A special presentation of The Five Doctors will be taking place in the United States over the next couple of weeks:


The special showing will be presented in cinemas around the USA on the 17th and 24th August - see the Fathom Events page for more details.

This week sees some new releases from Titan expanding the timey-wimey world of Doctor Who - including the return of Sarah Jane in the latest Tenth Doctor as well as the next installment of the Eleventh Doctor as played by Matt Smith.

​​ Doctor Who: Tenth Doctor Year Three #8

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Artist: Giorgia Sposito
Cover A: Claudia SG Iannicello Cover B: Will Brooks Photo Cover C: Arianna Florean

Doctor Who: Eleventh Doctor Year Three #8

Writer: George Mann
Artist: Ivan Rodriguez, Wellington Diaz, Klebs Junior, Leandro Casco
Cover A: Blair Shedd Cover B: Photo Cover C: Simon Myers Cover D: Andy Walker

Actor and writer and inventor of the Sonic Screwdriver Victor Pemberton has died at the age of 85

Victor Pemberton was one of a select group of people to have both written for and appeared in Doctor Who.

In 1967, while trying to get writing work, he was earning money playing bit parts including that of a scientist in the Second Doctor story The Moonbase. But his real love was writing and when his friend Peter Bryant took over as the series Story Editor he was brought in as Bryant's assistant. He script-edited The Tomb of the Cybermen for Bryant, writing the poignant scene between the Doctor and Victoria where the Doctor explains how their lives are different.

Pemberton returned to freelance writing to pen Fury from the Deep, which saw the departure of the character Victoria from the series. It also saw the introduction of an iconic object that would forever be associated with the Doctor, The Sonic Screwdriver.

Fury from the Deep was Pemberton's only contribution to the TV series, but one of which he was very proud. In 1976 Pemberton wrote the audio adventure Doctor Who and the Pescatons, initially released as an LP and cassette and starring Tom Baker and Elisabeth Sladen. He wrote the Target novelisations of both Fury from the Deep and The Pescatons.

Victor Pemberton was born in London in 1931. His first job was as a mail delivery boy for a timber magazine in Fleet Street, followed by a short spell in the publicity and printing department of 20th Century Fox. Two years National service in the Royal Air Force followed, where he set up an entertainment system for the troops. His father brought him his first typewriter after he expressed a desire to be a writer.

His first drama scripts were for BBC Radio. In 1961 he wrote The Gold Watch, a play based on the extraordinary circumstances of his father’s retirement. Many other scripts followed, including The Slide, a seven episode science-fiction serial about an earthquake in the south of England, which starred Roger Delgardo and Maurice Denham. TV followed in 1965 with a script for a children's series on ITV called Send Foster. After Doctor Who he contributed to series such as Timeslip, Ace of Wands, The Adventures of Black Beauty and Within These Walls. In 1993 he invented the character of the Lighthouse Keeper for the UP version of the Jim Henson series Fraggle Rock

In 1987 he formed Saffron Productions Ltd making a number of documentary films, including Gwen, A Juliet Remembered and Benny Hill: Clown Imperial for the BBC. In 1990, Headline Book Publications asked him to write a novelisation of his BBC Drama radio series, Our Family. He went onto write fifteen novels.

In 2016 he undertook his Arctic Adventure, traveling alone by car through seven countries of Europe and Scandinavia to reach the Norwegian town of Bodo – in the Arctic Circle, in order to raise money for the charity Help for Heros.

Victor Pemberton's lifetime partner was the actor David Spenser, who died in 2013.

Victor Pemberton Website

Candy Jar Books will be launching a short story competition for their Lethbridge-Stewart series from 17th August:

Today marks the 100th Birthday of the actor Earl Cameron

Earl Cameron appeared in the 1966 Doctor Who story The Tenth Planet, playing Glyn Williams one of the two astronauts on the Zeus IV.

He becomes the third actor to have appeared in Doctor Who to reach their 100th Birthday. The others being Zohra Sehgal and Olaf Pooley. He is the oldest surviving actor to have appeared in the series.

Cameron was born in Pembroke, Bermuda. He is believed to be the second black actor to have a speaking role in the series' history, following Elroy Josephs apperance in The Smugglers.

