Captain Jack on Radio Two

Wednesday, 7 February 2007 - Reported by Marcus

John Barrowman will be presenting a two-hour show on BBC Radio Two this weekend. He will be sitting in for Elaine Paige, hosting her Sunday lunchtime programme, dedicated to musical theatre.

The programme will also feature music from the 2007 Bafta nominees in advance of the Bafta ceremony that evening. There will be a phone in quiz based on musicals and entrants are requested to email via the programme's web page.

The programme can be heard between 1300 and 1500 UK time. In the UK it is available on Radio on 88-91 FM. It is also available live via the Radio 2 homepage and for seven days following the broadcast via the BBC listen again facility.

FILTER: - People - Radio

TV Times: DW returns in March, and Tennant to stay

Tuesday, 6 February 2007 - Reported by Kenny Davidson

UK listings magazine TV Times features an interview with David Tennant this week. The magazine states that the series returns in March and David's response to the rumours of him quitting is to say that "You shouldn't believe everything you read in the papers."

The interview contains reference to some spoilers. Click on the box below to reveal them.

David says this about Smith and Jones - "The Judoon are pretty extraordinary, they're sort of intergalatic stormtroopers who take Martha and I off to the moon. It's just part of the madness and brilliance of doing this show that it seems to keep bettering itself every time."

Of Martha, David says: "She's a very different character to Rose" and of the blue suit - "Its an alternative suit, but that doesn't mean we lost the old one."

He also talks of guest stars coming up, all names we already know about - Anne Reid, Roy Marsden, Dean Lennox Kelly and Mark Gatiss. There is also small bits about the Shakespeare Globe, Professor Lazarus and confirmation that there will be Art Deco Daleks!

FILTER: - Series 3/29 - Broadcasting

Billie Piper on Top Gear

Monday, 5 February 2007 - Reported by Kenny Davidson

According to UK tabloid the Sun, former Doctor Who companion Billie Piper is scheduled to appear on BBC2's Top Gear programme next week as the latest celebrity to show off their driving skills in the show's Star In a Reasonably Priced Car slot.

Piper will complete a timed lap, driving a Chevrolet Lacetti around the show's test track, aiming to beat the times set by previous celebrities - including Christopher Eccleston - and get to the top of the leader board.

FILTER: - People - Billie Piper

Survival delayed

Friday, 2 February 2007 - Reported by R Alan Siler

2 Entertain announced today that the planned 2-disc DVD release of "Survival", the final broadcast story of the Original Series, starring Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor,Sophie Aldred as Ace, and Anthony Ainley as the Master, has been pushed back two weeks. The disk is now scheduled to be available on retail shelves in the UK on April 16.

FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

Big Finish Updates for 2007

Thursday, 1 February 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Big Finish has published information for their upcoming releases in 2007, including the 100th title for the Doctor Whorange. The latest cover for the Paul McGann BBC7 series, The Horror of Glam Rock, can be viewed by clicking on the preview below.

March 2007 sees the Fifth Doctor and Nyssa experiencing the Renaissance of the Daleks. April sees the first 'dual' release, with the Sixth Doctor stories I.D. and Urgent Calls. The following month, the Fifth Doctor does double duty with Exotron and Urban Myths. The Seventh Doctor visits Valhalla in June, with The Wishing Beast and The Vanity Box featuring the Sixth Doctor in July. August has the Seventh Doctor experiencing Frozen Time. September has two seperate releases, starting with the Fifth Doctor meeting the Son of the Dragon in the early part of the month.

The 100th Release of the Big Finish Doctor Who range is Earthstorm by award-winning author Stephen Baxter, which features the Sixth Doctor and is due to be released late September. Baxter is one of Britain's most respected hard science-fiction novelists, his books include The Time Ships, which was an authorised sequel to H.G. Wells influential classic The Time Machine.

The Eighth Doctor will continue to have his BBC7 adventures released monthly alongside his predecessors in the main range. Also, Doctor Who Magazine reports that there is a fourth series of Dalek Empire and a second series ofCyberman in the works. The Dalek Empire series will be set during the first series but from a different perspective. There will also be a free CD with the purchase of DWM issue 380.

