Originally piloted for Western Europe, the BBC's iPlayer application has now been extended to iphone users in Canada. Jana Bennett, BBC Worldwide President of Worldwide Networks and Global iPlayer said:
The Canadian subscription fee is $8.99 a monthly or $84.99 annually. The service has also been made available in Australia, costing $9.49/$89.99 respectively. New users can test the application through carefully selected free content before subscribing.

As a special introduction, those who download the app this month can access a "free piece of festive content" every day until Christmas Day without having to sign up to the monthly or annual subscription.


Unlike the UK iPlayer, the global version provides both online streaming and downloading for offline viewing of programmes, with archives of popular shows available such as Only Fools and Horses and Spooks and of course Doctor Who - which is also a subject in the app's range of specially curated collections of programmes:

(newslink: BBC Worldwide Press Release)

Collinson PLC has been awarded the contract to build the new home for the Doctor Who Experience in Cardiff Bay.

Collinson will design and construct the 3000m³ tensile membrane building to form an iconic space-age shape containing the main exhibition hall and first floor mezzanine, and will also incorporate a glazed curtain wall to lend a futuristic feel to the project. Additional two storey accomodation will hold a reception area, café and classroom, plus office facilities.

Director Dan Collinson said:
The construction is in in conjunction with the BBC and Cardiff City Council, whose leader Rodney Berman said:

(newslinks: Collinson, Garstang Courier)

BBC America have confirmed that the 2011 Christmas Special, The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe will Premier on the channel Christmas Day at 9pm ET.

The episode has already been confirmed for transmission in the UK on Christmas Day at 7pm and for transmission in Australia on Boxing Day.

The BBC have launched their traditional Adventure Calendar for 2011, which will once again feature videos, interviews, games, wallpapers, cards, quizzes and other items for fans to enjoy in the lead up to Christmas Day and The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe.

Day One sees the return of The Game of Rassilon, an interactive quiz featuring clips and questions about the festive episode, as well as testing your memory about the adventures of Christmas past.

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Meanwhile, Doctor Who News is delighted to once again present Willy Phantom's Advent Calendar, featuring a new festive Doctor Who image in the sidebar every day until Christmas!

The ninth edition of Doctor Who Insider will be available in North America from 8th December.

This month the magazine goes behind the scenes of this year’s Doctor Who Christmas Special and talks its guest‐stars Bill Bailey, Arabella Weir, Paul Bazely and Alexander Armstrong to find out what’s in store, as well as with the Doctor himself, Matt Smith:

Also this issue:

• The Flip Side - Insider talks to the cast and crew of the Big Finish Doctor Who audio drama, The Fourth Wall, and meets the Sixth Doctor’s new companion, played by Lisa Greenwood.
• Mover and Shaker - Doctor Who’s resident choreographer, Ailsa Berk, tells Insider how she makes the monsters move!
• The Creatue Shop - Visual effects designer, Mike Tucker looks back to the earliest days of Doctor Who and reveals the role that the independent company Shawcraft Models played in creating some of the show’s most iconic monsters that still feature in the present day series.
• Who's That Guy? - Insider talks to Gary Russell, Anwen Aspden and Phil Ford about how they went about creating The Gunpowder Plot, the latest downloadable Doctor Who adventure game, featuring the Rutans and the Sontarans.
• The Forgotten Doctor - Doctor Who Insider looks back to late 2003 when Richard E Grant played the Doctor in the animated Doctor Who drama, Scream of the Shalka.
• I Was... Jamie McCrimmon (for two episodes) - Hamish Wilson recalls his brief time on Doctor Who in 1968 when he temporarily replaced Frazer Hines as the Doctor’s companion, Jamie.
• Nexus Point - Insider looks back to the fateful moment when the Tenth Doctor met River Song for the first time in Silence in the Library.
• Data File - This issue we look at the life of the bohemian Fourth Doctor and have a rummage through his pockets and check out his friends.
• Merchandise - Previews of the latest Doctor Who merchandise, including a chat with Jason Arnopp, author of the new Eighth Doctor audio drama, Army of Death, and an interview with Anneke Wills who plays Polly in the Fifth Doctor audio adventure, The Five Companions. Plus, Gary Russell tells us about the trials and tribulations of writing Doctor Who – The Encyclopedia.

PLUS! The latest official news and a giant, double‐sided poster of the Eleventh Doctor with the cast of the Christmas Special, and the Fourth Doctor.


For subscription information, visit the USA or UK websites.