The latest edition of Doctor Who Magazine, released Thursday, looks back ten years to the time when it had just been announced that Doctor Who was to return, and asks was the series nearly stopped before it could begin?

In the first part of a look back at how and why Doctor Who was recommissioned back in 2003, the magazine talks to the people who ensured its successful comeback, including the then BBC Controller of Drama Commissioning Jane Tranter, writer Russell T Davies and BBC Wales' Head of Drama Julie Gardner who tells the magazine: Also in this issue.

• Doctor Who’s showrunner and head writer Steven Moffat presents the three pieces that he wrote for the actors that have auditioned for the role of the Twelfth Doctor.
• Doctor Who author Bob Baker looks back on his career in an interview and speaks of his most famous contribution to the Doctor Who universe: K9, the Doctor’s robotic dog.
• As we await the announcement of the new star of Doctor Who, journalist Claire Budd and novelist Una McCormack go head-to-head to debate the burning question: Is it time for the Doctor to become a woman?
• Arriving in the far future, the Fourth Doctor, Harry and Sarah discover that the last survivors of mankind are about to face the deadly, parasitic Wirrn! The Fact of Fiction looks back to one of Doctor Who's all-time great adventures – The Ark In Space – and reveals some surprising new facts
• It’s 2010, and the dawn of a new era as Matt Smith makes his début as the Eleventh Doctor. The show may have a new leading man and a new style, but it’s still Doctor Who in the latest instalment of the ongoing cruise through Doctor Who history in Countdown to 50.
• The Time Team take a trip to pre-war England as Chris, Emma, Michael and Will settle down to watch the two-part Tenth Doctor story Human Nature/ The Family of Blood and find that the formidable Family of Blood and their sinister Scarecrow servants are following the Doctor’s trail.
• Clara’s lunch date with the legendary pilot Amy Johnson has been rudely interrupted by two identical copies of themselves… made from sand! Meanwhile, the Doctor is having trouble with his own doppelganger, and the real enemy is about to make its entrance. The latest comic strip adventure A Wing and a Prayer – written by Scott Gray with art by Mike Collins – continues.
• Change is an essential part of Doctor Who and has allowed the series to constantly reinvent and reinvigorate itself for 50 years. And, as Jacqueline Rayner tells in this issue’s Relative Dimensions, this means that the series can be a useful tool when teaching children that nothing lasts forever
• Jon Pertwee is the Doctor, as former Doctor Who Script Editor Andrew Cartmel reviews the new Blu-ray release of the Third Doctor's classic 1970 début adventure Spearhead From Space
• The Watcher takes a look at Doctor Who episode titles in A History of Doctor Who in 100 Objects, and discovers that the names of colours have become a recent trend

Plus all the latest official news, TV and merchandise reviews, previews, competitions and a prize-winning crossword.

Doctor Who once again had a presence at this year's San Diego Comic Con. Fans in the packed Hall H were treated to an exclusive screening of a trailer for the 50th Anniversary episode as well as a trailer for An Adventure In Space and Time.

Steven Moffat told fans who saw the trailer to not leak any audio or video footage of it or there would be no more exclusives at the convention in future years.

The panel was hosted by Craig Ferguson and consisted of Matt Smith, Jenna Coleman, Steven Moffat, Marcus Wilson, Mark Gatiss and David Bradley. Before the panel took place, Smith disguised himself as Bart Simpson as he wandered the convention floor while talking to Doctor Who fans in an American accent.

The cast and crew had a busy few days doing lots of interviews. A selection of these are below.

As part of Entertainment Weekly's Star Portrait series, Smith, Coleman, Gatiss and Bradley had their pictures taken for the publication.


Karen Gillan shocked fans at Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy panel by showing off a new look. The actress will be playing Nebula in the film which required her to shave her hair off. She was wearing a wig before she took it off at the panel. The video footage of that is viewable here. She was also there taking part in interviews for NTSF:SD:SUV. A clip featuring Gillan in one of the episodes can be viewed here.

John Barrowman was also at the convention as part of the Arrow panel. In an interview with That Hashtag Show he discussed Doctor Who and said he would like a female Doctor. During the fan questions of the Doctor Who panel, Moffat was asked why Captain Jack wasn't in the 50th Anniversary episode, to which he replied: "How do you know what is or is not in the 50th? I've lied my arse off for months - you know nothing, so don't make presumptions."

Their Royal Highnesses, The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall visited Roath Lock Studios as part of their annual summer tour of Wales yesterday, coming face-to-face with the Doctor and a number of his foes!

