March 28 Note: Taking a well-deserved break today; back tomorrow, Tuesday, March 29. Meanwhile, last evening's editorial note:

Over the past three weeks, Outpost Gallifrey has been updated every single day with news stories, sometimes three or four times per day. Needless to say, it's been tiring and sometimes very excruciating, doing the updating before work, during the day and in the evenings, knowing the next morning will bring more stories to sift through (sometimes on the order of a hundred or more!) It's been even more difficult when you realize that I'm not in the UK, and therefore rely upon the good will of our readers. I'd therefore like to thank everyone who's been credited the past few weeks for their diligence in reporting information up to and including the new series press launch, the various trailers, the live TV and radio appearances and this weekend's transmission of "Rose"... every person credited herein has been integral in gathering these news reports (hopefully I've managed to credit everyone!), and especially Steve Tribe and Paul Engelberg for gathering news stories, updating the calendar and forwarding every single report they could find. Also, special thanks to Chuck Foster of DWAS for all the links, John Molyneux, Paul Hayes, John Bowman, everyone who sent in screen caps and writeups, and our readers from all over the BBC in the TV, radio and Internet divisions (you know who you are!) who have kept us up to date. And, of course, thank you to everyone involved in the production of the new series (especially Russell, Julie, Phil, Chris and Billie) for such a marvelous debut. Now that the show's aired in the UK, I hope things settle down... just a little!

The past two days have seen a whirlwind of press, much of it regurgitating each other over and over. Here's a quick recap of what's transpired late Saturday, all day Sunday, and into Monday morning's press:

A large collection of papers (many of which do not have online versions) have printed reviews. Internet-accessible ones include BBC News with a review by Sylvester McCoy!; The Herald ("Cracking script makes this a welcome visit from the Doctor"), Scotstman (includes comments on ratings), also reviewed here; The Observer; The Independent; TheSunday Herald; Times Online; CBBC, a special page on children's first reactions to Doctor Who; Express Newsline, India; The Telegraph; the Sunday Mail (a review by the "McInnes Family");

Summing up what many of the papers said today:
• "I was hooked from the outset. The whole thing thing was stuffed with in-jokes I wasn't sure I was fully getting, but I laughed anyway" - Guardian.
• "After 16 years locked in the warp-shunt fantasies of the plasters-on-specs brigade, Russell T Davies has breathed new life into an old favourite. The doctor got his girl and BBC1 found itself reacquainted with an old pal.Quality. Brilliant." - News of the World.
• "The current incarnation of the Time Lord has barely moved on and the one thing the future can't afford to be is old-fashioned" - Sunday Times.
• "The new Who is poorly cast, badly written, pointlessly northern, relentlessly silly and, fairly crucially, the sci-fi is thoughtless and throwaway." - The People. (They also manage to insult Billie Piper; the writer obviously thinks he's quite clever, when he's not.)
• "The new Doctor Who succeeded in establishing its own reality: skewed, sprightly and assured, without ever taking its audience's attention, or goodwill, for granted." - Sunday Telegraph
• "The much-vaunted special effects with which the series has been retro- fitted struck me as being as clunky as ever, and Ecclestone's performance was a bit too reminiscent of a nerdy teenager, but it has a real heartbeat... or perhaps even two." - The Independent
• "After such a fanfare, Doctor Who could hardly fail to disappoint. But amazingly, it didn't. OK, the monster was feeble and the lack of a cliffhanger ending was a shame. But Christopher Eccleston portrayed a far more complicated Doctor character than we've become used to seeing, certainly since Jon Pertwee - and far more interesting as a result." - Independent on Sunday
• "Dr Who, with Christopher Eccleston in the title role and Billie Piper as his comely assistant, was ill received in the Highland home where I spent Easter. The much-hyped special effects were considered a prodigious waste of money by the BBC." - Daily Mail
• "If it's all the same to you BBC1, I think I'll stick with Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway. But thanks for trying." - Mirror (spoilsports!)
• "An alien form, called entertainment, has been discovered on Saturday nights. It's a thoroughly bizarre, glossy new concoction called Dr Who." - Sunday Express. (There's also a positive little review of "Project: Who" in the radio review column on page 63)

Lots of coverage of the ratings (which we reported on as early as we could this morning!) Many stories on this includingBBC News, Media Guardian, The Sun, ITV, CBBC, Times (mentions Outpost Gallifrey!), Telegraph, Scotsman, with commentary about what it means for the BBC, Daily Record, Guardian, Pittsburgh Live, Washington Times, Channel 4, WaveGuide, Big News Network, Manchester Online (with fan review). The Daily Mail and other papers also covered this (articles not online).

Photos of a flying Dalek appeared in today's "News of the World" (actually, a photo of the Dalek as seen in the latest trailers, as well as a photo of the underside of a Dalek on a staircase). The tabloid mentioned the return of the Cybermen, too; however, we know that this is only a rumor that's been discounted already (they aren't in this season... well, not exactly.) A photo of the Gelth, the aliens from episode 3, "The Unquiet Dead," appeared in yesterday's The Sun.

Lots of places commenting on last night's gaffe with the Graham Norton voice in the BBC 1 broadcast. Says BBC News: "The Time Lord had Graham Norton breathing down his neck too, as a technical problem meant the sound from Strictly Dance Fever was briefly played over the opening scenes of Doctor Who. 'There was a technical problem which was resolved as quickly as possible,' a BBC spokesperson said. 'We apologise if it affected viewers' enjoyment of Doctor Who.'" Says the Sunday Express: "The BBC was last night probing an embarrassing technical blunder which allowed the voice of Graham Norton to drown out Dr Who's triumphant return to the small screen" they happily exaggerate. However, they do go on to point out that "...last night's technical problems echoed technical difficulties with the very first episode of Dr Who." A BBC spokesperson says that "It was a technical problem which meant the voice of Graham Norton - who had been presenting Strictly Dance Fever on BBC1 - continued faintly when his show transferred to BBC3 on digital. It only affected the first few minutes of Dr Who and we apologise to any viewers whose enjoyment was in any way impaired." BBC3 did run the show this evening without the voiceover... but of course, with the BBC THREE logo emblazoned on it for the entire broadcast!

Last night's Tommy Boyd Show on BBC Southern Counties radio apparently had a great response. The folks at the Tommy Boyd Shrine wrote us to say that "For those who missed Dalek mastermind among many other features, we have the show up on the site now," so click on the link.

The Independent says Doctor Who puts his sonic screwdriver to work to boost BBC funds: "The mysterious silver gadget has helped to keep the Daleks and assorted life forms at bay for hundreds of years - when it actually worked. Now Doctor Who's unreliable sonic screwdriver is expected to become one of the must-have toys this Christmas."

Today's Sunday Herald and This is London mention that "a Doctor Who fan prompted a security alert when he posed as a Dalek outside the Houses of Parliament. Ken Meikle, 46, from Barrhead, Renfrewshire, was filming a promotional video for a stage version of the sci-fi classic. But armed Metropolitan Police officers suddenly confronted the "alien invader" as he approached Parliament over London's Tower Bridge."

Oh, and the "Can Doctor Who Be Gay?" article reran in today's Sunday Independent...

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Paul Hayes, Andrew Hearne, John Paul Street, David Traynier)

The Scotsman says that "People could be mistaken for thinking they have been transported to a different time dimension if they stumble across a Doctor Who Tardis. In fact, there are 237 blue police call boxes (PCBs), on which the BBC modelled the fictional time lord's transporter. Ordnance Survey has tracked down the locations of all former PCBs using a digital master map of Britain - technology which may well have delighted the creators of the sci-fi classic. The curious-looking cubes can now be found disguised as coffee kiosks since personal radios made them redundant in 1969. But just as the television show is being resurrected, police are experimenting with bringing the boxes back, although now they are more hi-tech." The Sun also picked up this story, as did icWales.

Leeds Today says it's "16 years on, and fans can't wait for return of the Doctor". "Sixteen years after being exterminated by Beeb bosses, look Who's back. Doctor Who fans in West Yorkshire are gearing up for the return of the nation's favourite timelord. ... Leeds teacher and Doctor Who fan Chris Hoyle admitted he was "giddy" with excitement . He said: 'It's a shame that a whole generation of kids haven't had a doctor to grow up with, but now that's going to change.'" Other fans are interviewed.

The London News Review says that "In short: episode one ("Rose") is wonderful, and we only have one and half niggles. The chief beef is Murray Gold's incidental music. Gold did a fine job of reworking the theme tune. And his trendy/derivative music was entirely right for Queer As Folk, which is presumably why he was recruited by the man behind that show and the new Who, Russell T. Davis. But his incidental music in 'Rose' sounds like bad library CDs from the 1990s. It's the only thing that makes the fantastic new episode already seem dated." (Outpost Gallifrey begs to differ...)

The Birmingham Evening Mail says that "Doctor Who fans can't wait for the future to come in the shape of Saturday night. Suky Singh, a member of the Dr Who fan club the Wolves of Fenric, based in Wolverhampton, said: 'People just want to spend Saturday evening in front of their television and not be distracted.' ... The return of Dr Who has rekindled some affectionate and frightening memories. The Evening Mail took to the streets of Brum to gauge public reaction. Graham Taylor, aged 54, ajournalist from Droitwich, said: 'The new Dr Who looks quite exciting and more up-to-date. I certainly won't miss the old effects.' Angela Bowyer, 63, from Stoke-on-Trent, said: 'I have lots of memories of children being frightened but it was also good fun.' Her husband Peter Bowyer, 69, added: 'It will be interesting to compare the old and new programmes.' David Dai, 23, a graphic design student who lives in Harborne, said: 'I don't know Dr Who. I will be watching it, but I usually watch Channel 4 and Five.' Rashila Lad, a 33-yearold window dresser from Kings Heath, said: 'When I was a kid I was scared of the Daleks.' Lucy Stacey, 23, a window dresser from Great Barr, said: 'My older brother Danny used to make me watch it with him because he was scared.'"

