Doctor Who Orphan 55, was watched by 4.19 million viewers in the UK yesterday according to unofficial overnight figures.

The rating, representing 20.9% of the total viewing audience made Doctor Who the fifth most popular show on British Television yesterday. Doctor Who was beaten by its ITV opposition, Dancing on Ice, which had 4.51 million viewers.

Top for the day was Call the Midwife, with 6.24 million viewers. Countryfile, the lead into Doctor Who, had 5.13 million. The drama The Trial of Christine Keeler had 3.67 million watching.

The overnight figure counts those who watched the show yesterday. Final figures, released next Monday, will include those who recorded the programme and watched it later and are likely to be substantially higher.

The Film Editor John Griffiths has died at the age of 89.

John Griffiths was a member of the team responsible for the first-ever piece of Doctor Who screened, the original opening title sequence.

In 1963 Griffiths was working for the BBC at Ealing film studios when he was introduced to Verity Lambert and Waris Hussein, Doctor Who's first producer and director. They gave him the raw material of a recent studio session where they had filmed the output of an electronic camera looking at its own viewfinder and asked him to edit the material to provide a new title sequence for their new TV Series Dr. Who.

The sequence Griffiths produced, when combined with the music composed by Ron Grainer and realized by Delia Derbyshire, became one of the most iconic title sequences in television history, heralding the beginning of each episode for the next three years.

As film editor, John Griffiths also worked on the 1964 story The Dalek Invasion of Earth, editing the famous footage of the Daleks patrolling a deserted London. As production editor, he worked on the Third Doctor story The Mind of Evil, appearing in front of the camera as an extra in the story.

After retiring from the BBC John Griffiths retired to Worthing. He died on Thursday 9th January. The Original 1963 Titles | Doctor Who

The Doctor Who Appreciation Society has made The Celestial Toyroom Annual 2020 available for download, free-of-charge to all fans.

This is the fourth CT Annual and on this occasion celebrates the era of the third Doctor. There are over 100 pages celebrating the Jon Pertwee era from "Spearhead from Space" to "Planet of the Spiders" and more.

A limited run hardback copy will be available in the coming weeks which will help to raise money for 'Save the Children' in memory of Terrance Dicks.

To view please click here

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In addition the Doctor Who Appreciation Society and the Derby-based Whoovers are holding a one-day event on Sunday 15th March 2020 to celebrate the life and work of Terrance Dicks.

The event, organized in partnership with the Dicks family will raise funds for ‘Save the Children’ which was supported by Terrance for many years.

Guests include; Katy Manning, Frazer Hines, Nicholas Briggs, Paul Cornell, Jon Culshaw, Peter Darvill-Evans, Toby Hadoke, Marcus Hearn, Rebecca Levene, Steven Moffat, Nigel Robinson, Edward Russell, Gary Russell

The venue is The Cinema Museum in London SE11. Tickets are £40 plus booking fee and are available directly from Eventbrite.

The titles of the next four episodes of Doctor Who have been confirmed in the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine.
Orphan 55 is written by Ed Hime and directed by Lee Haven Jones. The episode was partly filmed on location in Tenerife. It features actors Col Farrell and Julia Elizabeth Fogle.
In Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror we are taken back to 20th Century New York.

The first script by Nina Metivier for the series continues the recent habit of the Doctor meeting famous characters from history. This time it is the scientist best known for his contributions to the design of the alternating current electricity supply system. Telsar is played by Croatian actor Goran Višnjić, best known for appearing in ER. His great rival Thomas Edison is played by Robert Glenister, who last appeared in Doctor Who in 1984 playing Salateen in the fifth Doctor's final story The Caves of Androzani.

It is directed by Nida Manzoor making her debut on the series The return of everybody's favourite intergalactic policemen is in Fugitive of the Judoon.

This is Vinay Patel's second episode for the series after last season's Demons Of The Punjab. It is also directed by Nida Manzoor, and guest star's Neil Stuke and Jo Martin. Written by Pete McTighe who penned Kerblam! for the last series.

It is directed by Jamie Magnus Stone who was responsible for the acclaimed first episode of this series Spyfall, and guest stars include Matthew McNulty and Joana Borja. The majority of the episode was filmed in South Africa.

The latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine, Number 547, is published today and includes an exclusive interview with Bradley Walsh, who plays Graham in the new series of Doctor Who.

Also in the magazine

• The second part of an exclusive, in-depth interview with showrunner Chris Chibnall.
• Interviews with the new writers of Series 12
• Exclusive previews of the next four episodes.
• The untold story of Denis Alan Print, the Doctor Who merchandise company co-owned by Tom Baker.
• Doctor Who’s top ten Master reveals.
• Behind the scenes at the OFFSTAGE Theatre Group, whose Doctor Who plays and comedy sketches were popular at conventions from 2003 to 2013.
• The Fact of Fiction begins an epic exploration of The Daleks’ Master Plan.
• Part Five of Mistress of Chaos, a new comic-strip adventure featuring the Thirteenth Doctor and her friends.
• The answers to DWM’s Christmas Quiz.
• Reviews of the Season 26 Blu-ray box set and the new vinyl edition of The Web Planet.
• Big Finish previews and reviews, news, prize-winning competitions, The Blogs of Doom and much more.

