Fan Productions roundup

Thursday, 24 March 2011 - Reported by Harry Ward

A roundup of recent fan productions includes new issues of fanzines and a request for submissions to a new book!

Whotopia - Issue 20

In this issue:

The Tennant Legacy - Ian Wheeler considers what Doctor number ten has given to the series
Ten Again Thomas - Willam Spychalski take us on an overview of the Doctor's tenth persona
Tennant's Ladies - Emily Jones reflects upon the Tenth Doctor's female companions
Martha Jones: Is She The Worst Companion Ever? - A fresh critique of the Tenth Doctor's lovelorn companion by Steve Tomporowski
The Perfect Tennant - Kenny Smith investigates whether the Tenth Doctor was the perfect Doctor
Romance In Doctor Who - Grant Bull tackles one of the series' more contentious aspects
How The Mighty Fall - A look at the apparent end of the Time Lords by Matthew Kresal
The Stephen Wyatt Interview - Jez Strickley keeps an eye out for lethal cleaners and sinister circuses as he chats with the writer behind Paradise Towers and Greatest Show In The Galaxy.
Target Trawl - A mammoth installment in Nick Mellish's reading marathon.
Screwdrivers, Scaries and Scarves: Regeneration - Jez Strickley offers some thoughts on this unique sci-fi creation.
The Better The Devil You Know - Richard Farrell looks back the Tenth Doctor's face-off with an ancient evil as he reassess The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit.
Dalek's Advocate: Love and Monsters - Jez Strickley takes up the Skarosians case for this much debated adventure.
The Memory of Darkness: Part Four - The concluding installment of our original fiction story by Julio Angel Ortiz.

Plus all our regular columns: Screwdrivers, Scaries & Scarves/ Target Trawl/ Parallel Lines, features and more!

The Third Zone - Issue 2

In this issue:

Merchandise reviewed From Big Finish we have The Feast of Axos, The Perpetual Bond and Andy has tackled both The Mutants and The Ark on DVD. Note – we were going to include the latest eighth Doctor audio Lucie Miller but we have decided to review the two-part storyline as a whole.
Matter of Perspective - Steve Lyons' popular New Adventure, Conundrum come under the limelight. Reversing our roles from last month, Andy has been reading away and has a good grilling by yours truly.
The Evelyn Escapades seems to have been one of the most popular elements on the site with the most hits (the reviews excepted) and this month we have completed The Spectre of Lanyon Moor.
Charlotte and Simon, our non-fan cohorts have been watching the William Hartnell classic, Planet of Giants.
Amy Pond, heavenly or floozy? Andy stands in defence of the Doctor’s latest companion whilst I try and convince you that she doesn’t quite work.
Interviews with two of Big Finish’s most exciting writers, Jacqueline Rayner (Wolfsbane, Dr Who & the Pirates) and Simon Guerrier (The Perpetual Bond). They share their thoughts on their latest work.
Who Online this month praises the Big Finish review and voting site, The Time Scales.
I look back at Nicholas Courtney's contributions to Doctor Who and include my top five favourite Brigadier stories.

All this plus part two of our exciting three part fiction piece, The Shadows Makers written by Joe Ford and an essay looking at the delightful Big Finish spin off The Companion Chronicles Seasons 1-3

Issue three will be released April 15th.

The Hub - Issue One

One of the first of its kind The Hub promises to bring content from all era’s of Torchwood- from Season One to the upcoming fourth season Miracle Day. Each issue is packed with nearly thirty pages of content, offering opportunities to any article and fan fiction writers.

In the debut Issue, we bring you...

We look at Torchwood Through Time
Brand new action packed fiction The Five Jacks begins
The Fandom Zone features a review of popular online spoof show Doothcrow.
The Torchwood Debate discusses which is the better season format.
We see if Gwen Cooper is either a “Hore” or “Heroin”.
All the latest from the set of Miracle Day.
All the Latest News in the Torchwood Universe.
A preview of forthcoming Torchwood anthology: Time for Change.
And two free posters!

All this is free to download this now!

The Best Doctor Who Poems in the Universe

It’s June 2011 and Series 6 is in its mid-season break and a unique new Doctor Who book has been published - but it needs your contributions NOW otherwise it will never happen and could cause no end of wibbly wobbly timey wimey problems!

