The BBC official Doctor Who website has a short piece from Wales Today on the start of production of the second series; the video is playable with Windows Media or Real Player.

A new BBC News report today confirms the start of production last week. "New Doctor Who star David Tennant said it was 'pretty daunting' to play the sci-fi character, as filming of new episodes began in Cardiff. Ex-Casanova star Tennant, 34, said it was an intimidating role because 'the series is so huge. I'm aware of all that but I try to keep it in my back pocket and just get on with the job,' he added. A 13-part series of the BBC TV show will follow a Christmas special, with scenes shot in London on Friday. Tennant, a long-term Doctor Who fan, also said he was excited about beginning work on the show. 'It's great - you get to play a Time Lord and have a Tardis. You can't knock that,' he said. ... The 60-minute Christmas special tells of the earth being under threat from alien Sycorax and features actress Penelope Wilton. The Cybermen will return in the new series, and the Doctor and Rose will meet Queen Victoria and an evil race of Cat Women. One episode will be written by comedian Stephen Fry while The League of Gentleman star Mark Gatiss will once again contribute to the writing." Meanwhile, the Irish Examiner and Manchester Online ran much the same story, but noted that "the makers of the hit TV series took over a restaurant in the Mermaid Quay area of Cardiff Bay for a morning shoot."

In addition to the Newsround video interview above, the CBBC Newsround website features an interview with Tennant. "It's great to get to play a TimeLord and have a Tardis," he told CBBC, adding that he was also a bit scared.

BBC Radio 4's PM had David Tennant on radio today, along with Billie Piper praising him and a short statement that filming in a Chinese restaurant in Cardiff today is standing in for a nightclub in the year five billion! It's on the Radio 4 website(under Listen Again for PM; it's at 53:48 to 56:36 approximately.)

There was also a short two minute feature on the filming in Cardiff today on BBC Five Live's midday news; it didn't reavel much, but does have a short chat with David Tennant. Listen to it on the Five Live website (under Listen Again for Midday News MON, the Doctor Who piece is at the end at 00.56.31.)

There were several more mentions today of the SFX reader poll voting "Doctor Who" the best UK fantasy series of all time, including in The Sun, Female First,

In today's Daily Star: "Billie's A Real Doll. Doctor Who babe Billie Piper left toy bosses panting when they were ordered to make a doll of her. They spent hours working out the shapely star's measurements so the toy version of Rose Tyler looks just like the real thing. Show bosses have lined up a series of special moveable models of Rose and the Doc in time for the Christmas rush. And their greatest enemies The Daleks and the Slitheens will also be flying off the shelves. Workers at Character Options, who had the task of making a model of 22-year-old Billie, had the best job of all. One joked: 'Let's just say the sculptors particularly enjoyed creating Rose. I can't think why!' However, fans will spot one glaring error. The Doctor doll is of Christopher Eccleston, 41, who quit as the Timelord to be replaced by David Tennant, 34. Toy manufacturers have to work months in advance and made their figure before they heard he had left. A doll of Tennant will be released next year."

(Thanks to Steve Tribe, Paul Engelberg, Jamie Austin, Ian Potter, Mike Humphreys, David Traynier)

David Tennant and Billie Piper spoke to BBC One's Newsround at 5.25pm on Monday (1 August), at slightly greater length than the interviews that appeared on the main BBC News programmes. It's about five minutes into the eight-minute programme, which is available on the CBBC website to view in Real Player for twenty-four hours until about 5.25pm BST Tuesday. The following is a brief transcript (with thanks to Steve Tribe).

Meanwhile, also included below is our first set report of the year, from today's location shoot in Cardiff by John Williams, and as such is included in ourspoiler tag... click on the spoiler tag image to read it. Outpost Gallifrey has also learned that previously-reported filming on the Hayes in Cardiff will take place next week, on Monday and Tuesday, instead of this week, as local retailers have noted. (Both The Hayes and Working Street, also seen in the first series, will be closed to the public both nights.) (Thanks to Stephen Watts, Dave Greenham, Rob Stickler, John Williams)

Doctor Who again featured heavily on CBBC's "Blue Peter" (22nd July) as further promotion for the 'Design A Monster' competition. Along with an array of clips a Slitheen, Auton Bride and "Genesis" Dalek prop were in the studio. The team were also joined by series monster designer Neil Gorton who gave some tips to those entering the competition, with attention focussing on the Slitheen. In addition, as the show progressed, he gave presenter Liz Barker a 'monster makeover'. Promotion was also given to the Brighton "Doctor Who" exhibition which apparently runs to October and where "Blue Peter" badge winners can get in free!

