Doctor on Demand in South KoreaBookmark and Share

Monday, 29 February 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster
BBC Worldwide have announced a new deal to provide Doctor Who via video-on-demand in South Korea. The series will be provided by SK Broadband through their IPTV service B TV.

Doctor Who forms part of a package that will include a number of dramas like the recent War and Peace, and documentary series like Africa and Life Story. Soojin Chung, GM of BBC Worldwide in Northeast Asia said:
We are committed to bringing great quality programming to viewers in Korea. SK Broadband is a valued partner and we are excited to be working with BTV to bring award winning and the best programmes from the BBC to their VOD subscribers, to watch them at their convenience.

Doctor Who is currently available to watch in the country in English via BBC Entertainment, and in Korean through KBS.



Editorial: details on broadcasts from around the world can be found via This Week in Doctor Who; however, whilst we monitor a wide variety of broadcasters we know there are more out there that we don't currently include. If you are aware of Doctor Who or one of its spinoffs, or any other documentary, feature or interview relating to the shows that aren't being covered, please do let us know at twidw@doctorwhonews.net.




FILTER: - Asia Pacific - BBC Worldwide - Broadcasting - International Broadcasting - Online

Space, Time, Machine, Monster: Doctor Who EditionBookmark and Share

Monday, 29 February 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Candy Jar Books have announced a new non-fiction title that delves into the science of Doctor Who:

Space, Time, Machine, Monster: Doctor Who Edition (Credit: Candy Jar Books)Space, Time, Machine, Monster: Doctor Who Edition
Written by Mark Brake and Jon Chase
Illustrated by Terry Cooper
Published by Candy Jar Books

Space, Time, Machine, Monster: Doctor Who Edition takes you on a journey into the science of Doctor Who.

Jam-packed with aliens, time machines, spaceships and lots of monsters, this book explores the secrets of the Universe’s favourite Time Lord.

And, for an extra bit of fun, we present our own Doctor Who Top 10s on topics such as planets, companions, favourite stories and catchphrases!

So how does a Dalek poo? Let’s find out!

The book is edited by Shaun Russell and Andy Frankham-Allen; Russell commented:
We had already released Mark’s Space, Time, Machine, Monster book based on science fiction in general. It seemed a natural progression to concentrate on Doctor Who. It was also great to welcome Jon Chase to the fold. His credentials are second-to-none; having worked on the BBC Bitesize Science TV series.

As well as Space, Time, Machine, Monster, Mark Brake has also written Space Hoppers, Really, Really Big Questions about Space and Time, and The Alien Hunter’s Handbook. On this new tome, he said:
Doctor Who was originally created to teach history and science. Even though the show has changed, I feel fundamentally that the Doctor’s adventures have something to teach us about our own world. My mission was to explore concepts from the series and see how they feature in our everyday lives.

The book can be purchased (for a limited period) as part of the Lethbridge-Stewart: Moon Blink bundle, or alongside the original Space, Time, Machine, Monster; full details can be found on the Candy Jar Books website.




FILTER: - Books - Candy Jar Books - Non-Fiction

Big Finish: more River Song, Churchill and Monsters for 2017Bookmark and Share

Monday, 29 February 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Big Finish have announced second volumes for a number of their new Doctor Who-related audio series:

Big Finish logo (Credit: Big Finish)Time travelling archaeologist and adventurer River Song will return on audio in 2017 – and this time she will be stepping into the past life of the Doctor, encountering two of his incarnations at once! Alex Kingston returns in The Diary of River Song: Volume 2 from Big Finish Productions, a Doctor Who spin-off that is licensed by BBC Worldwide.

From the space exploration vessel Saturnius – which is heading to a destination that never gets any closer – to a doomed planet Earth and beyond, River’s journey will bring her closer to a new foe... and an encounter with both the Sixth and Seventh Doctors.

Producer David Richardson said:
We’re thrilled to have both Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy appearing alongside Alex in this box set. I can promise that River and the Doctor might not necessarily be working to the same agenda. In fact, the two Doctors might not be working to the same agenda either...

The four hour-long adventures are The Unknown by Guy Adams, Five Twenty Nine by John Dorney, World Enough and Time by James Goss and Eye of the Storm by Matt Fitton. The impressive guest cast includes Anna Maxwell Martin (Midwinter of the Spirit, And Then There Were None, The Bletchley Circle), Jessie Buckley (War and Peace), Ann Bell (Tenko, Wallander), Robert Pugh (Game of Thrones, Mr Selfridge, Doctor Foster), Dan Starkey (Doctor Who, Wizards vs Aliens) and Barnaby Edwards (Doctor Who).