Just like the Tenth Doctor and Shakespeare used the power of words to defeat the Carrionites, this book needs you to use the power of words to create poems about Doctor Who. They can be about the Doctor, his companions, his enemies or even what Doctor Who means to you and is open to everyone.

For example:

Daleks, Daleks, everywhere
On the ground, and in the air.
You hear their voice and you know your fate
Because they are only here to exterminate!

But I’m sure you can do a lot better than that!! There will also be a special mention to anyone who can rhyme Raxacoricofallapatorius!

Please email your entries to: drwhopoems@GJBpublishing.co.uk

• Include your name, age (if you want!) and location.
• Open to any age
• Poems can be a maximum of 30 lines in length.Maximum of two per person.
• All work should be your own and not previously published.
• Winning contributors will retain copyright of their work.
• The top 100 poems will be selected. The editor’s decision is final.

We also are looking for budding Vincent Van Gogh’s to send in your
Doctor Who line drawings to decorate the book. (Your name will be credited alongside your work).

Pictures to be sent via email, and need to be 300dpi jpegs and under 10MB
You can submit a maximum of two.

Deadline for entries: 14th May 2011

The Tides of Time archive

The eighth Doctor can be dismissed merely an embodiment of lost hopes and promises unfulfilled or broken. However, he was salvaged by the fans of Doctor Who and has enjoyed innumerable adventures across a fractured multiverse of print, audio and comic strip. Coverage of the books and audios will feature in later releases, but for now here are some responses to his one television appearance, in the 1996 TV Movie, as well as some original fiction with different takes on the eighth Doctor’s fate. These articles were published in The Tides of Time between 1996 and 2002, except for one which though dealing with the Oxford Doctor Who Society’s viewing of the TV Movie in 1996 was published in the last (to date) issue of Skaro in 1997. All the PDFs bar Independence Day (which has been reset for this release) are scans from the original photocopies or printouts of Tides, and reflect the technology used to make the originals.

Reportage

West Coast Story. An optimistic outlook on Doctor Who‘s prospects written shortly before the broadcast of the TV Movie, misreading some of the auguries, by Matthew Kilburn. Published in Tides 19 (1996)
Independence Day. An account of the society’s reception of the TV Movie’s broadcast, by Matthew Kilburn. Published in Skaro [vol. 5 no.] 13 (1997)

Fiction

An End to Things by David Bickley. A new psychologist at the Institute is drawn to patient number eight. Published in Tides 25 (2000)
Have We No Workhouses? by Derek Haywood. The eighth Doctor enjoys a post-TVM career as a media executive in the age of Cool Britannia, while his previous selves suffer. Published in Tides 27 (2001)
Reliquary Man, part one by Alexandra Cameron. The Doctor and his goddaughter Chandra meet Alexis de Tocqueville – but what are Polaroids and automatic weapons doing in mid-nineteenth century France? Published in Tides 28 (2002)
Reliquary Man, part two by Alexandra Cameron. An old foe waits for the Doctor. Published in Tides 28 (2002)

Retrospective

I can’t make your dream come true forever… The strengths of the TV Movie, by Saraquazel. Published in Tides 28 (2002)
…but I can make it come true tonight. The TV Movie as missed opportunity and catalogue of errors, by John Amos. Published in Tides 28 (2002)

Eighth Doctor fiction by Alex Cameron can also be found in Tides 30 (2005), Tides 31 (2005) and Tides 32 (2006), all of which can be downloaded in full as PDFs.

FILTER: - Fan Productions

Doctor Who WonderCon panel

Thursday, 24 March 2011 - Reported by Harry Ward

Nerdist has announced that Neil Gaiman, Mark Sheppard, and Toby Haynes will be on the Doctor Who panel at WonderCon 2011.

The panel will be moderated by fan of the show Chris Hardwick, who appeared on Craig Ferguson's The Late Late Show along with Matt Smith last year. Smith was then a guest on Hardwick's Nerdist Podcast 46. Neil Gaiman has written episode four of the new series, which also has Michael Sheen provide a voice-over for an as yet unnamed character. Mark Sheppard plays Canton Everett Delaware III in The Impossible Astronaut / Day of the Moon. These two opening episodes of the 2011 series have been directed by Toby Haynes with the first due to be broadcast by BBC America on April 23rd at 9pm ET/PT.

The panel will take place on Sunday April 3rd from 11:30-12:15 in the Esplanade Ballroom. More information can be found on the WonderCon website.

FILTER: - Conventions

Doctor Who Adventures 210

Wednesday, 23 March 2011 - Reported by Harry Ward

This week's issue of Doctor Who Adventures comes with a free Prisoner Zero grabber!

Also in this issue:

That’s Not My Name! We look into the Doctor’s biggest secret – what he’s really called!
The Pandorica Alliance! The scariest bunch of monsters ever assembled actually managed to imprison the Doctor! Find out which aliens were in this fearsome group!
The Timey Wimey travels of Amy Pond!
Doctor, Doctor! If you’ve got a problem that needs solving, ask the Doctor – there’s no one smarter!
Readers’ Awards

The magazine also contains exclusive posters, more comic adventures and puzzles.

Issue 210 of Doctor Who Adventures magazine is out in the UK now.

FILTER: - Magazines - DWA

First 2011 Series trailer tonight

Wednesday, 23 March 2011 - Reported by Chuck Foster

BBC Publicity have confirmed that a 15 second teaser trailer for the new series of Doctor Who will be broadcast tonight at 9:00pm, with minor variations across the four main BBC channels.

Meanwhile, as previously reported, a special prelude to The Impossible Astronaut will also be made available from the official BBC Doctor Who site; this goes live from Friday at 4:00pm - a teaser for it is now available on the website.

Doctor Who teaser trailer, via the BBC Doctor Who site and YouTube (may not play outside the United Kingdom)

A longer "Coming Soon" compilation trail is currently expected to launch from Tuesday (29th March).

FILTER: - Series 6/32

Torchwood: Miracle Day for 8th July (Starz)

Wednesday, 23 March 2011 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Torchwood: Miracle Day co-producer Starz have released a poster confirming the USA premier for the show, revealing the date for when the series commences as Friday 8th July. The BBC has yet to confirm if it will also broadcast the first episode on the same evening.

(report courtesy of TV|Line)

FILTER: - Torchwood - Miracle Day (Series 4)

Revisitations Box Set: Volume 2 - Artwork

Wednesday, 23 March 2011 - Reported by Marcus

2|Entertain have released the artwork for the forthcoming DVD release Revisitations Box Set - Volume 2.

The box set is the second of a series comprising stories that were released near the start of the DVD range and now re-released with new restoration and added extras.

Featuring three stories, Seeds of Death, Carnival of Monsters and Resurrection of the Daleks and starring Patrick Troughton as the Second Doctor, Jon Pertwee as the third Doctor and Peter Davison as the fifth Doctor, Doctor Who: Revisitations 2 will be available on DVD in the UK from 28th March 2011.

All episodes are newly remastered, utilising advances in technology and technique, and are supported by an expanded collection of bonus features.

The Seeds of Death

Starring Patrick Troughton as Doctor Who, with Frazer Hines as Jamie, and Wendy Padbury as Zoe
Written by Brian Hayles
Directed by Michael Ferguson

Broadcast: 25th January-1st March 1969

It is the 21st Century and Earth is totally dependent on T-Mat, a revolutionary form of instant travel. When the system breaks down the Doctor and friends make a hazardous journey to the relay station on the moon only to find that it has fallen into the hands of the Ice Warriors who plan to invade Earth. Can the Doctor outwit the evil Ice Warriors and destroy the fungus in time to save a dying world?

Special Features

Disc One:

6 x 25 min monochrome episodes with mono audio.
Commentary – with actors Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury, director Michael Ferguson and script editor Terrance Dicks.
Audio Trailer (dur. 0’ 45”) – an off-air amateur recording of the original BBC1 trailer for the story.
Coming Soon (dur. approx 1' 00") - a trail for a forthcoming DVD release.
Programme Subtitles
Subtitle Production Notes

Disc Two:

Lords of the Red Planet (dur. 28’ 31”) – a look back at the creation of the Ice Warriors and their re-appearance in the ‘The Seeds of Death’. With actors Wendy Padbury and Frazer Hines, director Michael Ferguson, script editor Terrance Dicks, costume designer Bobi Bartlett and TV historian Richard Bignell. Narrated by Katherine Mount.
Sssowing the Ssseedsss – (dur. 24’ 05”) – Ice Warrior Sonny Caldinez, Ice Lord Alan Bennion and make-up designer Sylvia James recall their experiences of bringing the Martian warriors to life.
Monster Masterclass (dur. 3’ 44”) – director Michael Ferguson talks about his experiences directing some of Doctor Who’s most famous monster stories.
Monsters Who Came Back For More! (dur. 16’ 26”) – Nick ‘Voice of the Daleks’ Briggs and Doctor Who Magazine’s assistant editor Peter Ware take a look at the reasons why monsters often return for further adventures.
Photo Gallery (dur. 4’ 30”) - a selection of design and production photographs from the story.
TARDIS Cam no.6 (dur. 0’ 57”) – a model vignette created for the BBC’s Doctor Who website.
PDF material - Radio Times listings in PDF format.

2|Entertain released a small preview of the documentary on The Seeds of Death, Lords of the Red Planet; this can be viewed in our earlier article about the item.

Carnival of Monsters

Starring Jon Pertwee as Doctor Who, with Katy Manning as Jo Grant
Written by Robert Holmes
Directed by Barry Letts

Broadcast: 27th January-17th February 1973

The Doctor and Jo take the TARDIS on a test flight and arrive on a cargo ship, the SS Bernice, that appears to be crossing the Indian Ocean in 1926 but is in fact trapped inside a miniscope — a banned peepshow of miniaturised life-forms — on the planet Inter Minor.

Special Features

Disc One:

4 x 25 min episodes with mono audio.
Commentary 1 – with actress Katy Manning and director Barry Letts.
Commentary 2 – with actors Peter Halliday, Cheryl Hall and Jenny McCracken, script editor Terrance Dicks, sound effects designer Brian Hodgson. Moderated by Toby Hadoke.
Episode Two – Early Edit (dur. 29’ 44”) – a longer early edit of the second episode, featuring the subsequently rejected ‘Delaware’ version of the theme music. It is presented here completely un-restored.
Behind the Scenes (dur 1’ 48”) – on the studio floor and inside the gallery during production of the story, courtesy of a film crew from the BBC’s ‘Looking In’ documentary.
Visual Effects Models (dur. 8’ 41”) – an expanded version of this feature, including unused model shots, trims and tests.
‘Five Faces of Doctor Who’ Trailer (dur. 4’ 10”) – a trail for the 1981’s repeat season, which saw many of Doctor Who’s classic stories – including ‘Carnival of Monsters’ - repeated for the first time in many years.
Director’s Amended Ending (dur. 1’ 18”) – for the ‘Five Faces’ repeat of the story, director Barry Lett’s took the opportunity to re-edit the ending to remove a shot of a very obvious ‘bald cap’ which he had always felt spoiled the show.
CSO Demo (dur. 3’ 07”) – director Barry Letts was very keen on the possibilities offered by the use of Colour Separation Overlay to place actors into fantastical model sets. In this BBC training film, he demonstrates the technique for fellow directors.
TARDIS Cam no.2 (dur. 0’ 45”) – a CGI model vignette created for the BBC’s Doctor Who website.
Coming Soon (dur. approx 1' 00") - a trail for a forthcoming DVD release.
PDF material - Radio Times listings in PDF format.
Programme Subtitles

Disc Two:

Destroy All Monsters! (dur. 23’ 11”) – cast and crew look back at the making of the story. With actors Katy Manning, Cheryl Hall and Peter Halliday, director Barry Letts, script editor Terrance Dicks, assistant floor manager Karilyn Collier and visual effects assistant Colin Mapson. Narrated by Marc Silk.
On Target with Ian Marter (dur. 16’ 08”) – actor Ian Marter played Andrews in this story before more famously playing companion Harry Sullivan in Tom Baker’s first stories. He was also a writer and novelised many previous Doctor Who adventures for the Target book range. With actors Tom Baker, Elisabeth Sladen, Nicholas Courtney and Nigel Plaskitt, script editors Terrance Dicks and Gary Russell.
The A-Z of Gadgets and Gizmos (dur. 11’ 22”) – a tongue-in-cheek look at gadgets and gizmos in Doctor Who over the years. Narrated by Paul Jones.
Mary Celeste (dur. 18’ 01”) – just as the SS Bernice disappeared from the Indian Ocean in the story, many real-life ships have mysteriously disappeared too. A trio of maritime experts discuss some of these events, including perhaps the most famous maritime mystery of all time, the strange case of the Mary Celeste. With the University of London’s Prof. Roger Luckhurst, Merseyside Maritime Museum’s Ian Murphy and the National Maritime Museum’s John McAleer.
Photo Gallery (dur. 2’ 55”) - a selection of design and production photographs from the story, plus photos from the commentary session and Frank Bellamay’s Radio Times artwork.

