As we approach the 60th Anniversary of Doctor Who, revisit the story of Doctor Who, the occasional series written for the 50th Anniversary, explaining the origins of the programme.
Episode 31 - An Unearthly Series - The Origins of a TV Legend: First published 23 Nov 2013
Doctor Who continues this Saturday with the third and final story in the series of specials made to mark Doctor Who's sixtieth anniversary.
The Giggle can be seen on BBC One in the United Kingdom at 6.30 pm. It will be released on Disney+ and the BBC iPlayer at the same time.
The giggle of a mysterious puppet is driving the human race insane. When the Doctor discovers the return of the terrifying Toymaker, he faces a fight he can never win.
The Giggle stars David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble. It is written by Russell T Davies and directed by Chanya Button for Bad Wolf Productions and BBC Studios.
Dancing With The Toymaker... | PREVIEW The Doctor and Donna are back on Earth - but what's happened to the human race? 😨
The first special starring David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor, The Star Beast, had an official 7-day rating of 7.61 million viewers in the UK.
The rating is the highest figure for Doctor Who since The Tsuranga Conundrum in 2018.
Doctor Who was the 10th most-watched programme on British Television for the week, behind seven episodes of I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here and two of Strictly Come Dancing.
The official rating includes those who recorded the programme and watched it within a week.
Globally the episode is the 61st watched movie on Disney+. It has been most successful in Australia, New Zealand and Turkey.
The Appreciation Index, a measure of how much the audience enjoyed the episode, was 84.
The second episode, Wild Blue Yonder, had an overnight rating of 4.83 million, third for Saturday behind the dancing and grub-eating reality shows. 7-day figures will be released next week. Its Appreciation Index was 83.
Doctor Who continues this Saturday with the second in the series of three specials made to mark Doctor Who's sixtieth anniversary.
Wild Blue Yonder can be seen on BBC One in the United Kingdom at 6.30 pm. It will be released on Disney+ and the BBC iPlayer at the same time.
The Tardis takes the Doctor and Donna to the furthest edge of adventure. To escape, they must face the most desperate fight of their lives, with the fate of the universe at stake.
Wild Blue Yonder stars David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble. It is written by Russell T Davies and directed by Tom Kingsley for Bad Wolf Productions and BBC Studios.
Where are the Doctor and Donna? Where has the TARDIS dropped the Doctor and Donna this time?... ✨ Watch a preview from the upcoming 60th anniversary special 'WILD BLUE YONDER'!
Doctor Who: The Star Beast had an overnight audience figure of 5.08 million viewers in the UK.
Doctor Who was the second most-watched television programme on Saturday night behind Strictly Come Dancing which had 7.67 million watching. ITV had 4.83 million watching the reality programme I'm a Celebrity Get Me out of Here.
The figure shows a large increase over the previous season of Doctor Who with The Power of the Doctor having an overnight figure of 3.710 million.
The figure is an estimate of the number of people who watched the programme on the day of transmission. It will be updated next week to include those who watch the programme on catch-up services.
The Appreciation Index for the episode, a measure of how much the audience enjoyed the programme, was 84, the highest score since World Enough And Time in 2017.
The new episode was available globally on Disney+ where it is currently classed as the 3rd most-watched film worldwide. It is currently in first position in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Turkey.
Doctor Who is set to blast this year’s BBC Children in Need broadcast into outer space with an exclusive scene.
Ahead of the three specials for the 60th anniversary, the brand new exclusive scene will sees David Tennant star as the Fourteenth Doctor who shares an encounter with a mysterious new character, played by actor and comedian Mawaan Rizwan. It is then that the Doctor uncovers an age-old mystery involving one of his oldest foes…
Written by Doctor Who Showrunner Russell T Davies, this other-worldly special is made specifically for BBC Children in Need, just before viewers hop back into the TARDIS for a brand new set of adventures for three special episodes set to coincide with the show’s 60th anniversary this November.
BBC Children in Need viewers will also get a glimpse at the creation of the scene, as newly announced companion series Doctor Who: Unleashed will also feature a special treat as part of the broadcast with an exclusive behind-the-scenes clip.
David Tennant said:
Mawaan Rizwan said
Russell T Davies, Showrunner says
Tune in to BBC Children in Need at 7 pm on Friday 17th November to see the Fourteenth Doctor in his first adventure on BBC One and iPlayer.
Both the exclusive scene, and an extended look behind the making of it, will also be found in the Whoniverse on iPlayer.
Doctor Who fans will be able to add the 60th-anniversary specials to their home entertainment collection from December on Steelbook, DVD and Blu-ray.
Following the Fourteenth Doctor’s TV specials to celebrate Doctor Who’s 60th Anniversary, all three episodes will be available for Doctor Who fans to add to their home entertainment collection in December 2023.
The three-disc release, which includes exclusive additional content, will be available for fans to own on Steelbook, Blu-ray and DVD from 11th December with pre-orders available today.
