The entertainment section of the BBC News Online website has today published a preview of the forthcoming Doctor Who Christmas special The Runaway Bride. The feature contains quotes from David Tennant, as well as the episode's main guest stars Catherine Tate and Sarah Parish.

Responding to a question on how long he will stay in the role, Tennant is quoted as saying that: "From the moment I accepted this job, people have asked me when I'm leaving... I have tried to be as noncommittal as possible and shall maintain that stance today."

On her role as the bride Donna in the special, Tate said the part was "one of the best things I've done... It was such a fantastic job, and so exciting. It was like making an action movie. I agreed to do it without even knowing what it was - I just said yes."

Parish, playing the villainous Empress of the Racnoss in the episode, is quoted about the heavy costume and make-up she had to wear for the part. "It was a heavy, cumbersome costume but I loved it. It was a really interesting exercise... You really have to over-accentuate everything in order to make the prosthetics work."

The full article contains some very minor spoilers for the special, so do not click the link if you want to remain completely surprised next Monday.

Big Finish has announced plans for the remainder of Season Two of their adaptation of Sapphire and Steel, which includes stories by Nigel Fairs ("Cruel Immortality") and Steve Lyons ("Perfect Day", featuring a return of a Season One character, Gold, played by Doctor Who writer Mark Gatiss).

The season finale, penned by Joseph Lidster, is "The Mystery of the Missing Hour", which guest stars Sixth DoctorColin Baker as the Narrator and Sarah Douglas (known for her roles in Superman II and the television mini-series V) as Lady Marjorie.

The Sapphire and Steel series stars David Warner as Steel and Susannah Harker as Sapphire. Visit the Sapphire and Steel page on the Big Finish website for more details about these releases.

This evening's Wales Today (BBC Wales) had a brief article on The Runaway Bride, reporting that the Doctor "gets thrown back into a bizarre set of circumstances ... it's so strange, even the cast weren't sure how the final cut would look".

David Tennant commented: "It's one of those shows where so much happens in post-production. All sorts of things happen to the TARDIS that have never happened before. The three of us [Tennant, Sarah Parish andCatherine Tate] did a scene together when we were in a completely different room on a completely different day."

Parish added: "To see the final [result] it's unbelievable - it's so exciting!"

Meanwhile, Tate appeared on the New Paul O'Grady Show on Channel 4, and inevitably the first topic of discussion was the forthcoming episode. Tate reported that she really enjoyed her time making the show, and suggested she really would have wanted to have become a proper companion rather than just the one-off appearance she had for the special. She also mentioned she'd attended the screening that had taken place today (which is presumably where theWales Today item originated).

Paul O'Grady commented that he wants a small part in the series!

People

The Guardian (free registration required) has a very thorough profile of Billie Piper: "Pop star at 15, anorexic at 16, has-been at 17, teen bride at 18, Hollywood wife at 19, drama student at 20, single woman at 21, born-again star at 22 ... it's hard to believe that Billie Piper is still only 24."

Following up on the reports from the Sun posted yesterday, Mizz magazine (issue 562) writes that Piper "is a big fan of the spin-off series, Torchwood. 'Watching it makes me scream, "I wanna do that!"' she tells us. Could this mean a Rose comeback's on the cards?"

And the People pries into Piper's personal life, as the tabloids are wont to do.

SyFy Portal names Russell T. Davies as one of its Top Newsmakers of 2006.

Dalek operator and Big Finish stalwart Barnaby Edwards is profiled at icHounslow. Edwards, who is directing a pantomime Cinderella at Dorking Halls in Surrey this Christmas, says that the biggest barrier for Daleks isn't stairs, but narrow doorways. The article also mentions the upcoming Paul McGann audios on BBC7, which Edwards is producing and co-directing.

The Runaway Bride Coverage

The Herald of Glasgow put David Tennant and Catherine Tate on the cover of their weekly magazine section this Saturday. There's an interview with Tate inside; the cover can be seen here.

Broadcasting

John Barrowman is listed to appear at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall on Monday 18 December (7.30pm) to sing 'some of his favourite Christmas songs and hits from the musicals'. (source here)

Barrowman is also a "special guest" on BBC Radio 2's Friday Night Is Music Night on Friday 22 December (7.30-9.15pm). He will sing "some of his favourite Christmas songs and hits from the musicals. His credits include Miss Saigon, Sunset Boulevard, Company, Evita, Hair and Phantom of the Opera.'" (source: DigiGuide)

Christopher Eccleston stars in Perfect Parents (written and directed by Joe Ahearne) on Thursday 28 December on ITV1 (9-11pm).