The Spectator jokingly reviews the series: "I'm not sure which aspect of his latest incarnation, as written by Russell T. ('Queer As Folk') Davies, I find most objectionable: his new pink headquarters on the planet Stifado One, his mincing young assistant Julian or that his foppish, vaguely Edwardian kit has now been replaced by a pair of leather chaps, a studded belt and an enormous black codpiece with a little holster on the side for his sonic screwdriver." Later he changes tune a bit: "Davies is such a dedicated Doctor Who fan that he even carried on watching in that difficult period after Peter Davison had gone, when it apparently went down and down. If anyone on this planet was ever likely to breathe new life into an aging Time Lord, then Russell T.was surely the man. And, sure enough, he has, with extremely unlikely support from the actor playing Dr Who ù Christopher Eccleston. Eccleston, I get the impression from all those non-interviews he gives, is an actor who takes himself very seriously. You just know if you sat next to him at a dinner party he'd bang on about the Kyoto Agreement, or some such, and never once vouchsafe any juicy asides like fun actors do about which thesp has the biggest penis, which has the best coital one-liners ('Tom's in now, ' is popular with one, I gather), which is secretly gay and so on. The idea of him summoning up the lightness of touch required to play the Doctor seemed about as remote as the Daleks of conquering the universe when they can't even walk up staircases." He ends with a positive note: "Why ever didn't they think of it earlier?"

Scotland's Evening Times says that "Scotland fans stuck at home could miss the start of the vital World Cup clash with Italy because of Doctor Who. BBC bosses have scheduled coverage of tomorrow's game to begin at 7.45pm - the same time as kickoff. And if earlier programmes run late, the Milan match could have started before the closing credits in the new series of Dr Who. Ironically, the game was brought forward weeks ago to suit Italian TV chiefs. But despite the alteration, BBC are sticking to their original schedules. The move has angered fans who can't make the journey." Priorities!

Curiously, the Daily Star says the Cybermen won't be back. "One of Doctor Who's greatest enemies, the Cybermen, have been killed off because TV bosses think they are out of date. And in their bid to give the SF series a fresh look, they claim the Time Lord is more likely to go up against iPod-man. Fans had been hoping that the silver-suited aliens who enjoyed many a battle with the Doctor would return now the show is back on our screens tomorrow. But writer Russell T Davies claims that although he's happy to bring back foes like The Daleks, the Cybermen are to be banished into cyberspace. He said: 'I am afraid aliens like the Cybermen would be somewhat dated. I think you're more likely to see the Doctor fighting iPod-man.'" Though Davies has, of course, gone on record several times saying that if the show goes on long enough, he might want to bring back the Cybermen. The Daily Star also ran a Doctor Who quiz: "Are you a Timelord or a Sci-Fi Dunce from the Dull Dimension? Dare you try..."

The Coventry Evening Telegraph says "Two, four, six, eight, Who do we appreciate?" and it's Doctor Who, of course. "Doctor Who fans across Coventry are eagerly awaiting the return of the cult science-fiction show this weekend after a 16-year absence from our screens. ... And computer programmer Wes Campbell, of Beausale Croft, Mount Nod, is looking forward to seeing Dr Who updated for the 21st century. Mr Campbell, 39, a member of a Dr Who fan group called The Warwickshire Who Group, said: 'It's good to see that the writers haven"t just slavishly tried to recreate the old Dr Who. They are trying to create something new and exciting, not just an extension of the old series.' In particular the show's famously ropey special effects have been ditched in favour of impressive new graphics."

In today's Times, in the People section: "After all the fuss about the new Doctor Who, you would think that Christopher Eccleston would be glad to associate himself with the role. But asked in The Stage about a second series, he replied: 'I'll have to think long and hard about it ... It could be a poisoned chalice.'" That is, of course, a quote from Eccleston in the recent past, also regurgitated today by the Daily Express: "I'll have to think long and hard before I make a final decision."

Newsquest Digital Media says that "Unless you've been hiding behind a sofa for the past month (and be honest, has anyone ever done that?) you'll be aware that a new series of Doctor Who is upon us from Saturday. I'm looking forward to it, not least because one of my relatives is getting exterminated in a later episode. Of course, one of the main concerns that people (the sort who inhabit TV list programmes and just pop up as "experts on popular culture" as if that's a proper job) put forward is that it won't be like it was in the good old days - to which I say, good. I was very fond of the Doctor's adventures when I was a kid, and some of it was very good indeed, especially given the production values of the day. But a lot of it was shambolic tosh, with wobbly sets, school play special effects, and pantomime acting. It shows you what a slower, gentler world we lived in, when simple plots could be stretched out over four half-hour episodes (episode three = everyone runs up and down suspiciously-similar corridors a lot). I doubt the new version will be as complete a regeneration as the excellent new "reimagined" Battlestar Galactica series. But as long as Doctor Who can be watched without the aid of nostalgia-tinted glasses, it should be a step in the right direction. (OK, I've mentioned wobbly sets and hiding behind the sofa... now if I can only step into something and have it disappear to the sound of the Tardis and a bad dematerialisation special effect, I can get a job as a regional news presenter... )"

Today's The Forester (Forest of Dean) says "Doctor Who has returned to the Forest to rediscover his roots. Ninth Who Christopher Eccleston and his side-kick Billie Piper shot scenes for the new BBC1 series, which starts at 7pm on Saturday, on the western flanks of the Dean in Monmouth. Billie, who stars as the Doctor's companion Rose, told the secret to Radio 1 listeners. Last week, The Forester revealed the Doctor first visited the Forest in 1974 to film on the River Severn at Broadoak."

The Express and Echo (Exeter) says that "Exeter youngsters with an appetite for time travel are appealing to new Doctor Who Christopher Eccleston to help them put the finishing touches to a school play based on the famous TV time lord. On the eve of the return of the classic BBC series this weekend, children at John Stocker Middle School in St Thomas are rehearsing their own version of the much-loved sci-fi show. The musical, Where's Who?!, was written by head teacher John Palmer and his wife Ann in the early 1980s when Doctor Who, - with its police-box-cum-time-travel-machine the Tardis and robotic aliens, the Daleks - was still being regularly screened. First staged by pupils at Willand primary near Cullompton where Mr Palmer used to be deputy head, the play featured an opening speech delivered by former Doctor Who actor Colin Baker, recorded especially for the production. Now John Stocker children - who weren't even born before the TV show was last aired in 1989 - have written to the latest actor to portray the Doctor to ask whether he would make a similar recording. Mr Palmer, an amateur actor himself, explained: "When we originally did the play the opening speech needed to be done by Doctor Who. We just wrote to the BBC and sent the script off and Colin Baker recorded the speech which was only about a minute long. We're trying to get Christopher Eccleston to do the same thing but so far we have not had a reply. "The play is about the children having just come out of school for their summer holidays and going up to their den which is a cave. It turns out that the cave is a Tardis and as they approach they hear a crackly radio message which is Doctor Who saying: 'Help me! The Zeldons have captured me and my Tardis and banished me to the rubbish heap at the end of the universe'. This is what was recorded by Colin Baker. The children then have to punch some co-ordinates into a computer to try and get to the Planet of the Zeldons but get the numbers wrong so end up travelling into the future and then the Pyramids in Egypt. Their mission is to find the Tardis and rescue Doctor Who."

The Evening Times (Glasgow) says "If we can accept Worzel Gummidge as a timelord we can easily accept Shallow Grave star Christopher Eccleston. Where the new series differs is the investment in character developments. Writer Russell T Davies has created a timelord with a Salford accent, an enigmatic smile and a short temper. Overall he's a very human alien, whose two hearts seem to be in the right place. His assistant, Rose - played by former teen popette Billie Piper - is also real. She is bored with her life as a shop girl, fed up with her childish boyfriend and her man-mad single-parent mother. We can readily believe why Rose would run off around the universe with a bloke who looks like a social worker and is old enough to be her dad. What's difficult to grasp is that Dr Who has gone outdoors. The storyline takes us around London, to shopping centres and cafes. And without that sense of studio-based claustrophobia of old, it all looks worryingly much less malevolent than the 1960s efforts." A downer at the end: "Doctor Who has enough character base to be a success with Buffy-loving teenagers but perhaps it simply can't appeal to grown-ups who grew up with the original. Back then, the strong storylines and weak special effects prompted the imagination to work overtime. Or perhaps we recall too fondly the time of our lives when we could be so easily terrified. And to overcome that nostalgia is asking a little too much of television."

Today's Sunderland Echo has a two-page centrespread on DW, under the title 'Time, gentlemen, please!'. It features your usual brief-history-of-the-Doctor alongside a photo montage of the nine TV incarnations and a couple of small photos from the new series. There's also a box-out about the novels and audios alongside a montage of a Dalek, Cyberman and an Ice Warrior. Another box-out features an interview with Wearsider William Russell, talking about his time on the show, his reading of 'The Daleks' CD, and his delight at the return of the TV series.

The Bolton Evening News has four pages dedicated to the show, thanks to the deputy editor Ian Savage being a long-time fan. Large cover photo on the weekend supplement (the familiar Doctor/Rose publicity shot) Two page preview with photos from Rose and End of the World. Then a one page episode guide with some more photos familiar from other newspapers this week.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, who needs sleep as much as I do, plus Steve Tribe, Mick Gair, Chuck Foster, Paul Hayes, "gazhack")

There's been a massive amount of media coverage and news today, so let's get to it...

BBC Worldwide and BBC Audiocall have released a new polyphonic ringtone of the new series theme tune in the UK. The ringtone is the only one officially licensed by the BBC, and details will appear on www.audiocall.co.uk/doctorwho(which is hosted by BBC Worldwide). However, the ringtone ordering information will not be available until the minute the first episode finishes on Saturday - 7.46pm in the UK.

The BBC has named Peter Fincham, outgoing chief executive officer of Talkback Thames, as the new controller of BBC1, replacing Lorraine Heggessey (the woman who commissioned the new "Doctor Who" series) who is leaving the BBC for Fincham's former job. "The BBC is going through big changes, but BBC1 remains its flagship channel and reinterpreting and reinvigorating it for new audiences is about as exciting a challenge as it gets," Fincham said. "I grew up watching BBC1 and the first programmes I made as an independent producer were for BBC1, so it's enormously flattering to be asked to take over as channel controller from Lorraine Heggessey. I am used to being responsible for a wide range of programmes and BBC1 stands for range, quality and integrity. It also has a unique breadth of appeal." Talkback Thames is responsible for shows such as Da Ali G Show, I'm Alan Partridge, The Bill and Pop Idol and has made various programmes for the BBC including They Think It's All Over, Never Mind The Buzzcocks and the Bafta-award winning drama The Lost Prince. Some of the reports quote him on the topic of Doctor Who as well: "I'm of that generation that is old enough to remember a world when there was only the BBC to watch and in our house BBC was the default setting. I grew up with BBC1 and cowered behind the sofa when Dr Who was on." It was great that his name was being announced just a few days before the Time Lord returns to the small screen, he added. The story's also been picked up in the Edinburgh Evening News, Evening Standard, the Independent and other locales.

