Fiftieth Anniversary details revealed

Tuesday, 10 September 2013 - Reported by Chuck Foster

The BBC have revealed some details about their programming for the Fiftieth Anniversary celebrations, which will include:

The Anniversary Special itself, which has been named The Day of the Doctor and will be 75 minutes long.
The 90 minute drama An Adventure in Space and Time
A BBC Two lecture by Professor Brian Cox on the science behind the hit show
A Culture Show special by Matthew Sweet, entitled Me, You and Doctor Who
A BBC Radio 2 documentary entitled Who is the Doctor?
A repeat run of a restored version of the very first story, An Unearthly Child, on BBC Four
A primer to the series with Doctor Who: The Ultimate Guide

Exact times will be revealed at a later date.

Note: the news item has since been removed from the BBC News site

FILTER: - Day of the Doctor - WHO50 - Series Specials

Script Doctor to be reprinted

Tuesday, 10 September 2013 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Miwk Publishing have announced that they will be publishing an updated version of former script editor Andrew Cartmel's book Script Doctor; it is due to be released this coming November:

Miwk Publishing are absolutely delighted to be reprinting this unique insight into an era of Doctor Who which, while dividing fandom at the time, has seen a reappraisal in recent years following the release of the stories on DVD and the subsequent scrutiny of the era in the accompanying special features.

It has been revised and slightly updated from its originally version and features new forewords and afterwords additional to this edition. We couldn’t reprint the book without reprinting the original cover. Grateful thanks to Steve Cook for allowing us to reuse his photograph.

Script Doctor, by Andrew Cartmel (2013 edition) (Credit: Miwk)

Script Doctor
Written by Andrew Cartmel

In 1987 Doctor Who was a series in the middle of an on-going crisis. Producer John Nathan-Turner had been ‘persuaded to stay’ even though his programme had only a year earlier been cancelled by ‘the powers that be’. Yet again those on-high stepped in to interfere with the show and asked him to recast the Doctor. But JN-T had other problems too, during season 23 his script editor Eric Saward had quit very publicly.

This vacancy was filled by Andrew Cartmel. Within very few months he had to find writers for the new season, write out the current companion, introduce a new companion and establish a new Doctor as well as planning ahead to the following season that would mark Doctor Who’s 25th anniversary.

For three years Andrew Cartmel, with the support of JN-T, pushed Doctor Who into a new direction. The show was moved to a weekday slot again up against ITV stalwart Coronation Street but still put up a good fight in its last three years. His writers Ian Briggs, Ben Aaronovitch, Stephen Wyatt, Malcolm Kohl, Rona Munro, Marc Platt, Kevin Clarke and Graeme Curry, had never written for Doctor Who before. This new broom sadly came too late and the show was cancelled again in 1989. But Cartmel’s legacy and his ‘Master-Plan’ would live on.

What he started was picked up and taken into the nineties by a new generation of writers who would eventually bring Doctor Who back to our screens in 2005.

‘Script Doctor’ is a memoir of those times, from his first day in the office to his first day on set right up to hastily penning the final few lines of the last story broadcast in the original run. Helping to cast the new seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy, and create a new companion in Ace, played by Sophie Aldred, ‘Script Doctor’ is an intimate tale which sees a team of dedicated, creative new wave at the BBC, battling the old-guard and attempting to push the envelope.

The book will be available be on general release in paperback from November, and there is a limited edition signed and numbered hardback version exclusively available from the Miwk website.

FILTER: - Merchandise - Books

Doctor Who recognised at TV Choice Awards

Tuesday, 10 September 2013 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Peter Davison, Steven Moffat and David Tennant at the TV Choice Awards (Credit: TV Choice Magazine)

Doctor Who was named the Best Drama Series for the fourth year running at last night's TV Choice Awards, this year beating Call The Midwife, Downton Abbey and Waterloo Road.

The show also received an Outstanding Achievement Award in recognition of reaching its fiftieth anniversary, with former Doctor Peter Davison taking the stage to present the lead writer Steven Moffat with the award, who said "I'm receiving an award about Doctor Who from Doctor Who while Doctor Who is busy filming in Cardiff!"; a montage of clips from the five decades were also shown to the audience at the Dorchester in London.

However, the Best Actor award saw current Doctor Matt Smith lose out to his predecessor David Tennant, who won the award for his role in Broadchurch; the Best Actress award also saw Jenna Coleman squeezed out behind Call The Midwife star Miranda Hart.