Adam Sherwin looks at the spin-off phenomenon within the BBC in The Times, considering the role Sarah Jane Adventures will play for Doctor Who, as well as other series off-shoots for shows like Spooks and Life on Mars. SaysJulian Bellamy, BBC Three controller, “To launch a series with the scale and ambition of Torchwood or Rogue Spooks, it makes sense to draw on a known brand with a loyal audience. But it doesn’t mean that we aren’t seeking entirely new titles.” The story is also covered at the Western Mail.

There's an article about The Sarah Jane Adventures from the Western Mail at icWales.

Reviews

Writing in the Guardian (free registration required), Sam Wollaston begins his 2006 television year in review by lamenting, "Oh Rose, thou art gone. And that's a serious shame. We got a splendid new Dr Who in David Tennant, but lost the main reason to tune in - the wonderful Billie Piper. She's been an absolute joy in the role of Rose Tyler, one of the reasons Dr Who has become that rare event these days - a show for all the family." The column also includes comments from Russell T. Davies, who says, "I wish I'd had time to write more Torchwoods, because I only wrote the first one. We're hitting a great stretch now with four scripts in a row by women, which in science fiction is practically unheard of. It's been less than a year since David Tennant became the Doctor. It was scary this time last year: Chris Eccleston was brilliant, then he left and there was this big hole. But have you seen the BBC schedules? It's like a Doctor Who Christmas. I'm very pleased, obviously, but it's a bit barmy." Tamsin Grieg (The Long Game) is also quoted, as is BBC Head of Vision Jana Bennett, who cites Doctor Who among the year's successes.

Also in the Guardian, Charlie Brooker calls Torchwood "the Year's Most Jarring Show". Brooker makes an amusing but disturbing analogy about Torchwood's sometimes inconsistent tone, and concludes that the program is "interesting, but possibly aimed at madmen."

Metro mentions Tripping Over, starring Eighth Doctor Paul McGann, as one of the television "lows" of 2006, due to low ratings. The article is culled from Broadcast magazine's 2006 ratings review.

Miscellaneous Mentions

The MediaGuardian's "Media Monkey" diary column (requires free registration to view) contained a passing reference to yet another instalment in the long-running Michael Grade / Doctor Who saga on December 13th. Says the column: "New ITV chairman Michael Grade could be having a few interesting conversations around the dinner table with his niece, Lesley Land... Lesley, the daughter of Michael's sister and agent Anita, was handed the Doctor Who brief when it was outsourced to PR company Taylor Herring earlier this year. Grade famously axed Doctor Who when he was in charge of BBC1 in the 80s. Monkey doesn't doubt that Land will have more commitment to the show than her uncle did."

Playwright Mark Ravenhill, profiled in the Independent, is asked, "What do you cling on to from childhood?" He replies, "My loyalty to Doctor Who has remained undimmed through the years. I watch all the DVDs of the old Doctor Whos and keep up to date with all the new ones, which are fantastic. And I buy Doctor Who Magazine, which I did then and I still do now. Tom Baker was my favourite Doctor Who, this weird, flamboyant guy, with Elisabeth Sladenplaying Sarah Jane - a classic combination."

The Lancashire Evening Post reports on items for sale at the annual Harris Exhibition, which includes a "giant Dr Who Tardis". The exhibition runs until next Friday.

A "Tardis House of Fun" was one of the suggestions made by young people for the regeneration of Lowestoft and surrounding area, the Lowestoft Journal reports. "Building on the success of the Doctor Who television programme, imaginative youngsters at Meadow Primary School encouraged people to come through the door to 'experience the wonders of Tardis land.' Jacob from the school said: 'Dr Who is my most favourite thing I watch on TV and so I had the idea for little children, not big ones, so that they could play safely.' "

"Aiden added: 'We thought of the Tardis Fun House because loads of people like Dr Who and we thought it would be good to make a play area for kids who can't travel, because they have no transport and they can be left there on their own because the Cybermen would look after them.' "

(Additional material by Paul Hayes, Chuck Foster and Peter Weaver; thanks to "PolyG" of the Outpost Gallifrey Forum.)