Today's Xchange on the CBBC channel showed two clips from "The End of the World" including a CGI space station shot and the Doctor and Rose together. The Mill's Will Cohen also talked about special effects on the new series and some incidental music was heard.

Choices Direct have now listed the first two DVDs for the new series. They state that the first three episodes will be out on May 16, and episodes 4-6 on June 13; you can see the listings here and here. This is the first retailer listing of the new series with dates, which have been rumored by various websites over the past few days.

Various press agencies commented on the BBC's official statement about the leak of "Rose" (which Outpost Gallifrey printed in its entirety yesterday), including the Mirror (no link), The Register, The Guardian, The Inquirer andBBC News.

Several papers ran stories about Shona McLaren, a mother who said "her life has been ruined because she is terrified of Daleks. McLaren... is sent into a blind panic if she even hears the words 'exterminate.' The mum-of-two claims her life has been wrecked by her bizarre phobia." Um.... indeed. The articles were run in the Daily Record, as well as the Daily Star and the Daily Express as well as other locations.

A short item about the new series was included yesterday on The Richard And Judy Show on Channel 4. This short item featured an interview with Clayton Hickman and the well known impressionist and Doctor Who fan Jon Culshaw. Host Richard Madely was "rather mocking in his tone" says our correspondent, making jokes about Daleks going upstairs and asking Hickman what he'd filled the magazine with for so many years without a new series (Clayton, however, remained calm and
positive about the effect that Doctor Who has upon people.) At the end of the item viewers were treated to Jon Culshaw's first public impersonation of the ninth doctor, something that will probably become a regular feature on his show Dead Ringers.

Today's Leicester Mercury profiles Paul Kasey, an actor who's been in the sci-fi blockbusters Blade II and 28 Days Later... "and the chances are, you've never heard of him. That could be about to change, though, for former Bagworth boy turned movie bit-parter Paul Kasey. ... 31-year-old Paul is set to enter the annals of cult TV history by playing a Doctor Who monster. In fact, he plays four of the Timelord's enemies - plus a goodie robot too - in the spanking new series starring Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper. It says he plays a Slitheen ("Aliens of London"), an alien whose name he can't remember, and one of the, shall we say, bad guys from the first episode (you probably know which ones but we'll still protect the spoilers here!) "A Slitheen is a very large green alien, about 8ft tall. It's also quite cute and quite sweet to look at. It's like ET. He was quite ugly, but quite cute at the same time. I also play an android robot. That was totally different again. It was also a she. That was fantastic, but really hard to play. The costume was so hard; we were basically built into it. It was a full body costume in lilac and cream. As soon as you were in, you were in for good, although you could take the head off while the crew wasn't working. Each character was totally different, and I like the challenge of bringing all these characters and creatures to life. They chose me for my movement. Because inside you can't see very well, it tends to make most people freeze or clam up. In Blade, they chose me for my look. Out of all of them, I did enjoy playing the female robot - it was good in a typically Doctor Who way."

Newsquest Digital Media toady profiles York pastor Mark Troughton, son of Patrick Troughton, the second Doctor. "Mark was six when his dad landed the role, taking over from William Hartnell. And unwittingly, he was responsible for what became one of the great icons of early children's TV. Troughton senior was looking for a gimmick to make the part his own. 'And I was learning to play the recorder,' Mark says. 'So I taught him to play.'" He discusses the classic series: "What carried the whole programme was the fact that the scripts were very strong, and the acting was strong. It was really frightening. And what made it even more exciting was that you were kept in suspense for seven days, waiting to find out what happened. That was awful. ... We used to sit down waiting for dad to come on the telly. And then at about 10.30pm dad would walk in after a hard day's work being beaten up by Cybermen or Daleks." So what kind of person was his dad - and did he enjoy playing the Doctor? "He was generous hearted, with a great sense of humour. He loved playing the Doctor and had great fun doing it. He was a great corpser, and was giggling all the time. He thought if you're going to act the fool - and he did in one sense, he had that sort of clownish character - then you had got to play it for laughs." It mentions that Mark Troughton will be watching this weekend as the new show starts: "You bet. And I'm sure my kids will too," he says, commenting that his six children have gotten to know their grandfather, who they never met, by watching videos of his old episodes. "It will be interesting to see it!"

Today's Guardian carries an article written by Sylvester McCoy about the new series. Some excerpts: "Everybody says now that when Doctor Who was on, they were so frightened they would hide behind the sofa. I did, too, back in my day as the Doctor, but only because I couldn't face watching myself. Now I'm a mere mortal, it's nice to relax on the couch, instead of behind it, and let it wash over me. I was a bit worried that the new series might not work. Paul McGann played the doctor in the big-budget American film version of 1996 and although I enjoyed it, something about it did not quite gel. But this new version with Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor and Billie Piper as his assistant, Rose, is just wonderful. Part of its charm is the way in which it makes a sly wink to earlier series. ... But if there is one thing that is going to get the Whovians going crazy on the web forums, it is the new tardis. They have changed it! For one thing, it is brand, spanking new, as if it has come straight from the shop. My tardis, the original one, was so battered and bruised it would have been condemned as unsafe, but this one doesn't have a scratch on it. ... You can tell that the writers love Doctor Who, because of all the references to the old days, and the writing is crisper than ever. It is sharp and often very witty, but not overblown. ... There are clever, subtle nods to current affairs too - the mannequins coming to life and massacring people on the streets touches on the modern fear of going shopping and being gunned down by terrorists. And there is a scary Jabba the Hut-type creature, a sort of jelly monster intent on destroying humanity by turning everything into plastic, because it needs all the plastic in the world to survive, which touches on ecological issues. ... It is very scary, just like in the old days, but now children will be frightened of mannequins. And dustbins - there's a wonderful bit where a wheelie bin attacks someone and sucks them in before eating them up. ... Eccleston makes a fabulous Doctor. Within minutes you truly believe that he has been around for 950 years. ... And Billie Piper as Rose is awesome, just wonderful to watch.... All I know is that she is so right for the part. Russell T Davies says she is going to be our next great Hollywood export and on the basis of this performance, I can well believe it."

Fan reactions to the new series are noted at BBC News: "The show has attracted a huge number of followers since William Hartnell first stepped out of his Tardis in 1963 - many of them members of fan clubs and attending gatherings around the globe. Yet it seems most will be staying home to watch Christopher Eccleston's debut as the time-travelling Doctor." The story says that "International Doctor Who website Outpost Gallifrey lists a very full calendar to keep even the most dedicated of fans, known as Whovians, busy all year... No sooner have you emerged from the Doctor Who weekend in Somerset's Wookey Hole than it is time for a swift Sci-Fi Sea Cruise around Europe, a Whovention convention in Sydney and Chicago Tardis 2005. When not doing that, groups such as the Sisterhood of Khan [sic] dress up as their favourite villains and heroes from the series, including the sinister Cybermen." "It is time to sit down on your sofa, aim your remote control and enjoy it," says Antony Wainer, spokesman for the Doctor Who Appreciation Society. "If this was a movie we would hire a cinema and if it was made for the internet we would gather around a computer screen. But we want to see the show in the way it is intended - in our homes up and down the country." Ian Chandos of the Sisterhood of Karn (it misquotes as "Khan"), "an Earth-based group of gay people united by their interest in Doctor Who and cult TV" says that "We all want a chance to watch the first episode in its entirety then meet up the following week to discuss it. Having said that, we'll probably all be on the phone to each other as soon as it's over."

There are many teasers in the papers today, mostly promoting the series for Saturday night. The South Wales Echo asks "Who's going to scare you the most?" today: "Get ready to dive behind the sofa again! Doctor Who will once again battle against a host of weird and wonderful monsters in the new series..." BBC1 Radio Entertainment also has a mention.

Sky News ran with a piece called "A Look Into Billie's World", which has various facts about Billie Piper. "She sang for Bill Clinton, had a No.1 hit by the time she was 15 - and a failed marriage to one of Britain's biggest media moguls by the age of 22. Now Billie Piper stars alongside Christopher Eccleston as Rose Tyler, in the long-awaited return of Doctor Who. It opens the latest chapter in her remarkable life... check out our Billie fact file." There are a variety of facts and figures about the actress/singer. Today's "This is Wiltshire" also has some of the quotes.

The Sun yesterday wants to know if you're terrified yet with the return of the evil Doctor Who monsters? "We have a large Epsom sofa from MFI worth Pounds 595 for you to win -and hide behind! To enter just call 09063 612237. Leave your contact details and answer this question: Who is the new Dr Who?" Calls apparently cost 60p a minute "and last no longer than two minutes. Lines close at 8pm tonight. Winner chosen at random."

Today's The Northern Echo biographies Christopher Eccleston. It starts with his film and television roles, then: "None of which would have suggested asking him to play the Time Lord in the BBC1's hotly-anticipated revival, especially as Eccleston has always been a very private actor who shied away from publicity and parties. You couldn't imagine him welcoming the barrage of press and public recognition that playing the doctor would bring." It says that Eccleston had a taste of media interest after being romantically linked by the press with Billie Piper: "Maybe I felt I was able to handle it now, " he says of becoming public property. "Only time will tell. There are still ways to remain private. I've always felt that there were some people in the industry who will use their personal life to further their career, rather than their actual performances and I don't think that's right. What my dad taught me was, basically, do your job properly. I hope my privacy remains and that my performance will get me another job and that will be enough. I do think, actually, that readers and viewers really aren't that interested. If you give them a performance, they'll invest in you, whether you're sleeping with a goat or whatever." It says that "As a child, he preferred Star Trek to Doctor Who. Now, he's a fan of the Time Lord. 'I finally allowed myself to watch Tom Baker in a DVD of The Talons Of Weng-Chiang. I drank two bottles of red wine and thought, 'right, I'll watch it'. I knew then what the role entailed and how difficult it is to play. It's great, all the profile you get, but it's a difficult thing to do. You're the motor for every scene, and you have to deliver a lot of pseudo and scientific jargon and give it some charisma and wit.'" It does mention next year: "Whether he would play the Doctor again if the BBC commits to another series has yet to be decided."

