BBC Make it Digital

Sunday, 7 June 2015 - Reported by Marcus

Doctor Who is to form a major part of the new BBC Make it Digital Campaign, heading across the United KIngdom, this summer.

The initiative is a project of BBC Learning and BBC English Regions, with the aim of inspiring a new generation to get creative with coding, programming and digital technology. Over the next three months the tour will travel to 13 locations across the UK beginning in Plymouth Hoe on 27 June. The BBC’s Make it Digital tour is aiming to put digital creativity in the spotlight, and help build the nation’s digital skills through a series of free events across the country.

The event is aiming to inspire audiences to learn about digital using some of the BBC’s best loved brands and live broadcasts, including Doctor Who.

The event offers Doctor Who fans the chance to get to grips with coding by programming The Doctor’s arch enemy, the Daleks, on their quest to retrieve the Orb of Fates. Children are encouraged to become a live Dalek, shoot a Cyberman, then drop the drawbridge, before attempting to tackle the devious Dalek maze as part of the BBC’s Doctor and the Dalek game.

Other brands included in the project include BBC Weather, which uses the variables found in the jet stream to introduce visitors to the basics of coding. Some lucky visitors to the event could also get the chance to present the weather with their BBC local weather presenter. The BBC English Regions Bus will also be present, from where local radio stations will be broadcasting live, as well as offering a behind the scenes peep at how the digital world has revolutionised broadcasting.

Sinead Rocks, Head of BBC Learning, says:

This tour is an important part of BBC Learning’s contribution to the Make it Digital initiative. With it being aimed at a wide age range it’s a great opportunity for both young and older to get to grips with the idea of what digital and coding is all about.

By using popular TV programmes such as Doctor Who and the Weather, we hope to demystify the digital world for the thousands of people we will meet face to face across the summer. This will all be backed up by iWonder guides and school activities as we move into the autumn.

The locations the BBC’s Make it Digital tour is visiting are:

Plymouth – 27 June
Belfast – 2, 3, & 4 July
Cambridge – 11 & 12 July
Bristol – 18 & 19 July
Sunderland – 25 & 26 July
Nottingham - 1 & 2 August
Blackpool – 15 & 16 August
Bournemouth – 22 & 23 August
Cardiff – 30 & 31 August
Hull – 5 & 6 September
South East/London – 12 & 13 September (TBC)
Dundee – 19 & 20 September
Birmingham – 26 & 27 September

FILTER: - Doctor Who - Special Events

Doctor Who comes to Lego Dimensions

Wednesday, 3 June 2015 - Reported by Marcus

Doctor Who is to become part of the Lego Dimensions Universe, the upcoming Lego action-adventure video game.

The interactive game, which follows multiple characters from various Lego sets in a virtual adventure, is due to launch this Autumn.

Today Lego Dimensions announced on Twitter, that Doctor Who characters will form part of the game. This follows the announcement, earlier this year, that Lego Characters, based on Doctor Who, will be released later this year.

Other franchises signed up to take part in the game include Back to the Future, Lord of the Rings, Scooby-Doo and The Simpsons. Players build physical figurines and then by placing them on the connected toy pad, their figures are absorbed into the virtual gaming world.

The Dimensions game will be available for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Wii U, Xbox One, and Xbox 360. The game is due for release on 27th September

FILTER: - Doctor Who - Games

Art Preview - Doctor Who: Four Doctors #1

Thursday, 28 May 2015 - Reported by Marcus

Titan Comics has released the first six pages from issue #1 of Doctor Who: Four Doctors, the Summer event coming this August.

The weekly event, running through August and September 2015, stars the Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors and their comics companion, as well as the War Doctor, in a special adventure written by Paul Cornell and illustrated by Neil Edwards.

The first issue is released Wednesday August 12, supported by the global Doctor Who Comics Day on Saturday August 15.