In the first Royal visit to the BBC Cymru Wales Roath Lock studios since they officially opened in March 2012, the visitors were taken on a tour around the studios and the Doctor Who production office. After being given a rundown on how to fly the TARDIS, The Prince and The Duchess were then introduced to the Daleks, with the Prince demonstrating his own take on their famous cry. The were also treated to displays from the show’s costume designer, locations manager, graphics artist, set decorator and production designer, plus production secrets revealed with a green screen display, demonstrated by SFX.

The visit concluded with Their Royal Highnesses meeting some of the Skillset apprentices who are currently training at Roath Lock.


Commenting on the visit, outgoing Doctor, Matt Smith, said:
Jenna Coleman - who met the Queen at Broadcasting House last month - added:
Executive producer and lead writer Steven Moffat said:

Rhodri Talfan Davies, Director BBC Cymru Wales:
Danny Cohen, Director BBC Television:


Videos from the visit can be found on the BBC News site, which include Matt and Jenna's thoughts on meeting the Prince (and his chances of being the next Doctor!), and of the TARDIS set visit (which includes a brief discussion between Jenna and Prince about the 50th Anniversary Special). Photo galleries are also available from both BBC News and the BBC's Doctor Who website.

Remembrance of the Daleks is to be shown on BBC America this month as part of the channel's celebratory strand Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited.

Airing on Saturday 27th July in omnibus form, it will be preceded by a documentary at 7pm ET/PT entitled Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited – The Seventh Doctor, in which Sylvester McCoy, his companion actors Sophie Aldred and Bonnie Langford, plus current lead writer and executive producer Steven Moffat will be among the people examining the darker side of this particular incarnation of the Doctor. They will also be viewing some of his surreal adventures and discussing The Rani.

Remembrance of the Daleks, written by Ben Aaronovitch and directed by Andrew Morgan, was originally shown over four episodes in October 1988 and saw the Doctor return to Coal Hill School as well as the Totter's Lane junkyard first seen in the show's premier episode. In addition, it continued the story arc of the Dalek civil war, and marked the last appearance of the Daleks and Davros in the original run of the show.
BBC America is celebrating the programme's 50th anniversary by showing a story per Doctor per month.

Vengeance on Varos will represent the Sixth Doctor's era next month in BBC America's Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited celebratory season.

A documentary entitled Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited - The Sixth Doctor will air on Saturday 29th June at 7.30pm ET/PT, followed by an omnibus edition of the adventure, which was written by Philip Martin, directed by Ron Jones, and originally broadcast in two episodes in January 1985 as the second story in Season 22.

The documentary will see Sixth Doctor actor Colin Baker, both his companion actors Nicola Bryant and Bonnie Langford, and current lead writer and executive producer Steven Moffat, among others, examining the Sixth Doctor's adventures and discussing his famous foes, including the universe's most slippery businessman, Sil, who made his first appearance - of two so far - in the story.


BBC America is paying tribute to the programme's 50th anniversary by showing a story per Doctor per month.

Doctor Who has been presented with a Peabody Award, one of the highest honours in American media.

The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished achievement and meritorious service by broadcasters, cable and webcasters, producing organizations, and individuals. Selection is made by the Peabody Board, a 16-member panel of distinguished academics, television critics, industry practitioners and experts in culture and the arts.

The citation reads:

The award was accepted by Steven Moffat, Jenna-Louise Coleman, and Matt Smith at a ceremony in New York last night.

Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat has thanked the programme's fans for keeping the secrets of the season finale.

Following the early release of the US Blu-Ray discs containing the series climax, the BBC asked recipients to keep the secrets of the show until after the broadcast of the show earlier this evening, promising a special video clip would be released as a reward.

Moffat told the Guardian

BBC America has chosen Earthshock to represent the Fifth Doctor in its Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited celebratory season.

A documentary entitled The Doctors Revisited: The Fifth Doctor will air on Sunday, May 26 at 8pm Eastern/7pm Central, followed by the four-part story that reintroduced the Cybermen after an absence of nearly seven years.

The documentary will see Peter Davison, Steven Moffat, Hugh Bonneville, Sarah Sutton, and Mark Strickson discussing the Fifth Doctor. It will also feature other as-yet-unspecified contributors.

Earthshock first aired in 1982. As well as the return of the Cybermen, it featured the death of the Doctor's companion Adric, the only long-term television companion to die since the First Doctor's era.

BBC America is paying tribute to the programme's 50th anniversary by showing a story per Doctor per month.

The nominations for the 2013 Hugo Awards have now been announced, with writer Steven Moffat up against himself some three times in the Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form category (in which he lost out last year to fellow writer Neil Gaiman for The Doctor's Wife).

The episodes nominated are Asylum of the Daleks (directed by Nick Hurran), The Angels Take Manhattan (also Nick Hurran), and The Snowmen (Saul Metzstein). The other nominations in the category are Letters of Transit from Fringe, and Blackwater from Game of Thrones.