2017 will also see the release of a second volume of Doctor Who – The Churchill Years, in which Ian McNeice returns in the role of Winston Churchill – once again relating more terrifying adventures that featured his old friend the Doctor.


Also returning for a second volume is Doctor Who: Classic Doctors, New Monsters, in which legacy Doctors battle foes from the post-2005 series. Expect a return for some of the Doctor’s darkest and most terrifying enemies...

The series are produced by David Richardson, script edited by Matt Fitton, directed by Ken Bentley and Barnaby Edwards and the executive producers are Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs.


The Diary of River Song: Volume 2, The Churchill Years: Volume 2 and Doctor Who: Classic Doctors, New Monsters: Volume 2 can all be pre-ordered individually or as part of a bundle at the Big Finish website. Alex Kingston also returns as River Song in Doctor Who: Doom Coalition 2 alongside Paul McGann, Nicola Walker and Hattie Morahan, which is released in March 2016.

The first volumes of The Diary of River Song and The Churchill Years are currently available. Doctor Who: Classic Doctors, New Monsters: Volume 1 is released in July.




FILTER: - Audio - Big Finish

Peter Capaldi at HMVBookmark and Share

Monday, 29 February 2016 - Reported by Marcus
The Complete Ninth Series (Blu-ray) (Credit: BBC Worldwide)
Peter Capaldi will be appearing at HMV Bond Street in London to meet fans and sign copies of the new DVD/Blu-ray release of Doctor Who Series 9.

The Twelfth Doctor will attend the launch on Monday 7 March from 5.30pm at the OXford Street superstore.

The DVD and Blu-ray contain all 12 episodes from Peter Capaldi's second series in the role, alongside companion Jenna Coleman and guest stars Maisie Williams and Rufus Hound as well as the brilliant Missy (played by Michelle Gomez).

The Complete Boxset also contains the 2014 Christmas Special, Last Christmas and this year's highly anticipated, The Husbands of River Song and more than four hours' worth of extra material.




FILTER: - Blu-ray/DVD - Peter Capaldi - Series 9/35

Big Finish: Fourth Doctor Adventures finaleBookmark and Share

Wednesday, 24 February 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Big Finish have announced details on the finale to current series of the Fourth Doctor Adventures, which stars Tom Baker, Lalla Ward and John Leeson.

Returning to the series is the character of Cuthbert, as played by David Warner, and his faithful assistant Mr Dorrick (Toby Hadoke), who were last seen in the Series Two finale The Final Phase. Also from that series are the race of aliens known as the Laan (Jane Slavin), who also hailed from the Series 2 episodes The Sands of Life and War Against The Laan.

Also appearing from the television series itself is somebody the Doctor and Romana have been trying to avoid for some time - the Black Guardian, with the embodiment of darkness taken on here by David Troughton.

The Pursuit Of History (Credit: Big Finish) Casualties Of Time (Credit: Big Finish)
The Pursuit Of History / Casualties Of Time

Written and directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released July/August 2016

Starring Tom Baker as The Doctor, with Lalla Ward as Romana and John Leeson as K9, and featuring David Warner as Cuthbert, Toby Hadoke as Mr Horrick, and David Troughton as the Black Guardian


On a brisk winter’s morning in 1850s Yorkshire, Cuthbert, head of the intergalactic business known as 'The Conglomerate' prepares to hijack a very special train.

In the far future, his assistant, Mr Dorrick is awoken by howling alarms. There is a problem with the Quantum Gateway.

In the TARDIS, the Doctor, Romana and K9 detect strange distortions in the Vortex, an energy stream coming from a strange creature called a Laan.

The threads of a plan centuries in the making are coming together. But who is behind this plan? And can anyone possibly escape when history is against them?




FILTER: - Audio - Big Finish - Fourth Doctor

CraveTV announced to stream Doctor Who in CanadaBookmark and Share

Tuesday, 23 February 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Peter Capaldi as the Doctor (Credit: BBC/David Venni)Bell Media and BBC Worldwide North America have announced a new licensing agreement for Doctor Who in Canada, which will see streaming service CraveTV become the exclusive streaming service for the show in the the country.

The agreement will see Series 9 made available this summer, with the previous eight moving to the platform by the end of the year. Series 10 onwards will be made available after their full-season broadcasts on SPACE.