A preview of this weekend's "The Spectator" dated March 26 profiles Russell T Davies: "Davies is such a dedicated Doctor Who fan that he even carried on watching in that difficult period after Peter Davison had gone, when it apparently went down and down. If anyone on this planet was ever likely to breathe new life into an aging Time Lord, then Russell T.was surely the man. And, sure enough, he has, with extremely unlikely support from the actor playing Dr Who ù Christopher Eccleston. ... For me, though, the true star is Russell T. Davies. It was he who got Eccleston on board, and it's his reverence for tradition (e. g. , ensuring that the Tardis still looks like a Fifties police phone box) combined with his understanding of what it will take to win over a blas? new audience (fart jokes, breast-implant jokes, a breathless pace) which is going to make this revival such a massive triumph. He has even, you might have heard, solved the Dalek problem. The evil buggers have now developed the ability to fly, which means they can conquer earth after all. Why ever didn't they think of it earlier?" (Well, of course, they did, but no one seems to remember...)

Today's Daily Star profiles many of the former assistants and guest stars -- all of the female gender. "[Billie Piper's] not the first sexy side-kick to act as the time traveller's gorgeous right-hand woman. Since the show first began back in 1963, there's been plenty of ballsy babes who have taken on awful aliens and scary monsters." Profiled are mostly companion actresses with a few guest stars (such as Honor Blackman and Rula Lenska) thrown in.

The Daily Express also profiles Billie Piper today: "As she makes her debut as Doctor Who's new sidekick this Saturday, former teenie pop favourite Billie Piper admits she has been nursing a few bruises after struggling to perform stunts on the show. 'I've had a bit of a nightmare with the stunts. I'm clumsy but I want things to go well. I overcompensate and it ends in tears.' That's what you get for taking on Daleks, Billie"

"Doctor Boo!: Why the Timelord should stay in his Tardis" says an article in the Sun today, which does a "who's who" of new monsters and also runs a piece of fluff about the theme tune ("Dun da dun da dun da dun da dun da dun da di di di di... Ohh-wee-ohh. Weeeee-ohh...") It basically regurgitates reports from the past several days. The Daily Star also discusses the new monsters today in an A to Z of them, mentioning the usuals like Daleks, Cybermen and Autons, but also Borad, the Haemovores, the Kandyman, the Nimon and the Vervoids.

"Doctor Who: funny he never married" says today's Telegraph, which wonders that cliched question "To put it more bluntly, is Doctor Who gay?" "Before considering the case for the prosecution (or defence, depending on your point of view), let us make one thing clear: we are not questioning the sexual orientation of the actors who played the role... But the Doctor himself is apparently not the marrying kind of Time Lord. ... The obvious answer is that the Doctor, not being human (he has two hearts, for example), is not turned on by homo sapiens of either sex, any more than we are by Cybermen. A more intriguing possibility is that, just as he has no idea what he will look like when he regenerates - Pertwee's Doctor shrieked when he looked in the mirror - so he does not know in advance for which team he will be playing, as it were. In which case, perhaps he ought to keep two photographs next to his bed in the Tardis: one of Scarlett Johansson, say, and one of Justin Timberlake. When he regenerates, all he has to do is look at both of them and discover which one makes his hearts beat faster." Riiight.

There's a report on BBC News that says that "Finally, the Sun reports that Dr Who's faithful robot dog K9 has been tracked down to a dogs' home in Devon. Apparently he was bought at a BBC auction four years ago." It quotes Derek Hambly of the Tenth Planet story, who says: "I'm amazed he's in Devon. He was last seen on the planet Gallifrey."

This week, Manchester's listings and lifestyle magazine City Life has given its cover over to the new series. Inside, there's a two page interview with (Manchester resident) Russell T Davies on 'who and Casanova, and a one page interview with (Salford born) Christopher Eccleston: "It was my idea to bring a bit of Northern realism to the whole thing".

Net4Nowt analyses the scheduling of the new series: "By scheduling Doctor Who in the prime timeslot of 7:00PM Saturday night, BBC One is evidently hoping to capture market share from Ant and Dec's popular 'Saturday Night Takeaway' series. An analysis of Internet searches for both 'ant and dec saturday night take away' and 'new doctor who' suggests that BBC One has a fighting chance: despite Ant and Dec's solid audience base, share of searches for their show online have decreased in the lead-up to the resurrection of Doctor Who. The share of Internet searches for the phrase 'new doctor who' overtook 'ant and dec saturday night take away' two weeks ago, and the phrase is currently receiving 50% more searches than its rival. This spike in interest can't be explained away by the online leak a couple of weeks ago of the first episode, titled 'Rose'. Following the leak, fans rushed online to search for 'doctor who rose download'. Since the week of the leak, interest in the download has plummeted while interest in Doctor Who remains strong." WebUser also runs the story.

Sheffield Today says that "there is one place where residents would probably shocked to hear of the notorious reputation of Daleks - and that is the streets around Anchorage Crescent, Sprotbrough. Every Halloween, a procession of youngsters follows one of the monsters around the village as part of a trick or treat tour. It has even taken detours past children's Halloween parties as a special favour to entertain them. For most of the year, it lives in Doctor Who fan Grant Belshaw's shed." The article discusses that this man's Dalek prop was originally used at the Longleat exhibition.

Doctor Who is featured on the cover of long-running Welsh-language weekly Golwg this week (published this past Wednesday). The cover is a publicity shot overlaid on a photo of Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. The translated byline is "Dr Who - Cardiff's big project" and ties in with a larger feature on celebrating the centenary of Cardiff's city status. Inside, the series is covered in their centre colour section with a short article, a description of a set visit by the press, along with some quotes from designer Ed Thomas and photos.

The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, the principal biographical reference work for the British past will be marking the start of the new series of Doctor Who on Saturday by having Jon Pertwee as the 'Life of the Day'. The article, first published in print and online in September 2004, is written by David J. Howe. Most of the online edition is subscription only, but the Life of the Day is free to non-subscribers for that day and for a few subsequent days. It has normally appeared by 0100GMT on the day in question. A link will appear on the front page at www.oxforddnb.com.

Today's East Anglian Daily Times has a half page article on Billie Piper and the new series. It includes comments from Billie about her career to date and Doctor Who. The article finishes with promise of an interview with The Doctor in tomorrow's edition.

The Croydon Guardian is looking for "any Doctor Who fans planning anything special to mark the Timelord's return to our screens this Saturday (March 26). Perhaps you and your assistant will be throwing on Cybermen costumes or building your very own cardboard Tardis? If you are crazy about the guy from Gallifrey, dotty about Daleks or mad about the Master then we want to hear from you" and suggests you send email here.

The Chicago Tribune discusses the "Rose" leak: "Building online buzz by putting full episodes online has become such a hot marketing tool that there's speculation the BBC was behind the recent 'unauthorized' online release of an episode of its new 'Dr. Who' series. But the BBC denied to Wired News that an in-house 'viral marketing' plan was responsible for the show's premature online debut." Of course, the BBC's also denied this speculation to everyone...

Some other press notes: Today's Sun includes a monster comparison, eg. Anne Robinson vs Lady Cassandra and Jade Goody vs Moxx of Balhoon here; Megastar comments on Sylvester McCoy's review of the series; the Daily Recordcomments on Billie Piper accidentally swearing on yesterday's Chris Moyles show (two articles, here and here); theMirror has more comments on the various assistants over the years; and a brief Who comparison to Joe Cole in the Times Football section here.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes, Ceri Laing, Chuck Foster, Matthew Kilburn, Rajiv Awasti, Craig Hinton, Nick Smale, Stephen Woollen, Guy Lambert, Barry Bridges, Alex Wilcock, Gareth Humphreys, Matthew Kilburn, and Andrew Jackson)

BBC Radio Wales have some further details on their website about their Dr Who documentary, Back In Time. "This weekend Doctor Who returns to BBC One Wales. BBC Radio Wales has been granted exclusive access behind the scenes for a two part special called Dr Who: Back in Time. This Saturday at 13:05 we look at the links between the Time Lord and Wales, including Dalek road signs in Llangollen." The two parts air on consecutive Saturdays, March 26 and April 2 at 1:05pm, with repeats on Sundays, March 27 and April 3, at 5:30pm.

ITV's This Morning program that aired, er, this morning, featured by far one of the best, and funniest, interviews with Russell T Davies to date. It showed clips from "Rose" including the Doctor peering through Rose's cat-flap and the "That's who I am" clip betwen Eccleston and Piper shown widely. It may also have included one of the first released shots from "The End of The World" showing The Doctor and Rose in front of a large window filled with flames and asteroids. The Doctor says "come with me" and takes Rose's hand. Shots were included of Chris and Billie on set, and interviews with them took place in front of TARDIS and Dalek. The presenters Phillip Schofield and Fern Briton interviewed RTD on the sofa, and showed shots of "Who's who in Who" from today's papers. The main picture was of Simon Day as "The Steward" who has 10 minutes of screen time (and then meets with an interesting fate which we won't spoil here...) Schofield claimed that Eccleston was the eighth ever actor to play the Doctor, obviously unaware of Paul McGann. And Davies mentioned that he made up alien's names by sitting at home with a glass of whiskey!

BBC 2 today ran an episode of The Daily Politics which featured a 10 minute segment on Doctor Who with three guests: political correspondent Andrew Marr, who appears in "Aliens of London"; Tim Collins MP, Shadow Spokesperson for Health and Education and well-known Doctor Who supporter; and Barry Letts, former series producer during the 1970's. The crux of the feature, although a thinly veiled excuse to talk about Doctor Who (of which Andrew Marr and Tim Collins are huge fans), was about how Doctor Who, especially in the 70's provided much political comment as the basis for many stories. Issues of environment, tax and Government bureaucracy were illustrated by using parts of 'The Green Death', 'The Sun Makers' and Pertwee at odds with a government Minister. They had a clip of Helen A (they were comparing her to Thatcher) from "The Happiness Patrol" as well. Marr confirmed aliens would be taking over MP's in an episode to be transmitted between now and the general election (May 5th).

Ratings war on the horizon? As of April 2, Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, Doctor Who's timeslot rival on ITV, moves forward to 6.45pm in the schedule,
giving it a 15 minute jump on our show. The gauntlet's being lowered now...

The official site has been updated today with a new "Media Player" that now features the latest Doctor Who trailer (narrated by Christopher Eccleston), the "Project Who" radio broadcast and other goodies, as well as clips from the 'classic' series. Also, on the front page of the official site is a link simply called "Lies", which goes to another site that has a certain tie-in appeal to the first episode, "Rose" (if you see the episode, you'll know what it's about!)

The Project: Who? CD, due out later this spring, is at number 3 in the BBC Shop bestsellers list (up from number 8 a week ago!). Meanwhile, the banner advertising it and other Doctor Who productions is on the front page of the BBC Shop site with an interesting catchphrase: "Saving the Earth, every week on BBC One. If you think TV is missing a hero, then you haven't met the Doctor. He saves planets for a living - more of a hobby actually, as he's very, very good at it. He's saved us from alien menaces and evil from before time began - but just who is he? Well, Rose Tyler is about to find out. She's 19 and she's not travelled much. But all that's going to change..." Also noted in that BBC Shop area is alisting for the new Doctor Who series DVDs, although without any information as yet.

Today's New Statesman features a story about the new series and its lack of a regeneration sequence: "To deprive us of a scene in which the doctor regenerates into Christopher Eccleston must have been one of the first decisions Russell T Davies made while writing his comeback episode. His reasons are sound enough. Most of the target audience of children will never have even heard of Doctor Who, let alone know that eight actors have played the role since 1966. It would have made a puzzling and slow start. Instead we plunge into young Rose Tyler's worst day ever in her menial job in a trendy West End department store." The review portion is a bit heavy-handed (noting that Doctor Who may now be "a bigger proposition than it looks").

Update on our report yesterday about Doctor Who in the Netherlands: according to the Spits newspaper, the show will indeed be broadcast on the Nederland 3 network "next year".

Creative Match analyses the new series and its visual effects. "The Mill have been working on the special effects. After their Academy Award for the effects on Gladiator there is no doubt that this will be a more sophisticated treat than the original. Chief Executive of The Mill Robin Shenfield has commented on the work, 'Visual effects can be the tail that wags the dog, but with Doctor Who the storytelling was so good we knew it was something we really wanted to do. It's soul-destroying to do great effects work on a project lacking in other areas because when it gets panned, it feels like your work is being panned, too. Whether we take something on really depends on the quality of the scripts and the team that's working on it.'"

An article called "Well, he took his time" appeared in today's Herald, which actually plays up the whole notion of being a Doctor Who fan, including discussions with Mark Gatiss, Phil Collinson and the Edinburgh Doctor Who group.

Some other news clippings today include a briefer version of yesterday's Sun article on the Sun website, a two page article in the Western Mail, a "Guide to the new series monsters" in today's Mirror (which mentions some new aliens in "End of the World" beyond the ones we already know about, including "Spark Plug," "Hop Pyleen" and "The Steward," which we now know is Simon Day's character), and an interesting article at BlogCritics called "What BattleStar Galactica Can Teach Doctor Who About Television In The Digital Age."

(Thanks to Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Paul Engelberg, Sergio Ferr?, Wayne Barry, Ceri Laing, Mark Wright, Paul Blakemore, Karen Bryan, Michael Spence, Graham Kibble-White and Bas Pierik)

Coming soon: the release of a BBC licensed TARDIS CD/DVD Box collectible; the provisional artwork for the box packaging is at right (click on the thumbnail for a larger version.) Says the press information: "This is the most accurate model Tardis ever produced commercially, and is based upon the prop used throughout the 1980s. The scale is 1:5 (same as the remote-control Daleks), so it is 55cm / 22 inches tall. The box includes an A2 wall-chart, with images of the various Tardi used through the years, and a history of the TV props. It can store either 28 DVDs, 60 CDs, 20 novels, 36 audio cassettes, or 14 videos, or be used as a bread-bin, medicine cabinet, bedsit larder, etc. Each box has a unique numbered plaque. Doors can open inwards and outwards. There are two adjustable shelves. The lamp can be lit - details of flashing unit to be confirmed (available seperately). Made in Britain, by Cod Steaks Ltd - a large model-making company in Bristol, currently producing the miniature sets and props for the forthcoming Wallace and Gromit animated feature film 'The Great Vegetable Plot.'" This TARDIS box was featured in the newest issue of Radio Times and will be available in May. (Thanks to Anthony Sibley and Matt Sanders)

Note: This column originally started by covering press clips, but has now become a daily update on any and all developments in the world of the new series of Doctor Who, so read on. Updated 23 March 0320 GMT with more information...

Part one of the two part Project Who radio documentary aired on BBC2 today, featuring interviews and clips and lots of spoiler stuff. "This opening programme considers how the creator of 'Queer as Folk' and 'The Second Coming' approached the task of re-creating one of the most popular and enduring formats on television," says the official notice at the Project Who Website. Interviewed in the first chapter of the two-part documentary: actors Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper; executive producers Russell T Davies, Julie Gardner and Mal Young; producer Phil Collinson; BBC1 controller Lorraine Heggessey; BBC Head of Drama Jane Tranter; director Joe Ahearne; writers Paul Cornell and Mark Gatiss; visual creative consultant Bryan Hitch; Doctor Who Magazine editor Clayton Hickman; Dalek actor/writer Nicholas Briggs; SFX editor Dave Golder; Heat magazine editor Boyd Hilton; Outpost Gallifrey editor Shaun Lyon; and Barry Letts, original series producer (1970-1975). Among the comments made: that Heggessey's claim of looking at Doctor Who and wondering why it wasn't on was met with a rousing "Get it sorted! We've been waiting for this movie that hasn't appeared... the viewing public should have it as its own" as rumored; that Russell T Davies loved the sonic screwdriver and the TARDIS blue police box and never once had any intention of changing them; and according to Julie Gardner, everyone knew Russell would be the "anchor" for this show, and was the only person anyone wanted to do it. You can listen to the broadcast now using RealPlayer from the site, as well as yesterday's Steve Wright Showinterview with Christopher Eccleston and other audio streams.

The BBC Press Office today revealed their second Press Pack which includes discussions of several topics related to the new series. The press pack includes discussion of The Mill, the visual effects house providing computer generated effects, including some facts and figures about their experiences on the first season: 800 special effects, a team of 21 people working 10 months, and some detail about the character Cassandra (voiced by Zoe Wanamaker) in "The End of the World": "...one computer-generated character needed four minutes of lip-synching, which is a huge undertaking in a TV project." Edward Thomas is profiled; he's the production designer on the new series: "I just waded in there because it's Doctor Who and it's a legend, and it was the thought that I might get the chance to help recreate and refresh what had gone before. Reality dawns on you when you realise there's a fanbase that's kept this series alive for 15 years, which is pressure enough, let alone making it visually-exciting and stimulating for a younger audience with little idea what Doctor Who is about." It notes some facts about Thomas and the production team, such as the fact that there have been approximately 650 sets created during the series from location builds to studio builds. Mike Tucker of the BBC Miniature Effects unit -- who also worked on the original series and has written several Doctor Who books since: "What [Davies has] brought back is Doctor Who, but Doctor Who re-invented for the mindset and viewing tastes of the 21st century viewing public. The kind of things we're doing now couldn't have been done 15 years ago when the show was last on. Computer technology in visual effects was in its infancy." And Neill Gorton of Millennium FX, the prosthetics and special make-up designer, is profiled: "I was delighted when I saw episode one because it's new, it's fresh but it's still recognisably Doctor Who. I grew up with the old series, and it's part of the reason I do this job. When it came back, I just had to be involved." There are several photos and spoiler notes about aliens in the first season, too.

According to the Radio Times website, Simon Day of "The Fast Show," and currently appearing on BBC3 in the Russell T Davies miniseries "Casanova," is appearing in episode two, "The End of the World". This is the only piece of casting so far announced other than the three guest players confirmed to date: Zoe Wanamaker (as the voice of Cassandra), Yasmin Bannerman (as Jabe) and Jimmy Vee (as the Moxx of Balhoon).

BBC Radio 1's Jo Whiley confirmed on her show today that Christopher Eccleston will be appearing with her on her show on Thursday. The Jo Whiley show airs on BBC Radio 1 on at 10am; you can visit the website here.

The new series of Doctor Who will be aired on television in the Netherlands on public channel Nederland 3 at some point later this year or early next year, according to the Dutch CEEFAX teletext service today. The message noted the day of the launch on the BBC this weekend. No word as yet on an official broadcast date.

The official site now has two new features: the Mastermind questions and answers from this weekend's "Doctor Who Night" extravaganza, and also an online "Launch the TARDIS" item that puts a Flash-based animation on your browser of the TARDIS moving around the screen.

icLiverpool "meets the two Merseysiders responsible for the new-look Doctor Who," interviewing Davy Jones andLinda Davie, "the award-winning make-up and design team who looked after the latest Doctor Who." The interviewer chats with the two, a husband and wife team who are integral parts of the first season. "Davy and Lin are still sworn to secrecy on what happens but are confident that the new Doctor will be a triumph. 'Chris and Billy [sic] have a great chemistry on screen,' says Davy. 'There's great strength with the pair of them and she makes for a good female assistant. By the end of the series she's shown to have changed and matured. She's not portrayed as a bimbo at all - she's a feisty streetwise girl from a local housing estate.' Lin agrees: 'This new series has got appeal for all from a teenage audience upwards. It's not really for young children which the old Dr Who was sometimes aimed at. It's very hip. Both characters are the type of people you'd want to hang out with.'"

News from Australia: in last Saturday's Sydney's Daily Telegraph, ABC head of programming Marena Manzoufas has said the network has now seen the first episode and they "hoped to buy" the new series. They were apparently concerned about whether it would work for a non-fan audience, but now having seen it, they think its "fabulous" and you can "come in cold and be engrossed." "It will be in the schedule this year, and we expect it will be in a prime-time timeslot," said Manzoufas. The article also mentions Channel 9's interest, and the first-refusal agreement between the ABC and BBC; there are also pics of three alien races from new series plus details of others.