The full list of winners is available from the TV Choice website, with full coverage of the event to be published in TV Choice Magazine on sale from 17th September.

Richard Arnold with Peter Davison at the TV Choice Awards, 9 Sep 2013 (Credit: Daybreak)

Daybreak's entertainment correspondent Richard Arnold caught up with Peter Davison during the evening; speaking about the 50th Anniversary Davison said:

I've heard lots of rumours, none of which I'm allowed to tell you anything about. I'm privy to them actually, yes, I have got a copy of the script which has got my name embossed across it, so it's top secret, but there's other stuff, lots of other things that are going on that people should keep their eye open for around the 50th Anniversary Special!

FILTER: - Steven Moffat - Matt Smith - Jenna Coleman - David Tennant - Awards/Nominations

BFI: Seventh And Ninth Doctor Panels Plus Eighth Doctor Guests

Monday, 9 September 2013 - Reported by John Bowman

Videos of the guest panels from the two most recent celebratory screenings by the BFI were released today.

The BFI is running a Doctor Who At 50 season throughout this year, curated by Justin Johnson and Dick Fiddy, and a six-minute excerpt from the question-and-answer session at the Seventh Doctor event, held on Saturday 27th July and which saw a big-screen showing of Remembrance of the Daleks, features Sylvester McCoy, Sophie Aldred, and Ben Aaronovitch in conversation with Johnson.

The panel at the Seventh Doctor event (via the BFI YouTube channel)

Meanwhile, the Ninth Doctor event - held on Saturday 24th August with Bad Wolf and The Parting of The Ways being screened - spawned a longer video, with Joe Ahearne, Phil Collinson, and Bruno Langley on the panel.

The panel at the Ninth Doctor event (via the BFI YouTube channel)

The next event, which will mark the Tenth Doctor's era, is to take place at the BFI on Sunday 29th September when the episodes The Stolen Earth and Journey's End will be shown and - as previously reported - David Tennant will be among the special guests. As with all the other events in the BFI season it has sold out, but returns are possible - keep checking here - as are stand-bys on the day.

Less than a week after that - and again as previously reported - Paul McGann will be the headline guest on Saturday 5th October at the sold-out event in honour of his time as the Eighth Doctor, with a screening of the TV Movie taking place. The full guest line-up, announced today, will be Daphne Ashbrook, Geoffrey Sax, Andrew Cartmel, Gary Russell, Nicholas Briggs, and Jason Haigh-Ellery. Cartmel, Briggs, Russell, and Haigh-Ellery will be forming a panel to talk about the years between the McGann movie and the show's return, while McGann, Ashbrook, and Sax will be the panel guests following the screening.

Yesterday, Ashbrook revealed on her website that she would be taking part, commenting:

I can't wait to see Paul McGann, Gary Russell, Jason Haigh Ellory [sic] and Andrew Cartmel. And Geoffrey Sax, whom I haven't seen since we shot the movie in 1996!

The event will be followed by a signing at the BFI Shop of advance copies of the BBC's 50th-anniversary book Doctor Who - The Vault, due out on Thursday 24th October, with author Marcus Hearn. Check here for returns for the Eighth Doctor event or try for stand-bys on the day.

FILTER: - Ninth Doctor - Special Events - Online - Eighth Doctor - Seventh Doctor - BFI - WHO50

Auton Carnival Mask Sells For Thousands In Online Auction

Sunday, 8 September 2013 - Reported by John Bowman

A rare Auton carnival mask from the Third Doctor story Terror of the Autons fetched more than £5,000 when it was auctioned on eBay.

The painted fibreglass head, with felt eyes, was sold on the online auction site by London-based miss-p73, who said in the item description that it had been given to her family in the late-1970s when her father worked for a studio transport company. She added that the accompanying foam rubber hat had long since perished, and said that the mask had been "much loved and played with" in her youth, which had led to it being "a bit chipped and scraped".

After 51 bids the prop - which was only available to buyers in the UK - finally went for £5,154 when the auction ended on Thursday 5th September just after 10.25pm.

The carnival masks were worn by the Autons to disguise their true nature as they handed out deadly plastic daffodils to unsuspecting members of the public.