Last weekend saw the "Blue Peter Prom" (subtitled "Out Of This World") at the Royal Albert Hall, London and this includes "plenty more Doctor Who...". The Prom included an arrangement of the "Doctor Who" theme by Christopher Austin and was also broadcast on Radio 3 last Monday afternoon.

The Very Best of Billie Piper is a new 15-track album coming out on 8 August from EMI Gold, featuring 15 of her songs including "Because We Want To".

The new Disney film "Sky High" features a scene where Kevin McDonald's super-brain character "Mr. Medulla" is seen reading a Doctor Who paperback novel.

(Thanks to Mike Humphreys, Cody Schell, Jamie Austin)

Outpost Gallifrey will be catching up over the next week on the press coverage that happened throughout July; there was a lot of it, but very little was actually consequential, so we've kept the news page updated with the major stories in the meanwhile. Here's some of the highlights of press coverage from this past week:

The Sun featured an article about the start of production with some photos (collected from the official press photographers Outpost Gallifrey has linked to over the past several days). "The Time Lord clutches the hand of assistant Rose Tyler, played by Billie Piper, as they film on a South London council estate," says the sun, which shows a wintry TARDIS scene and robotic Santas. "David [Tennant], 33, donned a natty pinstripe suit for one scene with Billie [Piper], 22 - before changing into a leather jacket." The Daily Star also covered the start of filming, asking "Who else but the Doctor could conjure up wintry scenes like these slap-bang in the middle of summer? While Britain lurches from heatwaves to tornados, the Doc's sexy sidekick Rose is wrapping up warm... Piper looks chilled to the bone as she shoots a special festive edition of the sci-fi smash. ... These new shots of the Doctor clasping hands with Rose seem to show that things are set to pick up where they left off. Pictured on a south London housing estate, the Timelord and Rose looked very close as they filmed a Christmas special." More coverage of the start of production at ITV, Channel 4, Digital Spy,Regional Film and Video, CBBC,

BBC News says that "he's been a dandy, an Edwardian cricketer and most famously wore a long scarf. Doctor Who's togs change as he regenerates. And the latest Time Lord is kitted out in high fashion. Flamboyant. Garish. Bizarre. Seldom does Time Lord fashion make it to the High Street. Until now. When David Tennant takes over the role later this year, it will be in what he describes as 'geek chic'." The article describes the cocstume as "the type of man Kate Moss might date, kitted out in a brown pin-stripe suit, white shirt - unbuttoned at the collar - a loose tie and scruffy white Converse trainers. The ensemble, put together by a freelance costume designer, is finished off with a long brown trench coat, a cross between old hack's Mac and flasher attire. The suit is skinny and crumpled - much tighter and Norman Wisdom will be demanding copyright. The look is just-got-out-of-bed, dragged-through-a-hedge-backwards, only-thing-I-could-find. It's Franz Ferdinand cum Kaiser Chiefs. But is it Time Lord? Does it have the gravitas, the power and the magic that goes with such an eminent position? Will it make the Slitheen, the Autons and the Gelth quake in their boots, or will it simply reduce the Daleks to helpless laughter? Only time will tell, but the new look should further cement the popularity of the series." The Guardian says that "last season was all rather jolly (RIP Christopher Eccleston), but the next one is already winning, fashion-wise - not something one thought one would ever say about a show associated with weird hats and 70s perms. The lovely David Tennant has wisely ditched the leather jacket, a garment loaded with embarrassing 'rocker dad' connotations, and kitted himself out in a charming tweedy suit with white trainers. For some reason, the BBC has dubbed it 'geek chic', as if any man not wearing an Asbo hoodie must be a nerd. And we pay our licence fee to these ignoramuses? So Saturday evenings will now be spent leching over - sorry, watching - TV. Sorry, swains." Additional mentions of this at Media Guardian, The Times, Manchester Evening News, The Daily Record, The Herald (Glasgow), The Scotsman, The Western Mail, Ananova, The Daily Mail, The Examiner, Ireland Online, Megastar, Glasgow Evening Times, Syfyportal,Hello Magazine, IC Wales, Sky News. (Note that some of these also feature comments about the start of production.)

