David Tennant will participate in a web chat on the CBBC website from 5.30 to 6.30pm on Wednesday 17 August; the site is currently taking questions from readers of the BBC sites for him to answer. Tennant is expected to appear soon after he visits the "Blue Peter" set on Wednesday.

Scificollector has sent us this image of a new Doctor Who "Dalek watch" due out later in the year; the site also contains details about some of the other products coming out soon, as well as a page for the Character Options range. "As an extra incentive for Outpost Gallifrey readers," says Scificollector, "we will add a free signed Doctor Who print of either Tom Baker, Peter Davison or Sylvester McCoy worth £15 on request only for all orders over £50 placed on these Autmun/Fall launches. Stock is expected after 12 September. The request must be stated at the time of purchase, and if ordering by internet this must be stated in the Additional Comments section." You can click on the image at right to see the artwork for the new Dalek watch.

Nebulous, the sci-fi comedy series written by Graham Duff (who wrote the Big Finish audio "Faith Stealer") and produced by Baby Cow for BBC Radio 4 returns for a brand new series in Spring 2006... and special guest star Peter Davison plays Dr Diplodicus in the episode "The Deptford Wives". Says the press information from Radio 4 sent to Outpost Gallifrey: "The year is 2099 and eco scientist Professor Nebulous (Mark Gatiss) discovers that the recent spate of male deaths are all down to one thingà.Deptford Wives. Nebulous sets off to save the world's husbands by tracking down Dr Diplodicus at his bride-breeding sanctuary 'Wife-assic Park'àand comes face to face with a herd of wild Stephanies, and a two hundred and fifty foot Vanessa." More details on the exact broadcast date when we get them.

The BBC Kids advance online schedule shows a promotion for Doctor Who in the lineup effective Monday 29 August. On weeknights, Doctor Who will now air twice - Midnight and 5AM EDT, replacing the previous 2AM EDT only broadcast. 2 episodes per day as before. First story in the new time periods - Snakedance. On weekends, Doctor Who will continue being shown in complete stories one time at 2AM EDT. With this change, the weeknight showings will be easier for Canadian viewers to tune in and watch. Not easy, but the best it has been since at least 2003. For the various Canadian time zones: Newfoundland: Weeknights 1:30AM and 6:30AM (2 episodes), Weekends 3:30AM (complete stories). Atlantic (ADT or AST): Weeknights 1AM and 6AM (2 episodes), Weekends 3AM (complete stories). Eastern (EDT or EST): Weeknights Midnight and 5AM (2 episodes), Weekends 2AM (complete stories). Central (CDT or CST): Weeknights 11PM and 4AM (2 episodes), Weekends 1AM (complete stories). Mountain (MDT or MST): Weeknights 10PM and 3AM (2 episodes), Weekends Midnight (complete stories). Pacific (PDT or PST): Weeknights 9PM and 2AM (2 episodes), Weekends 11PM (complete stories). (Thanks to Benjamin Elliott / This Week in Doctor Who)

Saturday's edition of The Herald featured a profile of John Barrowman (Captain Jack), including an interview and his comments about his life and career, his partner and ideas on marriage and adoption. "Growing up in Illinois, I used to get bullied a lot for being Scottish. Other kids would shout things like, 'You wear a dress,' and they thought we lived in mud huts. Most of all, though, they made fun of the accent. And no-one likes to get picked on or bullied for being different, especially not at eight years old. So I thought, 'Screw you. I'm going to beat you at your own game.' I just wanted to blend in, and that's why I taught myself how to speak with an American accent." He says "I will be coming back... But no date has been set. That's the official answer." You can read the full article at the website.

Newsquest Media reports that Christopher Eccleston "has found something to keep him busy after leaving Dr Who - trying to save Manchester's historic Victoria Baths. The television star from Little Hulton visited the baths to pledge his support for the campaign to restore them. The Edwardian building was voted as the country's favourite on BBC2's Restoration programme in 2003, and was awarded ú3.5 million to do the necessary repair work. But campaigners Friends of Victoria Baths say an extra ú16.5 million is needed." The Manchester Evening News quotes him as saying, "I've dealt with bouts of unemployment for 20 years. My ambition now is simply to swim in Victoria Baths. Coming in here today, I can smell the chlorine and hear the voices. The worst thing that could happen would be for the baths to be converted for private use. I learned to swim at Walkden Baths, where my mum was the aerotone and sauna attendant for around 20 years. This reminds me, to some extent, of those years. My hope is that working class kids from the area will soon be able to swim here again." He added: "All my success has been down to my upbringing in Salford and Manchester. My background, the values I was taught and the formative experiences I had at places like this."

