to officially confirm any of this and so it's highly subject to change. (Thanks to Galaxy 4)

While Anthony Ainley's passing last week left us without his current remarks on the state of affairs in "Doctor Who," Paul Vanezis of the Doctor Who Restoration Team shared some good news yesterday: Ainley did in fact record a commentary for a possible forthcoming DVD release of The Keeper of Traken. Ainley was joined by Sarah Sutton (Nyssa), Matthew Waterhouse (Adric) and writer Johnny Byrne for the commentary, recorded last year to accommodate both Waterhouse and Ainley's schedules. While "Traken" hasn't been placed on the release schedule yet, the commentary is available when the DVD comes out eventually. Said Vanezis, "[I'd] corresponded with Anthony about doing other commentaries and [he] was very keep to do a proper 'Master' adventure; he was over the moon when I gave him a copy of a television play we had just recovered starring him, John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson and he was instantly likeable." (Thanks to Paul Vanezis)

According to an interview with producer Phil Collinson in the latest "TV Zone," the production manager on the new series will be Helen Vallis. Among Vallis' credits are as associate producer on "Hearts of Gold," "Care," "Harpur and Iles" and "Streetlife". (Thanks to Paul Hayes)

Anthony Ainley, the long-admired actor and fan favorite who took over the role of the Doctor's archnemesis, the Master, in 1980 and played him opposite Tom Baker (in his last two stories, "The Keeper of Traken" and "Logopolis"), Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy -- as well as with Jon Pertwee in "The Five Doctors" -- passed away on May 3 due to undisclosed causes, according to a surprise obituary in the Monday May 10 edition of the UK newspaper The Independent. Coming as a complete surprise to fandom, Outpost Gallifrey has learned that Mr. Ainley was in poor health for some time, having left the hospital for some medical treatment only days prior to the date of his passing as noted in the obituary. While the information had not been picked up yet by any other news media at press time, the official Doctor Who site is now reporting the information to be correct based on some queries put forth by the editors of Doctor Who Magazine.

Ainley was originally a featured guest star in the story "The Keeper of Traken," playing Nyssa's father Tremas, whose body was stolen by the Master (played in his decayed form by Geoffrey Beevers). Ainley took the role of the Master with flair and determination, resembling his predecessor Roger Delgado in appearance but also bringing his own theatrics and experience to the role. He appeared in numerous stories opposite later Doctors, including "Castrovalva," "Time Flight," "The King's Demons," "The Five Doctors," "Planet of Fire," "The Mark of the Rani" (opposite Kate O'Mara), "The Trial of a Time Lord" and "Survival." Ainley was also enlisted for the PC game "Destiny of the Doctors". He remained a fan favorite at conventions throughout the 1980's and 90's, and was constantly identified by fans and the public in the role of the moustache-twirling villain.

Read Read "Anthony Ainley: A Tribute", a special memorial article written exclusively for Outpost Gallifrey by Paul Hayes. Also, a tribute thread has developed in the Outpost Gallifrey Forum (you must be a member of the Forum to read.)

The following is the full obituary in the Independent, with his birthdate noted as 1932; however, the IMDb notes it as 1937, though we believe the 1932 date may be more accurate. As we were told, Mr. Ainley was a deeply private man, and so some confusion around his age and date of birth could be expected.

All of us at Outpost Gallifrey -- the editor, our contributors, and I'm sure our readers -- express our condolences and send our best wishes to his family and friends. Anthony Ainley will be deeply missed by Doctor Who fandom.