Resurrection of the Daleks

Starring Peter Davison as The Doctor, with Janet Fielding as Tegan, and Mark Strickson as Turlough
Written by Eric Saward
Directed by Matthew Robinson

Broadcast: 8th-15th February 1984

The Doctor and his companions captured in a Time Corridor, and are forced to land on 20th Century Earth, diverted by the Doctor's oldest enemy - the Daleks.

It is here that the true purpose of the Time Corridor becomes apparent: after 90 years of imprisonment, Davros, the ruthless creator of the Daleks, is to be liberated to assist in the resurrection of his army. But not even the Daleks forsee the poisonous threat presented by their creator. Indeed, who would suspect Davros of wanting to destroy his own Daleks - and why?

Only the Doctor knows the truth. But will he be capable of descending to Davros' level of evil in order to stop him?

Special Features

Disc One:

2 x 45 min colour episodes with original mono audio and optional Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound.
Commentary with actor Terry Molloy, writer Eric Saward and visual effects designer Peter Wragg, moderated by Nick Pegg.
Casting Far and Wide (dur. 32’ 16”) – Actor and comedian Toby Hadoke interviews five of the jobbing actors who worked on the story about their careers and their experiences on the show. With Roger Davenport, Del Henney, Leslie Grantham, Jim Findlay and William Sleigh.
On Location (dur. 18’ 32”) – producer John Nathan-Turner, director Matthew Robinson and writer Eric Saward return to London’s Shad Thames to reminisce about the story in its major filming location.
Extended and Deleted Scenes (dur. 7’ 03”) – extra material from early edits of the episodes.
Breakfast Time (dur. 7’ 56”) – Janet Fielding and John Nathan-Turner interviewed on the BBC’s breakfast show, including an item about the show’s music and sound effects featuring Malcolm Clarke and Brian Hodgson.
Trailer (dur. 0’ 31”) – a BBC1 trailer for the original transmission.
The Last Dalek (dur. 8’ 33”) – a behind-the-scenes look at the Ealing studios filming for 1967’s epic Dalek story, ‘The Evil of the Daleks’, courtesy of an 8mm film shot by BBC designer Tony Cornell. With narration by BBC visual effects designers Michealjohn Harris and Peter Day.
TARDIS Cam no.4 (dur. 0’ 41”) – a model vignette created for the BBC’s Doctor Who website.
Isolated Music - option to view the episodes with isolated music scores.
Coming Soon (dur. approx 1' 00") - a trail for a forthcoming DVD release.
PDF material - Radio Times listings in PDF format.
Programme Subtitles
Subtitle Production Notes

Disc Two:

4 x 25 min colour episodes with original mono audio and optional Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound.
Commentary with actors Peter Davison and Janet Fielding, director Matthew Robinson.
Come In Number Five (dur. 56’ 27”) – a retrospective of Peter Davison’s tenure as the fifth Doctor. With actors Peter Davison, Janet Fielding and Mark Strickson, producer John Nathan-Turner, executive producer Barry Letts, director Fiona Cumming, script editors Christopher H Bidmead, Eric Saward and Antony Root, BBC Head of Series and Serials David Reid and new series head writer Steven Moffat. Presented by David Tennant
Tomorrow’s Times – The Fifth Doctor (dur. 12’ 17”) – the ongoing series looking at the press reaction to Doctor Who through the years reaches the fifth Doctor’s era. Presented by Frazer Hines
Walrus (dur. 1’ 21”) – an oddity from the BBC’s archives. A Welsh woman comes face to face with a Dalek, who is determined to make her speak in a monotone
Photo Gallery (dur. 5’ 16”) - a selection of design and production photographs from the story
Coming Soon (dur. approx 1' 00") - a trail for a forthcoming DVD release.
PDF material - Radio Times listings in PDF format.
Programme Subtitles
Subtitle Production Notes