The four-part adventure started Jon Pertwee's second series as the Doctor. Written by Robert Holmes and directed by Barry Letts, it aired between 2nd and 23rd January 1971. Not only did the story feature the second appearance of the Autons in the show, it also marked the debuts of Katy Manning, Roger Delgado, and Richard Franklin as, respectively, Jo Grant, the Master, and Captain Mike Yates.

With Thanks To Tony Clark

FILTER: - Online - Third Doctor - Auctions

The Ninth Doctor Revisited On BBC America

Sunday, 8 September 2013 - Reported by John Bowman

The episodes Bad Wolf and The Parting of the Ways are to be shown by BBC America on Sunday 29th September when the channel marks the Ninth Doctor's era in its celebratory strand Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited.

The stories, which formed the finale of the show's first series on its return to TV, marked the end of the Christopher Eccleston era, and saw his Doctor - aided by companions Rose, played by Billie Piper, and Captain Jack Harkness, portrayed by John Barrowman - taking on the might of the Daleks.

Preceding the episodes will be the special documentary Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited – The Ninth Doctor, featuring Steven Moffat, Neil Gaiman, Noel Clarke, and Barrowman among the participants discussing Eccleston's portrayal of a no-nonsense, hard-hitting, and straight-talking Doctor. The documentary will air at 8pm ET/PT.

The stories, written by Russell T Davies and directed by Joe Ahearne, originally aired in June 2005.

The Doctors Revisited: The Ninth Doctor (via YouTube)

FILTER: - Steven Moffat - Ninth Doctor - USA - BBC America - John Barrowman

Complete Series 1-7: Blu-ray details

Friday, 6 September 2013 - Reported by Chuck Foster

BBC Worldwide has announced the release of Doctor Who: The Complete Series 1-7 Box Set on Blu-ray for release in the United Kingdom on 4th November and in North America on 5th November:

Doctor Who: The Complete Series 1-7 Boxed Set (Blu-ray) (Credit: BBC)

The Complete Series 1-7 Boxed Set (Blu-ray) (available for preorder UK/US)
Starring Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, Matt Smith

“Do you wanna come with me? 'Cause if you do, then I should warn you, you're gonna see all sorts of things. Ghosts from the past. Aliens from the future. The day the Earth died in a ball of flame. It won't be quiet, it won't be safe and it won't be calm. But I'll tell you what it will be: the trip of a lifetime.”

- The Ninth Doctor

Fantastic! Allons-y! Geronimo! For the first time ever, the epic adventures of the Ninth, Tenth and Eleventh Doctors are brought together in high definition in a special Blu-ray release

The set includes the complete adventures of the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston, Thor: The Dark World) and Tenth Doctor (David Tennant, Broadchurch, Fright Night), available in newly remastered Blu-ray versions at full 1080p resolution for the first time ever, sitting alongside those of the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith) in this high definition collection

Doctor Who: The Complete First Series, starring Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper
Doctor Who: The Complete Second Series, starring David Tennant and Billie Piper
Doctor Who: The Complete Third Series, starring David Tennant and Freema Agyeman
Doctor Who: The Complete Fourth Series, starring David Tennant and Catherine Tate

Also included in1080p Resolution:

Doctor Who: The Complete Specials, starring David Tennant
Doctor Who: The Complete Fifth Series, starring Matt Smith and Karen Gillan
Doctor Who: The Complete Sixth Series, starring Matt Smith, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill
Doctor Who: The Complete Seventh Series, starring Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill, and Jenna-Louise Coleman

Bonus Blu-ray disc includes:

“The Doctor Who Ultimate List of Lists” from BBC AMERICA’s The Brit List - BBC AMERICA’s pop culture correspondent, Asha Leo, is joined by special guest John Barrowman (“Torchwood,” “Doctor Who”) to announce the rankings of the “Top Five Companions,” “Top Five Scariest Moments,” “Top Five Best Monsters,” “Top Five Guest Stars” and “Top Five Things You’ll Only See on Doctor Who.”
Doctor Who at the Proms 2010 - Doctor Who’s own Karen Gillen and Arthur Darvill host a spectacular evening of music from the series played live by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at London’s historic Royal Albert Hall. Includes video projections, appearances by the monsters and a special guest appearance from 11th Doctor Matt Smith. For the first time, the collection will include the full 90-minute concert and has been remastered in 5.1 Surround Sound.
Doctor Who: The Best of the Christmas Specials - This previously unreleased special from December 2011 takes an inside look at the very best moments from the incredible Doctor Who Christmas specials that have captivated audiences around the world. A collection of fans from the celebrity, comedy, sci-fi and digital worlds discuss their favorite moments from both David Tennant and Matt Smith era Christmas episodes.