FILTER: - Audio - DWM

PJ Hammond back for more Torchwood

Thursday, 1 February 2007 - Reported by Kenny Davidson

Cult sci-fi writer P.J. Hammond, responsible for the Torchwood episode Small Worlds, is to return to write for season two of the Doctor Who spin-off. In an interview with Dreamwatch Total SciFi he was reluctant to talk about his ideas for season two, but he did say, "I think they want me to keep to the supernatural. They probably think it's my bag."

The interiew also details his discussions last year with ITV who wanted to revive his cult series Sapphire and Steel, which ran on the network in the late 1970s and early '80s. The discussions reached an impasse when the network requested too many changes that the writer wasn't prepared to incorporate. "It was definitely going away from the direction I would have wanted it to be in. I did manage to put together some good thoughts, though, so I could always use them for something else."

FILTER: - Torchwood - Production

New Books Announced

Thursday, 1 February 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

The latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine includes several new titles and release dates for new series books.

Creatures and Demons by Justin Richards will be out in May and will include "the Celestial Toymaker, the Quarks, Giant Maggots, the Krynoid, and more".

September sees three new novels. Wetworld by Mark Michalowski "pits the Doctor and Martha against nasty swamp monsters". Forever Autumn is by Mark Morris, who tells us to "expect something very scary". Finally, there is The Wicked Bungalow (working title) by Paul Magrs.

FILTER: - Magazines

Torchwood - the Shopping Center?

Thursday, 1 February 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

The South Wales Echo has reported that there is now a call to have Cardiff's new shopping center to be named after the Torchwood team.

It's a secret agency committed to fighting otherwordly threats - now there are calls for Cardiff's massive new shopping development to be named after it.

Torchwood, the team that hunts aliens from its underground Cardiff Bay HQ in the BBC sci-fi drama, should lend its name to Cardiff's £650m St David's 2 development, according to one city councillor.

Self-confessed sci-fi fan Councillor Richard Foley is calling for the massive shopping complex to be named Torchwood. The councillor, who represents Llanishen and Thornhill, is even raising the matter at the authority's next meeting.

He said the development should have a name of its own to distinguish it from the city's existing St David's centre. Coun Foley said "If it could be called Torchwood I think it would be amazing and a boost for tourism. The programme has showcased the city so well." Coun Foley will now press Cardiff council leader Rodney Berman for a statement on the possibility of renaming the development. And he insists there is a serious matter behind his question. "I have been told that St David's 2 is a working title but we have still not had a debate on what the name should be, despite repeated requests from myself and other members. However, it appears Coun Foley's name change could be dashed. City centre manager Paul Williams said he expected the new complex to be known as St David's 2.

"People know St David's and it's vitally important we preserve the name and recognise the heritage, even in a 21st century development," he said. Council leader Rodney Berman said "Torchwood is a great ambassador for the city and has helped to put 21st Century Cardiff on the map. On a personal level I have a lot of sympathy for the idea but the practicalities are not quite that simple. The council does not have the right to the name of Torchwood. That rests with the BBC and the naming of the development rests with the developers."

A spokesman for the St David's Partnership said "St David's 2 is a brand name designed to differentiate it from the existing St David's Shopping Centre during construction. The intention on completion in 2009 is for both centres to be known collectively as the St David's Shopping Centre."

FILTER: - Press

A Dog's Life

Thursday, 1 February 2007 - Reported by Josiah Rowe

John Leeson, the voice of K-9, will be appearing at the Questors Theatre in Ealing this Sunday, February 4, at 8pm. The programme is titled "A Dog's Life - An Evening with John Leeson".

Details are available at the theatre's website, and there's a cute Flash animation about the show here.

FILTER: - People

Cover for Torchwood DVD Vol 2

Wednesday, 31 January 2007 - Reported by Kenny Davidson

The cover artwork for the second volume of Torchwood on DVD has been released and can be seen by clicking on the thumbnail below. Volume two, due to be released in the UK on February 26th, features the episodes 'Countryside', 'Greeks Bearing Gifts', 'They Keep Killing Suzie' and 'Random Shoes'.

FILTER: - Torchwood - Blu-ray/DVD

Previous 10 Stories

Captain Jack on Radio Two

TV Times: DW returns in March, and Tennant to stay

Billie Piper on Top Gear

Survival delayed

Big Finish Updates for 2007

PJ Hammond back for more Torchwood

New Books Announced

Torchwood - the Shopping Center?

A Dog's Life

Cover for Torchwood DVD Vol 2

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