50th Anniversary ident / trailer

This evening between Strictly Come Dancing and the début episode of new BBC drama Atlantis,  BBC One aired their Doctor Who - Day of the Doctor hashtag which #savetheday
 

Trailer, stings and other things ....

 Taken from the official BBC site:

Tonight, immediately before and after the brilliant Atlantis (BBC One, 8.25pm) there will be ‘stings’ for The Day of the Doctor that reveal the ident which will be used for the episode, plus a hashtag that (hopefully!) you’ll soon be very familiar with…

  

We recently announced a raft of programmes that will be help celebrate the Doctor’s anniversary but stand by for several surprises en route to the 50^th… One of them is a brand new trailer, specially written and shot for The Day of the Doctor. It’s never been seen before and is currently in post-production. Bold, brilliant and unexpected, it promises to be an ideal way to look forward to the big day – 23 November.

We’ll bring you that trailer as soon as we can, but in the meantime, here’s a shot from behind the scenes of its production. And don’t forget to catch the stings tonight on BBC One around Atlantis! If they’re on a little late for you, don’t worry, we’ll have them right here on the official site so you can watch for weeks after they air!

From the BBC twitter account:

 

10 Years Since New Who

It is 10 years ago to the day since the BBC announced that Doctor Who would be returning to our tele boxes, and all thanks to Welshman Russell T Davies (born Stephen Russell Davies). 

Russell at the time was better known for writing the controversial Channel Four drama Queer As Folk and Messiah which starred the man who would play the ninth incarnation of the Doctor, Christopher Eccleston.

He also created two successful spin-offs - Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures which starred the late Elisabeth Sladen (R.I.P).

Here is the moment we got to see Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor in the opening episode of the revamped Doctor Who - 'Rose'

UK TV Schedule Doctor Who - The Doctors Revisited On Watch

Doctor Who retrospective The Doctors Revisited will screen on Saturdays and Sundays between 12 October and 16 November on UKTV channel Watch, with each episode followed by a classic Doctor Who adventure starring the Doctor in question.

The acclaimed documentary series provides an introduction to each incarnation of the Time Lord, complete with cast interviews, clips, a montage of the Doctor’s key moments, iconic lines and the monsters he has fought. Contributors include current showrunner Steven Moffat, Tenth Doctor David Tennant, former executive producer Caroline Skinner and Doctor Who writer Neil Gaiman.

Kicking off with a look back at William Hartnell’s First Doctor, the opening programme will be followed by four-part 1964 adventure The Aztecs, set in 15th century Mexico.

Patrick Troughton’s Second Doctor will face one of the Time Lord’s deadliest foes in Tomb of the Cybermen, first shown in 1967, while Third Doctor Jon Pertwee will appear in Spearhead in Space, the first adventure featuring the Nestene consciousness and animated mannequins the Autons.

Fourth Doctor Tom Baker and his companion Sarah Jane Smith, played by Elisabeth Sladen, will visit The Pyramids of Mars, where ancient dark forces are threatening all life on Earth in a story dating from 1975.

The Cybermen rear their ugly heads again, this time battling Peter Davison’s Fifth Doctor in 1982 adventure Earthshock, while Sixth Doctor Colin Baker and his companion Peri find themselves trapped in the dreaded Punishment Dome in 1985’s Vengeance on Varos.

Arthurian Legend meets science-fiction in 1989's Battlefield as Seventh Doctor Sylvester McCoy and his companion Ace join forces with the Brigadier and UNIT to take on the evil Morgaine, who identifies the Doctor as her enemy Merlin. 

McCoy also briefly features in Doctor Who: The Movie, as Paul McGann makes his one and only appearance as the Eighth Doctor, battling Eric Roberts’s Master. Meanwhile Christopher Eccleston’s Ninth Doctor, and companions Rose Tyler and Captain Jack Harkness, play for their lives on board the Game Station in 2005 two-part finale Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways, unaware that the Daleks are lying in wait.