Matt Forde, EVP Content Production, Sales and Distribution, BBC Worldwide North America, said:
Bell Media and Space have done a phenomenal job with one of the BBC’s crown jewels, Doctor Who. They have nurtured it, and built it, and are now going to make it accessible to everyone on multiple platforms – exclusively. This longstanding partnership exemplifies dedication in giving the fans what they want, when they want it, and hopefully attracting loads more along the way.
Tracey Pearce, Senior Vice-President, Specialty and Pay, Bell Media, added:
A ratings juggernaut, Doctor Who continues to be Space’s signature series; along with our great partners at BBC Worldwide North America, we’re excited to continue to be the exclusive Canadian home of Doctor Who, and look forward to continuing to be a companion to The Doctor.

Mike Cosentino, Senior Vice-President, Programming, CTV Networks and CraveTV, continued:
One of the most iconic genre series in history, Doctor Who is a marquee offering for subscribers of CraveTV. An anchor of our Sci-Fi & Fantasy collection since the very beginning, we’re proud to establish CraveTV as the exclusive Canada streaming destination for this hugely successful series.

The series has been the most-watched entertainment specialty programme on SPACE in their key A25-54, A18-49, and A18-34 demos, with Season 9 achieving an average of 697,000 viewers in its Saturdays at 9 p.m. ET timeslot - becoming the most-watched season in series history on Space among the key A25-54 and A18-49 demos. The most recent episode to be shown, Christmas's The Husbands of River Song, was the most-watched Christmas special in the channel's history with 856,000 viewers, with its A25-54 and A18-49 demos making it the most-watched programme on Christmas Day on Canadian television.


Series 1-8 Doctor Who are currently available to stream via Netflix in Canada until their current license agreement to show the series ends; the streaming service has already ceased showing the series in the United States, and is expected to end in the United Kingdom at the end of April.




FILTER: - Canada - Online

Competition RoundupBookmark and Share

Tuesday, 23 February 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster
A roundup of further competitions from Doctor Who News that readers may enter:

The Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Labyrinth of Buda Castle

The fourth Doctor continues his adventures alongside Romana and K-9:
The Doctor and Romana land in Budapest, intent on enjoying another holiday, but shortly after landing they find themselves too late to save the life of a man who has seemingly been attacked by a vampire. As they learn that this is the latest in a series of violent attacks, it becomes clear that they have stumbled onto something that needs investigating. Aided by a vampire hunter who is searching for Dracula, they look into the nearby Buda caves, currently being used for storage by the military - and find that the soldiers have problems of their own. Stalked through the tunnels by a monster, and up against an ancient evil, the race is on to escape alive - and foil the dastardly schemes of the maniacal Zoltan Frid.
The Labyrinth Of Buda Castle (Credit: Big Finish)To be in with a chance to win a digital download of the audio adventure courtesy of Big Finish, simply answer the following question:
In which televised story did the Doctor first encounter "Dracula"?
Please send your answer along with your name and the email address you have registered with Big Finish, plus where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-bf4d@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "Everything at stake". The competition is open worldwide, closing date 6th March 2016. Note: entrants must have an active registration with Big Finish in order to be eligible to receive the prize - new registrations can be easily created on the website for free and with no financial obligation.

BBC Books: 365 Days of Memorable Moments and Impossible Things

BBC Books are to publish a book examining notable events in Doctor Who during the course of a year next month:
For over half a century, Doctor Who has entertained and enthralled fans with the time-travelling adventures of the Doctor and his companions. From that first glimpse of a police telephone box in a Totter's Lane junkyard, to meeting terrifying villains such as the Daleks or the Weeping Angels, to the fall of the Doctor's home planet Gallifrey, the beloved series has provided a near-inexhaustible list of indelible memories. This book is a unique and captivating day-by-day chronicle of those memories. In this fascinating compilation of fictional and historical events from the world's longest running science-fiction show. Doctor Who expert Justin Richards revisits iconic characters, thrilling plot twists and memorable battles, as well as sharing bonus behind-the-scenes secrets from both the classic and new series.
365 Days of Memorable Moments and Impossible Things (Credit: BBC Books)To be in with a chance to win the book courtesy of BBC Books, simply answer the following question:
The Doctor has on occasion chronicled his own adventures, making reference to them a number of times during his earlier incarnations, but what did he use to do so?
Please send your answers along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-365days@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "One day I shall read back". The competition is open to UK readers only, closing date 6th March 2016. Only one entry per household will be accepted.