The event follows straight on from the issue #15 conclusions of Year One, with the second years of the Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors beginning after the event's finale.

To keep up to date visit DoctorWhoComicsDay.com or follow Doctor Who Comics Day on Facebook or Twitter.

Doctor Who: Four Doctors #1 (Credit: Titan)

FILTER: - Comics - Eleventh Doctor - Tenth Doctor - Twelfth Doctor

Preview - Doctor Who: The Twelfth Doctor #8

Monday, 25 May 2015 - Reported by Marcus

Wednesday sees the release of Doctor Who: The Twelfth Doctor #8 written by Robbie Morrison (Drowntown, Nikolai Dante) with art by Brian Williamson (Torchwood), bringing the climactic finale of 'The Fractures' story arc.

Bursting from a twisted parallel universe and clawing their way through the void, the Fractures are here, and nothing could prepare the Doctor for their insidious assault on reality. The Doctor, Clara and UNIT must battle the Fractures, as they slip through the cracks in our world to wear the skin – and bodies – of innocent people, puppeteering them from the inside! When the war spills out of quiet suburbia and threatens the world, it will take a father and daughter – separated by whole universes – to bring the conflict to an end.

FILTER: - Comics - Twelfth Doctor

Win a Sonic Screwdriver in Doctor Who Comic UK #4

Friday, 22 May 2015 - Reported by Marcus

Titan Magazines has announced a Twelfth Doctor Sonic Screwdriver competition exclusively inside Doctor Who Comic UK #4, on sale now.

Partnering with The Wand Company, FOUR lucky winners will be amongst the first in the world to receive the brand-new Twelfth Doctor Sonic Screwdriver, which will be seen for the first time at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con on the 8th July on the BBC Booth.

The universal remote gives Doctor Who fans what they have been asking for: a gesture-based metal replica Sonic Screwdriver with Any-TV-Off function and fabulous sonic light and sound FX!

Highlights include:

12 authentic sonic sounds, as well as 12 secret Morse coded catch phrases to decipher.
TV-off function that turns off any television at the press of a button – without having to program the Sonic first.
New extending action with spring-loaded clasps.
Soft-touch leather patterned grip material with grip-located action button.
Die-cast metal construction with a redesigned, hand-polished copper-plated handle.

The brand-new hero prop replica is a superb recreation of the Sonic Screwdriver used by Peter Capaldi in Series 8. Compatible with almost all audio-visual home entertainment devices, perfect for both play and display, the Twelfth Doctor’s Sonic Screwdriver is a must-have piece for any Doctor Who fan, cosplayer or collector!

Also in this issue of Doctor Who Comic, three Doctors in on-going adventures. This month: the Twelfth Doctor discovers more about the cult of Kali; the Eleventh Doctor takes part in a murder mystery; and the Tenth Doctor introduces Gabby to the wonders of time and space exploration.

Doctor Who Comic UK is available from supermarkets, WH Smiths and independent newsagents. Or order online

FILTER: - Comics - Eleventh Doctor - Tenth Doctor - Twelfth Doctor

BBC Books competitions/update

Tuesday, 19 May 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster

We're delighted to announce that we are able to give UK readers a chance to win the latest Doctor Who publications for May and June, courtesy of BBC Books - competition details are with each book summary below.

City of Death
Written by James Goss, based on the story by Douglas Adams
Published in hardback 21st May 2015 [order]

The Doctor takes Romana for a holiday in Paris - a city which, like a fine wine, had a bouquet all of its own. Especially if you visit during one of the vintage years. But the TARDIS takes them to 1979, a table-wine year, a year whose vintage is soured by cracks - not in their wine glasses but in the very fabric of time itself.

Soon the Time Lords are embroiled in an audacious alien scheme which encompasses home-made time machines, the theft of the Mona Lisa, the resurrection of the much-feared Jagaroth race, and the beginning (and quite possibly the end) of all life on Earth.