The Tenth Doctor adventure, 2008 finale The Stolen Earth/Journey's End, sees the return of not only the Daleks but their creator Davros, and also features a regeneration for David Tennant’s Time Lord. And the run of episodes concludes with 2011 opener The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon in which Amy, Rory and Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor enlist the help of River Song to save a terrified little girl from a mysterious space man.

See the full air dates, times and episodes for The Doctors Revisited below

Saturday 12 October

2pm The Doctors Revisited: William Hartnell

2:30pm The Aztecs 

Sunday 13 October

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Patrick Troughton

2:30pm Tomb of the Cybermen

Saturday 19 October

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Jon Pertwee

2:30pm Spearhead from Space

Sunday 20 October

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Tom Baker

2:30pm Pyramids of Mars

Saturday 26 October

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Peter Davison

2:30pm Earthshock

Sunday 27 October

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Colin Baker

2:30pm Vengeance on Varos

Saturday 2 November

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Sylvester McCoy

2:30pm Battlefield

Sunday 3 November

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Paul McGann

2:30pm Doctor Who: The Movie

Saturday 9 November

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Christopher Eccleston

2:30pm Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways

Sunday 10 November

2pm The Doctors Revisited: David Tennant

2:30pm The Stolen Earth/Journey's End

Saturday 16 November

2pm The Doctors Revisited: Matt Smith

2:30pm The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon

Watch is available on Sky channel 109 (Watch HD 124, Watch+1 155) and Virgin Channel 191 (Watch+1 125)

Source: Radio Times

Fourth Doctor TARDIS console at Britishfest 2014

Have you ever wanted to fly the Doctor's TARDIS? Of course you have. What Whovian hasn't dreamt of piloting the TARDIS?  As of June of 2014 that is exactly what  you will be able to do!   

One of the many props at BritishFest is a full-scale Tom Baker Console room with working switches  lights, and sounds!  It was such a big hit when it was originally shown at another local con. So much so, they ran out of room for people to watch it being used for a fan film being made. (Judging by the photos in their photo section, it looks like the guys behind Doctor Who:Besieged) This time at Britishfest it will have more room and the rest of the set and walls finished!

 

Fan-Made Peter Capaldi Title Sequence

For me, this is definately one of the best fan-made title sequences and it is for new Doctor Peter Capaldi.

The video is made by billydakiduk

Couples wanted for Doctor Who mass wedding/civil partnership event! - See more at

Who fans, are you planning on getting married this year? Want to make it special? How about this ....

Who wouldn't want to get married in the face of Daleks, Cybermen or a Silurian? There is a mass Doctor Who wedding event happening on the 24th November 2013, the day after the fiftieth anniversary of the cult classic.

An events company is looking for 50 couples who want to get hitched dressed as their favourite characters from Doctor Who. There will be prizes for best costume, and all couples will say their vows at the same time. The event is also open to those who want to renew their wedding vows. 

A specially constructed TARDIS is being built for the event and you will get to mingle with friends and foes from the show. Doctor Who commemorative rings and a special cake are being designed for the big event, along with a band who will be playing songs from the show.

After the mass wedding ceremony, there will be a champagne reception and buffet which is open to the public. 

The Special Events Group are no strangers to organising themed based weddings, they co-organised the first UK Klingon wedding and the minister even spoke Klingon!

The wedding is being held in London at the Bloomsbury Ballroom on the 24th November  2013. Registration closes on the 15th October. Full details can be found at the Whovian Wedding site.

Big Finish - Light At the End 50th Anniversary Edition

 Big Finish Audio have released a promotional video for their celebratory Doctor Who 50th Anniversary audio special. Details for this release are here in a previous post.

The 50th Anniversary Doctor Who full-cast audiobook adventure from Big Finish Productions, to be released in November 2013 on CD, download and limited edition vinyl.

Peter Davison involved in the 50th Anniversary

Peter Davison appeared on ITV's morning breakfast show Daybreak earlier in the week.

Davison, who portrayed the fifth incarnation of the Doctor, refused to say whether he would star in 'The Day of the Doctor', the 75-minute-long special starring Matt Smith and David Tennant, which will air on Saturday, 23rd November.

"I've heard lots of rumours, none of which I am allowed to tell you. I am privy to them actually"

The Law & Order UK star  went on to say; 

"I have got a copy of the script which has my name embossed over it. So it's top secret, there's other stuff ; lots of other things going on that people should keep their eye open for around the fiftieth anniversary"

He has a script for 'Day Of The Doctor', does this mean that we will see the Fifth Doctor as canon for the first time since the 2007 Children In Need minisode 'Time Crash' penned by Steven Moffat? It sure would be fantastic if Peter Davison makes a cameo. I for one will geek-squee! (HAHA). We will find out for sure on Saturday 23rd November 2013.

Peter Davison has also been interviewed by Bang Showbiz:

"I'm making an appearance somewhere over that period of time but I can't reveal in what. I can't reveal anything specific about it. I'm not allowed to. It is a big year for the show and we're all doing our bit for it. Trust me."

Watch Peter Davison's in Time Crash alongside then Doctor David Tennant

Steven Moffat - Matt Smith is 'Heartbreakingly Good'

With filming on the Christmas special already under-way, Steven Moffat said, "Matt Smith is heartbreakingly good in his final performance as the Doctor."

Speaking to Entertainment Wise at Sunday's TV Choice Awards 2013, Steven Moffat commented how Matt Smith was treating his final outing as the Doctor with a 'glass half-full approach and appeared to be rather upbeat and cheery. 

 

Best Drama Series - Doctor Who

Outstanding Contribution Award - Doctor Who

 

Moffat went on to say that it was emotional, "It's hard to let go, watching him on set yesterday [Sunday]. You get all excited about the new Doctor and then you go back and see Matt back on set on his first day and you think, Oh my god, that's what we're losing."

Steven went on to talk about the Doctor-in-waiting Peter Capaldi, and how he is looking forward to putting his spin on the role, "He's very excited and thrilled."

Full article

Former Doctor David Tennant picked up the award for Best Actor after last winning it for his role in 'Single Father' in 2010.

Time machine's are possible

Time machines similar to Doctor Who’s Tardis are possible, Professor Brian Cox said in a speech at the British Science Festival.

“Can you build a time machine?” said Professor Cox, “The answer is yes.There’s just one, tiny problem, if you can build a machine capable of time-travel, you can only travel into the future. You can’t come back." 

To “travel” forward in time, you simply need to accelerate to speeds close to the speed of light, Cox says - as you get close to that speed, time slows down, but only for you, according to Einstein’s Theory of Special Relativity.

Professor Cox also suggested that research at the LHC might uncover extra dimensions - thus, perhaps finally explaining how the TARDIS is bigger on the inside. Professor Cox , a Dr Who fan, is to deliver a 60-minute speech on Dr Who to be screened by the BBC on November 23 - tackling questions such as extraterrestrial life, travelling to other dimensions and time travel. 

Full article

BBC reveal their plans for the 50th anniversary - Finally!

At Midnight tonight (11/09/2013), over on their Facebook page, the BBC revealed their plans for the upcomng 50th anniversary of Doctor Who - finally!

Here is what they revealed:

Now we know this post is quite wordy but we wanted to let you know about ALL of the other things happening across the BBC to mark our very own #DoctorWho's 50th anniversary in November - and there's a lot - so here goes...

ON #BBCTWO:
- In a special one-off programme, Professor Brian Cox will try to answer the classic questions raised by the Doctor – can you really travel in time? Does extra-terrestrial life exist in our galaxy? And how do you build something as fantastical as the TARDIS?

-The Culture Show will present ‘Me, You and Doctor Who’ with lifelong fan Matthew Sweet exploring the cultural significance of the BBC’s longest running TV drama, arguing that it’s one of the most important cultural artefacts of modern Britain.

- BBC Two will then wrap up its coverage with the previously announced ‘An Adventure in Space and Time’ written by Mark Gatiss

ON BBC Three:
-'Doctor Who: Monsters and Villains Weekend’ will countdown to the top Doctor Who monster as voted for by you.

- 'Doctor Who: The Ultimate Guide’ will introduce those less familiar to the show to a wealth of archive material and act as a guide to all things Who.

- We also have one further exciting commission to be announced later this year which will see the celebrations finish with a bang.

ON #BBCFOUR:
- Audiences will be introduce audiences to the first Doctor, William Hartnell, with a special re-run of the first ever story, which marked the start of 50 years of history. The four episodes are being shown in a restored format, not previously broadcast in the UK.

There will also be programmes across #CBBC including two live #BluePeter specials.

ON BBC Radio 1:
- A documentary will look at 'Time Lord Rock (TROCK)' as a genre of music inspired by the Doctor and his journeys through space and time.

ON BBC Radio 2
- 'Who is the Doctor' will look at the lasting appeal of Doctor Who and ask how much of its continued success can be attributed to its basic formula.

- In ‘The Blagger’s Guide to Doctor Who’, David Quantick will give the iconic Doctor the Blagger’s treatment. He’ll be finding out the answers to questions such as why do Americans think Tom Baker is still Doctor Who? How many Doctors have there really been? Were the Daleks really named after an encyclopaedia?

- Finally, Graham Norton will be broadcasting his weekly Radio 2 show live (Saturday 23 November, 10am) from the Doctor Who Celebration in London.

50th Anniversary Poster - Official

Clean image

Colin Baker is BUSTED!

Former Sixth Doctor Colin Baker came face to face with himself today as a bronze resin bust of the star was revealed.


Colin, who writes a weekly column for the Bucks Free Press, said: "It is remarkable. It feels very odd. You really don't think it is ever going to happen to you, and it has." 


"I feel very honoured." 


In honour of Colin's time as the sixth Doctor Who between 1983 and 86 there is a Tardis and Cyberman on the bust, which will be placed somewhere in Colin's home in Cadmore End.


 His wife, Marion, was at the reveal who said: "It is brilliant. I think he ought to play Winston Churchill- now I am convinced." 





Source

Filming images for Christmas Special - Spoilers!

Wales Online have published some spoilery pictures from the filming of this years Doctor Who Christmas special.

The pictures show Matt Smith in a wig to cover up his recently shaved head, which he had done for his part in the Ryan Gosling's directorial début 'How To Catch A Monster' movie

 



 

More images can be seen here

Title revealved for the 50th Anniversary special

The title of the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special has been revealed:

The Day of the Doctor

The episode is written by Steven Moffat and as we know, stars David Tennant and Matt Smith as the previous and present Doctors, along with Jenna-Louise Coleman as Clara and Billie Piper as Rose. Joanna Paige stars as Queen Elizabeth I and guest starring  the legend who is John Hurt as a previous incarnation of the Doctor. The episode has a running time of 75 minutes and will air worldwide on November 23, 2013. The DVD is released on Dec 2nd 2013, and you can  pre-order HERE.

 Also, we have the following to look forward to regarding the Fiftieth Anniversary:

An Adventure in Space and Time by Mark Gatiss and starring David Bradley as William Hartnell

A BBC Two lecture by Professor Brian Cox discussing the pseudo-science behind Doctor Who.

BBC Four is running a restored version of An Unearthly Child and the rest of the 100,000 BC serial that kicked off the show back in 1963.

BBC Two’s The Culture Show is to screen Me, You and Doctor Who, hosted by lifelong fan Matthew Sweet.

A 90-minute documentary on BBC Radio 2 asks Who Is The Doctor?

BBC Three will be home to several commissions, including Doctor Who: The Ultimate Guide.

Dates and times to be confirmed. Not a great deal really. They could easily have shown a serial from each of the Doctors. Let's just be thankful for these eh.

TV Choice Awards 2013

Doctor Who has won two TV Choice Awards, scooping Best Drama Series and also receiving a special Outstanding Contribution Award in honour of the show’s 50^th anniversary.

 

The awards were announced and given out at a star-studded ceremony at London’s Dorchester Hotel on Monday, 9^th September. The Best Drama Series category was decided by you the audience, so massive thanks to everyone who voted for the Doctor!

Congratulations also to David Tennant, the Tenth Doctor, who won Best Actor for his role in Broadchurch, the recent drama series written by Chris Chibnall.

Doctor Who: The Doctor - His Lives and Times (Dr Who) [Hardcover]

'I'm the Doctor. I'm a Time Lord. I'm from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. And I'm the man who's going to save your life.'

 


He's made a mark on almost every era of history, and he's touched millions of lives across space and time. In these pages you'll find just some of the stories behind those brief encounters, each of them addressing the question that must never, ever be answered: 'Doctor Who?'


This is the story of an impossible life - of a man who borrowed a spaceship, travelled through time and continually saved the universe - as told by the Doctor's friends, by his enemies, and by the man himself. Letters, journals, trial records, secret government files and the occasional bit of tabloid journalism reveal the never-before-told story of Gallifrey's last Time Lord.

Price: £13.20
Release Date: 26th September 2013
Pre-Order from Amazon.co.uk

TARDIS in orbit: Update

Alex and Robert Doyle launched a Kickstarter in late May 2013 to do something awesome...put a satellite replica of the TARDIS into low earth orbit for the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who.

Find them here: 

http://www.tardisinorbit.com/

https://twitter.com/Tardis_In_Orbit

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tardis-in-Orbit/

John Hurt: "I thought Whovians were loonies"

John Hurt has been interviewed by The Guardian's Tim Lewis and was asked about being in the upcoming 50th anniversary of Doctor Who.

 

As a coincidence, John has been acting now for 50 years as Tim pointed out, "It's your 50th year in the business and you are about to appear as the Doctor in the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who. Both of you have had lots of reinventions.Is there a neat the link there?"

I'd never thought of that, but let's use it! Oh yes, there's a huge link definitely. But I had no idea that Doctor Who had got so huge; I just thought, "Brilliant, I'll be a Doctor!" I was suddenly – what do they call it? You start "trending". This is all new to me!

 Is it a relief you can talk about your role, now that the costume designer let slip to the Prince of Wales that you play a "dark Doctor"?

Of course you have to remember that the Doctors are all one person, so I'm not outside of that. I can't talk about it, but I will say I was really impressed when I did it. Both the previous doctors – Matt Smith and David Tennant – boy, are they good at it. Whoa-wee! They are so quick, and there's a huge amount of learning and no time to learn it in. All that fake scientific nonsense. Terribly difficult to learn.

Have you met the Whovians?

I've done a couple of conferences where you sit and sign autographs for people and then you have photographs taken with them and a lot of them all dressed up in alien suits or Doctor Who whatevers. I was terrified of doing it because I thought they'd all be loonies, but they are absolutely, totally charming as anything. It's great fun. I'm not saying it's the healthiest thing – I don't know whether it is or isn't – but they are very charming.

Full interview: here

Cybermen to bring about the fall of the Eleventh in Christmas episode

Filming for the Doctor Who Christmas special is to commence on Sunday 8th September, and Speaking to ITV's Daybreak at last night's (September 3) GQ Men of the Year Awards, Matt revealed that he will wear a wig for his final performance in Doctor Who.

Matt: "I cut my hair for a film, but it means I have to wear a wig in Doctor Who, which is a nightmare," he said, "I'm excited - I start shooting the Christmas special [on] Sunday. It'll be sad - the end of a wonderful era!"

Rumour has it that the Cybermen are to appear in the Christmas episode according to a tweet by stunt performer Daz Parker who has claimed :

Great to be stunting again for Dr Who in the Christmas special playing a Cyberman! pic.twitter.com/KslWbQdkWr  The tweet has since been removed.

The last time they appeared in a Christmas special was during David Tennant's tenure in The next Doctor which also starred David Morrisey. The special will see Matt Smith regenerate into Peter Capaldi's Twelth incarnation of the Time Lord.