As well as David Tennant starring as the Fourteenth Doctor and companion Catherine Tate returning as fan-favourite Donna Noble, other guest stars include Neil Patrick Harris, Yasmin Finney, Miriam Margolyes, Jemma Redgrave and many more.
The release will feature all three-anniversary special episodes: The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder and The Giggle.
Additional content (Exclusive to the 60th Anniversary specials release)
Special Features:
Doctor Who will return to TV screens Worldwide on the 25th of November 2023.
The series will air in the UK on BBC One where it will be at the prime spot launching Saturday's evening entertainment just as it did in November 1963, 60 years ago.
With David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate reprising her role as Donna Noble the popular duo will make their spectacular return to mark the shows 60th anniversary with three special episodes running each Saturday.
Get set for three epic adventures starting with The Star Beast (25th November) where the Doctor and Donna will come face to face after all these years but just how, and why, is about to be revealed. Followed by Wild Blue Yonder (2nd December) and The Giggle (9th December) viewers are about to go on an otherworldly adventure through space and time.
Joining David Tennant and Catherine Tate is a stellar cast including, Yasmin Finney as Rose Noble, Miriam Margolyes as the voice of the Meep, Jacqueline King as Sylvia Noble, Karl Collins as Shaun Temple, Ruth Madeley as Shirley Anne-Bingham, Jemma Redgrave as Kate Stewart and Neil Patrick Harris as the Toymaker, set to cause all kinds of mayhem.
All before Ncuti Gatwa gets the keys to the TARDIS over the festive season.
Viewers outside of the UK will be able to accesss the episodes on Disney+
The first episode of Doctor Who: Unleashed will follow The Star Beast on Saturday 25th November. After every new episode of Doctor Who, viewers can switch over to BBC Three or BBC iPlayer to watch the access all areas show that gives viewers an unmissable insight into the creation of Doctor Who.
The BBC has released a new trailer for the three 60th Anniversary Specials which will be broadcast later this year.
Doctor Who 60th Anniversary Specials | Doctor WhoDestiny isn’t done with them just yet… The Doctor and Donna return for three special episodes ❤️❤️➕🔷
The brand new trailer features Neil Patrick-Harris waltzing onto the scene, as it is now revealed that he will play the Toymaker, an all-powerful enemy last seen in 1966 - but what is it that brings the Doctor face-to-face with this enemy from his past?
Also shown, UNIT is back with a bang! Jemma Redgrave reprises her iconic role as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart alongside David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor.
Russell T Davies, Showrunner said:
Doctor Who returns in November 2023 with three special episodes with David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor to coincide with the 60th anniversary. Ncuti Gatwa’s first episode as the Fifteenth Doctor will air over the festive period.
Doctor Who will premiere exclusively on the BBC for the UK and Ireland. Disney+ will be the exclusive home for new seasons of Doctor Who outside of the UK and Ireland.
The latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine, issue 594, is now available.
Highlights include:
Designated ’Driver – Michael van Kesteren, Doctor Who’s art director for props, and Barry Jones, prop maker, give DWM the lowdown on the Fourteenth Doctor’s brand-new sonic screwdriver.
Letter from the Showrunner – Russell T Davies recalls his first ever encounter with the Doctor Who production team, way back in 1987.
The DWM 60th Anniversary Poll – the analysis of the results continues, with this issue looking at the rankings of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Doctor’s adventures.
Conjuring Patrick – family, friends, colleagues and admirers of Patrick Troughton turned out in force at the unveiling of a commemorative plaque to the Second Doctor actor.
Memory Worm – Andrew Smith, the writer of 1980’s Full Circle and many acclaimed Big Finish audios, puts his knowledge of his Doctor Who career to the test.
Production Diary – script editor Scott Handcock files his latest report, direct from Doctor Who’s HQ.
All Decs on Hand – assistant set decorator Verity Scott and set decorator’s assistant Lois Drage describe working on the new series of Doctor Who.
Liberation of the Daleks Part Eleven – the adventures of the Fourteenth Doctor continue in the epic comic-strip adventure written by Alan Barnes and illustrated by Lee Sullivan.
60 Objects, 60 Years – the latest instalment of the series that tells the story of one object from every year of Doctor Who’s history.
Sweet Dreams are Made of This – a comprehensive preview and disc-by-disc breakdown of the forthcoming Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 20 Blu-ray box set.
The Fact of Fiction unlocks the secrets of the Fifth Doctor story Arc of Infinity.
Gallifrey Guardian – all the latest official news.
Other Worlds – the essential guide to new stories in Doctor Who’s expanded universe.
Previews, reviews, prize-winning competitions, Time and Space Visualiser and more.
Doctor Who Magazine Issue 594 is on sale Thursday 17 August from panini.co.uk and WH Smith priced £7.99 (UK).
Also available as a digital edition from pocketmags.com priced £6.99.
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