United Kingdom

A timely reminder to viewers in the UK that 2005's Doctor Who Christmas special The Christmas Invasion (starring David Tennant and Billie Piper and directed by James Hawes) is being repeated on BBC1 today at 4.25-5.25pm. This is the first time in many years that BBC1 has broadcast a Doctor Who repeat.

A repeat of episode 11 of Robin Hood, directed by Graeme Harper, follows straight after. Interestingly, this episode is called Dead Man Walking, the working title for episode 9 (Random Shoes) of Torchwood and the actual title of episode 9 of Torchwood: Declassified.

In a late change of schedule (according to Sky's EPG), the BBC3 repeat of Robin Hood at 7.00pm and the followingTorchwood Declassified at 7.45pm have now been replaced with a showing of last year's one-hour special Doctor Who Confidential, One Year On, which was first broadcast on BBC3's Doctor Who Night on 9th April.

The current issue of the Radio Times (16-22 December, the one with Tennant as the Doctor on the cover) has a two-page article about this year’s Christmas special The Runaway Bride (starring Tennant and Catherine Tate and directed by Euros Lyn), which starts thus:

"The traditional family Christmas. It used to go roughly like this: presents, relatives, turkey/trimmings, snooze, argue over what to watch on telly. Now it’s easier: presents, relatives, turkey/trimmings, snooze, Doctor Who Christmas special. How great is that?" How great indeed!

United States

The Sci-Fi Channel's Christmas Movie Marathon includes a broadcast of The Christmas Invasion on Christmas Day at 3:00 p.m. ET. They have slotted 90 minutes for the movie so it will remain as close to the original broadcast as is possible.

Canada

French language cable and satellite channel Ztele from Quebec, Canada, will be repeatingL'invasion de Noel (The Christmas Invasion) at 11:00pm EST on Friday December 22nd, 2006. A repeat showing of Le Seigneur du temps (the 1996 TV Movie) will follow at 12:00am EST. There are no plans for an English-language repeat of The Christmas Invasion on the CBC.

(Additional reporting from Chuck Foster, Bill Albert, Mike Doran.)

A schedule change/addition is soon to come into effect at Canadian cable and satellite channel BBC Kids. Effective January 1st, 2007, Doctor Who will run Monday - Friday at 10:00pm ET, 2:00am ET and 5:00am ET (two episodes per night). The Saturday and Sunday complete stories will continue at 2:00am ET. BBC Kids is currently airing Peter Davison episodes Monday to Friday andSylvester McCoy episodes on the weekends.

The Sun had a small article about Billie Piper on Friday, the wording and quotes of which have been widely reported on various news sites over the past 24 hours, including Yahoo! News. The piece claims she regrets leaving Doctor Who, and that she is also slightly jealous of the show's continued success. However, the actual quotes are not attributed and appear to be largely recycled from interviews she gave over the past month when she was publicising her book. The quotes include:

BBC1 have broadcast the first trailer dedicated to the forthcoming Christmas Day episode The Runaway Bride, just before this week's Robin Hood. The 20-second trailer showed a montage of clips from the episode, leading up to a triumphant voiceover declaring, "I shall descend upon this earth and shine."

This is the same trailer that has been available on day twelve on the advent calendar from the Official Doctor Who website.

Last month, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales held a special concert of Murray Gold's Doctor Who music. Tickets to the concert sold out within hours. This Christmas, UK fans with digital, cable, satellite or Freeview will be able to watch Doctor Who: A Celebration on BBCi via the "red button". The programme will be available:

• Christmas Day: after the Doctor Who Confidential broadcast, between 1.50-7pm
• Christmas Day: after the Doctor Who Christmas Special The Runaway Bride, BBCi on BBC One between 8.50pm and 4am (ends 1.45am on Freeview)
  Wednesday 27 December: BBCi on BBC Three, 8.50pm-4am (ends 1.45am on Freeview)
• Tuesday 2 January: BBCi on BBC Three, 7.50pm-4am (not Freeview)
• Wednesday 3 January: BBCi on BBC Three, 7.50pm-4am (not Freeview)

More details are available at the website of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.

Shelter, the charity for the homeless, is calling on people to download a new version of The Kinks' classic "You Really Got Me" as "sung" by the BT Text voice of former Doctor Who, Tom Baker. The Shelter website also details how funds raised from this appeal will be spent.

Samples and download links for the track can be found here.