Cameron made his first stage experience in 1942 when he talked his way into a West End production of Chu Chin Chow. He went on to act in a number of plays in London, including The Petrified Forest. He has appeared in the films Pool of London, Simba, The Heart Within, Sapphire in which played Dr Robbins; and The Message, the story of the Prophet Muhammad.

Other film appearances have included: Tarzan the Magnificent (1960), No Kidding (1960); Flame in the Streets (1961), Tarzan's Three Challenges (1963), Guns at Batasi (1964), Battle Beneath the Earth (1967), The Sandwich Man (1966) and the James Bond movie Thunderball (1965), in which he played Bond's Caribbean assistant Pinder Romania.

One of Cameron's earliest TV roles was a starring part in the BBC 1960 TV drama The Dark Man, in which he played a West Indian cab driver in the UK. The show examined the reactions and prejudices he faced in his work. His other television work includes Emergency - Ward 10, The Zoo Gang, Crown Court, Jackanory, Dixon of Dock Green, Neverwhere, Waking the Dead, Kavanagh QC, Babyfather, EastEnders, Dalziel and Pascoe and Lovejoy.

He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2009 New Year Honours.

Earl Cameron lives with his wife Barbara in Warwickshire.

Guardian Interview

Jodie Whittaker has talked about her reaction to being cast as the thirteenth Doctor.

The actress was talking to BBC 6 Music in her first broadcast interview since her casting was revealed. She described her excitment for the new series led by Chris Chibnall, who worked with Whittaker on Broadchurch.

Whittaker said she had not seen a lot of the reaction to her casting as she is not on any kind of social media, so she has only seen what friends had sent her. One clip she has seen is the reaction to her casting by a young girl in a clip which went viral. Whittaker said she had spoken to a few of the other actors who have played the role and the overwhelming advice was to enjoy the exciting adventure she was embarking on. No person plays the part the same.

The interview was to promote the new BBC One series Trust Me, which starts on 8 August. where she stars as Cath Hardacre, a nurse who loses her job after she turns whistle-blower - and then steals her friend's identity as a senior doctor in an Edinburgh hospital.

Jodie Whittaker has also been talking to BBC News about the new role.

The actor Hywel Bennett has died at the age of 73.

Hywel Bennett was best known for playing the title role of Shelley in the ITV comedy series broadcast in the late Seventies and early Eighties.

One of his earliest television appearances was as Rynian, the Aridian in The Death of Time, the second episode of the William Hartnell story The Chase.

Bennett was born in Garnant, Carmarthenshire, in 1944, and grew up in London. He trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. His first stage appearance was in 1959, playing Ophelia in Hamlet.

In the sixties, he appeared in a number of British films including The Virgin Soldiers based on the novel by Leslie Thomas, The Family Way alongside Hayley Mills and the psychological thriller Twisted Nerve.

In 1979 Bennett won the role he would become famous for, playing James Shelley in the Thames Television sitcom which was watched by up to 18 million viewers. The series ran until 1984. Bennett reprised the character in The Return of Shelley, running for four series from 1988 to 1992.

Other TV roles included parts in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, where he played Ricky Tarr, Boon, Frontiers, Neverwhere, Karaoke, Last of the Summer Wine and the Dennis Potter series Karaoke, Cold Lazarus and Pennies from Heaven. He played Peter Baxter in The Bill for five years and in 2003 he played the gangster Jack Dalton in Eastenders. His last known role was as Reggie Conway in The Last Detective in 2007.

In 2007 he retired from acting due to ill health.

Bennett was married to the former television presenter Cathy McGowan from 1970 to 1988 and to Sandra Layne Fulford from 1998. He is survived by his daughter, Emma.

BBC Worldwide has announced the release of a set of figurines based on the Dr. Who/Mr Men set of books released earlier this year.

The first four figures feature Dr. First, Dr. Fourth, Dr. Eleventh and Dr. Twelfth and will be released this autumn.

The Dr. Men book series, published by Penguin Random House, brings to life Doctor Who characters in the story-telling and illustrative style of Roger Hargreaves, famous for the Mr. Men books.

Each figure will retail at £9.99



Four Dr. Men books have been published so far, with books featuring Dr. Second, Dr. Seventh, Dr. Eighth, and Dr. Ninth set to be released later this month.