Tomorrow morning's Telegraph features a recap of Andrew Marr's experience being part of the new series. "After a career whose high points include stumbling over my words outside Downing Street, being sacked, having my picture painted by Hockney because he was amazed by the shape of my head and cavorting on national television in fishnet tights, a fixed smile and little else, I have at last reached the acme, the summit, the final glistening pimple of worldly success. In short, I have a vanishingly small part in the new run of Doctor Who. Thanks to a small miracle of lateral thinking, I play a bat-eared political reporter. Filming this took a long time and a frightening quantity of technology, including a man with a tape measure interposing himself between a lens and my nose. But, hey, Doctor Who? I would have happily played a cactus on a windowsill or Billie Piper's missing sock. This obsession goes back, as most do, to childhood, much of which was spent behind the reassuringly bulky family sofa when the theme music started. I don't suppose I saw very much of Jon Pertwee and friends, but I heard a lot. (Social history is full of false memory. But the suggestion that most children spent the 1960s hiding behind sofas from silver teapots in kilts is true.) Many bad things have happened to me since. Indeed, I've done quite a lot of bad things since. But nothing was half as awful as being invited to my best friend's house across the road just after Christmas and having the door opened byà a Dalek! Other small boys might have asked themselves whether it was entirely likely that the Daleks would begin their assault on Earth in a small village outside Dundee. But I've never been entirely solid under fire. And anyway, it wasn't even a silver one. It was one of the really horrible black onesà Uughh."

Today's Variety mentions Doctor Who... "àbut can cult sci-fi classic save BBC again?" "BBC execs hope 'Doctor Who' will play a key role in combating ITV's 'Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway' in the Saturday evening ratings battle," says the article, "as well as highlighting the quality public service fare that will help the Beeb keep its license fee." The article goes through all the Doctor Who basics, including quotes reprinted from elsewhere.

Louth Today today said that "the lid has been lifted on Doctor Who's latest frightening enemy, man-eating wheelie bins," referring to a plot point in the first episode. "But while they note the irony, objectors to the introduction of wheelie bins in Louth say the subject is no laughing matter," it continues, with a few minor notes about current Louth area affairs!

"Everyone's talking about...The Return of Dr Who" according to icCoventry, which says that "Saturday telly will take a nostalgic turn this coming weekend." The writer talks about the 'classic' days of the series and ends with a bright note: "So clear behind the sofa, get in some crumpets, and pile in front of the telly this Saturday for a chance to relive your childhood, and, of course, to see if the Daleks have finally worked out how to negotiate stairs."

New program listing: the Peter Cushing film "Dr. Who and the Daleks" will be broadcast in Wales on S4C (Welsh version of Channel 4) on Saturday 26 March at 12.15pm. (It's not technically new series-related but it is because of the new show, no doubt...)

Today's South Wales Evening Post notes the original success of the series: "The BBC's head of drama told Doctor Who's original production team that he wanted no 'bug-eyed monsters' in the show, but they ignored him and created the Daleks, whose design was based on a canteen cruet set." It then discusses the new series: "Now Christopher Eccleston has taken control of the Tardis. Will another series follow? We'll have to wait and see."

"Who's That Girl?" asks today's Daily Star: "Sexy Billie Piper bursts back into the spotlight this weekend when the BBC finally unveils its revamped version of the cult series Dr Who. ... It also heralds a whole new beginning for former pop babe Billie." It quotes several recent interviews, but also makes a few statements not previously seen: "She says: 'In the past, the girls have been fairly weak characters, screaming and running away. And I always thought The Doctor was chauvinistic and patronising to women. But this has all changed. Rose is on a par with him. She even saves his life in episode one. As the series progresses, people will see how the two educate each other. They show each other new things - they're perfect for one another.'"

"Who is this Doctor?" asks today's Evening Standard, written by Matthew Sweet (the host of last week's Culture Show story on BBC2.) "When Christopher Eccleston grins at you, it is hard to know whether to smile back at him, or to jump on a chair and scream," says Sweet. "It is the eyes. Hypnotic, glittery things that make you ponder two questions: is this a nice man - or is he about to go for my neck? You may feel the same when you tune into the new series of Doctor Who on BBC1 on Saturday and watch the scene in which he first meets his new companion..." The installment biographies Eccleston and makes several positive comments about the future of the series.

Eccleston's praises are also sung today on Manchester Online, today, which mentions a second series is already in the planning stages. "But can Doctor Who defeat his greatest enemy - ITV1 rivals Ant and Dec? Even in an age where we can all time travel via video, DVD and hard disc drive recorders, that remains to be seen. Davies believes viewers are simply being offered a very good alternative. 'Those lovely boys will outlast me,' he concedes." Also, today's AOL's UK news coverage says that "Christopher is modern day Time Lord". The article basically repeats many comments made in previous press articles.

Some of today's other articles include an interview in the Manchester Evening News, the Mirror, the Sun and Alien Online.

Some of the other mentions in the press today including "Total TV Guide" 26th March-1st April 2005 (front cover and one and a half page article); "TV and Satellite Week" 26th March-1st April 2005 (front cover and two page article); "Heat" 26th March-1st April 2005 (half page article, picture and review on Saturday TV page); "What's On TV" 26th March-1st April 2005 (small photo on cover plus half-page article); "TV Choice" 26th March-1st April 2005 (small picture on front cover and half page article); "Closer" 26th March-1st April 2005 (picture on TV page and Saturday picks); "TV Quick" 26th March-1st April 2005 (two page article, plus picture in this week TV "quick loves" and on Saturday TV page).

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Jeroen Nieuwenhuis, Rajiv Awasti, Benjamin Elliott, Mark Murphy, Daniel O'Malley, Lorna Mitchellk, Jamie Finlayson)

Radio updates: Billie Piper will be on The Chris Moyles Show on BBC Radio 1 show this Wednesday morning, March 23, at 7.00am. And BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Simon Mayo announced this afternoon that Christopher Eccleston will be the guest on his show on Thursday 24th March, just after 2:00pm GMT. The show can be heard at the Five Live site.

BBC Birmingham, in association with local fans, have organised a small display in the public area of their new studios in The Mailbox, Birmingham City Centre, to publicise the return of "Doctor Who". The display comprises replicas of the TARDIS, a Dalek and an Auton, and it commenced today (March 21).

BBC Ouch (yes, you read that right) has a Doctor Who feature today celebrating the new series and a serious topic: "As Doctor Who returns to BBC ONE on Saturday nights, disabled comedian Laurence Clark takes a humorous look at how the series has portrayed disability over the years."

The latest issue of Radio Times has the TARDIS on the cover - which, opened, reveals the Doctor and Rose standing inside. The 16-page collectors special features interviews with Russell T Davies, Christopher Eccleston, Billie Piper and Ed Thomas (production designer) and a look at the effects and make-up of the series. There are also really nice photos of various creatures from "Rose" and "The End of the World" - including Lady Cassandra, the Tree people from The Forest of Cheem and the Moxx himself. Also noted on the back of the special it says that the title for episode 8 is Father's Day(though this wasn't the actual title a few weeks ago, but could have recently changed...)

In today's issue of The Sun, Christopher Eccleston is interviewed... and it says that he is "not completely sure" he wants to do a second series, citing the fear of typecasting. "I need to think about it," he tells the paper. "It's more than a huge responsibility to shoulder. And no, I don't want to be thought of as The Doctor to the exclusion of everything else I've done or may do in the future. So I'll have to think long and hard about it before I make the final decision to say yes or no. I am keenly aware that the whole thing could be a poisoned chalice." He says that Davies will write six episodes of the second series and he calls the new show "amazing". It also says he did watch some old episodes when he was offered the role, contradicting what he told DWM. This story is also reported by ContactMusic and icWales. Meanwhile, the internet version of the Sun quotes Eccleston: "The first scene had me as the Doctor chasing this very brilliant, very famous actor down a street while he was dressed as an alien pig. I thought, æIt doesnÆt get much bonkers than this!Æ It was such fun to do.ö

Eccleston told the Manchester Evening News, however, that is is "proud" to be the latest Doctor. "I didn't even think about it," says Christopher of his surprise move. "I approached writer and executive producer Russell T Davies. I read that he was going to do it and emailed him and said, 'When you draw up an audition list put my name on it'. It was just because I'm a fan of his writing and worked with him on The Second Coming. I loved his other stuff as well, Queer As Folk most of all I think, because it changed television in a way. So it was easy. Which is a great in a way because it is a big deal. I now realise," he laughs. The article says the experience was "a gruelling and often surreal shoot for the actor who had to deal with new experiences such as paparazzi hounding the set for snaps of his co-star Billie. 'We just looked after Billie and ignored it,' says
Christopher. But what was more galling for the actor was the first episode of their work being leaked onto the internet. 'It's kind of sick,' he says. 'It saddens me because we've all worked really hard on it and we want it to be seen as it's intended to be seen.'" On a second series, he does hedge a bit: "I won't allow myself to be absorbed completely. . . . I've been in the game 18 years so there's a certain amount of knowledge of how this business works and how you should conduct yourself with the public and things. But I've met a number of Whovians, real serious Doctor Who fans, and they've been so kind and generous to me and excited about the series. They're not interested in gossip about me or the set, but interested in the myth of the Doctor. I think I can handle that."

Lots of Billie Piper coverage today. The Daily Star says that Billie "will NOT be tuning in to see the re-launch of the classic sci-fi series - because she'll be out getting blitzed. The former pop singer ... confessed: 'I won't be watching on Saturday. I'll do what I always do on transmission dates . . . I'll go to the pub and get lashed! ... I'm too close to Dr Who at the moment because we only recently stopped filming. If I watch when it starts I'll be too critical and I'll be looking for all the things I could have done better. I'll wish I could have changed things. It's better for me to see the show in a few months' time when I know there is absolutely nothing I can do about it all.'" The Mirror also reported this online. Also, according to the Newsquest Media Group, Piper "has admitted she didn't enjoy her singing career." She also discusses her foreknowledge of the show: "I am too young to be a Doctor Who fan but I knew the music, it's like a track at a wedding reception. You know what the song is but can't place it." And today's Times says that "Doctor Who's assistant is by tradition a bit of a bimbo, so the role might do Billie Piper no favours." The article discusses some of her personal life issues over the past several years in the music industry before it turns to Doctor Who: "I worry about the Who gig. Everyone presumes that the role will finally airlift her out of her previous life and on to the A-list, but I think it's quite a long shot. First, the career track record for former assistants of the Doctor is poor. It was, after all, the only thing strong enough to kill off Bonnie Langford's television career. And secondly, in the first episode of the new Who at least, Billie underwhelms." (Ironically, most of the comments made about her is that her performance in the first episode is one of the best things about it...)

BBC Norwich has posted a feature interview with Karen Davies, winner of this weekend's Doctor Who Mastermind, aired during BBC2's "Doctor Who Night" special. The EDP24 website has also reported this.

BBC Radio Leicester are running a series of interviews to find Leicestershire's biggest Doctor Who fan this week; they are interviewing fans from the county about the programme including pitting fans against one of their presenters in a light hearted quiz (which our correspondent, Del Shorley, was the first one, and won!) You can listen to the rest of the week's interviews at the site.