The official Doctor Who website has a feature article on some of the new toys due out later this year, including a 12" remote control Dalek, action figures of the Doctor, Rose and a Slitheen, character walkie-talkies, sonic screwdrivers, Sound Effects mugs, a talking TARDIS moneybank with speech and a TARDIS desk Phone Flasher.

David Tennant says he wants to be the first naked Time Lord. The actor has joked he would love to film a whole series with nothing but computer technology to protect his modesty: "I'm going to be nude throughout. It's a whole new thing, with a bit of pixelation around the groin." But seriously, he says, he does have a new costume. Tennant tells the Sun: "Casanova and the Doctor have a similar joy and wit about them. There is less sh**ging in 'Doctor Who', but who knows? We might change that, too!" Also reported at Female First. Also CBBC has a poll where you can vote on the Doctor's new costume.

The BBC Press Office last week put out a press release with highlights of David Tennant's interview in the new issue of DWM, in which Tennant notes that he's paid a bit of attention online. "Well, when I was announced, I admit, I did go on [Doctor Who website] Outpost Gallifrey to have a quick look, because I just couldn't help myself, and everyone was encouraging me to go on and see what the fans were saying about me. So I went on there and the first comment I read was very nice, and the next comment was terribly flattering, and then the next one said something like 'I can't bear the sight of him!' And the one after that said 'Who?' The one after that said 'I'd rather have David Morrissey.' The one after that said 'That's it! The dream is finished! Somebody who looks like a weasel could never play the Doctor! It's over!' And then I thought to myself that maybe it's best not to read this sort of thing too much!" Naturally, Tennant's comments -- obviously meant as a side note -- were taken by the media and turned into a major story, reported in BBC News, Daily Record, Western Mail, the City Beat, U.TV, Evening Standard, Daily Post, Monsters and Critics, RTE, and in print editions. (Outpost Gallifrey wishes to remind everyone that a couple negative comments on the forum do not reflect the opinions of this website or the opinions of fans and fandom in general.)

Other items: The Stage features a report about dramas dominating ITV's autumn schedule in the wake of their catastrophic fall opposite Doctor Who this spring; Sunday Life features a short piece about an actress, Lisa Hogg, who says she auditioned for Doctor Who when it looked like Billie Piper was set to leave; The Sun mentions today that Billie Piper's role in the forthcoming autumn BBC1 serial "Much Ado About Nothing" features her as a 'sexy weathergirl'; theHexham Courant discusses a local school production "Return to the Forbidden Planet" featuring a Dalek; and more mentions of Queen Elizabeth II being a fan at The Mirror, Ananova, Female First.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Andrew Harvey, Paul Hayes, Mustafa Hirji, Paul Greaves, John Bowman, Mark Healey)

Outpost Gallifrey has received more photos taken on the Doctor Who set at the Brandon Estate in London on Friday, July 29, as submitted by Stephen Watts. The images show a visit to the set by Peter Davison, who stopped by with his children to see the production and say hello to David Tennant and company (there is no truth to any rumour that Davison is part of the second series), as well as photos of David Tennant, Billie Piper and Noel Clarke. Click on each image for a larger version. (Thanks to Stephen Watts)

According to today's Mirror, Queen Elizabeth II has ordered a DVD box set of the latest Dr Who series for her summer holiday. "She has become a huge fan of the hit BBC show starring Christopher Eccleston - and she was hugely disappointed when the actor quit after his first stint as the Time Lord," says the article. She "is also a fan of the Daleks and she intends to while away August evenings watching the series at her Scottish residence. A Buckingham Palace source said: 'The Queen loves the programme and has requested a full set of DVDs. She has asked the BBC to send her copies so she can watch the series again during her stay at Balmoral.'" (Thanks to Peter Anghelides)