(Revisitations Box Set - Volume 2 is available to pre-order from our Amazon Shop)

FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

Win Doctor Who - A Christmas Carol (OST)

Tuesday, 22 March 2011 - Reported by Marcus

The Doctor Who News Page is offering readers the chance to win a copy of Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol by Murray Gold, Ben Foster, the BBC National Orchestra Of Wales and featuring Katherine Jenkins.

A Christmas Carol
Music written by Murray Gold, performed by BBC National Orchestra Of Wales and conducted by Ben Foster

Murray Gold’s immaculately crafted soundtrack to the 2010 Doctor Who Christmas special.

Doctor Who on Christmas Day has now become part of the yuletide tradition in the UK almost rivalling the seasonal greats such as Morecambe & Wise, The Queen’s Speech and EastEnders.

Featuring opera diva Katherine Jenkins as Abigail Pettigrew, Matt Smith as the 11th Doctor, and Michael Gambon as Kazran Sardick, A Christmas Carol was the third most watched programme on December 25th.

Katherine Jenkins’ special appearance was crowned with her performance of Abigail’s Song (Silence Is All You Know), featured on the album as track number 28.

Released: 21st March 2011

(available to buy now from our Amazon Shop)

We have six copies of the CD up for grabs courtesy of Silva Screen Records. To be in for a chance of winning the competition, simply answer this question:

In A Christmas Carol, what is the name of the device that Abigail sings into so that the space liner can land safely?

Send your answer with your name, address and email to us at acc-competition@doctorwhonews.net, with the subject line A Christmas Carol CD Competition.

Closing Date: 6th April 2011

FILTER: - Competitions - Doctor Who News

Novelisation of Shada to be published in 2012

Tuesday, 22 March 2011 - Reported by Harry Ward

BBC Books have announced that they are to publish a novelisation of the "lost" Doctor Who serial Shada.

Shada retells an adventure that never made it to the screen. Production of the planned finale to the 1979-1980 season of Doctor Who was halted part-way through due to industrial action at the BBC, and the story was never completed. Now, drawing on drafts of the script and production notes as well as original designs and the material that was completed, prolific Doctor Who TV script writer Gareth Roberts tells this unique story, featuring Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor, in full for the first time.

Published with the full support of the Estate of Douglas Adams and Adams' agent Ed Victor at Ed Victor Ltd, Shada will be the first ever novelisation of Douglas Adams’s work on Doctor Who.

The book will be published by BBC Books in March 2012 as a £16.99 hardback.

FILTER: - Books

Doctor Who returns to Ztélé from April 6

Tuesday, 22 March 2011 - Reported by Marcus

French-speaking Canadians will get a chance to catch up with the last days of the tenth Doctor and the first series of the Eleventh, when Doctor Who returns to Ztélé this spring.

The series kicks off with 2008 Christmas special, The Next Doctor, on Wednesday 6th April at 9pm ET. The rest of the specials will follow in subsequent weeks leading into Matt Smith's first series starting on May 4th.

English-speaking fans in the country will be able to see Matt Smith's second series on SPACE shortly after its UK début.

FILTER: - Canada - Specials - Series 5/31 - Broadcasting

Michael Sheen in Doctor Who

Monday, 21 March 2011 - Reported by Marcus

Film star Michael Sheen is to voice a character in the fourth episode of the upcoming series of Doctor Who.

Sheen revealed his involvement during a talk to students at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, and this was confirmed later by writer Neil Gaiman who penned the story that will feature the vocal talents of the actor.

Sheen is best known for his movie portrayals of well-known public figures. He played former British Prime Minister Tony Blair in The Queen, TV interviewer David Frost in Frost/Nixon and former Football manager Brian Clough in The Damned United.

Sheen was born in Newport in Wales in 1969. He was a member of the West Glamorgan Youth theatre, where he was a contemporary of former showrunner Russell T Davies.

FILTER: - Doctor Who - Production

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