BBC Audio: The Space Museum

The next classic novelisation adaptation for 2016 sees the first Doctor catch a glimpse of his own possible future in The Space Museum:
The TARDIS materialises on what, at first sight, appears to be a dry and lifeless planet serving only as a graveyard for spaceships. The Doctor, Ian, Barbara and Vicki discover a magnificent museum housing relics from every corner of the galaxy. These have been assembled by the Moroks, a race of cruel conquerors who have invaded the planet Xeros and enslaved its inhabitants. Upon further exploration the TARDIS crew seem to stumble upon the impossible: for suddenly, facing them in an exhibit case, they find...themselves!
Doctor Who: The Space Museum (Credit: BBC Audio)To be in with a chance to win the audiobook courtesy of BBC Audio, simply answer the following question:
Having been grabbed by Xeron rebels, the Doctor promptly escapes them by hiding in an an unusual way - what does he do?
Please send your answers along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-target@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "The Xerons are revolting". The competition is open worldwide, closing date 6th March 2016. Only one entry per household will be accepted.




FILTER: - BBC Audio - BBC Books - Big Finish - Competitions

Big Finish: regular range during 2016Bookmark and Share

Tuesday, 23 February 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Big Finish have released details on what to expect in their regular monthly range of adventures for the Doctor.

The first quarter of the year features the fifth Doctor and companions, with Peter Davison, Janet Fielding and Sarah Sutton reprising their roles as they encounter Rembrandt, a mysterious apparently abandoned spaceship, and a bad time in Manchester's history:

Waters of Amsterdam (Credit: Big Finish)Starring Peter Davison as the Doctor, with Janet Fielding as Tegan and Sarah Sutton as Nyssa
Written by Jonathan Morris, directed by Jamie Anderson
Released January 2016 [order]

Reunited with the Doctor and Nyssa, Tegan joins them on a trip to Amsterdam's Rijkmuseum to see a new exhibition of the work of Rembrandt van Rijn, featuring his drawings of “Vessels of the Stars”. The Doctor is astonished to discover that they are designs for spaceships that would actually work, and decides to pop back to the Dutch Golden Age for a quiet word with Rembrandt – but the world-weary artist is no mood to help.

Meanwhile, strange forces are swirling in the canals, creatures from ancient myth, the watery, goblin-like Nix. What is their connection to the mysterious Countess Mach-Teldak – and to the events of Tegan’s life during her year away from the Doctor?
Aquitaine (Credit: Big Finish)Starring Peter Davison as the Doctor, with Janet Fielding as Tegan and Sarah Sutton as Nyssa
Written by Simon Barnard & Paul Morris, directed by Ken Bentley
Released February 2016 [order]

Today should be much like every other day for Hargreaves, the computer consciousness that co-ordinates daily life aboard the spaceship Aquitaine, stationed on the outer fringes of a black hole. Water the plants, run the diagnostics, cook the Captain’s breakfast; then tidy the plates away, rotate the ship, clean the windows of the observation deck. When at last the day’s work is done, Hargreaves will dim the lights in the sleeping quarters. But no-one will sleep aboard the Aquitaine tonight. Because the Aquitaine’s crew is missing.

But today will be different. Today, a space/time ship called the TARDIS will materialise in the botanical section, bringing the Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan aboard the Aquitaine. Together, they’ll seek to discover the truth of what happened to Hargreaves’ crew...

... if only the ghosts will let them.

The Peterloo Massacre (Credit: Big Finish)Starring Peter Davison as the Doctor, with Janet Fielding as Tegan and Sarah Sutton as Nyssa
Written by Paul Magrs, directed by Jamie Anderson
Released March 2016 [pre-order]

"They say there’ll be thousands pouring into Manchester tomorrow. From all over the county, north and south. It’ll be a piece of history. People will remember this!"

Lost in the smog of the Industrial Revolution, the TARDIS crashes four miles south of Manchester, in the grounds of Hurley Hall – a grand mansion belonging to a local factory owner, a proudly self-made man. But while Hurley dreams of growing richer still on the wealth of secret knowledge locked up in the Doctor’s time and space machine, his servants hope only for a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work. His young maid Cathy, for instance, whom Nyssa learns is looking forward to joining the working people’s march to St Peter’s Field, in the heart of the city. There’ll be speeches and banners and music. It’ll be like one big jamboree…

Or so she thinks. For the city’s establishment have called in their own private militia, to control the crowd. One of the darkest days in Manchester’s history is about to unfold – and the Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan are right in the thick of it.

