Doctor Who Adventures 167

Saturday, 22 May 2010 - Reported by Marcus
Doctor Who Adventures 167This week's Doctor Who Adventures has all the best bits from last week's episode, Amy's Choice: gruesome grannies spewing alien eyes, Rory with a ponytail, an ice-cold star that threatened to freeze the TARDIS and a mysterious Dream Lord!

You can also check out the ultimate Dalek battles, fast facts on the Sontarans, exclusive posters and a brand-new comic adventure.

Plus an TARDIS notebook and pen.




FILTER: - Magazines - DWA

Three Wise Men

Friday, 21 May 2010 - Reported by Marcus
In which Mr Moffat looks more cheerful and Mr Curtis more deb... on Twitpic
Neil Gaiman has posted a picture on his twitter account of a recent meeting between Steven Moffat, Richard Curtis and himself.

Gaiman has now completed his script for the 2011 series of Doctor Who, although the title is still secret. He is currently travelling in the UK in advance of the Hardback release of his Stories next month.

Curtis is the author of Vincent and the Doctor, Episode Ten of the 2010 series.




FILTER: - People

Develop: Doctor Who Adventures

Thursday, 20 May 2010 - Reported by Chuck Foster
The Online Gaming Industry conference Develop takes place in Brighton this July, and will feature the development of the game Doctor Who Adventures as a subject for the Production Track Keynote:
Whodunnit: Bringing Doctor Who to a PC Near You

A Time Lord can move through history and space on a whim, but game production has a schedule and a budget. Make that project a truly collaborative cross-media effort -- and throw a revolutionary free episodic download model into the mix -- and Dr Who: The Adventure Games becomes one of the most ambitious projects in development in the UK today. Join the BBC's Controller Portfolio and Multiplatform, Vision Simon Nelson, legendary developer Charles Cecil, and Sumo Digital's Creative Evangelist Sean Millard to hear how they tackled the creative and organisational challenges of bringing TV's most beloved time traveller to life. What have Sumo's game developers learned from TV production, and how has the BBC found its latest foray into games? And how has Charles Cecil turned the BBC scriptwriter's stories into an immersive game narrative?
Charles Cecil recently discussed how the game is progressing on the BBC's Doctor Who website; the first episode is due to be released on the 5th June.




FILTER: - Online - Games

Joanna Page denies Who rumour

Thursday, 20 May 2010 - Reported by Josiah Rowe
Gavin and Stacey star Joanna Page has denied a recent rumour, printed in the tabloid Daily Star, that she has been cast in Doctor Who. In an interview with The Press Association, Page said:
"It's not true. A friend was telling me about that. I was like 'I wish it was true'."

"I think I've got to be the only Welsh actress who has never been in Doctor Who so if someone would like me to be in Doctor Who I'd love to have a part."




FILTER: -

Torchwood episodes to rent online

Thursday, 20 May 2010 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Online TV-on-demand company SeeSaw have added Torchwood to the list of shows in their catalogue. All 31 episodes from the three series are available to rent online from their website.

The new arrivals to their catalogue include shows like Spooks, Planet Earth and Fawlty Towers. Pierre-Jean Sebert, SeeSaw's CEO, said:
Today’s announcement marks the next phase in the evolution of the UK’s most exciting online TV service. Since launch, SeeSaw has connected with one million TV lovers across the UK with a mixture of great content, a high quality viewing experience and simplicity of use. Going forward, we are confident that our blend of free and premium programming will enhance the appeal of SeeSaw to both viewers and advertisers.
SeeSaw also have the first two series of David Tennant's Doctor for available for rental, and currently have several classic Doctor Who stories online to watch free of charge (as reported back in February).




FILTER: - Online

Vincent And The Doctor - Press Details

Thursday, 20 May 2010 - Reported by Marcus
 Vincent And The DoctorThe BBC Press Office has released details for the tenth episode of the current series, Vincent And The Doctor.

The Richard Curtis story is scheduled for Saturday 5th June. It stars Tony Curran as Vincent Van Gogh and Bill Nighy as Dr Black.
Terror lurks in the cornfields of Provence, but only a sad and lonely painter can see it.

Amy Pond finds herself shoulder to shoulder with Vincent Van Gogh, in a battle with a deadly alien.




FILTER: - Press - Series 5/31 - Broadcasting

Bernice Summerfield - Season 11

Thursday, 20 May 2010 - Reported by Marcus
Cold BloodBig Finish have announced the details for the Eleventh Season of the Bernice Summerfield Adventures.

Bernice Surprise Summerfield was originally created by Paul Cornell as a new companion of the Seventh Doctor in Virgin Publishing's range of Doctor Who Novels. Big Finish have been producing audio plays featuring the character since September 1998.