Aided by British private detective Duggan, whose speciality is thumping people, the Doctor and Romana must thwart the machinations of the suave, mysterious Count Scarlioni - all twelve of him - if the human race has any chance of survival.

But then, the Doctor's holidays tend to turn out a bit like this.

City of Death is one of the best-loved serials in the show's 50-year history and was watched by over 16 million viewers when first broadcast.

Competition

To be in with a chance to win a copy of the book, answer the following question:

What was David Fisher's original working title for his script that eventually became City of Death?

Please send your answers along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-citybook@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "Bye Bye, Duggan". The competition is open to readers in the United Kingdom only, closing date: 31st May 2015. Only one entry per household will be accepted.

The Scientific Secrets of Doctor Who
Written by Simon Guerrier and Dr Marek Kukula
Published in hardback 4th June 2015 [order]

Doctor Who stories are many things: thrilling adventures, historical dramas, and science fiction tales. But how much of the science is real? And how much is fiction?

Weaving together authoratitive scientific discussion with a series of new adventures by acclaimed Doctor Who writers including Jenny T Colgan, George Mann and Jacqueline Rayner, Simon Guerrier and Dr Marek Kukula explore the possibilities of time travel, life on other planets, artificial intelligence, parallel universes and more. From the dawn of astronomy and the discovery of gravity to the moon landings and string theory, the authors show how science has inspired Doctor Who, and how, on occasion, life has mirrored art, such as the 1989 discovery of 'ice-canoes' on Triton which were featured in the 1973 episode The Planet of the Daleks.

The first official guide to the science of Doctor Who by acclaimed Doctor Who novelist Simon Guerrier and Dr Marek Kukula, the Public Astonomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich.

Competition

To be in with a chance to win a copy of the book, answer the following question:

Which professor presented a programme delving in the science of Doctor Who on television during the 50th Anniversary celebrations?

Please send your answers along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-sciencebook@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "Strange Matters". The competition is open to readers in the United Kingdom only, closing date: 5th June 2015. Only one entry per household will be accepted.

Engines of War
Written by George Mann
Published in paperback 18th June 2015 [order]

"I've had many faces. Many lives. I don't admit to all of them. There's one life I've tried very hard to forget - the Doctor who fought in the Time War."

The Great Time War has raged for centuries, ravaging the universe. Scores of human colony planets are now overrun by Dalek occupation forces. A weary, angry Doctor leads a flotilla of Battle TARDISes against the Dalek stronghold but in the midst of the carnage, the Doctor's TARDIS crashes to a planet below: Moldox.

As the Doctor is trapped in an apocalyptic landscape, Dalek patrols roam amongst the wrackage, rounding up the remaining civilians. But why haven't the Daleks simply killed the humans?

Searching for answers the Doctor meets 'Cinder', a young Dalek hunter. Their struggles to discover the Dalek plan take them from the ruins of Moldox to the halls of Gallifrey, and set in motion a chain of events that will change everything. And everyone.

An epic novel of the Great Time War featuring the War Doctor as played by John Hurt.

Competition

To be in with a chance to win a copy of the book, answer the following question:

On which planet did the Doctor regenerate into the incarnation that fought in and orginally ended the Time War?

Please send your answers along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-enginesbook@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "Before the Moment". The competition is open to readers in the United Kingdom only, closing date: 19th June 2015. Only one entry per household will be accepted.

Looking ahead to later in the year, 16th July sees the publication of The Drosten's Curse by A.L. Kennedy, whilst three new adventures for the twelfth Doctor are published on the 10th September, The Royal Blood by Una McCormack, Big Bang Generation by Gary Russell, and Deep Time by Trevor Baxendale.

FILTER: - Books - Competitions - Fourth Doctor - War Doctor

BBC Audio releases for May

Saturday, 16 May 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster

This month sees two audio books released by BBC Audio on the 21st May, the adaptation of one of the final 20th Century Doctor Who stories to come out in print, 1979's Season 17 adventure City of Death (published on the same day in the UK), and an adaptation of the BBC Book Last of the Gaderene by Mark Gatiss, originally published in 2000 and again in 2013 as part of the 50th Anniversary collection.

City of Death (audio book) (Credit: BBC Audio)

City of Death
Written by Douglas Adams, adapted by James Goss, read by Lalla Ward
Released 21st May 2015 [pre-order in the United Kingdom or North America]

The Doctor takes Romana for a holiday in Paris - a city which, like a fine wine, has a bouquet all its own. But the TARDIS arrives in 1979, a table-wine year, whose vintage is soured by cracks in the very fabric of time itself. Soon the Time Lords are embroiled in an audacious alien scheme which encompasses home-made time machines, the theft of the Mona Lisa, the resurrection of the much-feared Jagaroth race, and the beginning (and quite possibly the end) of all life on Earth.

Aided by British private detective Duggan, the Doctor and Romana must thwart the machinations of the suave, mysterious Count Scarlioni - all twelve of him - if the human race has any chance of survival.

Lalla Ward, who played Romana in the TV series, reads this novel by James Goss, based on the original 1979 serial, written by Douglas Adams under the pen name David Agnew.

Novelisation adaptions for the rest of the year are currently scheduled as: The Massacre (11th June), Doctor Who and The Ark in Space (16th July), The Two Doctors (3rd September), The Curse of Fenric (5th November), and K9 and Company (3rd December).

Competition

To be in with a chance to win a copy of the audio book City of Death courtesy of BBC Audio, answer the following question:

How do the critics at the art gallery describe the dematerialisation of the TARDIS 'exhibit'?

Please send your answers along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-cityofdeath@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "The Scarlioni Angle". The competition is open world-wide, closing date: 31st May 2015. Only one entry per household will be accepted.

Last of the Gaderene (audio book) (Credit: BBC Audio)

Last of the Gaderene
Written by Mark Gatiss, read by Richard Franklin
Released 21st May 2015 [preorder in the United Kingdom]

Richard Franklin reads an original novel by Mark Gatiss, featuring the Third Doctor as played on TV by Jon Pertwee.

The aerodrome in Culverton has new owners, and they promise an era of prosperity for the idyllic village. But former Spitfire pilot Alex Whistler is suspicious, and when black-shirted troops appear on the streets, he contacts his old friend Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart at UNIT.

The Doctor investigates – and soon uncovers a sinister plot to colonise the Earth. The Gaderene are on their way…

Richard Franklin, who played UNIT’S Captain Mike Yates in the Doctor Who TV series, reads this exciting original adventure by Mark Gatiss.

The next 'old' novel adaptation to be published will be Paul Cornell's Human Nature on 20th August.

Competition

To be in with a chance to win a copy of the audio book Last of the Gaderene courtesy of BBC Audio, answer the following question:

Name the company that takes over Culverton's aerodrome.

Please send your answers along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-cityofdeath@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "Culverton Mystery". The competition is open world-wide, closing date: 31st May 2015. Only one entry per household will be accepted.

FILTER: - Audio - BBC Audio - Books - Competitions - Fourth Doctor - Merchandise

German DVD release of The Five Doctors delayed

Friday, 15 May 2015 - Reported by Pascal Salzmann

Pandastorm Pictures (Credit: Pandastorm Pictures)

In a statement to fans on their Facebook page as well as in a newsletter, German DVD distributer Pandastorm Pictures announced that their release of The Five Doctors, originally planned for 26th June 2015, will now be released two months later, on 28th August 2015.

The reasons for the delay are, according to the Facebook message, "problems with the material". The newsletter adds that Pandastorm believed the german dub to exist but realised too late that it had been deleted. Thankfully a fan helped out with his recording of the german dub.

Here is the original newsletter announcement, translated from German:

Dear Doctor Who-fans,
we received a lot of positive feedback from you for the last few months. There were photos with you and the boxed sets, a self-made action figure of the Candyman and even Sophie Aldred (Ace) who can be seen on a picture, posing with our second 7th Doctor boxed set. WOW! We would like to send you all a big THANK YOU. Without you the making of these boxed sets would not have been possible.

Some of you might already know that we will also release "The Five Doctors" in Germany. We planned to release it on 26th June 2015 but we sadly have to delay the release to 28th August 2015. After some misunderstandings we now know for sure that the German TV-version had been destroyed. The good news is that our appeal to fans last summer payed off after all and a Doctor Who-fan made his recording available to us. All this took us a lot of time, so that the DVD's won't be ready in time, if we want to deliver a high quality product.

Pandastorm then continued listing all the versions of the 20th Anniversary Special that will be on the 2-Disc-Set:

TV version in English
TV version in German (including German subtitles for the scenes edited out in Germany)
Three-part TV version in German (heavily edited, some scenes arranged in a different order)
Special Edition in English
Special Edition in German (including German subtitles for the scenes that were not shown in Germany)

So far Pandastorm Pictures released all three seasons of the seventh Doctor in season boxed sets in Germany. After The Five Doctors they are going to release two boxed sets for the complete sixth Doctor run and a 2-disc DVD release of The TV Movie.

FILTER: - Blu-ray/DVD - Fifth Doctor - Germany - Pandastorm - Second Doctor - Third Doctor

O prisioneiro dos Daleks

Friday, 15 May 2015 - Reported by Chuck Foster

A special event is taking place at the Livraria Cultura in São Paulo, Brazil on 16th May from 4:00pm to tie in with the publication of tenth Doctor novel O prisioneiro dos Daleks - aka Prisoner of the Daleks - originally written by Trevor Baxendale and published in the UK in 2009. The book has been translated by Camila Fernandes and published by Suma das Letras.

The event features reader chats, a special quiz O Elo Mais Forte (The Strongest Link) with four fans battling to prove who's most knowledgeable about Doctor Who, raffles and also the chance to pose with the TARDIS! The event will also celebrate the arrival of Doctor Who on Brazilian television channel TV Cultura, with episodes of the show to be shown during the afternoon.

O prisioneiro dos Daleks
Written by Trevor Baxendale, translated by Camila Fernandes
Published by Suma das Letras

Uma aventura inédita do Décimo Doutor, interpretado na tevê por David Tennant

O Império Dalek não para de se expandir, e batalhas eclodem em vários sistemas solares. Quando o futuro da galáxia está em jogo, o Doutor se vê a bordo de uma nave próxima à linha de frente, junto a um implacável grupo de caçadores de recompensas.

O Comando da Terra paga a eles por cada Dalek morto, por cada olho entregue como prova. Mas, com a ajuda do Doutor, os caçadores conseguem algo de valor inestimável: um Dalek inteiro, vivo, com os sistemas desarmados e pronto para ser interrogado. No entanto, com os Daleks nada é o que parece e ninguém está a salvo. Quando o jogo virar, como o Doutor sobreviverá ao se tornar prisioneiro de seu maior inimigo?

More details can be found via the Livraria Cultura website. The event is being hosted by Doctor Who Brasil.

FILTER: - Books - Brazil - Tenth Doctor

War Doctor Joins Titan for Summer Event

Wednesday, 13 May 2015 - Reported by Marcus

Doctor Who News can exclusively reveal the photo covers for the Titan Comics summer event, announced yesterday.

The 5 part series will feature the Tenth , Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors, alongside the War Doctor as portrayed by John Hurt, who graces the cover of issue 1 of the series. Week 2's cover stars David Tennant, week 3's Matt Smith, with Peter Capaldi on the front of issue 4.

The story is written by Paul Cornell and illustrated by Neil Edwards, will be published weekly starting Wednesday August 12