The second quarter provides a new encounter with the Masters ... with the fifth Doctor encountering an earlier incarnation (Geoffrey Beevers) in April, followed by the sixth Doctor embroiled with the recent (Alex Macqueen) in May, before the seventh Doctor finds himself recruited by both in June!

And You Will Obey Me (Credit: Big Finish)Starring Peter Davison as the Doctor, with Geoffrey Beevers as the Master
Written by Alan Barnes, directed by Jamie Anderson
Released April 2016 [pre-order]

The Master: wanted for crimes without number, across five galaxies.

The Master: escaped his pursuers. Last known location: rural Hexford, England, Earth.

The Master: dead and buried in an unmourned grave, in a lonely churchyard.

Apparently.
Vampire Of The Mind (Credit: Big Finish)Starring Colin Baker as the Doctor, with Alex Macqueen as the Master
Written by Justin Richards, directed by Jamie Anderson
Released May 2016 [pre-order]

Somewhere off the South Coast of England, there’s a lonely island. On that island stands a solitary castle, long since abandoned – haunted, they say. But the truth is, that castle houses something far worse than mere ghosts.

The castle is what lies at the end of a trail followed by the Doctor in search of several missing scientists – all of them connected to the top secret Dominus Institute and its elusive CEO, Sir Andrew Gobernar…

But the Doctor will soon discover that he’s the one being haunted, by a ghost from his past… or perhaps, his future.
The Two Masters (Credit: Big Finish)Starring Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor, with Geoffrey Beevers and Alex Macqueen as the Master
Written by John Dorney, directed by Jamie Anderson
Released June 2016 [pre-order]

The future is dying. All over the universe, gaps are beginning to appear. From the space lanes terrorised by the rag-tag remnants of the once-mighty Rocket Men, to the empire of the Gorlans, stricken by a terrible civil war. Gaps in space/time, portents of the end of everything.

Only three beings might prevent it. The Doctor, a renegade Time Lord from Gallifrey. The Master, another renegade Time Lord from Gallifrey. And another Master, yet another renegade Time Lord from Gallifrey.

One Doctor. Two Masters. What could possibly go wrong?

The summer sees Sylvester McCoy reunited with Bonnie Langford and Sophie Aldred as the seventh Doctor, Mel and Ace embark on a new trilogy of adventures, A Life of Crime, Fiesta of the Damned and Maker of Demons. Then as autumn and winter descends, the fifth Doctor returns in an anthology The Memory Bank and Other Stories, whilst Colin Baker and Miranda Raison return as the Doctor and Constance for a trilogy to round off the year, Order, Absolute Power and Quicksilver.




FILTER: - Audio - Big Finish - Fifth Doctor - Seventh Doctor - Sixth Doctor

Jon Rollason 1931-2016Bookmark and Share

Tuesday, 23 February 2016 - Reported by Marcus

The actor Jon Rollason has died at the age of 84.

Jon Rollason is best known in Doctor Who, for playing Harold Chorley, the television journalist who covered the attacks on the London Underground in the 1968 story The Web of Fear. The recovery of the story in 2013 gave a new generation of fans the chance for to appreciate his contribution to the story.

Jon Rollason was born in Birmingham, where he began his acting career working in the Birmingham Rep.

In 1955 he got his first role on television, appearing in The Children of the New Forest. In 1962 he played Dr. Martin King in three episodes of The Avengers. He had recuring roles in Swizzlewick, Z Cars and Softly Softly before joining Coronation Street in 1966 as Dave Robbins, a teaching colleague of Ken Barlow.

He wrote two episodes of Crossroads and in 1969 created a two-part series Special Project Air for the BBC, starring Peter Barkworth, produced by Doctor Who's Peter Bryant and with music by Dudley Simpson.

Jon Rollason died in hospital on the morning of February 20th and is survived by his second wife, Janet, and three children.




FILTER: - Classic Series - Obituary

15% off at LovarziBookmark and Share

Friday, 19 February 2016 - Reported by Marcus
Doctor Who Umbrella
Lovarzi is offering a 15% discount on all Doctor Who products this week end.

The company produces products based on Doctor Who, including the Fourth Doctor's Scarf and the Seventh Doctor's Jumper.

The sale lasts from today until Sunday(21st). Simply use the promotional code DOCTORWHO15 to get 15% off.

Lovarzi Website




FILTER: - Merchandise