Doctor Who has won an Award nigh on every year since its return: as well as Gaiman's triumph last year Moffat has won four times previously, for The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances in 2006, The Girl in the Fireplace in 2007, Blink in 2008, and The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang in 2011, whilst original showrunner/writer Russell T Davies won in 2010 with fellow writer Phil Ford for The Waters of Mars. 2009 was the odd one out, where Moffat's Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead and Davies's Turn Left lost out to Internet musical Doctor Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog.


Also nominated this year is the book Chicks Unravel Time: Women Journey Through Every Season of Doctor Who, published by Mad Norwegian Press, which is listed in the Best Related Work category. It'll be up against another Mad Norwegian title, Chick Dig Comics, The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature, I Have an Idea for a Book ... The Bibliography of Martin H. Greenberg, and Writing Excuses Season Seven.


The Hugo awards are given every year for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the preceeding year, and is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories.

This year's ceremony will take place during LoneStarCon 3 in San Antonio, Texas (29 Aug-2 Sep 2013), with writer Paul Cornell acting as Toastmaster.

A roundup of recent media "clippings" for Doctor Who in the run-up to the series return tomorrow.

Matt Smith (The Doctor):

On his new co-star: "You’ll see on screen she’s absolutely brilliant and it’s been a joy. I’m really proud of the work we’ve done and I think it’s exciting for the character, he’s got a new lease of life somehow. Jenna’s inventive, she works tirelessly hard. I like her, which is good because you’ve got to get on. And I’m really proud of what she’s achieved and I’m pleased that it’s gone so well for her because I think she’s brilliant in it." [Yorkshire Evening Post, 27 Mar 2013]

On how they get along: "Really well. We’re good friends, actually, which is nice. It would be really rubbish if we weren’t! I guess you guys are the critics of this, but I think she has started really well. She’s immediately likeable and popular, which is a stroke of fortune. It was always going to be difficult coming in after Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill [who played Amy and Rory] because they became really loved and admired. I think she’s made it her own and she’s been inventive and brave. It’s not an easy show to waltz into. It moves at such a pace. And there’s such a fervent following and people have such clear opinions on it." [TV Choice, 30 Mar 2013]

On riding a bike around London: "It was very exciting. I am innately very clumsy, and my mother has always forbidden me from getting a motorbike. I’ve driven mopeds before, abroad and stuff, without her knowing – well, now she knows. But that’s like a big old Harley looking bike, and I wouldn’t know where to begin… It was amazing filming those scenes. It was on a rig, and we got to sort of travel round London. Car rigs are different because you’re in a car, but being on a bike it’s like you’re on a sort of fairground ride. It was a really crisp, sunny day and we kept going around Waterloo Bridge and Westminster Bridge and Waterloo Bridge and Westminster Bridge and it was just one of those days where you think ‘This is a very privileged place to be for a day at work." [SFX, 25 Mar 2013]

On the 50th Anniversary script: It sort of does what it says on the tin. You won't be disappointed. It's my cryptic way of going ... no, the thing is, much as we'd love to tell you everything, I read it and I clapped at the end. I think it's hilarious and I think it's epic and I think it's vast. I'm telling you nothing more. But you will not be disappointed. I think it's going to be the biggest, the best, the most inventive, the most exciting year for the show. And I think this script, it delivers on all those points that you want it to for where the show is at this time. It's brilliant. It somehow manages to pay homage to everything and look forward. And I think that's the mark, the genius of it." [This is Local London, 25 Mar 2013]

Matt also spoke to BBC News about the 'vast and epic' series. [BBC News (video), 18 Mar 2013]

Jenna-Louise Coleman (Clara):

On the re-appearance of Clara: "You'll see an essence in the same way there was an essence of Oswin in Christmas Clara, there was a similar essence running through them, a similar spirit. We'll see that again with this Clara." RedEye Chicago, 27 Mar 2013]

Her take on The Bells of Saint John: "I saw it at the London screening that we did last week. It just looks brilliant because it’s such a ... from shooting the show there’s so much that happens afterwards from the CGI and the music and to make the episodes kind of as epic as they are so it’s gonna be great for me to sit there as a viewer and watch them as well. I was able to just enjoy all of the pieces of like the jigsaw coming together, and also you just realize how clever Steven Moffat is and the setup of the story that we have going through, arcing through the series, of the mystery of Clara Oswald and the Doctor trying to figure out who she is. It’s set up so brilliantly from everything that we’ve done so far through Steven. So, it’s exciting." [Access Hollywood, 26 Mar 2013]

On how the relationship between the Doctor and Clara develops: "I'm sure audiences will be looking out for it, and they have an advantage, over the two characters even, because they have experienced the Christmas special, but this series is a whole new beginning again. That sounds like such an unsatisfying answer, but one of the things that is explored in this series is that there is nothing the Doctor dislikes more than something he can't solve, something he can't explain, and that's exactly what Clara is. He can't figure her out. They are drawn together, and really like each other, but there's always this underlying feeling of them both trying to figure each other out. It's not plain sailing between them both." [New Zealand Herald, 28 Mar 2013]

On how her family keeps her grounded: "My brother is a joiner, like my dad, and they came to the Doctor Who set to see me at work. He’d never been much impressed by my acting stuff before but he watched filming and said: 'You’ve got the coolest job in the world – fighting the Cybermen.' I think he’s right." [Metro, 28 Mar 2013]

On her gran's plans for Matt Smith during filming for the 50th Anniversary: "I think she's gonna come on set when we're filming the 50th, which she's very excited about. She's gonna be patting Matt a lot. Matt's her favourite Doctor." [Access Hollywood via STV, 27 Mar 2013]

Steven Moffat (lead writer):

On the role of the companion: "We never see how the Doctor began his journey. We'll probably never see how he ends it. We'll probably never know why he embarked on it, but we know all those companions, who they were before they met the Doctor, why they ran away with him, and where they ended up. Those stories are complete. The Doctor is the enigma that enters their lives and changes them. The story is always about the person who changes the most." [Examiner, 27 Mar 2013]

On Jenna-Louise Coleman: "Well, she’s terrific! The most obvious answer is that she’s a terribly good actress. I know that’s a dull thing to say, but it’s the truth. You can be as beautiful and charming as you’d like, but if you’re not terrific at acting, it will mean nothing on the screen. She’s a terrific actress. She looks great. She has great comic timing. She looks like she belongs, somehow, next to Matt Smith. When the two stand together, they look like an instant team. They have enough in common, and yet have enough sharp contrasts, that it’s an instant poster when you stand them together." [Collider, 27 Mar 2013]

Other Media Items:

Entertainment Weekly has been published with two different covers as it celebrates the return of Doctor Who this weekend. The magazine's cover story looks at how the show will celebrate its 50th Anniversary, and includes a touching tribute to the Time Lord from director Peter Jackson, who still has his eye on the Doctor: "They don’t even have to pay me! But I have got my eye on one of those nice new gold-colored Daleks. They must have a spare one (hint, hint)." [Entertainment Weekly, 21 Mar 2013]

Two associated videos have also been released, with the first featuring Matt Smith and Jenna-Louise Coleman discussing fans, whilst the second features Matt, Jenna and costume designer Howard Burden discussing the Doctor's new look. Burden commented: "When I first came into the series [on Asylum of the Daleks], we had an established look for the Doctor. As subsequent episodes came in, I was told that we could actually change the look. It was quite an intense process to actually make sure everyone was happy." [Entertainment Weekly, 22 Mar 2013]

Amongst its pages was a comment from Steven Moffat in which he said that statistically he was nearer the end than the beginning of his time on the show: "I just take it a year at a time. I think the feeling of it being done for you is quite unambiguous when it suddenly arrives.".

One name that cropped up as a potential replacement for Moffat earlier this month was that of Being Human showrunner Toby Whithouse: "I have heard the rumours. I've been hearing them for years now. In terms of my future on Doctor Who, this kind of speculation only takes place in the heads of the fans. No-one from the BBC has said anything to me. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't intrigued by the idea, but also it would be terrifying. It's definitely something I'd be really tempted by but I'm genuinely not in any hurry to do it." [SFX via Metro, 11 Mar 2013]

The Sun reported that they believed Matt Smith would be leaving the show at Christmas, with their 'sources' suggesting the BBC already had someone in mind to replace him. However, the BBC have stated: "Sorry folks but even we don’t know what's going to happen at Christmas. It's not been written yet! But Matt loves the show and is to start filming the unmissable 50th anniversary, and the new series starting on Easter Saturday." [The Sun, 22 Mar 2013]

The report came after Matt's appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show, where he said: "Doctor Who is one of of those jobs that you have to take year by year, it's ten months a year, it's all-consuming, so I don’t think you can plan five or six years ahead, or even two years ahead. It's a year by year thing, and at the moment it’s 2013 and we’ll see what 2014 holds."

The BBC statement didn't stop the Sun from polling readers for who they'd like to see next as the Doctor, with their results citing Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch as the favourite; the runners up were previous Doctor David Tennant, and comedy actor James Corden (who played Craig in the series). [The Sun, 24 Mar 2013]

Other Magazine Covers:

Some other covers prominently featuring the series return: