The Doctor Who Annual has topped the Christmas chart for children's books, toppling the traditional number one The Beano into second place.

The Doctor Who Annual, which has held the top spot for a total of eight weeks now, has broken the million-pound barrier by so far selling 271,000 copies.

According to Saturday's Guardian, "This is the first time the Beano annual has been beaten since accurate electronic sales figures began to be collected in 1998, and indeed, the book trade believes, the first time since soon after it was initially published in the 1940s."

The article goes on to say that "the boost from Doctor Who's two prime time Christmas Day specials in a row is envied by all other publishers of annuals".

Unofficial overnight figures show that Torchwood Episode Ten, Out of Time was watched by2.3m viewers a 10.1% share of the audience. This is an increase of 100,000 over last week. The show was the 4th most watched programme on BBC2 on Wednesday and the 31st on all British Television.

Julie Gardner, executive producer of Doctor Who, will be on the Richard Evans show on BBC Radio Wales on Friday 22 December from 1-2pm. Gardner will take phone calls on a variety of topics concerning the programme, including commissioning Russell T Davies to bring back the Doctor, the success of the show's spin-off Torchwood and the series Life on Mars. Fans can call in on +44 8100 100 110, text message +44 7786 20 10 40, or send email with questions.

Radio Wales can be listened to online by following the link on the BBC Wales Website

The Sun today continued its in-depth interview with Billie Piper, as featured yesterday.

Piper said that leaving Doctor Who still made her cry but added that she felt it was time to leave lest she got "complacent".

She was quoted as saying: "It was such a hard decision. I still cry about it, I'm such a cry baby.

"I don't know if I'll be able to watch the next series. I'll probably have to sit behind the couch with a cushion over my eyes.

"I just thought it was time to do something new - not because I felt tired, the material was crap or the people were nasty - but just because I felt like doing something else.

"I'd spent nine months filming in Cardiff and that's a long time to be away from your family and friends. I'm a real London girl, I absolutely love it. I found it increasingly hard to be away. I felt like if I'd stayed there any longer I would have become a bit complacent. And, suddenly, you've been doing it for five years and you're too scared to leave."

She said how hard it had been to tell Russell T Davies of her decision, but added that although they were both upset he had supported her completely.

"But life has to move on and there are great things happening in British TV. I just hope I don't regret leaving!"

Discussing David Tennant, Piper calls him "a lovely guy, super-duper down to earth, super-duper smart", and adds: "I think David will be the Doctor for a while, he really loves the show."

Also in The Sun Catherine Tate said she was disappointed she wasn't asked to continue as the Doctor's companion after appearing in the Christmas special.

She was quoted as saying: "They didn't ask me and I tend not to dwell on my failures.

"It was just such a fantastic job to get. It was like making an action movie. It was great but they didn't ask me."

David Tennant is quoted as saying: "An unconventional pairing but we'd have made a great team. I'm very disappointed."

For Doctor Who fans in the US and Canada, head to your local comic shop this week. Doctor Who Magazine #377, should be available as you read this. Also of interest is Second Flight,Shaun Lyon's reference book covering the second series of Doctor Who, published by Telos(item number SEP063812) as well as Doctor Who: The Inside Story by Gary Russell (item number JUL063679). If you can't find these books, ask your comic book retailer to order them for you.

Issue #20 of Doctor Who Adventures will be out on January 3, 2007; a preview from BBC Magazines is below. Click on the thumbnail for a larger version of the cover. (Thanks to Victoria Goddard/BBC Magazines)

The final three episodes of Torchwood, the spinoff series starring John Barrowman as Captain Jack, will be shown over the next two weeks. Episode 11, Combat, written by Doctor Who series one and two star Noel Clarke, will be broadcast on Sunday 24 December at 9:30pm on BBC Three. However, the final two episodes will be featured not on their usual Sunday, but instead on New Years Day, Monday 1 January, with episode 12, Captain Jack Harkness, shown at 9:30pm and episode 13, End of Days airing immediately thereafter at 10:20pm. (The BBC says the finale is called "End of Days" but previous reports suggest "Apocalypse"; we're waiting for verification.) The "Declassified" documentaries will be shown early Tuesday morning on BBC Three, repeated later in the week. Below are the BBC press releases for all three episodes; also, check out our handy Broadcast Calendar on the left side of the Outpost's news page (click on the country flag to bring up the broadcast list.) As we previously reported, the second series of Torchwood will start shooting in the spring.

SFX have added a spoiler-free review of The Runaway Bride to their website. "There's a bit of The 39 Steps in there and a heavy dumping of screwball comedy too," writes reviewer Steve O'Brien. "Never in two years of peacock Doctor Who and in 26 years of pawn shop Who have we seen anything as jaw-slackening as this sequence. Russell T Davies knows that for Doctor Who to compete on Christmas Day it has to run with its balls out to compete for people's attention in a pissed-up living room, in a way Saturday Who doesn;'t have to." The reviewer comments that Catherine Tate "really makes The Runaway Bride" and that Tennant is "as good as ever, and has even toned down some of the face-gurning and Over Emphasis Of Certain Words." The full review can be foundhere. (Thanks to Ian Berriman at SFX)

The BBC's official tie-in website for The Sarah Jane Adventures has gone live. The site reveals the series logo and includes videos of Sarah Jane's collection of alien objects, access to her desktop computer, and information on a Mr Smith.

The site's content is, however, limited to UK IPs only; readers from outside the UK are redirected to an FAQ explaining that the content is restricted to the UK "for rights reasons".

The Sarah Jane Adventures, staring Elisabeth Sladen, begins on New Year's Day at 4.50pm on BBC One.