Winter Wonderland?

Saturday, 11 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
Today's "This is South Wales" features an article about a rather interesting transformation of part of the city of Swansea for one of the new Doctor Who series episodes. Meanwhile, the "Sun" newspaper also had some plot details, although these are mostly recycled from earlier info (and some of the Sun's 'report' appears to be speculative stuff right off of Outpost Gallifrey's own Forum!) Click on the spoiler tag below for some interesting information.
According to the South Wales report, the city of Swansea's maritime area will be "taken back in time and transformed into a scene from 1869 for the star-studded production." Says the report, fake snow is set to cover the road between Adelaide Street and Pier Street, and along the whole of Cambrian Place, Burrows Place and Gloucester Place. Period costume along with horses and carriages will help bring the scene to life. The article mentions Simon Callow's casting as Charles Dickens earlier in the week. An "insider" told the reporter, "We are currently working on the new series of Dr Who for BBC Wales. We have recognised the timeless charm of the Maritime area of Swansea and we would like to shoot some of our scenes there. The shots are snow scenes and are at night so for one night people will be treated to a Christmas scene outside their windows. We will also introduce horses and carriages, background artists in period costume and the use of braziers to take us back to Christmas 1869. We will be providing alternative parking for residents in a nearby secure car park and although road closures have been agreed and will be implemented, emergency vehicles will have access as normal." Swansea Councillor Gerald Clement, cabinet member for culture, recreation and tourism commented, "We are delighted that part of the new Dr Who series will be filmed in Swansea and extremely pleased to be associated with such a high-profile project. Our tourism marketing team works with the SWW office of the Wales Screen Commission to promote Swansea as a film and TV location and collectively, we have been successful in attracting a number of high-profile projects over the past couple of years."

The Sun, meanwhile, states (with a rather rude title) that "the new Doctor Who is to take on deadly aliens hell-bent on wiping out mankind รน by passing wind," regurgitating the Geith storyline that Outpost Gallifrey reported last week. (Indeed, we believe some of the Sun details are taken from the same source as we had.) It also mentions the Doctor faces an attack by "a race of dastardly 8ft villains called the Slitheens" which we previously reported. "The Doctor and sidekick Rose Tyler, played by Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper, must stop the Slitheens taking over the bodies of key politicians who run the country. They are part of a fiendish plot in which an alien crash-landing diverts attention from the plan to overthrow the Government." It mentions the March date again and notes that "other storylines include Rose witnessing the end of the world far in the future."




FILTER: - Press

DWM 348

Thursday, 9 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
Issue #348 of Doctor Who Magazine will be out on September 16. The following is the press release for the new issue; click on the thumbnail image for a larger version of the cover.
Director Euros Lyn spills the beans in latest DWM.

It's time for another thrilling adventure in time and space with the crew of Doctor Who Magazine.

The latest news from BBC Wales on the new series of Doctor Who includes a chat with the Block Two director Euros Lyn. Phil Collinson gives us an update on how the recording is going, while Russell T Davies tells us what a block actually *is* in another of his unmissable Production Notes. The tease! And then there's all this other stuff too ...

Don't miss the third and final part of the chat with former series script editor Eric Saward - find out why Eric found that working on the series had become something of a trial by 1986 ...

Meanwhile, Scheduled for Success reaches its season finale, as DWM's tireless researcher Andrew Pixley looks at some of the reasons why Doctor Who had become an 'ex-series' by the start of the1990s, and predicts the fortunes of the show in the ratings-driven TV landscape of the 21st century.

Plus! To celebrate its release on DVD, Ghost Light is examined in detail by The Fact of Fiction. It really does all make sense.

Meanwhile, the Time Team explore the Pyramids of Mars; find out about the upcoming Doctor Who at the BBC Volume 2 CD release from BBC Audio's Michael Stevens; and read all the latest (made-up) news from Sorvad as Space-Time Telegraph takes its final bow.