More coverage of the story we reported yesterday on Welsh minister Rhodri Morgan can be found at the BBC News Ireland site, icWales, the Sun, Ananova, and a new version in the Scotsman; it was also mentioned in the Metro newspaper.

(Thanks to Martin Barber, Chuck Foster, Steve Tribe, Huw Turberville, Steve Hatcher, Paul Engelberg, "NellyM", Lee Thacker, Del Shorley, Mark Murphy, and Laurence Clark)

According to Planet Who, "BBC2's Doctor Who Night pulled in a high of 10.73% of the audience share last night, dropping to 7.56% during the special Doctor Who Mastermind edition at 8.40pm. Approximately 2.4m tuned in to watch The Story of Doctor Who between 7.30-8.30pm."

The repeat of "The Story of Doctor Who" was an edited repeat, featuring absolutely no new material but removing a few segments. Lost was the original pre title intro from Jon Culshaw (aka Tom Baker) also lost was a small section towards the beginning of the programme about Hartnell and a longer section of Terrance Dicks and Barry Letts discussing their era.

Welsh assembly first minister Rhodri Morgan faced a rather interesting moment recently, according to several press accounts. Says BBC News: "First Minister Rhodri Morgan almost became a tree-like monster in an episode of Dr Who after being mistaken for an actor, it has been confirmed. Mr Morgan arrived at BBC Wales' Cardiff studios to appear on the political show Dragon's Eye at the same time as a group of extras on the sci-fi series. The mix-up was noticed as he was ushered into a make-up room to become a tree-like sidekick of new monster Jabe. An employee from London has been blamed for the case of mistaken identity. A spokesman for the First Minister confirmed the accident and said: 'They were filming Doctor Who at the time and there were loads of extras at the BBC Wales studios. A meet-and-greet guy from London obviously did not recognise him. A young make-up artist then came in and said to Rhodri: 'Oh are you one of the trees?'. Rhodri then twigged and had a good chuckle about it. He thought it was really funny. Viewers will have to watch Doctor Who to see if Rhodri is in it.'" The story has been reported by BBC News, in the Guardian, This is London, theScotsman, Wales on Sunday, the Express, UTV Internet.

Most of the UK's Sunday press had some coverage, largely in the form of previews in their weekly TV listings. Amongst others, the cover of the Sunday Telegraph's TV and radio listings magazine section features the Doctor and Rose, and previews Project: Who?, Confidential and the first episode ("a winner"). The Observer has a full-page interview with Christopher Eccleston in its review section and also previews next week's programmes and episode (although it's not very complimentary about the episode). And the Independent on Sunday has a fairly lengthy interview with Billie Piper in its reviews magazine, as well as the usual (this time positive) previews in its listings.

The Mail on Sunday featured an extensive two page spread on Delia Derbyshire, the lade that put the "wooo ooo" into one of television's greatest signature tunes, illustrated with images of the TARDIS, Delia in the Radiophonic Worskhop as she composed the theme, how she appeares shortly before her death and the billboard poster image of the Doctor and Rose. Doctor Who was also on the opening page of the television guide section of the "Night and Day" magazine, and was their "SWITCH ON!" choice for Saturday 26 March, illustrated by the picture of the Doctor performing his card trick.

Also in the Sunday Mail today: a list of the Doctor's "special friends," reviewing many years of assistants and their take on romance in the TARDIS. "I haven't the foggiest who Billie Piper is but I'd tell her to be careful of turning her role into a romantic one. It may not work out," says Lalla Ward. "I think actors can get muddled up in their heads, until they don't know the difference between themselves and their characters. You spend two years prancing around with somebody on TV and you end up thinking it's really you. It would be hard to go back once you crossed that line." Says Louise Jameson: "Everything has to change, obviously, but part of Doctor Who's charm is its innocence. It's very important the girl has sex appeal to keep the male viewers interested but it would be a shame to make the story itself sexy. It brings a whole other connotation." Jameson also notes the danger of being typecast: "Doctor Who is for life - not just for the short duration you're acting in it. If Billie plays her cards right and keeps the fans happy, that's what she will face. When she leaves the series, she should try to do a lot of work in the theatre until people have forgotten her role." Debbie Watling has some different ideas: "To me, the relationship was always more fatherly. It kept the children interested and made the fathers think they were in with a chance. It's got to have an innocence or you're lost. ... The fact there were little men inside the Daleks made them hard to appear menacing. I'd tell Billie to get all of her giggles out in the rehearsals. When the cameras come on, no matter how ridiculous the monsters are, you've got to keep a straight face."

The Sunday Express featured a two page spread as well, this time on the female companions of Doctor Who. Listed were Susan (with an interview with Carole Ann Ford), Vicki (with an interview with Maureen O' Brien), Polly, Zoe, Liz (with an interview with Caroline John), Sarah (with an interview with Elisabeth Sladen), Leela, Romana I, Nyssa, Tegan, Peri (illustrated with a photo of Janet Fielding), Mel and Ace.

Many articles this weekend also featured reviews. Today's Guardian says that "The rule in adapting much-loved properties - whether an old TV show or a Jane Austen novel - is that you're in trouble if aficionados of the original story absolutely hate it but equally doomed if they completely love it. Like a political party, a television series needs to reach beyond the obvious fan-base. ... The first story suggests that Davies has found the right balance between respect and renovation. The internet and the London Eye play significant roles but the Tardis retains its 50s exterior and an interior representing a 60s idea of the future. And - despite the possibilities of computer generation available to this revival - the opening episode rather encouragingly uses monsters who look as if they could have been knocked up by BBC props 40 years ago. ... The risk was always that this: 'Who' would lead to the question: 'Why?' but there's a strong chance that another generation of children will, each Saturday, be asking: 'When?'"

Today's Independent on Sunday ABC magazine - the Arts Books Culture section of the quality broadsheet - had Billie Piper as its cover feature. Also flagged up on the front page of the main paper as part of the promo strap underneath the masthead, the three-page piece - including a full-page BBC portrait photo of Piper - looked at her life and career to date and asked if she could handle the superstardom that seemed certain to be hers. Craig McLean, who met her five days before the press launch in Cardiff, reported favourably on Piper and the series, incorporating the opinions of Canterbury Tales co-star James Nesbitt, Tales update writer Pete Bowker, Brian Hill, who directed her in last year's BBC2 drama Bella and the Boys, Russell T Davies, former Smash Hits pop magazine editor Gavin Reeve (she was chosen to star in a promotional campaign for the magazine at the age of 14, which started her pop career rolling), and Innocent Records label boss Hugh Goldsmith (Piper was signed to Innocent). The piece, which also carried a photo of Piper with Chris Evans, a BBC promo photo of Piper as Rose with Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor, and one of her while she was a singer, finished with Piper saying she wouldnÆt be watching Doctor Who this coming Saturday - instead, she'd be down the pub! McLean's conclusion? Piper is someone "we underestimate . . . at our peril". The magazine's front-page illustration of Piper was a caricature by Andr? Carrilho. In addition, the show was TV choice of the week in the preview section, while Doctor Who Confidential was also marked as one of the TV choices for next Saturday (26 Mar).

Several reports covered the Doctor Who: Mastermind event from last evening that aired on BBC2's Doctor Who Night. "A Norwich woman has helped break the sci-fi buff stereotype after beating thousands to win a Dr Who Mastermind special," says Norwich Evening News's report. "Karen Davies, of Nelson Street, said she was astounded at winning the TV contest after going on it for a bet to prove a woman 'with a life' could win. Ms Davies was picked along with three others from 7000 applicants to go on Saturday's show. 'I wanted to show Dr Who fans are not all nerdy boys and some of us do have a life,' she said. She put on her application form that she wanted to dispel the anorak image, something which Mastermind quiz master John Humphrys asked her about. But the 39-year-old health club manager said: 'It's no different to going to Carrow Road every weekend.'"

The Daily Record asks, "Who's Sexiest in a TARDIS?" "Billie Piper has already lost her first battle as Doctor Who's new assistant," it says. "The 22-year-old former pop star has been beaten in a poll to find the sexiest Doctor Who assistant by former EastEnders actress Louise Jameson. Jameson proved a hit with fans, who remembered her as the scantily clad Leela, who was companion to Tom Baker as the Doctor in the late 70s. ... In fact Piper, who will be seen as new Doctor Christopher Eccleston's sidekick Tyler Rose for the first time on Saturday, was beaten into fourth place in the poll by two more actresses old enough to be her mum. Wendy Padbury, 57, who was assistant Zoe in the late 60s, proved a hit with her leather catsuits to claim third place. And little--known Nicola Bryant, 43, who played American college student Peri 'Perpugilliam' Brown opposite Tom Baker, took third place. She caused outrage during the mid-80s with several scenes in just a bikini." The report quotes an "internet poll" but we haven't found it...

The Sunday Herald (Scotland) has a new series preview with some spoilers, but there's a nice comment about Christopher Eccleston. "Ah, yes, the Doctor. He's Christopher Eccleston, of course, casting as inspired as making Vincent D'Onofrio a cop. We first encounter him planting a bomb, like a distracted terrorist. Except this guerrilla is fighting to keep us safe. Dressing down for a Doctor - where the dandy of old plumped for crushed velvet and scarves, he sports a battered black leather jacket - Eccleston nevertheless has other trademarks in place. He's feeling his way into the role, just as the Doctor is feeling his way into his new body. But there's already an odd, intense, Tom Bakerish charm, grins flashing at inopportune moments. Then he's irritable, unknowable, cold, with the sudden snappy bitterness the best Doctors always had. More than once, he refers to humans as "apes". There's melancholy, too. The episode ends with Rose agreeing to accompany him on his adventures; but the important thing is the half-hidden yearning with which Eccleston asks her along, more for himself than for her. He's patient, but cosmically lonely."

Today's Sunday Independent (Ireland) says "we should all be grateful for Billie's involvement. Among those tipped for a starring role alongside the Doc during the 15-year gap since the last series was Pamela Anderson. But kick-ass Pam wouldn't have been right as one of the Doc's sidekicks." And how! "There are those who'll want to compare and contrast Christopher Eccleston's performance as the ninth doctor with all those who've gone before; but for many, it's enough to know that the Daleks are on their way back."

What makes Doctor Who special? The Scotsman asks that today. "Last year, the BBC ran a competition to select the best on-screen boffin. More than 40,000 people voted but it was still a fix. The winners were Honeydew and Beaker from The Muppets. Doctor Who came a poor third (after Mr Spock) with only 13 per cent of the vote. That can't be right. ... Forget American puppets who need wires to make themselves animated. And definitely forget Spock, whose character is actually the epitome of an eastern seaboard, Ivy League intellectual of the Kennedy era, busy getting the Federation into some galactic Vietnam War. Give me British sci-fi heroes every time - Dan Dare, Jeff Hawke, Jet Morgan, with the eponymous Doctor high on the list. Why? The answer gets to the heart of the enduring appeal of the Doctor (and of Quatermass, who is also about to be reincarnated, on BBC4)." The article goes into the heroic aspects of Doctor Who: "Like the ancient Greek heroes, Doctor Who was always at the mercy of the Gods and a wayward navigation device in the TARDIS. That's the whole point of heroes - they show you how to deal with an indifferent, even perverse, universe with wit, courage and a stiff upper lip. There was indeed a definite alien quality about the Doctor: he was still archetypally British in an era when being British was an embarrassment. Pretending to be from Gallifrey and having two hearts was an elegant ruse. Audiences could indulge in following a great British hero without feeling the cringe factor. The fascinating thing about British heroes is that they are quintessentially anti-establishment, like Doctor Who. They draw their courage from their own individuality. Nelson gleefully put the telescope to his blind eye. In similar circumstances Captain Kirk might defy Star Fleet Command, but he'd have a moral fit doing so." But the author, George Kerevan, also waxes on the future: "In this era of I'm a Celebrity and Pop Idol, the temptation will be to dumb down the Doctor or eviscerate his character. The Americans did it in 1996, when the impostor Paul McGann pretended to be Doctor Who in the one-off TV movie. McGann used violence and fell in love with an Earth girl. This was Captain Kirk, not the true hero from Gallifrey. ... But if all else fails, there's still the cerebral Professor Quatermass to save us from ourselves."

Today's Observer discusses Doctor Who collectibles. Writer Guy Clapperton interviews David Howe and Jeremy Bentham to discuss collectibility: "[Howe] says: 'Standard collecting terms apply - anything that's in the box is going to be worth more than any thing that isn't.' Anything complete with instructions and factory sealed is probably going to be in demand, 'but if all you've got is one Louis Marx Dalek out of the box, that's still probably worth ú50 or so: anything from the 1960s is rare.' ... [Bentham] points to the first Dalek playsuit as particularly desirable. Made by Scorpion Automotives in 1964, it was well made for a kids' toy. The factory shipped a few out and then burnt down, with the rest of the stock inside. 'You can pay anything from ú1,000 to ú2,000.' It was replaced by others from other manufacturers, but if yours says Scorpion Automotives on it, it's worth as much as a second-hand car."

The Wanadoo portal site has some coverage of the new series, including photos and a list of the eight former Doctors rated.

Finally, a word from Russell T Davies himself in today's Sunday Telegraph. "I remember shop-window dummies coming to life. I remember maggots. I remember devils coming out of the sea, an evil plant bigger than a house and a Frankenstein's monster with a goldfish bowl for a head. And if you're somewhere over 35, you might remember the same things. That's Doctor Who, the show that burned its way into children's heads and stayed there for ever, as beautiful and vivid as a folk tale. Now the good and constant Doctor is coming back, and I'm one of those in charge of it. This week, I'm trapped in the tornado of the BBC publicity machine as the launch, on Easter Saturday, approaches. I'll do anything to sell this lovely show." Davies tells the reader what he thinks is so special: "I think the gaps in production made the viewing experience interactive long before digital television was invented. The gaps in the finished product allowed your mind inside, whereas Star Trek, so glossy and perfect and shining, seemed closed: it made you watch, not participate. With Doctor Who, we watched what was, and imagined what could be. ... Meanwhile, back in the real world, the years passed and Doctor Who's reputation declined, and sometimes it felt as though I was the only one still watching. Those lovely gaps in the production became the only thing that we remembered." Davies obviously writes with a lot of passion for what the show means tto him: "As for me, I had one perfect opportunity to close the circle, to link my childhood fantasies with the modern image. The shop-window dummies are back, by virtue of the fact that they are, as The Simpsons' Comic Book Guy would say, the Best Idea Ever. And this time, they jerk to life. They step forward. They raise their hands; they chop down. And after 35 years of waiting, finally, the glass shatters. And the screaming starts

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Martyn Hunn, Paul Hayes, Paul Gordon, Kenneth Smith, Steve Chapman, Scott Wortley, Daniel Hirsch, Alan Darlington, Hugh J. Cregan)

A new edit has been made to the 'Trip of a Lifetime' trailer, which was shown during late night BBC1 programming on Friday night. They have removed all but the specially recorded Doctor scenes in the Console room and him running from the fireball and have inserted his opening sentence, "Do you want to come with me?" at the very end. It's around 10-15 seconds long. The show was also trailed in a DVE squeezed box during the end credits of the first film's showing on BBC2 this afternoon, though this was just a couple of clips from the beginning of Rose with a voice over from the continuity announcer spoken over the top, who went on to announce the evening's DW night and then following the credits trailed the first part of Project: Who over a Radio 2 slide.

The BBC has moved the Tommy Boyd hour on March 26 to an earlier time slot, 9:00pm, in anticipation of their coverage of the new Doctor Who series debut earlier in the evening.

There's an article about the new series in the Times Educational Supplement this week (published March 18); you can have a look at the cover at their website website, and follow the link bottom left that says "TES Teacher" although the article apparently cannot be read on the site.

BBC Radio 7 will play their radio comedy show, Dead Ringers, at 8:30AM, 10PM and 3AM on Friday 25th March: "The team with queries for You and Yours and who is the next Dr Who. From October 2003". This is a best-of repeat broadcast from October 2003. Dead Ringers is the show that spawned Jon Culshaw and his well-known impersonation of Tom Baker's Doctor.

Today Radio 2 comedy programme "The Day the Music Died" included a "Vision On" Gallery sequence with descriptions of pictures of new Doctor Who aliens supposedly sent in by musicians. It's about 18 and a half minutes in, but the programme as a whole is well worth a listen here.

The Saturday 19 March edition of the Daily Telegraph carries two Doctor Who articles, one an A to Z of the show by Matthew Sweet (who presented the Culture Show piece on Thursday evening), the second an interview with Mark Gatiss. The A to Z includes a few choice morsels - Q is for Quillam (from Vengeance on Varos), F is for Fanboys ("approach with caution") and O is for Outing Doctor Who fans. Read the A to Z here and the Gatiss interview here.

Today's The Express wonders "Why Billie has Fallen For A Dalek." "You'd never guess it in a million light years. But new Doctor Who star Billie Piper has admitted to a growing attachment with a Dalek. Talking about her role in the BBC1 revival of the classic series, she revealed: 'I had this quite emotional scene with a Dalek. "I'm sat there the night before the take thinking, how am I going to tap into my emotions? This is a hunk of junk! And then, I think because it is so beautifully written with human emotion, I am stood there and I am actually feeling for this thing.'" It also mentions her appearance on tonight's Parkinson.

An article in today's Telegraph, primarily about Quatermass, mentions Doctor Who serveral times. "The low-budget but endlessly inventive Doctor Who owes its existence to an even more pioneering television creation, Quatermass. ... That charisma and anti-Establishment mind-set were transferred in 1963 to Doctor Who, his spiritual successor. Though pitched at children, this series bore many of the same characteristics, infusing sci-fi with a gothic aspect. Both these shows were often less Isaac Asimov and more Mary Shelley. In Quatermass, the fate of Victor Caroon - Quatermass's astronaut, brought back to Earth with an alien infection, who soon becomes a haunted wasteland-dwelling fugitive - has very strong echoes of Frankenstein. At the climax of Quatermass and the Pit, a vast flickering image of a horned demon hovers in the night sky over London. In the second serial of Doctor Who, the doctor's companion, Barbara, is pursued through a weird, deserted alien citadel by something unseen by us but clearly so appalling that her scream echoes over the closing music. It is, of course, a Dalek. ... The notion that sci-fi could be low-key and unsettling ensured the doctor's longevity. But the rebellious spirit of Quatermass reached out further. In 1978, the crew of Blake's Seven took off into space, taking a stand against proto-fascist aliens across the galaxy, in what sounded like a spaceship with wooden floors. This was the golden age of the quarry location, when actors in spangled costumes ran around pretending to fire space weapons at each other just outside of Reigate. But the anti-Establishment theme prevailed. In those days, when you could get a convincing laser beam for neither love nor money, the only alternative was robust and gaudy scripting."

Today's Scotsman features a commentary called "Who says I'm a geek?" about a viewer who remembers back when he was 12 and still feels the excitement of the new series. "I am abuzz with anticipation, fizzing with excitement. All my adult worries and responsibilities have receded, replaced by an obsessive childish concentration on just one thing: next week, after nine years in televisual limbo, Dr Who is returning to our screens. Yes, it's true, Dr Who, my childhood hero, my two-hearted intergalactic friend, will be dematerialising in the corner of my living room in just a few days' time. ... "Of course, Doctor Who has never really been cool. The Who-niverse is the province of the geek, a socially shunned sub-culture which sees sweaty men in wash-shrunk jumpers weeping in quarries at the discovery of some discarded Cyberman hosing from 1974. Critics still harp tiresomely about wobbly sets (they were never that wobbly) and shoddy special effects (errrm ...), as if the show was some sort of slapdash pantomime rather than the incredibly imaginative and original slice of televisual manna which, at its best, it actually was. Doctor Who fans always get enormously defensive when discussing their beloved obsession, usually shooting themselves in the foot with arguments like, 'Pah! If it's rubbish TV sci-fi you're talking about, just look at Blake's 7!" which just make you look twice as insane. But I don't care. I'm not ashamed to admit my allegiance. It's geeky and silly and about as likely to impress women as a trip to an oil refinery, but I'm so irrefutably fond of the series, it would be an act of pitiful self-denial to claim otherwise."

Today's Times Online has an article called "Billie the kid" which biographies Billie Piper, including comments about her marriage and her other performances in preparation for the new series. She also makes note of some of her favorite moments from filming the new series.

(Thanks to Will Hadcroft, James Armstrong, "C Kent", Tom Boon, Steve Tribe, Faiz Rehman, Paul Engelberg, Dan Harris, Steve Chapman)