Issue #353 of Doctor Who Magazine is due out this week; click on the thumbnail at right for a larger version of the cover. Meanwhile, here's the press release for the latest issue (with thanks to Tom Spilsbury, Assistant Editor):

"Ease the agony of waiting for the new series with another feature-packed 68-page issue of Doctor Who Magazine! This issue, Unquiet Dead writer Mark Gatiss talks about the challenges of bringing the Doctor back to television...

'My Doctor Who episode is the most serious thing I?ve done since my first Doctor Who novel, Nightshade. At second draft stage my episode changed a lot, and the reason was that the first draft was far too grim. I can still hear myself saying to Russell [T Davies, executive producer], 'This story?s about grief!' Of course it can be about grief or whatever, somewhere in there, but fundamentally it?s got to be a good, scary, story.'

Meanwhile, we speak to Fifth Doctor companion, alias actress Janet Fielding, who tells us exactly what she really thought about playing Tegan. Former script editor Andrew Cartmel presents the fascinating second part of his article about the making of Remembrance of the Daleks, while we take a look behind-the-scenes of the 1965 movie Dr Who and the Daleks in our Archive Extra feature.

Plus - it's the end of an era as the Eighth Doctor makes his final stand in the shocking final part of our comic strip adventure The Flood. It's one you don't want to miss...

Plus we have all the latest news and cast updates from the set of Doctor Who in Gallifrey Guardian, The Time Team encounter The Deadly Assassin, and there's a grave warning from Russell T Davies in his unmissable Production Notes column.

DWM 353 goes on sale at all good newsagents from Thursday 3 February priced ú3.99."

As we reported on December 19, Project Who is "a two-part BBC Radio 2 program that will air around the time of the new series" and will be released on CD. Originally scheduled for April, the new release date is currently May 2. As noted in our previous report, the contents are as follows: "Tying in with transmission of the new BBC1 Saturday night series of Doctor Who, this two-part BBC Radio 2 programme takes a look at the Doctor Who phenomenon. Why is now the right time for it to return? There will be interviews with the stars and producers of the new series, location and set visits, and interviews with famous people who are fans of Doctor Who. This CD release will feature additional material not included in the Radio 2 broadcast." (Thanks to Steve Tribe)

Galaxy 4 is reporting the release of Doctor Who At the BBC: Volume 3 due on September 5; this would presumably be the third in the series of audio clips from BBC Radio interviews and features, possibly narrated by one of their earlier narrators, Nick Courtney or Elisabeth Sladen.

Newly listed on Amazon is Doctor Who, Novella No. 1 from BBC Audio for release on June 6; there's no information but it seems likely that the Ninth Doctor books will be released as audiobooks (Eccleston/Piper being obvious candidates to read them). Also, as previously corrected on our Releases guide, the Ninth Doctor novel formerly "Death Players" is now called Winner Takes All. It and the other two Ninth Doctor books ("Clockwise Man" and "Monsters Inside") as well as the non-fiction book "Monsters and Villains" are all out on May 19.

Various sources are reporting different additional DVDs for the summer and fall of 2005 in the UK, including possible boxed sets of "Trial of a Time Lord" or "The Beginning" (which includes the first three stories), plus "Attack of the Cybermen," "Mawdryn Undead," "The Web Planet," "Revelation of the Daleks" and "Survival," but nothing has been confirmed as yet by BBC Worldwide.

Finally regarding merchandise, according to the Doctor Who Appreciation Society, the media firm Orange 20 (whose logo appears in the magazine credits of DWM) has "planned a coordinated approach to Doctor Who marketing in the run up to the series launch, tying the new series and 'Classic Who' together in DVD and book schedules, magazine features and media promotion." The same article also talks about the Pertwee/McGann logo being retained for 'Classic Who' and the new logo being exclusively for Ninth Doctor stuff; it's not clear whether this is any more than the speculation that's been doing the rounds for ages.

An article at the Eurovision song contest website notes that the BBC1 broadcast of "Making Your Mind Up," the pre-Eurovision show which giving viewers the chance to vote for the UK entry, may also include the launch of the new series on the same night, the first weekend of March. The article also states news from the latest issue of DWM that Colin Baker has submitted a possible entry for the UK selection. However, it's very likely that the notation is purely speculative, as we continue to hear late March as the targeted air date. (Thanks to Planet Who for the report)

In the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine, there are a few items of confirmation. From BBC Books: after publication of "The Gallifrey Chronicles" on 28 March, the next regular BBC Books release will be Barry Letts' "Island of Death" on 4 July. All three Ninth Doctor novels, as well as Justin Richards' Monsters and Villains, will now be published on Monday 19 May, to enable "some robust marketing". "Monsters and Villains," the previously announced non-fiction book, will include some new series material written specially by new series producer Russell T Davies. The three novels can be read in any order. The new logo will appear on all four books. And there's been decision yet on which logo will be used for the resumption of the regular book line. As for Big Finish news, Nicholas Briggs' new "Cybermen" miniseries is announced and confirmed for August to November; currently untitled it will feature some of the "Dalek Empire" cast and will have some links to the previous Cybermen adventure "Sword of Orion," "being about the different generations of the Cybermen." Actress Jennie Linden from the Dalek films will be in "Unregenerate!" in June, too.

At last... the first new Doctor Who series cover from Doctor Who Magazine for issue #352, featuring Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper. Click on the cover illustration at right for a larger version of the magazine cover scan; meanwhile, the issue has already been received by some UK subscribers.

The official Doctor Who site today featured a preview of the next issue of Doctor Who Magazine, #352... sort of. The feature on the magazine, which features a new design tying into the new series and an expansion to 68 pages, shows the cover design but not the final version of the Ninth Doctor and Rose cover (which can now be seen in a more recent news item above!) (There is also word from elsewhere that the color of the logo will change with each issue.) In the first new-look issue, producer Phil Collinson says about the TARDIS, "The basic idea - a big room with the main controls in the middle - is so fantastic, I mean, why would you change that? It's a brilliant piece of design. The basic idea is the same, but Ed Thomas' design has a feeling all of its own. I mean, with the best will in the world, the TARDIS interior always used to look like a studio set. But this one is enormous and it looks beautiful on camera. Plus, we're doing a couple of things to help ease the way, so that the viewers can imagine that, when you step through those doors, something magic happens and the interior really does tie in with the outside..." Other highlights include an interview with new series author Paul Cornell and McCoy-era script editor Andrew Cartmel presenting a unique glimpse behind the scenes of the show as he rifles through his diaries to document the genesis of Remembrance of the Daleks! Fact of Fiction sets its sights on The Tenth Planet, whilst Earth faces its final hours in part seven of comic strip epic The Flood. More teasing from loose-lipped executive producer Russell T Davies in his unmissable Production Notes, the Time Team tackling The Masque of Mandragora and casting exclusives in Gallifrey Guardian round off the issue.

In a small sidebar news article in the recent issue of Doctor Who Magazine, DWM announces that Autumn 2005 will see the first Doctor Who Annual for twenty years; they got the licence to do annuals as part of their recent renewal, and it will evidently be aimed at a younger audience than the magazine itself.

Details have been announced for Big Finish's forthcoming Short Trips 13: A Day in the Life, edited by Ian Farrington, due out in the spring of 2005. Included in the anthology are "Making History" by Trevor Baxendale, "A Life in the Day" by Xanna Eve Chown, "The Last Broadcast" by Matthew Griffiths, "How You Get There" by Simon Guerrier, "One Wednesday Afternoon" by Alison Jacobs, "Terror of the Darkness" by Joseph Lidster, "Undercurrents" by Gary Merchant, "The Heroine, the Hero and the Megalomaniac" by Ian Mond, "Sold Out" by Danny Oz, "Morphology" by Phil Pascoe, "Visiting Hours" by Eddie Robson, "After Midnight" by Andy Russell, "Before Midnight" by Andy Russell, and "Waiting for Jeremy" by Richard Salter. (Thanks to DWM)

The latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine, #351, has reached subscribers. While no preview of this issue was issued this month, we have a scan below of the cover as well as the free CD that was included, featuring two short pieces from Big Finish: the standalone UNIT audio "The Coup" by Simon Guerrier starring Nicholas Courtney, and a Bernice Summerfield audio featuring the Cybermen starring Lisa Bowerman. Also in the issue are interviews with Paul McGann and Daphne Ashbrook from the TV Movie and all the usual features. This will also be the last issue in this format, as #352 will have a new cover design and carry expanded coverage of the new series. (Thanks to Steve Tribe)

Update Dec. 9, 2200 GMT: The editors of Doctor Who Magazine have provided us with a larger scan of the cover; click below left. Also included in the issue is an interview with new series make-up artist Davy Jones; part six of the comic strip "The Flood," part two of the Archive Extra "Doctor Who on the Radio" and more.

Several weeks ago we were told that online retail sites were carrying a product called Doctor Who Reconstructed, but no further details. The new issue of DWM expands on that: a series of MP3-CD's which blend both the original audio soundtracks of missing stories with telesnap photos, much akin to the current fan-produced reconstructions (and likely much like the recent MP3-CD release of "Death Comes to Time"). The first story in release will be "Power of the Daleks" and is due on June 6, 2005. (Thanks to DWM)