Plus! Don't miss the third part of the new comic strip adventure, The Flood, to see if the Doctor and Destrii can make good their escape from the deadly Cybermen - we're not guaranteeing anything, you know ...

DWM 348 is on sale from Thursday 16 September 2004.




FILTER: - Magazines - DWM

Big Finish Update

Thursday, 9 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
Big Finish has issued the cover illustration for the fourth installment of the Dalek Empire III serial; click on the thumbnail at right for a larger version. Also updated: details on A Life Worth Livingedited by Simon Guerrier, a new Bernice Summerfield hardcover anthology with 14 stories about the further adventures of the former Doctor Who novel companion. Click on the thumbnails for larger versions of each cover.

Update 10 Sep, 0500 GMT: A couple of things missed in the first go-round... Darin Henry's "Game Time" is now called The Game; that would be the January 2005 Big Finish audio starring Peter Davison. AndClockwerks is no longer on the schedule; the Paul McGann-starring Terror Firma is the sole July release, and Caroline Symcox's The Council of Nicea has moved up to August 2005.
A LIFE WORTH LIVING, edited by Simon Guerrier

The war is over. The Braxiatel Collection is back to normal. Better than that, people are all making more of an effort to rebuild, to get on, to re-establish the Collection at the forefront of academic excellence. Benny and Jason are back together. Life is good.

It's not going to last, is it?

Soon Benny is up to her eyeballs in strange deaths, sinister cults, peculiar love affairs and a Collection full of people who haven't yet stopped fighting.

Includes "Misplaced Spring" by Paul Cornell, "Welcome to the Machine" by Sin Dinez, "Final Draft" by Cameron Mason, "Against Gardens" by Eddie Robson, "A Summer Affair" by Joseph Lidster, "Denial" by Ian Mond, "Sex Secrets of the Robot Replicants" by Philip Purser-Hallard, "The Blame of the Nose" by Ben Woodhams, "Reparation" by Gregg Smith, "Nothing up my Sleeve" by Richard Salter, "Buried Alive" by Kate Orman, "There Never Need be Longing in your Eyes" by Ian Farrington, "Mentioning the War" by Nick Walters, and "Fragments" by Stewart Sheargold.




FILTER: - Audio

Davies, Gardner on Casanova

Thursday, 9 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
New series producers Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner will follow up production of the first season of "Doctor Who" with a lavish three-part period production of "Casanova" for BBC1, according to Broadcast Magazine. Originally commisioned by ITV from Granada's LWT in May 2002, Davies was originally set to produce it for ITV, but then Gardner, who was originally with Granada Television, joined BBC Wales as Head of Drama. Says Broadcast, "Her departure is thought to have prompted Davies to take the project to the BBC and sign it as part of a deal that also included him agreeing to write the new series of Doctor Who, which Gardner is overseeing." BBC controller of drama commissioning Jane Tranter told Broadcast: "We were keen to do what Russell wanted to do and to enable Julie to continue an ongoing relationship with Russell on Casanova and Doctor Who." Outpost Gallifrey is aware that Davies will be producing "Casanova" beginning in October 2004, and will hopefuly return to production of the second season of "Doctor Who" in the new year. (Thanks to Martin Day)




FILTER: - Russell T Davies - Production - Series 1/27 - Julie Gardner

DVD Releases

Thursday, 9 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
North American fans, take note: Pyramids of Mars and Earthshock are now available on DVD. For UK fans, Ghost Light was delayed and will be out Monday, September 20.




FILTER: - USA - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

Jaeger Press Obit

Thursday, 9 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
The Guardian has run an obituary about the death of Frederick Jaeger ("The Invisible Enemy") which Outpost Gallifrey reported last week.




FILTER: - Obituary - Classic Series

Lost in Time DVD Cover

Thursday, 9 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
Outpost Gallifrey has been sent what we believe is the final version of the cover for the forthcoming UK DVD release of Lost in Time, the boxed set featuring orphan episodes from the William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton eras. (We've contacted artist Clayton Hickman to find out if it's the actual final version.) Click on the thumbnail for a larger version. (Thanks to Tenth Planet as always for sending it!)

Update 10 Sep, 1415 GMT: Yes, this is indeed the final version of the "Lost in Time" UK cover. (Thanks to Clayton Hickman for confirming it!)




FILTER: - William Hartnell - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

Series Publicity Document: New Details

Thursday, 9 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
A one-sheet advertisement page from BBC Worldwide Television which will be featured in several forthcoming sales presentations in the UK, obtained by Outpost Gallifrey, shares some very interesting -- and exciting -- information concerning the new Doctor Who series. The BBC document states that the airtime for the first season of the new series is "Spring 2005," synching with the March 2005 transmission date Outpost Gallifrey has previously reported as being the likely target date. It also notes five cast members under the "Starring" block: Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor, Billie Piper as Rose Tyler, Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler, Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith and Mark Benton as Clive; this is interesting because it's the first time a surname has been published for the Mickey character on a public document, and the first time Mark Benton, only previously rumored to be in the series, has been confirmed anywhere.

Most especially, the text of the press document has an interesting summation of the new series, including some heretofore unknown details; they're in the text box below. Meanwhile, the press document also contains at least one overseas broadcast note: it confirms the involvement of Canadian broadcaster CBC, who is says has purchased the series ahead of delivery and will be transmitting it as soon after the UK transmission as they can.

We'll keep you posted when any other documents such as this come out of BBC Worldwide.
Christopher Eccleston's Doctor is wise and funny, cheeky and brave. An alien and a loner (it's difficult keeping up with friends when your day job involves roaming through time and space), his detached logic gives him a vital edge when the world's in danger. But when it comes to relationships, he can be found wanting. That's why he needs Rose.

Rose is a shop girl from the present day. From the moment they meet, the Doctor and Rose are soulmates. They understand and complement each other. As they travel together through history and across the universe, the Doctor shows Rose things beyond her imagination. She starts out as an innocent, fettered by earthly concerns. But she ends up an adventurer who, by the end of the series, can never go home again...

As the two forge a friendship across time and space, brace yourself for some exhilarating experiences and deadly confrontations. Far, far in the future, Rose witnesses the natural end of the world, as the sun expands and the solar system dies. Journey back to Victorian times for an encounter with Charles Dickens and the mysterious Geith -- gaseous monsters with deadly plans for humanity. While back in 2005, an alien crash-landing diverts attention from a conspiracy that leads to the very heart of the government.

Wherever they go, whoever they meet, every story will come back to Earth. For all the danger and tension, this is a fundamentally optimistic series. The human race will survive - but only with the Doctor's help. Prepare for brand-new, spellbinding adventures in the human race...




FILTER: - Production - Press

The Muppets Beat The Doctor

Tuesday, 7 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
Muppets Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his assistant Beaker defeated Dr. Strangelove, Dana Scully of "X Files" fame, Star Trek's Mr. Spock and the Doctor himself to be voted Britain's favorite screen scientists, according to a poll published Monday and reported on CNN.com and other online sources. They beat their closest rival by a margin of 2 to 1 and won 33 percent of the 43,000 votes cast; Spock came in a distance second with 15 percent followed by The Doctor, from Dr Who, who garnered 13 percent. Scully, the only woman in the poll, came in sixth. The poll, sponsored by the BA and the BBC cult television website, gave the public five weeks to choose their favorite scientist from a shortlist of 10 that included Dr. Evil from the film "Austin Powers," Dr. Frankenstein, Frank N. Furter, of the "Rocky Horror Show Picture Show," Dr. Emmett Brown, of the film "Back to the Future" and Q of James Bond fame.




FILTER: - Press

North America VHS Backstock Deletions

Tuesday, 7 September 2004 - Reported by Shaun Lyon
The total takeover of DVD means that VHS backstocks are shrinking, Doctor Who included. Steve Manfred has compiled a list at the Doctor Who Video FAQ site with a complete rundown of what's still in production and what's been deleted.




FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD