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

Minister of Chance

Sunday, 20 March 2011 - Reported by Marcus

A new audio drama featuring the vocal talents of two former Doctors has just been released.

The Minister of Chance is described as a new form of entertainment, a radiophonic drama, made using a combination of film and radio techniques and delivered by podcast.

The series, which has won rave reviews from industry insiders, boasts an impressive cast with the Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy playing The Witch Prime and the Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann playing Durian.

Julian Wadham of The English Patient and The Madness of King George, plays The Minister, Jenny Agutter plays Professor Cantha and Paul Darrow plays Lord Rathen. The cast also features Gethin Anthony, Lauren Crace, Stuart Fox, Peter Guinness, Lloyd Hutchinson, Mark Lewis and Jay Taylor.

The character of the Minister of Chance first appeared in Death Comes to Time, a BBC Doctor Who webcast first broadcast on the BBCi Cult website in the summer of 2001, where the character was played by Stephen Fry.

Six episodes of this new series, which does not feature the character of The Doctor, are planned, of which the first two have been recorded. The completion of the series depends on the success of these episodes. A prologue and the first episode, The Broken World, can be downloaded now.

FILTER: - Audio - Sylvester McCoy - Paul McGann

Doctor Who Comics Come to iTunes

Sunday, 20 March 2011 - Reported by Jeremy Bement

IDW Publishing announced at this weekend's Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2) that their line of Doctor Who comics will be available worldwide for the iPad, iPhone and other iOS devices through Apple's iTunes effective immediately. They will also be launching the line of comics on the Sony PSP within weeks.

Until now, IDW's original Doctor Who comics were only available in North America which left many fans unable to view the Tenth and Eleventh Doctor's adventures. With this announcement, fans will be able to purchase and view not only IDW's original line of Doctor Who comics but also many of the classic comics from Doctor Who Magazine which have been digitally colored for the first time.

Doctor Who Comics! The complete comic book adventures of the Doctor, all in one app. Only from IDW Publishing, the leader in digital comics.

IDW Publishing presents the critically acclaimed DOCTOR WHO comic book series. The Doctor Who Comics app features all-new adventures of Matt Smith, the Eleventh Doctor, as well as the 10th Doctor, David Tennant, and classics from decades past.

Includes 3 free comics, with over 40 comics available!

Each comic has been formatted to view as the entire page or custom crafted panels for the iPhone and iPod touch that make reading easy and fun. Shop for new issues in a familiar, easy to use store front, and view your collection on your virtual bookshelf.

Check out iTunes for the Doctor Who Comic app and Comic Book Resources for more information.

FILTER: - Online - Comics

SFX Blog Awards - Nominees

Sunday, 20 March 2011 - Reported by Marcus

The website SFX has launched the SFX Blog Awards, honouring SF sites that were created for the love of the genre, and maintained by people out of love rather than money.

Nominations have been drawn up from suggestions made by members of the SFX Forum, SFX team members and the SFX Bloggers and include a number of Doctor Who sites including The Doctor Who News Page which is nominated as Best SF News Blog.

Gallifrey Base is nominated as Best SF Fan Community and Doctor Who Podshock as Best SF Podcast.

Life, Doctor Who And Combom and Who Fix are both nominated as Best SF Franchise Specific Site.

Paul Cornell, James Moran and Neil Gaiman are all nominated for Best Celebrity Blog.

You can vote in the awards at the SFX website.

FILTER: - Magazines - Awards/Nominations

Previous 10 Stories

First 2011 Series trailer tonight

Torchwood: Miracle Day for 8th July (Starz)

Revisitations Box Set: Volume 2 - Artwork

Win Doctor Who - A Christmas Carol (OST)

Novelisation of Shada to be published in 2012

Doctor Who returns to Ztélé from April 6

Michael Sheen in Doctor Who

Minister of Chance

Doctor Who Comics Come to iTunes

SFX Blog Awards - Nominees

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