Reviews of Billie Piper's film Spirit Trap (mostly negative, unfortunately), appear at The Telegraph, The Mirror,Sky Movies, Barking and Dagenham Recorder, and in print in the Sun, Leicester Mercury, and the Express ("Amateurish and slow-moving, this is highly unlikely to give anyone sleepless nights") among other papers.

The official Doctor Who website appeals to school children: "Can your reading group review the new books? Does your school have a reading group? If so, we're looking for three groups across the country to give us their comments on the new Doctor Who books that are coming out early next month. Each group chosen will receive five advance copies of one of the three new adventures of the Doctor and Rose. The books are released on September 8, so we'd need comments from each school in by September 10 - we appreciate this is fairly near the start of term, so bear this in mind before applying. Please bear in mind that the stories are suitable for readers over eight."

Other press items: A review of the final episode, "The Parting of the Ways, in the Sydney Morning Herald; and anarticle about an Aussie radio parody of Doctor Who which was popular in the late 70s-early 80s.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes, Elaine Shanks, Peter Weaver)

Due out September 29, Doctor Who: The Interactive Electronic Board Game has been announced at the BBC Shop. "You are the Doctor, travelling through space collecting vital repair components to fix the Tardis, but beware your archenemy the Daleks are out to exterminate you!" says the limited information. The game requires 2 to 6 players (3 x AAA batteries required not included) and is designed for ages 7 and up. Click on the thumbnail for a larger graphic.

Issue 360 of Doctor Who Magazine is not only due... in fact, it's out (at least to subscribers). Here's the release info about this edition (with thanks to Clay Hickman and Tom Spilsbury).

Find out more about the new-look Tenth Doctor - including some exclusive images not seen anywhere else - in the latest issue of the official Doctor Who Magazine!

In this month's edition, executive producer Russell T Davies chats about new Doctor Who, David Tennant, in the second part of our exclusive interview: "David worked very closely with our new costume designer, Louise Page, on the Tenth Doctor's look. We've been talking loose ties, scruffy jackets and sneakers for months now. It's good to see them at last! It's a little bit punk, a bit scruffy, a bit student-y, even a bit schoolboy-ish, and yet with the smartness of a suit thrown in. Oh, and I can't tell you the days and days and days of work that went into getting the right pinstripe!"

Meanwhile, Rose's mum - alias Camille Coduri - chats about Jackie's close encounters; production designer Ed Thomas talks about his designs for the Doctor's universe; and there's a quick chat with Elisabeth Sladen about her imminent return as Sarah Jane Smith!

On top of this, Gallifrey Guardian reports all the latest news from the Doctor Who set - including exclusive casting news, and more info on November's DVD box set - and an old favourite returns to DWM's pages after many years away!

Plus there's the second part of the new comic strip adventure The Cruel Sea written by Dalek author Robert Shearman; the results of the 2004 DWM survey; reviews of Boom Town, Bad Wolf and The Parting of the Ways - and all the usual features.

DWM 360 goes on sale on Thursday 18 August, priced ú3.99.

A few items of note making the rounds today: according to the latest issue of Doctor Who magazine, "The Sunshine Camp" is notthe title for the first episode (though of course, it doesn't say what that title actually is...) The rest of it what's transpired is mostly casting and other rumors making the rounds, so we've protected them in the spoiler tags below; click on it to read.

At long last, the UK's City of Death DVD release has some official information attached to it. The release will be two discs, as mentioned in an article at the Restoration Team website which discusses the restoration of the footage, including audio repairs, and notes the large number of extras being included on it (hence the double disc set). Unfortunately neither Tom Baker or Lalla Ward were able to take part in the commentary or featurettes, it says, but the commentary is done by two of the story's main guest stars, Julian Glover (Count Scarlioni/Scaroth) and Tom Chadbon (Duggan), along with the story's director, Michael Hayes. The 45-minute featurette "Paris in the Springtime", written by Jonathan Morris and produced by Ed Stradling, and narrated by Toby Longworth, "goes behind the scenes on the production of the story, with a particular emphasis on the contribution of Douglas Adams" and features interview clips with Adams, Glover, Chadbon, Hayes, Catherine Schell, script editor Anthony Read, writer David Fisher, director Pennant Roberts, and writers Steven Moffat and Rob Shearman. The documentary also includes illustration by Jason Lythgoe-Hay to reproduce the original storyline, "A Gamble With Time." A 20-minute featurette, "Paris, W12" is also included, with extracts from the recording sessions; "Prehistoric Landscapes," a montage of landscape and effects for the story; "Eye on... Blatchford," a regional-interest program; plus the 1980 Doctor Who Annual in PDF format, photo gallery, floorplans, easter eggs and production notes. The story is due out on DVD in November in the UK.

Various papers over the past two days have been reporting several spoiler items and a few pictures of the aliens appearing in this year's Christmas special. To keep the surprise, we've put them in the spoiler tag at the end of this report.

Doctor Who has received another mention in Matthew Norman's 'Media Diary' column in The Independent, having regularly cropped up in the column's 'Guardian' days - Norman has a young child who is a passionate fan, and was the columnist who famously suggested in September 2003 that there were "rumours Christopher Eccleston" was interested in the role, purely in an attempt to wind up the actor whose perceived seriousness he often pokes fun at. This time his reference to the show comes in a story about Welsh BBC newsreader Huw Edwards. "It seems my friend Huw Edwards, the bashful BBC newsreader, may be less thick-skinned than we imagined. A colleague of his reports once sending Huw a very courteous e-mail correcting his mispronunciation of a leading dictator's name. Huw responded that this was 'the rudest e-mail' he's ever received, and that he'd take lessons from 'Bush House types' only when they stopped mangling Welsh names. (Doctor Who fans will be reminded of Russell T Davies' typically brilliant self-parody of Welsh hypersensitivity at being ignored by London types in 'Boom Town', the episode involving Margaret Blaine, the Slitheen Mayor of Cardiff.) Anyway, Huw then misdirected to the same person an e-mail intended for someone else, describing his correspondent as 'effing rude', and in need of being told where to get off. Doubtless this was ironic in intent, and we won't countenance another word on the matter for at least seven days."

The Western Mail reports that "Santa Claus is coming to town for Doctor Who". "It may be the middle of summer, but Cardiff has been decked out in its Christmas finery as Doctor Who returns. Billie Piper ditched her summer gear for winter warmers yesterday to film the Doctor Who Christmas Special in the middle of a summer sunshine. Shop windows were given a Christmas makeover and a giant Christmas Tree was installed near the Central Library. The Doctor's pin-up sidekick pulled on a fur-lined jacket despite the balmy August weather. She was filmed in the city centre which was turned into a winter wonderland with Christmas trees and fairy lights. Billie and Noel Clarke, who plays her on-screen boyfriend Mickey, recorded several scenes in Cardiff's shopping centres. ... An onlooker said, 'It was a warm night but Billie was wrapped up for winter. They filmed right through the night and Billie seemed to be really enjoying herself. She looked stunning even if she was just in jacket and jeans'." There are also brief mentions in the Daily Record andNews24.com amongst others.

BBC News discusses the work of Mike Collins, the artist drawing the strip in Doctor Who Magazine. "Christopher Eccleston's decision to leave Doctor Who may have shocked most of the show's fans, but it also meant a pile more work for artist Mike Collins. As the man who draws the show's official comic strip, the switch to David Tennant sent Collins back to the drawing board. The Cardiff-based artist is currently preparing images of the new Timelord. It is the latest challenge for the man who has drawn everything from Superman and Star Trek to Harry Potter. As you might have guessed, Collins is a massive sci-fi fan, and he admitted he was shocked at Eccleston's decision to leave the Tardis after just one series. He has nearly finished his last story involving Christopher Eccleston. 'I had just got to the stage when I can draw Christopher Eccleston quite comfortably,' he said. 'But I have no problems, he has made a decision that was interesting for the show. It is a fresh new broom - David Tennant has a great face, and I have to get it right as he is a big fan and is going to read it.' Collins is currently waiting on his Tennant drawings to be approved, but said it helped that he has already started working on assistant Billie Piper, who plays the Doctor's assistant Rose. 'Billie Piper is fine - it took me a little while until I was happy, but one day you just understand how their face comes together. ... You are working with likenesses, and you have to be fairly accurate - it has to be [enough like the characters] to be recognisable, but different so they can work in a comic. "If you do a comic strip, you are the director, the lighting man and all the actors - you have to make it work.' The monthly comic strips are mostly written by the same team who write the TV show, overseen by Russell T Davies, who Collins says is 'very hands-on'."