On sale from Thursday 9 January 2020£5.99 (UK)


DWM 547 is also available as a strictly limited Deluxe Edition, exclusive to WH Smith and store.panini.co.uk priced £9.99.

 In addition to the latest issue of DWM, the Deluxe Edition includes:

• An exclusive 76-minute music CD, featuring 22 classic and rare tracks from 1963 to 1989.
• A 32-page supplement, comprising classic comic-strip stories featuring the Master.
• A giant double-sided poster.
• A Series 12 art card.
• Three Big Finish audio dramas to download.
• Big Finish stickers.

A special variant Cover has been created for the latest Doctor Who Comic, Doctor Who: The Thirteenth Doctor S2 #1, which will raise money to help those fighting the Australian Wildfires.

The cover variant is by Stewart McKenny with colour by John Law, and is available exclusively through Comics Etc, one of Australia's leading comic book retailers. It is limited to 500 copies worldwide.

Stewart McKenny has been described as one of Australia's most prolifically published comic book artists. He has worked on Star Wars comics, including Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures, as well as working on Captain America. His British small press work includes contributions to FutureQuake.

McKenny revealed the news on his Facebook page. Comics Etc is donating $5 to the New South Wales Rural Fire Service for each copy purchased of this variant comic.

The latest Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition is out now.

  Highlights include:

• An in-depth interview with Doctor Who’s executive producer Matt Strevens.
• Jodie Whittaker on her second year as the Doctor.
• Mandip Gill, aka Yaz, answers questions from the TARDIS tin.
• Shaun Dooley and Jodie Whittaker recall the making of the charity album Got it Covered.
• Terrance Dicks’ widow, Elsa, and his former Target Books editor, Brenda Gardner, pay tribute to the much-loved writer.
• Twenty years since its original broadcast, Steven Moffat remembers The Curse of Fatal Death.
• Highlights of the Series 12 press day.
• Inside the popular YouTube series Terry Nation Army.
• Digital artist Sophie Cowdrey discusses her work.
• The past, present and future of the Doctor Who Blu-ray collection.
• Behind the scenes of the Doctor Who Figurine Collection.
• The 20 landmark Doctor Who audio releases from Big Finish.
• A look back at the 2019 production of Mission to the Unknown.
• Reviews of the final two Doctor Who: Infinity games and the new independent drama Sil and the Devil Seeds of Arodor.
• Tributes to Doctor Who luminaries who passed away in 2019. 

On sale from Thursday 2 January 2020 £6.99 (UK), $13.99 (US)

The BBC has released new pictures from the upcoming episode of Doctor Who - Orphan 55.

The story is written by Ed Hime, who penned the 2018 story It Takes You Away and is directed by Lee Haven Jones The episode can be seen on BBC One at 7.10pm next Sunday. North American viewers can see it at 8pm ET, while in Australia the episode debut's is on Thursday at 8pm. In New Zealand, it can be seen at 9am, Monday morning, just a couple of hours after the UK showing.

Full broadcast details can be found here, and ongoing adventures of the Doctor can be found via This Week in Doctor Who.

COMING SOON | Orphan 55

Doctor Who Spyfall Part Two, was watched by 4.6 million viewers in the UK yesterday according to unofficial overnight figures.

The rating, representing 22.6% of the total viewing audience, was disappointing for the series making Doctor Who the fifth most popular show on British Television yesterday. Doctor Who was beaten by its ITV opposition, Dancing on Ice: The Launch, which had 5.14 million viewers.

Top for the day was the return of Call the Midwife, with 6.97 million viewers. Countryfile, the lead into Doctor Who, had 5.04 million. Football also did well with Match of the Day seen by 5.14 million during the afternoon.

With overnight figures for the whole week now available, Doctor Who is the 24th and 28th most watched programme. Top for the week was the New Year Fireworks on BBC One with 10.33 million watching.

The overnight figure counts those who watched the show yesterday. Final figures, released next Monday, will include those who recorded the programme and watched it later and are likely to be substantially higher.

Audience reaction to the first episode of the new series of Doctor Who, Spyfall, is overwhelmingly positive with many reviewers praising the story.

The Mirror said it was an epic start to the new series. "the most exciting thing about the episode is the never-ending twists and turns that quite literally left my jaw hanging open."

Radio Times was equally impressed seeing the story as a vast improvement on the previous series. "Part One races along and is slickly directed by newcomer Jamie Magnus Stone. His grandfather was Magnus Magnusson, the broadcasting legend behind the BBC quiz, Mastermind. A clue hidden in plain sight?"

The Telegraph liked the pace "The episode – the first of a two-parter – zipped along, with Whittaker doing her hyperactive thing and her companions (Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole and Mandip Gill) given generous amounts of screen time."

Den of Geek loved the plot twists "Spyfall, as you might expect from an episode that’s so gleefully borrowing from 007 and his kin, is a globetrotting adventure that barely ever stands still long enough to catch its breath"

inews compared the episode to the thirteenth Doctor's first season. "Whittaker’s debut series established a Doctor Who that had never looked more slick or cinematic, but Spyfall goes even further, with huge, stylish, lavishly shot set-pieces like a frantic, gun-toting motorbike chase through striking Californian farmland."

The series premiered on New Year's Day on BBC One where it received an Appreciation Index score of 82