Doctor Who: The Complete Series 1-7 Boxed Set (Blu-ray) - USA Packaging (Credit: BBC Worldwide)

Doctor Who: The Complete Series 1-7 Boxed Set (Blu-ray) - USA Contents (Credit: BBC Worldwide)

In addition, the North American release will include a bonus gift in the form of the original Doctor Who Universal Remote Control Sonic Screwdriver, three artwork cards featuring the three Doctors, plus an exclusive comic book.

The 29 disc collection contains each series in its own individual Blu-ray case, and it is expected that the four remastered Eccleston/Tennant series will be available individually at a later date.

Acknowledgements: BBC Worldwide, additional North American details thanks to TV Shows on DVD

FILTER: - Merchandise - Series 6/32 - Eleventh Doctor - Tenth Doctor - Series 5/31 - Ninth Doctor

Christmas Special: read-through today

Wednesday, 4 September 2013 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Hot on the heels of the report that Matt Smith starts filming on Sunday, the BBC reported that the read-through for this year's Christmas Special took place today, with a report on Twitter stating: "Christmas starts early for the #DoctorWho team! Here’s Matt Smith at today’s Christmas Special read through."

Matt Smith at the Christmas Special readthrough (Credit: BBC)

The BBC's Doctor Who website added:

Matt was in brilliant form at the read through for this year’s Christmas Special, written by Steven Moffat. In fact, seeing him back in action as the Doctor made us want to fast forward to November to see the eagerly awaited 50th anniversary special!

Tweets on the read-through were also made by DWM editor Tom Spilsbury: "The Doctor Who Christmas readthrough was lovely - and rather moving. Matt Smith has been a terrific Doctor, but he's also a true gentleman." Make-up designer Claire Pritchard said: "Quite an emotional day at the doctors today he was reading a story." Having been working on Steven Moffat's other series, Sherlock, she added: "Is it rude and disloyal to leave a consulting detective for a Doctor I feel dirty!xx"

With principal photography due to kick off on Sunday, the first indication of a filming location came from Labour councillor Dilwar Ali, who said: "Dr Who will be filming at Llandaff North next week."

FILTER: - Production - Matt Smith - Filming Reports - Series Specials

Matt Smith to start shooting Christmas Special from Sunday

Wednesday, 4 September 2013 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Matt Smith with Richard Arnold at the GQ Awards, 3 Sep 2013 (Credit: Daybreak)

Matt Smith has confirmed that he begins shooting for this year's Christmas Special from this coming Sunday.

Speaking to Daybreak's entertainment correspondent Richard Arnold at last night's GQ Men of the Year Awards, the actor responded to a question about his current hair style and on how this would impact filming:

I did it for a film, but it means I have to wear a wig in Doctor Who which is a nightmare. I'm excited, I start shooting the Christmas Special Sunday. It'll be sad - the end of a wonderful era!

FILTER: - Matt Smith - Filming Reports - Series Specials

Win tickets to see Every Episode of Doctor Who Ever!

Tuesday, 3 September 2013 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Every Episode of Doctor Who Ever - Live on Stage (Credit: Pat Magee)

This month sees the stage production Every Episode of Doctor Who Ever performed at the Sydney Fringe, and Doctor Who News is able to offer two double passes to any of the performances courtesy of the Factory Theatre and Pat Magee. In order to win one of the pairs please answer the following question:

In which story is the exact phrase "bigger on the inside" first used?

Send your answer to comp-theatre@doctorwhonews.net with the subject line "Are you doing Dimensions in Time?", along with the names for the two tickets and the performances that you are able to make, plus where you saw the competition (e.g. the news website or on Facebook). The competition is open to anybody who is able to confirm that they can make the performances requested.

Closing date is Wednesday 11th September.

Performances of Every Episode of Doctor Who Ever take place at The Factory Theatre, Sydney, Australia on the evenings of the 18th, 19th, 25th and 26th September.

(with thanks to Pat Magee)

FILTER: - Theatre - Competitions - Australia

Previous 10 Stories