In yesterday's The Age (Australia), a review of the season one finale, "The Parting of the Ways": "The episode, titled The Parting of the Ways, features the best devices of the series in spades. It's overflowing with deadpan one-liners - among the best, Rose's exclamation 'He's fighting for us, for the whole planet, and I'm just sitting here eating chips'... And let's not forget the salty elan Ecclestone brings to the title role. This isn't his finest work since Michael Winterbottom's Jude, but it's a pity he's pissing off now that episodes one to 13 have taken care of the mortgage. The unresolved sexual tension between Ecclestone and Billie Piper as sidekick Rose - who manages this week to do a very good job of being kidnapped by Daleks while wearing a tight red sweater - might not be so easily replicated by Tennant's indie-geek, pasty charms. There's a lot about this series of Doctor Who that amuses, whether intentionally or not. The sets appear to have been constructed by first-year University of Cardiff science students for an O-week project, the terrifyingly homicidal Daleks are reliant on vast amounts of Mr Sheen to keep their bonded polycarbide armour shiny, and some of the storylines have been quirky at best. Trainspotters - and boy, this show does attract them - will have a ball analysing subtle contradictions and inconsistencies in this episode and the fact that the denouement comes via a near-perfect example of the deus ex machina. But who cares? It's Doctor Who, not Chekhov. "

The Daily Star today claims Billie Piper "Billie Piper looked close to a breakdown as she felt the pressure of her punishing work schedule for the hit show. [Billie] is filming from 11pm to 5am every night as sexy sidekick Rose Tyler while the streets of Cardiff are deserted. But the strain showed on Billie's face yesterday as she took a rest. She suffered a mini breakdown on set last year during a split from husband Chris Evans, 39. And she seemed close to tears again as the Who team, said to be 'rallying round' to keep Billie's spirits up, worked through the night. An insider said: 'Billie is sleeping all day and working all night. She was fine for a couple of nights but it gets to you.'" There has also been plenty of comment online the past few days from various papers about Spirit Trap, her new movie, meeting mostly lackluster reviews.

Radio Times reports that "Following the success of his weekday afternoon chat show, Paul O'Grady is being groomed to star in a new Saturday-night variety show. Paul O'Grady's Got Talent is still being planned but will feature ordinary members of the public, ventriloquists and apparently dancing dogs. A pilot is being filmed and the series is hoped to revitalise ITV's Saturday nights, which took a beating in the ratings from Doctor Who."

A BBC Worldwide press release notes that, "In an unprecedented deal, BBC Worldwide has appointed Buzzworthy Licensing + Entertainment as the merchandising agent for the Doctor Who brand in Canada. This is the first time an agent has been appointed solely for the territory. As part of the three-year agreement, secured by Anna Hewitt, BBC Worldwide's Head of International Licensing, Buzzworthy will actively seek partner companies to produce and distribute new and existing Doctor Who products. These will include toys, clothing and gift items from both the first and second series. In addition, Buzzworthy will also work closely with BBC Worldwide Canada to secure ongoing promotional opportunities for the series. Hilary Read, COO, BBC Worldwide Canada Ltd, said: 'I'm very excited about this opportunity to lead North America with this unique property. I look forward to working with Buzzworthy who were appointed due to their knowledge and enthusiasm for the Doctor Who brand.' Kevin Durkee, Managing Director, Buzzworthy Licensing + Entertainment, said: 'We've seen Doctor Who enjoy decades of awareness in Canada and are therefore thrilled to be part of the ongoing development of such a terrific brand. The quality and success of the new series is also being reflected in the level of interest from local partners. We're excited to be working with BBC Worldwide, who recognize the importance of managing this business locally.'"

According to a story at Piranet, "British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Worldwide will apply security labels to its Doctor Who merchandise to deter counterfeiting. No details were provided at this time on the launch date of the merchandise, which is based on the latest series of Doctor Who. The security labels will most likely, be holographic and will be applied to packaging and hang tags. The supplier of the tags and labels cannot be named. ... BBC brand protection manager Rick McEwen says the corporation believes security labels will help protect the Doctor Who brand. He says a security label is useful because it helps consumers by confirming they are buying a legitimate item, rather than a copy or rip-off, and it protects the market for retailers and their suppliers, as well as confirming the brand ownerÆs desire to protect the property. McEwen also believes the tags will help Trading Standards, or other enforcement bodies, to make instant identification of genuine items in the field. ... The BBC anticipates that counterfeiters will try to take advantage of the showÆs popularity. 'Obviously counterfeit Doctor Who merchandise would damage legitimate sales and tarnish the brandÆs image,' McEwen says."

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes, Graeme Burk, Peter Weaver)