Four new audio adventures will be released this year, plus a new hardback collection of short stories. This eleventh season of stories, starring the archaeologist from the 26th Century, will begin with a two-part conclusion to the long-running ‘Braxiatel’ story arc. The season midpoint, starting with the third release, will mark a new beginning in a new setting.

Story producer John Ainsworth says:
This is a really exciting turning point for Bernice Summerfield – both the character and the series, Listeners have been waiting a long time for the answers to some burning questions and now it’s time to deliver. But by concluding the ‘Braixatel’ story arc half-way through the season, we’re also giving new listeners a perfect opportunity to sample Benny and come on board. No prior knowledge of the characters or the series is required to understand and enjoy the third and fourth plays in this series. It’s a fresh start.

The series kicks off with what is effectively a two-part adventure, Resurrecting the Past (August) and Escaping the Future (September), both by Eddie Robson and starring all the regular supporting characters from The Collection. Robson, who is also editor of this year’s hardback book, Present Danger, the events of which are set between his two audio plays, says
We've been building up to a resolution on the Braxiatel arc for years, and I don't think the scale of it will disappoint. In order to really give the resolution the space it demands, we've given over this year's short story anthology to the wrapping-up events - the plays still make perfect sense if you don't read it, but it'll give you a broader view on the situation if you do. Everyone has a part to play - but will they all see the end of it?"
Present Danger will be published in September and includes stories by Kate Orman, Lance Parkin, Mark Clapham and Simon Guerrier.

Summerfield gets a new start from the third audio release in October with Year Zero by Jonathan Clements. This is followed in November by Dead Man’s Switch by John Dorney and Richard Dinnick. Each is very much a self-contained tale but both fit into a new story arc that will continue and conclude in Season 12. This new beginning takes the character back to basics and once again focuses on her skills and experience as an archaeologist.

Lisa Bowerman, who plays Bernice Summerfield, is also excited about the new direction for the series:
After the dust settles on one chapter, she’s going back to her boots and back to her roots. I can’t wait!

Big Finish have also confirmed they have commissioned a second season of Jago and Litefoot.

The first season of adventures featuring the characters of Henry Gordon Jago and Professor George Litefoot will be released next month. The duo first appeared as supporting characters in the classic Tom Baker story The Talons of Weng-Chiang.

Producer David Richardson said
We had such a fun time making the first series, and I’m really proud of it – I’m optimistic that people will be scared, excited and amused by these new audio adventures. There’s a real buzz about it – and I’m delighted to say that as a result series two is already in a very advanced state of preparation. Obviously we don’t want to say too much about it yet, as people have yet to enjoy the first four stories. But I can say that we have the brilliant David Collings joining the regular cast as Gabriel Sanders, while our guest stars in series two will include Vernon Dobtcheff and Simon Williams.

Season Two, which will also be released in a five-disc box set, will be available in January 2011.




FILTER: - Audio - Big Finish

Series Ends with The Big Bang

Thursday, 20 May 2010 - Reported by Marcus
The current series will end with an episode titled The Big Bang.

The title of the final story of the season has been confirmed by the official website.

Full series details can be found on our series guide.




FILTER: - Production - Series 5/31

Cold Blood at 7pm

Wednesday, 19 May 2010 - Reported by Marcus
Cold BloodDoctor Who moves back to a 7pm start for Episode Nine of the new series, Cold Blood, on Saturday 29th May.

The new BBC One line up is due to the showing of the 2010 Eurovision Song Contest live from Oslo, Norway at 8pm that evening. Doctor Who is preceded by an edition of The Weakest Link and followed by the National Lottery Saturday Draws.

Doctor Who faces The Whole 19 Yards on ITV1, a game show with Vernon Kay and Caroline Flack. BBC Two is showing The Boats That Built Britain with Channel 4 offering the feature film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.




FILTER: - UK - Series 5/31 - Broadcasting

DVD News

Wednesday, 19 May 2010 - Reported by Marcus
2 entertain have published pictures taken at the recording session for the commentary track on the forthcoming release of The Dominators. Two pictures have been published on the classicdw twitter account, the first featuring Wendy Padbury who played Zoe, Giles Block who played Teel, Sylvia James who did the make up for the story and Toby Hadoke who moderated. The second features Wendy Padbury who played Zoe, Frazer Hines who played Jamie, Arthur Cox who played Cully and Toby Hadoke who moderated, along with Commentary Producer John Kelly.
The Dominators is due for release in the UK on 12 July.

Tom Baker has confirmed he has now recorded the commentary track for the 2011 release of The Seeds of Doom, along with John Challis who played Scorby in the story and Philip Hinchcliffe who was producer at the time.

Also on the twitter account it has been confirmed that a tribute to former producer Barry Letts is being prepared for release on a future DVD. Tom Baker and Nicholas Courtney will both contribute to the documentary.




FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD