Saturday, 29 November 2008
Christmas TV Listings
As Christmas Approaches, the UK Newsstands are filling up with Christmas TV Listings and all of which have the Doctor who Christmas special as their Front Cover:
Morrisey could be the 11th Doctor(Possibly)
Wales Online has report about how David Morrisey who is appearing in the Christmas special, reports that he could be the 11th Doctor:
DOCTOR Who writer Russell T Davies has given a strong hint that David Morrissey will be the next timelord.
Morrissey will appear alongside outgoing doctor David Tennant in his swansong this Christmas and the Welsh writer said: “Anyone playing the Doctor has to be capable of anything – action, heartbreak, comedy, wielding a sonic screwdriver – and David Morrissey’s got that in spades.”
He added: “He’s one of those actors who can turn on a sixpence; light-hearted one minute, tragic the next.
“Sounds exactly like a Time Lord to me.”
Morrissey will guest star in athis year's Christmas special – entitled The Next Doctor.
A special preview on Children in Need showed the two actors – both playing Doctors, meeting in Victorian London.
Asked if he would return to Doctor Who, Morrissey told the Radio Times: “Oh yeah. Definitely. I love it.
“I’ve had a great time... If they asked me back I’d jump at it, I think it’s a great character and I’ve loved every minute.”
Asked if former Doctors had influenced his performance, Morrissey said: “When I look at Tom Baker and William Hartnell, there’s a truth to their performances; Patrick Troughton as well.
“They never saw it as a genre show or a children’s show.”
He said his difficulty was trying trying to create a relationship with something that was not there, in special effects scenes.
“At least with the Cybermen, their cold, emotionless faces are right there, so you can react to them.
“Plenty of kids will sleep with the lights on come Christmas night.”
Like Tennant and his predecessor Christopher Eccleston, Rada-trained Morrissey comes from a distinguished acting background.
He has played critically acclaimed roles in thriller State of Play and starred as Gordon Brown opposite Michael Sheen’s Tony Blair in The Deal.
Tennant and Morrissey have worked together before, in the 2004 BBC1 series Blackpool.
“What David’s done with the Doctor is so special,” Morrissey said.
“He has moved it on – not just the character, but also how he’s taken on the role publicly.
“When I got out of the car with David it was like being with a member of Take That!”
The interview is in the new issue of the Radio Times, on sale tomorrow.
RTD Doesn't Know Whos' Next
The Press association Has a report about how Russell T davies has no idea about who's been cast as the 11th doctor and goes on to talk about his OBE:
The executive director of the successful Doctor Who show said the face of the new Time Lord was a mystery to him as he was awarded an OBE.
Russell T Davies said a team was working to find a replacement for actor David Tennant, the Doctor who is quitting the programme, but he had no idea who was in the frame.
The BBC executive has been the creative force behind a number of popular TV series and was awarded the honour for services to screenwriting and drama by the Prince of Wales during a Buckingham Palace investiture service.
The Swansea-born writer, 45, breathed new life into the sci-fi classic when the BBC revived it in 2005 but in the summer he announced he was leaving the series.
He said: "Honestly, the people who are choosing the next Dr Who are in the office next to me and I do not know what they're doing, I'm not kidding, I'm not part of it.
"Imagine if you took over a new job, you don't want the old bloke popping his head round the door saying 'can I give you some advice?'."
During the ceremony Dame Joan Bakewell received a damehood and said she hoped the honour would raise the profile of Britain's arts community.
The Stockport-born presenter, 75, dubbed "the thinking man's crumpet" by comedian Frank Muir in the 1960s, received the honour for services to journalism and the arts in a career spanning more than 40 years.
She said: "I hope it gives a profile to the arts world in our country, the arts community.
"In times of recession and shrinking money the arts is one of the great consoling factors because you can turn to books and paintings and literature for insights into the human condition which greed and money can't buy."
Radio Times(Updated)
No, the mulled wine hasn't gone to your head; there really are two Doctors in this year's Doctor Who Christmas special! We head behind the scenes of this eagerly anticipated festive favourite to find out exactly what's going on, and ask whether David Morrissey's taking over the role…
So this is Christmas. We're at Cyber HQ in London 1851 – in reality a set at Cardiff's Upper Boat studios in April 2008. This is Torchwood's Hub cunningly redressed for this year's Doctor Who Christmas special as a sort of huge Cyber-Victorian engine – all cogs, chains, furnaces, pipes and steam. Think steampunk. Or a huge version of the board game Mouse Trap.
Even before reading the script, I was attracted to this part,” says Morrissey when RADIO TIMES joins him in his trailer over lunch. “DOCTOR WHO is great. They've asked me to do stuff before, but because of other commitments I was unable to. Then this came along: the Christmas special, which has added kudos and an amazing character. Well, the ultimate character, really. But a tragic character, too. Something terrible has happened to him. Over the course of the episode, bits of what happened are revealed...
Morrissey explains his approach to nailing his Doctor: “There has to be an inner truth for me, something at stake, and you have to play that for real.” So did any former Doctors influence his performance? “When I look at Tom Baker and William Hartnell, there's a truth to their performances; Patrick Troughton as well. They never saw it as a genre show or a children's show.
“The difficulty for me is green screen [for special effects] – trying to create a relationship with something that isn't there. It's just a man holding a scaffolding pole with a tennis ball on the end. It's a weird process. At least with the Cybermen, their cold, emotionless faces are right there, so you can react to them. Plenty of kids will sleep with the lights on come Christmas night.”
In Cyber HQ, however, the Cyberleader is in a bit of a pickle. His arm keeps falling off. (Well, part of his arm.) Not so scary now, eh? “He's a decomposing Cyber Controller,” quips Tennant. “Hang on. No, he's a Cyberleader, isn't he? Easy mistake to make.”
“Call yourself the Doctor?” Morrissey tuts in mock disgust. Would Morrissey consider a return to Doctor Who? “Oh yeah. Definitely. I love it. I've had a great time.” As speculation gathers pace about who'll take over from Tennant, Morrissey is, perhaps unsurprisingly, the bookies' favourite. “If they asked me back,” he says, with a twinkle in his eye, “I'd jump at it. I think it's a great character, and I've loved every minute.”
So this is Christmas. We're at Cyber HQ in London 1851 – in reality a set at Cardiff's Upper Boat studios in April 2008. This is Torchwood's Hub cunningly redressed for this year's Doctor Who Christmas special as a sort of huge Cyber-Victorian engine – all cogs, chains, furnaces, pipes and steam. Think steampunk. Or a huge version of the board game Mouse Trap.
Even before reading the script, I was attracted to this part,” says Morrissey when RADIO TIMES joins him in his trailer over lunch. “DOCTOR WHO is great. They've asked me to do stuff before, but because of other commitments I was unable to. Then this came along: the Christmas special, which has added kudos and an amazing character. Well, the ultimate character, really. But a tragic character, too. Something terrible has happened to him. Over the course of the episode, bits of what happened are revealed...
Morrissey explains his approach to nailing his Doctor: “There has to be an inner truth for me, something at stake, and you have to play that for real.” So did any former Doctors influence his performance? “When I look at Tom Baker and William Hartnell, there's a truth to their performances; Patrick Troughton as well. They never saw it as a genre show or a children's show.
“The difficulty for me is green screen [for special effects] – trying to create a relationship with something that isn't there. It's just a man holding a scaffolding pole with a tennis ball on the end. It's a weird process. At least with the Cybermen, their cold, emotionless faces are right there, so you can react to them. Plenty of kids will sleep with the lights on come Christmas night.”
In Cyber HQ, however, the Cyberleader is in a bit of a pickle. His arm keeps falling off. (Well, part of his arm.) Not so scary now, eh? “He's a decomposing Cyber Controller,” quips Tennant. “Hang on. No, he's a Cyberleader, isn't he? Easy mistake to make.”
“Call yourself the Doctor?” Morrissey tuts in mock disgust. Would Morrissey consider a return to Doctor Who? “Oh yeah. Definitely. I love it. I've had a great time.” As speculation gathers pace about who'll take over from Tennant, Morrissey is, perhaps unsurprisingly, the bookies' favourite. “If they asked me back,” he says, with a twinkle in his eye, “I'd jump at it. I think it's a great character, and I've loved every minute.”
Morrisey uneasy with Green screen
David Morrissey has admitted to having difficulty acting with 'green screens' in the forthcoming Doctor Who Christmas Special 'The Next Doctor'.
“The difficulty for me is green screen - trying to create a relationship with something that isn’t there," Morrissey told the Radio Times about the devices, which are used as a means to add computer generated effects in post-production.
"It’s just a man holding a scaffolding pole with a tennis ball on the end," the former Basic Instinct 2 actor continued. "It’s a weird process."
However, Morrissey added that the return of some familiar foes to the show boosted his own performance. "At least with the Cybermen, their cold, emotionless faces are right there, so you can react to them," he said. "Plenty of kids will sleep with the lights on come Christmas night."
“The difficulty for me is green screen - trying to create a relationship with something that isn’t there," Morrissey told the Radio Times about the devices, which are used as a means to add computer generated effects in post-production.
"It’s just a man holding a scaffolding pole with a tennis ball on the end," the former Basic Instinct 2 actor continued. "It’s a weird process."
However, Morrissey added that the return of some familiar foes to the show boosted his own performance. "At least with the Cybermen, their cold, emotionless faces are right there, so you can react to them," he said. "Plenty of kids will sleep with the lights on come Christmas night."
Radio Times
The latest issue of the BBC's Radio Times listings magazine goes on sale across the UK today, publishing on a Saturday rather than a Tuesday as the magazine's release schedule increases on the run-up to Christmas. The edition, covering the 6th to 12th of December, is currently previewed on the Radio Times website.
It features an extensive preview of the forthcoming Christmas special, "The Next Doctor", including a front cover picture of David Tennant and guest star David Morrissey, with a fold-out section including the adversaries they will face in the episode. Including multiple covers, this is the 23rd time the series has been granted the honour of the front page of the magazine since its return in 2005; the 8th in 2008 alone, and the 45th in the show's 45-year history.
As well as previewing "The Next Doctor" and other Christmas programming, the issue also looks back at 2008, with celebrities including Catherine Tate.
It features an extensive preview of the forthcoming Christmas special, "The Next Doctor", including a front cover picture of David Tennant and guest star David Morrissey, with a fold-out section including the adversaries they will face in the episode. Including multiple covers, this is the 23rd time the series has been granted the honour of the front page of the magazine since its return in 2005; the 8th in 2008 alone, and the 45th in the show's 45-year history.
As well as previewing "The Next Doctor" and other Christmas programming, the issue also looks back at 2008, with celebrities including Catherine Tate.
Below is The Image of the front cover and the pull out cover
Friday, 28 November 2008
RTD Is honored OBE
Today Russell T Davies was honored an OBE (Order of the British Empire) The award was given to him by The Prince of wales where he wore a black suit an the ceremony was held at Buckingham Palace.
Russell T Davies, the writer who resurrected Doctor Who, has received his OBE from the Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace.
Davies, who was appointed OBE for services to drama, wore a black suit and chatted with the Prince for nearly a minute after being given his honour.
The dramatist relaunched Doctor Who in 2005 with actor Christopher Eccleston in the lead role.
Davies recently said that the Prince snubbed an offer to appear on the show.
The story is covered by BBC News along with a video of the ceremony. The link is at the bottom:
For those who don't know there are 5 levels in which people are awared honours:
Thursday, 27 November 2008
News Round-UP (Update)
With the news of 2-entertain going into administration, both the company and suppliers have denied this rumor:
Contrary to reports elsewhere online 2|entertain are not facing administration.
A few online sites are stating that 2|entertain, (the BBC's commercial arm for Doctor Who DVDs), is
facing administration.
The rumours have surfaced in connection with the recent news that high street chain; Woolworths, which
has links to 2|entertain, has itself gone into administration.
Having spoken to the press department at 2|entertain, The company has confirm this and they are in
business as usual
UPDATE: The BBC has also confirmed 2|entertain is safe on their News page, stating the following:
"Woolworths' joint venture with BBC Worldwide - publisher 2 Entertain - will not go into administration as
it is owned by Woolworths' parent company."
News-Round-Up
Talks are under way to try to prevent 2entertain, the company responsible for issuing DVD's of classic Doctor Who stories, from going into administration.
The retail part of Woolworths, which owns 40% of 2entertain, is expected to be put into administration late on Wednesday evening. BBC Worldwide, which owns 60% of 2entertain is believed to be trying to purchase the Woolworths shares for £100 million to prevent the firm closing. BBC Worldwide is seeking fast-track approval from the BBC Trust to buy the business.
Another Woolworths subsidiary, Entertainment UK, which supplies books and DVDs to supermarket groups, is being put into administration. It is unsure how this will affect 2entertain as the company distributes about 35% of its DVDs and CDs to outlets such as Zavvi, Sainsbury's and Asda.
RSC Skull
The Royal Shakespeare Company has revealed that the skull used by Tennant for the "Alas, poor Yorick," scenes in 22 performances of Hamlet at Stratford-upon-Avon had been donated to the RSC after the 1982 death of Pianist Andrew Tchaikowsky. In his will Tchaikowsly wrote that his skull "shall be offered by the institution receiving my body to the Royal Shakespeare Company for use in theatrical performance".Since then it has only been used in rehearsals because no actor felt comfortable enough using it on stage in front of an audience.In 1989 actor Mark Rylance rehearsed with it for a while, but in the end it was decided using the skull for performances would not be appropriate and the real thing was returned to the props department, where it resided in a tissue-lined box for almost 20 years.It remained there until Greg Doran, who directed Tennant in Hamlet, retrieved it for his production. "It was sort of a little shock tactic. Though, of course, to some extent that wears off and it's just André, in his box," Doran told the Daily Telegraph. He added that he did not want the story to get out before Hamlet opened. He said: "I thought it would topple the play and it would be all about David acting with a real skull."It is thought the skull will also be used when Hamlet transfers to London on 9 December.
Warwick Davis wants to be time lord
Warwick Davis has revealed that he would love nothing more than to step into the role as the next incarnation of the Doctor.
The actor said: "I want to be in Doctor Who. I would kill to replace David Tennant and become the next Time Lord."Davis, who will be known by Harry Potter fans as Professor Filius Flitwick (below), has even come up with his own regeneration storyline.
"I had a great idea," he explained at the Memorabilia Show at the NEC, Birmingham. "Doctor Who is going to change, regenerate, but something goes a bit wrong. For just a couple of episodes it would be me as the Doctor, they go in the TARDIS and inside it's not vast, it's tiny and they all bang their heads!"
Whovain.net Advent calander
During December whovian.net will have an advent calander in the run up to christmas and the christmas special the next doctor. the link is at the bottom
http://www.whoviannet.co.uk/advent/
The retail part of Woolworths, which owns 40% of 2entertain, is expected to be put into administration late on Wednesday evening. BBC Worldwide, which owns 60% of 2entertain is believed to be trying to purchase the Woolworths shares for £100 million to prevent the firm closing. BBC Worldwide is seeking fast-track approval from the BBC Trust to buy the business.
Another Woolworths subsidiary, Entertainment UK, which supplies books and DVDs to supermarket groups, is being put into administration. It is unsure how this will affect 2entertain as the company distributes about 35% of its DVDs and CDs to outlets such as Zavvi, Sainsbury's and Asda.
RSC Skull
The Royal Shakespeare Company has revealed that the skull used by Tennant for the "Alas, poor Yorick," scenes in 22 performances of Hamlet at Stratford-upon-Avon had been donated to the RSC after the 1982 death of Pianist Andrew Tchaikowsky. In his will Tchaikowsly wrote that his skull "shall be offered by the institution receiving my body to the Royal Shakespeare Company for use in theatrical performance".Since then it has only been used in rehearsals because no actor felt comfortable enough using it on stage in front of an audience.In 1989 actor Mark Rylance rehearsed with it for a while, but in the end it was decided using the skull for performances would not be appropriate and the real thing was returned to the props department, where it resided in a tissue-lined box for almost 20 years.It remained there until Greg Doran, who directed Tennant in Hamlet, retrieved it for his production. "It was sort of a little shock tactic. Though, of course, to some extent that wears off and it's just André, in his box," Doran told the Daily Telegraph. He added that he did not want the story to get out before Hamlet opened. He said: "I thought it would topple the play and it would be all about David acting with a real skull."It is thought the skull will also be used when Hamlet transfers to London on 9 December.
Warwick Davis wants to be time lord
Warwick Davis has revealed that he would love nothing more than to step into the role as the next incarnation of the Doctor.
The actor said: "I want to be in Doctor Who. I would kill to replace David Tennant and become the next Time Lord."Davis, who will be known by Harry Potter fans as Professor Filius Flitwick (below), has even come up with his own regeneration storyline.
"I had a great idea," he explained at the Memorabilia Show at the NEC, Birmingham. "Doctor Who is going to change, regenerate, but something goes a bit wrong. For just a couple of episodes it would be me as the Doctor, they go in the TARDIS and inside it's not vast, it's tiny and they all bang their heads!"
Whovain.net Advent calander
During December whovian.net will have an advent calander in the run up to christmas and the christmas special the next doctor. the link is at the bottom
http://www.whoviannet.co.uk/advent/
Wednesday, 26 November 2008
More New Names for 11th Doctor
The last week or so has seen odds on Paterson Joseph fall dramatically, with many bookmakers no longer accepting bets on the actor! As of today, Betfair are only offering 7/17! Both Den of Geek and Comic Book Resources suspect that he will soon be named. As reported earlier, the actor won't be drawn on his prospects, telling BBC News: "I'm afraid I can't make any comment on it. I'm not a gambler. And I don't approve of gambling unless it's for the Grand National."Earlier in the month Colin Salmon (seen as Dr Moon in The Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead) was also being considered by the media; Wired suggested that he would be announced on Children in Need, though in the end the only comment on potential casting was made by presenter Terry Wogan on David Morrissey's appearance in the Christmas Special preview. (Further Colin Salmon coverage from Now Magazine, What's on TV, Flick Filosopher and One India).Michael Deacon from the Telegraph wasn't too keen on Paterson Joseph or David Morrissey as the Doctor, citing Rhys Ifans as his favourite for the role: "He can do funny. He can do charisma. He has a sense of danger about him. He looks good enough to appeal to kids and mums, and he's a serious enough actor to appeal to longstanding Whovians."The Mirror reports on Spooks actor Rupert Penry-Jones, explaining why the role doesn't appeal: "I haven't been asked to take over in Doctor Who. I took over from someone in Spooks, and I was never quite comfortable with that... so I wouldn't like to take over something else. I'd like to stick with original things."The Stage is running an occasional look at who could take on the role of the Doctor, and have so far covered Serenity and Inside Man actor Chiwetal Ejiofor,and Benedict Cumberbatch, seen recently playing Stephen Hawking in BBC's Hawking and Stephen Ezard in The Last Enemy. Writer Liz Thomas also considers women in the role.The Coventry Telegraph has offered up two more choices for the Doctor, picked up from the Birmingham Memorabilia that took place last weekend. Warwick Davis (most recently seen as Professor Flitwick in the Harry Potter films) mentioned that he was interested in the role: "I had a great idea: Doctor Who is going to change, regenerate, but something goes a bit wrong. For just a couple of episodes it would be me as the Doctor, they go in the Tardis and inside it's not vast, it's tiny and they all bang their heads!" Meanwhile, former Davros performer Terry Molloy has a different suggestion: "My idea of the new Doctor is Liz Smith, who plays the grandmother ('Nana') in the comedy The Royle Family. I think we ought to have a really old, crabby woman. She'd be great. Like William Hartnell but female. She'd soon send the Daleks packing."Other names bandied about in the media include James Frain (Herts and Essex Observer), Robert Pattinson (Chicago Tribune), Dexter Fletcher (Times), and Big Brother winner Pete Bennett (Daily Star). Further articles on casting from Digital Spy, RTD comments from Evening Post, John Simm doesn't want to be the Doctor from The Times, and no decision to be made until next year from tv.com.
Odds on whos next are below:
ODDS ON WHO MIGHT BE THE NEXT DOCTOR, FROM BETFAIR (26th Nov 2008):
7/17 Patterson Joseph
9/1 Robert Carlyle
19/2 David Morrisey
21/2 Rhys Ifans
11/1 Anthony Head1
5/1 Chiwetel Ejiofor, James Nesbitt
24/1 Colin Salmon
29/1 Sean Pertwee, Russell Tovey
31/1 Richard Coyle, Richard E Grant
39/1 Jennifer Saunders, Catherine Tate, John Simm
49/1 Billie Piper
59/1 Alan Davies, Jack Davenport, Stephen Fry
64/1 James Mcavoy
99/1 Aidan Gillen, Paul McGann, Ben Wishaw, Bill Nighy, Harry Lloyd, Jason Statham, John Barrowman, Dexter Fletcher, Julian Walsh, Rowan Atkinson, Jim Broadbent, Tom Ellis, Nigel Harman, Daniel Radcliffe
Odds on whos next are below:
ODDS ON WHO MIGHT BE THE NEXT DOCTOR, FROM BETFAIR (26th Nov 2008):
7/17 Patterson Joseph
9/1 Robert Carlyle
19/2 David Morrisey
21/2 Rhys Ifans
11/1 Anthony Head1
5/1 Chiwetel Ejiofor, James Nesbitt
24/1 Colin Salmon
29/1 Sean Pertwee, Russell Tovey
31/1 Richard Coyle, Richard E Grant
39/1 Jennifer Saunders, Catherine Tate, John Simm
49/1 Billie Piper
59/1 Alan Davies, Jack Davenport, Stephen Fry
64/1 James Mcavoy
99/1 Aidan Gillen, Paul McGann, Ben Wishaw, Bill Nighy, Harry Lloyd, Jason Statham, John Barrowman, Dexter Fletcher, Julian Walsh, Rowan Atkinson, Jim Broadbent, Tom Ellis, Nigel Harman, Daniel Radcliffe
Tuesday, 25 November 2008
Paterson Joseph is the 11th Doctor
According to Comic Book Resources section Lying in the Gutter, it appears that Paterson Joseph is the 11th doctor, apparently the bbc asked him a few week/days earlier and he accepted the role, further along the article it also states that for series 5 the tardis console room will change. Below is the article along with the link:
Lying In The Gutters currently feels ready to make the call that Paterson Joseph is the new Doctor Who. I understand that while there were still a number of contenders in the running at the beginning of last week, the role was offered to him by the BBC a few days later and he accepted. That Joseph was showrunner-from-2010 Steven Moffat's favourite choice, was revealed in Lying In The Gutters inearly October, which caused the bookies to make him their favourite. His odds dropped when further tabloid rumours tagged other actors, as well as a horrific misreading of the upcoming Christmas special co-starring David Morrissey as The Next Doctor - ignoring the audio drama it is based on, “The One Doctor.” But as of now, he's the bookies' favourite again. And PaddyPower have withdrawn the category, a sign that they believe the decision has been made. Meanwhile Betfair have him at around 1/2 odds. Paterson Joseph starred in a very Hartnell/Pertwee turn as The Marquis De Carabas in “Neverwhere” by Neil Gaiman, rumoured to be writing an episode of the series in 2010. Joseph also played a strong supporting role in Steve Moffat's “Jekyll”, Alan Johnson in “Peep Show” and a regular character actor in “The Mitchell And Webb Look”. He currently appears in the BBC remaking of Terry Nation's "Survivors." He does a great line in pompous, mischievous, inspiring, well-presented, well-spoken, with a big cheesey grin.He's absolutely perfect for the role. I can't wait.
Also for 2010, we're not only getting a new Doctor but it appears the TARDIS console room will get a new desktop theme…
News Round-Up
According to The BBC Press Office, The BBC have announced that a 3rd series or Series 3 of The Sarah Jane adventures has been commissioned or announced for the Autumn Schedule of 2009. Details are as follows:
The announcement that Doctor Who spin-off The Sarah Jane Adventures, the second series of which is currently being shown on BBC One and the CBBC Channel, will return for a third series in the autumn of 2009. The release states that the show will continue to be overseen by Russell T Davies, and that "together with her companions Rani and Clyde and her adopted son Luke, Sarah Jane once again comes face to face with a whole host of weird and wonderful alien beings."
On CBBC, Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) returns for a third series of The Sarah Jane Adventures in Autumn 2009, produced by Doctor Who supremo Russell T Davies. Together with her companions Rani and Clyde and her adopted son Luke, Sarah Jane once again comes face to face with a whole host of weird and wonderful alien beings.
The Master Is Back (Possibly)
| John Simm has ruled out the possibility of him starring in Doctor Who as the Eleventh Doctor, although he isn't ruling out a return to the show as another Time Lord - the Master! | |
The actor, who appeared in the Series 3 finale as the Doctor's arch-nemesis, told The Times that he has no interest in taking the lead role when David Tennant steps down next year. "I'm the Master," he said. "Simple as that. I don't want to be Doctor Who. I might be the Master again... I'm not allowed to say." | |
Monday, 24 November 2008
Big Bro contestant wants to be the Doctor and other news
Big Brother winner Pete Bennett is bidding to become the next Doctor Who
Tourette’s sufferer Pete, 26, who won BB7, is trying to persuade BBC bosses to let him take over from David Tennant, 37, as the cult telly Time Lord.Pete, who netted £100,000 for winning BB in 2006, currently has 140 fans backing his dream on his page on social networking site Facebook. It says: “If we can get enough people, the BBC just has to listen.”
Bennett, who suffers from Tourette's syndrome, won the 7th series of the Channel 4 reality TV show in 2006, and has recently set up a page on his Facebook profile for fans to back his dream to star as the Time Lord. He already has over 100 supporters."If we can get enough people, the BBC just has to listen," he told the Daily Star.
The sun has an article about the forth coming christmas special:
GUESS Who? It’s the Doctor’s new sidekick Dervla Kerwan — with a Cyberman on her tail
Ballykissangel actress and M&S ads voiceover girl Dervla, 37, stars with Timelord David Tennant, as Miss Hartigan in the Christmas special.
It sees the pair go back to Victorian Britain to battle the humanoid cyborgs:
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/article1962196.ece
An article in the Daily star Announces the BBC Christmas Line-up
Doctor Who fans are in for a treat, too. David Tennant, 37, returns as the Time Lord to battle the deadly Cybermen in a Christmas special, also featuring Dervla Kirwan, 37.
http://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/view/59866/Cracking-Christmas/
Tourette’s sufferer Pete, 26, who won BB7, is trying to persuade BBC bosses to let him take over from David Tennant, 37, as the cult telly Time Lord.Pete, who netted £100,000 for winning BB in 2006, currently has 140 fans backing his dream on his page on social networking site Facebook. It says: “If we can get enough people, the BBC just has to listen.”
Bennett, who suffers from Tourette's syndrome, won the 7th series of the Channel 4 reality TV show in 2006, and has recently set up a page on his Facebook profile for fans to back his dream to star as the Time Lord. He already has over 100 supporters."If we can get enough people, the BBC just has to listen," he told the Daily Star.
The sun has an article about the forth coming christmas special:
GUESS Who? It’s the Doctor’s new sidekick Dervla Kerwan — with a Cyberman on her tail
Ballykissangel actress and M&S ads voiceover girl Dervla, 37, stars with Timelord David Tennant, as Miss Hartigan in the Christmas special.
It sees the pair go back to Victorian Britain to battle the humanoid cyborgs:
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/article1962196.ece
An article in the Daily star Announces the BBC Christmas Line-up
Doctor Who fans are in for a treat, too. David Tennant, 37, returns as the Time Lord to battle the deadly Cybermen in a Christmas special, also featuring Dervla Kirwan, 37.
http://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/view/59866/Cracking-Christmas/
BBC Christmas line up (UPDATE)
The BBC has rel;ease more information regarding the Doctor who christmas special and along with the Doctor who proms, No official start time as of yet though:
The Next Doctor: It's Christmas Eve in 1851 and Cybermen stalk the snow of Victorian London, in this special Christmas edition of Russell T Davies's Bafta Award-winning time-travelling drama.
When the Doctor arrives and starts to investigate a spate of mysterious deaths, he's surprised to meet another Doctor, and soon the two must combine forces to defeat the ruthless Miss Hartigan. But are two Doctors enough to stop the rise of the CyberKing?
David Tennant stars as The Doctor, David Morrissey as The Doctor and Dervla Kirwan as Miss Hartigan. This episode also features Velile Tshabalala as Rosita. Source BBC Press office
The Doctor Who prom: BBC One offers viewers the chance this Christmas to see highlights from the first Doctor Who Prom – one of the hottest tickets of the summer. Hosted by Freema Agyeman (Martha Jones) and with a surprise guest appearance by Catherine Tate (Donna Noble), this programme, filmed at the BBC Proms in July, is a musical odyssey through time and space.
With the Tardis on stage at London's Royal Albert Hall, the programme takes viewers on a journey through four series of the Doctor's adventures, and features the music that accompanied them – Murray Gold's celebrated music for the television series. Performed by the BBC Philharmonic and London Philharmonic Chorus, under the baton of Ben Foster, the music is accompanied by specially edited film sequences from the series.
One of today's featured highlights provides viewers with a chance to see the scene that was specially filmed for the BBC Proms. Music Of The Spheres, written by Russell T Davies and starring David Tennant – not to mention a mischievous Graske – left the audience spellbound and there is lots of audience interaction and laughter. The concert also brought the audience face to face with some of the Doctor's most fearsome adversaries – a host of monsters and aliens, including the Doctor's oldest enemies, the Cybermen, Davros and the Daleks.
Music featured in this Doctor Who Prom includes All The Strange, Strange Creatures; The Doctor Forever; Rose; Martha v The Master; The Daleks And Davros; Donna; Girl In The Fireplace; Astrid; This Is Galifrey; Doctor's Theme/Song Of Freedom; Doomsday; and Doctor Who Theme.
Doctor Who At The Proms is simulcast on BBC HD – the BBC's High Definition channel available through Freesat, Sky and Virgin Media. With up to five times more detail than standard definition television, HD provides exceptionally vivid colours and crisp pictures to make Doctor Who At The Proms a truly cinematic TV experience.
The Link for the BBC press office for the week of December 20th to January 2nd is below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/proginfo/tv/wk52/bbc_one.shtml#bbcone_doctorwho
The Next Doctor: It's Christmas Eve in 1851 and Cybermen stalk the snow of Victorian London, in this special Christmas edition of Russell T Davies's Bafta Award-winning time-travelling drama.
When the Doctor arrives and starts to investigate a spate of mysterious deaths, he's surprised to meet another Doctor, and soon the two must combine forces to defeat the ruthless Miss Hartigan. But are two Doctors enough to stop the rise of the CyberKing?
David Tennant stars as The Doctor, David Morrissey as The Doctor and Dervla Kirwan as Miss Hartigan. This episode also features Velile Tshabalala as Rosita. Source BBC Press office
The Doctor Who prom: BBC One offers viewers the chance this Christmas to see highlights from the first Doctor Who Prom – one of the hottest tickets of the summer. Hosted by Freema Agyeman (Martha Jones) and with a surprise guest appearance by Catherine Tate (Donna Noble), this programme, filmed at the BBC Proms in July, is a musical odyssey through time and space.
With the Tardis on stage at London's Royal Albert Hall, the programme takes viewers on a journey through four series of the Doctor's adventures, and features the music that accompanied them – Murray Gold's celebrated music for the television series. Performed by the BBC Philharmonic and London Philharmonic Chorus, under the baton of Ben Foster, the music is accompanied by specially edited film sequences from the series.
One of today's featured highlights provides viewers with a chance to see the scene that was specially filmed for the BBC Proms. Music Of The Spheres, written by Russell T Davies and starring David Tennant – not to mention a mischievous Graske – left the audience spellbound and there is lots of audience interaction and laughter. The concert also brought the audience face to face with some of the Doctor's most fearsome adversaries – a host of monsters and aliens, including the Doctor's oldest enemies, the Cybermen, Davros and the Daleks.
Music featured in this Doctor Who Prom includes All The Strange, Strange Creatures; The Doctor Forever; Rose; Martha v The Master; The Daleks And Davros; Donna; Girl In The Fireplace; Astrid; This Is Galifrey; Doctor's Theme/Song Of Freedom; Doomsday; and Doctor Who Theme.
Doctor Who At The Proms is simulcast on BBC HD – the BBC's High Definition channel available through Freesat, Sky and Virgin Media. With up to five times more detail than standard definition television, HD provides exceptionally vivid colours and crisp pictures to make Doctor Who At The Proms a truly cinematic TV experience.
The Link for the BBC press office for the week of December 20th to January 2nd is below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/proginfo/tv/wk52/bbc_one.shtml#bbcone_doctorwho
BBC Christmas line up
According to the BBC Press office, they have relaease information for their christmas Line up, One of whic is Doctor who christmas special plus they also announc that the Doctor who prom which was filimed over the summer will broadcast over christmas;
David Tennant stars as The Doctor in a very special edition of Doctor Who. The Next Doctor also stars David Morrissey and Dervla Kirwan.
Accompanying the drama, BBC One has highlights from the first ever Doctor Who At The Proms, one of the hottest tickets of the Summer.
Full Information about programmes including times and dates will be published later
the full press release can be seen below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2008/11_november/24/christmas.shtml
David Tennant stars as The Doctor in a very special edition of Doctor Who. The Next Doctor also stars David Morrissey and Dervla Kirwan.
Accompanying the drama, BBC One has highlights from the first ever Doctor Who At The Proms, one of the hottest tickets of the Summer.
Full Information about programmes including times and dates will be published later
the full press release can be seen below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2008/11_november/24/christmas.shtml
Sunday, 23 November 2008
DMS Special Vol 5
Doctor Who Magazine Special: In Their Own Words – Volume 5
For almost 30 years, Doctor Who Magazine has documented the making of this unique television series, interviewing every major player, be they actors, directors, producers, designers, writers... even monsters! This Special Edition gathers together the best of these interviews, as the cast and crew themselves recall their part in the history of Doctor Who, making for a frank, forthright, and insightful memoir – in turns funny, poignant, and surprising. To illustrate their story, DWM has selected hundreds of amazing pictures – iconic images from the BBC archives, alongside less familiar shots from private collections.
In Their Own Words – Volume 5 covers one of the most creative and innovative periods in the history of the series, beginning with the first appearance of the Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy. It follows the events of the late 1980s, when the Doctor was redefined as being ‘more than just a Time Lord’ and a Machiavellian figure who was prepared to use his companion, Ace, as a pawn in his fight against evil. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, find out why powers at the BBC decided to end the run of the UK’s longest running science-fiction show – and how a new series of novels, a Children in Need Special, radio adventures and made-for-video productions filled the gap left behind by the TV series. And discover how the series made its comeback with Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor in the 1996 TV Movie – as Doctor Who simply refused to die.
Paul Cornell, author of the highly acclaimed Doctor Who stories Father’s Day (2005) and Human Nature/Family of Blood (2007), writes exclusively for the special on how the Sylvester McCoy era inspired him:
"I have a romantic attachment to the experimental nature of this era, to how much Andrew Cartmel [script editor] and his team were trying new ideas. To how young everyone was. I was captivated at the time by the 'dark Doctor' stuff, as in love with it as I was with the work of Alan Moore and Frank Miller, the zeitgeist beside which this direction made such sense. I waited urgently to see how the legend developed. I hung on the asides and hints, and filled in the gaps with my imagination. It was only the second time a production team had looked at Doctor Who since it began, and said 'let’s try it in an entirely different way'."
This special also features contributions from Sylvester McCoy, Paul McGann, Jon Pertwee, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, John Nathan-Turner, Bonnie Langford, Sophie Aldred, Philip Segal, Daphne Ashbrook, Andrew Cartmel and many more – plus an Afterword by Human Nature writer Paul Cornell!
Doctor Who Special Edition 21 – In Their Own Words Volume 5 is on sale now. Price £7.99
For almost 30 years, Doctor Who Magazine has documented the making of this unique television series, interviewing every major player, be they actors, directors, producers, designers, writers... even monsters! This Special Edition gathers together the best of these interviews, as the cast and crew themselves recall their part in the history of Doctor Who, making for a frank, forthright, and insightful memoir – in turns funny, poignant, and surprising. To illustrate their story, DWM has selected hundreds of amazing pictures – iconic images from the BBC archives, alongside less familiar shots from private collections.
In Their Own Words – Volume 5 covers one of the most creative and innovative periods in the history of the series, beginning with the first appearance of the Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy. It follows the events of the late 1980s, when the Doctor was redefined as being ‘more than just a Time Lord’ and a Machiavellian figure who was prepared to use his companion, Ace, as a pawn in his fight against evil. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, find out why powers at the BBC decided to end the run of the UK’s longest running science-fiction show – and how a new series of novels, a Children in Need Special, radio adventures and made-for-video productions filled the gap left behind by the TV series. And discover how the series made its comeback with Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor in the 1996 TV Movie – as Doctor Who simply refused to die.
Paul Cornell, author of the highly acclaimed Doctor Who stories Father’s Day (2005) and Human Nature/Family of Blood (2007), writes exclusively for the special on how the Sylvester McCoy era inspired him:
"I have a romantic attachment to the experimental nature of this era, to how much Andrew Cartmel [script editor] and his team were trying new ideas. To how young everyone was. I was captivated at the time by the 'dark Doctor' stuff, as in love with it as I was with the work of Alan Moore and Frank Miller, the zeitgeist beside which this direction made such sense. I waited urgently to see how the legend developed. I hung on the asides and hints, and filled in the gaps with my imagination. It was only the second time a production team had looked at Doctor Who since it began, and said 'let’s try it in an entirely different way'."
This special also features contributions from Sylvester McCoy, Paul McGann, Jon Pertwee, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, John Nathan-Turner, Bonnie Langford, Sophie Aldred, Philip Segal, Daphne Ashbrook, Andrew Cartmel and many more – plus an Afterword by Human Nature writer Paul Cornell!
Doctor Who Special Edition 21 – In Their Own Words Volume 5 is on sale now. Price £7.99
Doctor Who @45
Today marks the 45th anniversary of Doctor whO. It all started at in November 23rd 1963, since then there a has been over 30 series of doctor who ever made and a whopping 751 episodes ever aired which makes it the longest science fiction series ever made.
Here hoping it will continue many years to come.
Friday, 21 November 2008
Paterson Talks and other news.
Actor Paterson Joseph, the man held by many media reports to be one of the favourites to land the role of the Eleventh Doctor, has spoken to the BBC News website about the speculation surrounding his possible casting."His [the Doctor's] parameters are so vast. I don't see why he can't have more regenerations than the 13 that those who know think a Time Lord can have," he told the website. Joseph previously appeared in "Bad Wolf" and "The Parting of the Wayd" as Rodrick, and the BBC reports that bookmakers are offering 3-1 odds on him becoming the first black actor to play the Doctor.Joseph also claims to be a fan of the sci-fi genre, claiming that: "In no other genre can you be believable as an immortal character. I love sci-fi for that, so yeah - I'm a big fan." Asked over the phone if he was getting a lot of attention over the Doctor Who speculation, Joseph said: “What's brilliant about being in South Africa is that I'm not getting any calls except from friends who think it's hilarious and wonderful.” The 44-year-old actor - who plays Johnson in the Channel 4 comedy Peep Show, and also appeared in the BBC space sitcom Hyperdrive - said he was fascinated by the sci-fi genre.
“Comedy and sci-fi are two areas where you can be larger than life, without the charge of overacting,” he said.
“My favourite character was the Marquis de Carabas from Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere.
"I love that character because he's so flamboyant but also darkly dangerous - and he's also 200 years old.
Tennant announced at the National Television Awards last month that he would stand down as the Doctor after he has filmed four special episodes next year.
The link is below:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7739408.stm
Researcher claims to have traced nine early Doctor Who episodes to Thailand.
The BBC wiped dozens of episodes of the sci-fi serial during the 1960s and 1970s to make space in its archives.
However, some tapes thought lost forever have turned up in different corners of the world, having been shipped there by the BBC for broadcast on foreign television networks.
Researcher Damian Finucane claims to have traced nine early episodes to Thailand, including the seven-part Journey To Cathay serial in which the time-travelling Doctor joined Marco Polo on the Silk Route. They were sent for broadcast on the country's now-defunct Channel 4 in 1967.
Mr Finucane is offering a cash reward to anyone who knows the whereabouts of the missing tapes.
"Records show that nine episodes from Doctor Who were shipped to Bangkok, and now we're looking for anybody who has any information about it," he told the Bangkok Post.
"There are at least a few thousand episodes of Doctor Who, but we are still missing 108 of them and nine may still survive in Thailand. We're looking all over the place to recover what we can.
"We don't mind if you have them on VHS or on film, and we don't care if it has been dubbed into Thai. We just need to find them. Doctor Who has great historical and cultural value - the missing episodes are a lost heritage."
Mr Finucane has contacted several Thai television stations and scoured the National Film Archive of Thailand, but to no avail.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/3478966/Doctor-Who-tapes-missing-in-Thailand.html
“Comedy and sci-fi are two areas where you can be larger than life, without the charge of overacting,” he said.
“My favourite character was the Marquis de Carabas from Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere.
"I love that character because he's so flamboyant but also darkly dangerous - and he's also 200 years old.
Tennant announced at the National Television Awards last month that he would stand down as the Doctor after he has filmed four special episodes next year.
The link is below:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7739408.stm
Researcher claims to have traced nine early Doctor Who episodes to Thailand.
The BBC wiped dozens of episodes of the sci-fi serial during the 1960s and 1970s to make space in its archives.
However, some tapes thought lost forever have turned up in different corners of the world, having been shipped there by the BBC for broadcast on foreign television networks.
Researcher Damian Finucane claims to have traced nine early episodes to Thailand, including the seven-part Journey To Cathay serial in which the time-travelling Doctor joined Marco Polo on the Silk Route. They were sent for broadcast on the country's now-defunct Channel 4 in 1967.
Mr Finucane is offering a cash reward to anyone who knows the whereabouts of the missing tapes.
"Records show that nine episodes from Doctor Who were shipped to Bangkok, and now we're looking for anybody who has any information about it," he told the Bangkok Post.
"There are at least a few thousand episodes of Doctor Who, but we are still missing 108 of them and nine may still survive in Thailand. We're looking all over the place to recover what we can.
"We don't mind if you have them on VHS or on film, and we don't care if it has been dubbed into Thai. We just need to find them. Doctor Who has great historical and cultural value - the missing episodes are a lost heritage."
Mr Finucane has contacted several Thai television stations and scoured the National Film Archive of Thailand, but to no avail.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/3478966/Doctor-Who-tapes-missing-in-Thailand.html
Thursday, 20 November 2008
Doctor Who Archive
As the 45th anniversary of the start of Doctor Who approaches, the BBC has put online an archive collection of documents and images detailing the programme's genesis.It includes a 1962 report into whether the BBC should make a sci-fi drama, concept notes written in 1963 forming a summary of ideas for just such a programme, and background notes by C E Webber and Sydney Newman in which they outline the format for the new series that had been christened Dr. Who.
45 years after it first graced our screens, a whole new generation now follows the Doctor's thrilling adventures. Today, BBC Archives travels back in time to find out how it all started.
From early discussions about whether the BBC should even have its own science fiction drama through some of the ideas that fell by the wayside we release the documents which show how the Doctor and his trusty TARDIS were created.
Read the original character outlines for the series and discover some of the big secrets that the Doctor was meant to be hiding. The documents include hand-written notes by Sydney Newman, the man often credited with creating the series. But as the documents show, he was not alone.
Previously seen only by a handful of lucky Doctor Who enthusiasts, this is the first time these documents have been made available to the general public.
Also included in this collection are clippings from the Radio Times, an audience report that shows what the public thought of the first episode and a gallery of rare images from the first episodes.
The link is below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/doctorwho/
45 years after it first graced our screens, a whole new generation now follows the Doctor's thrilling adventures. Today, BBC Archives travels back in time to find out how it all started.
From early discussions about whether the BBC should even have its own science fiction drama through some of the ideas that fell by the wayside we release the documents which show how the Doctor and his trusty TARDIS were created.
Read the original character outlines for the series and discover some of the big secrets that the Doctor was meant to be hiding. The documents include hand-written notes by Sydney Newman, the man often credited with creating the series. But as the documents show, he was not alone.
Previously seen only by a handful of lucky Doctor Who enthusiasts, this is the first time these documents have been made available to the general public.
Also included in this collection are clippings from the Radio Times, an audience report that shows what the public thought of the first episode and a gallery of rare images from the first episodes.
The link is below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/doctorwho/
Monday, 17 November 2008
The Next Doctor and other news
Well the 2 mins preview is well worth the wait, david morriesaeys doctor doesn't seem possible to be the 11th doctor but he does have the voice for it anyway the video is below. Source BBC
Please remmber to donate, Along with this video there is also another video clip which was flimed for the backstage doctor who, the link is below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pudsey/ontv/?video_name=#other_video_32
Today marks the release of Both Series 4 Boxset and Soundtrack, Boxset costing £70 and Sound track about £8.98 both can be purchased from a number of retailers.
In other news, Glasgow's Doctor Who exhibition will open on March 27, 2009 and run until January 4, 2010, says the official exhibitions website. It is being held at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, and tickets go on sale from November 17. The site also states that the exhibition begins on March 28, so the March 27 date may be a preview. The link is below:
http://www.doctorwhoexhibition.com/news.html.
Booking deatils plus prices are avilable below:
Adult tickets cost £7.50 and children and concessions are £4.50. Booking fees will also apply. Family tickets will cost £18 plus booking fee.Booking telephone no is: 08444 815 816
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts has produced a webcast featuring Jane Tranter who, while Controller, Drama Commissioning, gave the green light to the return of Doctor Who as well as the go-ahead for Torchwood. In the webcast, she talks about her career and the future of TV drama. She also explains how the advancement in TV special effects and the support of Russell T Davies led her to commission a new series of Doctor Who. "Once Russell said he wanted to do it, there was never a moment of looking back," she says. She also presents clips from her most successful programmes. the webcast can be seen below:
https://www.bafta.org/learning/webcasts/in-conversation-with-jane-tranter,598,BA.html
TV presenters Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan have selected The Writer's Tale, by Russell T Davies and Benjamin Cook, for their Christmas presents book strand, and Stephen Fry will be appearing on Madeley and Finnigan's UKTV Watch show, Richard and Judy's New Position, on November 26 to review it.
The Series Four episode Midnight has been nominated for a Royal Television Society award for Best Sound - Drama at this year's RTS Craft and Design Awards. Julian Howarth, Tim Ricketts, Paul McFadden and Paul Jefferies receive the citation. The ceremony takes place at the Intercontinental Hotel in Park Lane, London, on November 24. It is the only category that Doctor Who has been nominated in this year.
Last Broadcast has done an interview with Elisabeth Sladen in which she tells why she won't be doing any more DVD commentaries for 2entertain. Among other topics, Sladen also talks about hating her new action figure, the third series of The Sarah Jane Adventures and the possibility of a Christmas special, plus future SJA cast changes. You can read it here.
Daleks take to the London skyline over the coming week.
To mark the release of the Doctor Who Series Four DVD box-set, a series of projections will be lighting up skies in both London and Cardiff.One of the projections will be a Dalek on Battersea Power Station.
Apart from the 2 mins trailer not much in terms of who news.
Please remmber to donate, Along with this video there is also another video clip which was flimed for the backstage doctor who, the link is below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pudsey/ontv/?video_name=#other_video_32
Today marks the release of Both Series 4 Boxset and Soundtrack, Boxset costing £70 and Sound track about £8.98 both can be purchased from a number of retailers.
In other news, Glasgow's Doctor Who exhibition will open on March 27, 2009 and run until January 4, 2010, says the official exhibitions website. It is being held at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, and tickets go on sale from November 17. The site also states that the exhibition begins on March 28, so the March 27 date may be a preview. The link is below:
http://www.doctorwhoexhibition.com/news.html.
Booking deatils plus prices are avilable below:
Adult tickets cost £7.50 and children and concessions are £4.50. Booking fees will also apply. Family tickets will cost £18 plus booking fee.Booking telephone no is: 08444 815 816
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts has produced a webcast featuring Jane Tranter who, while Controller, Drama Commissioning, gave the green light to the return of Doctor Who as well as the go-ahead for Torchwood. In the webcast, she talks about her career and the future of TV drama. She also explains how the advancement in TV special effects and the support of Russell T Davies led her to commission a new series of Doctor Who. "Once Russell said he wanted to do it, there was never a moment of looking back," she says. She also presents clips from her most successful programmes. the webcast can be seen below:
https://www.bafta.org/learning/webcasts/in-conversation-with-jane-tranter,598,BA.html
TV presenters Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan have selected The Writer's Tale, by Russell T Davies and Benjamin Cook, for their Christmas presents book strand, and Stephen Fry will be appearing on Madeley and Finnigan's UKTV Watch show, Richard and Judy's New Position, on November 26 to review it.
The Series Four episode Midnight has been nominated for a Royal Television Society award for Best Sound - Drama at this year's RTS Craft and Design Awards. Julian Howarth, Tim Ricketts, Paul McFadden and Paul Jefferies receive the citation. The ceremony takes place at the Intercontinental Hotel in Park Lane, London, on November 24. It is the only category that Doctor Who has been nominated in this year.
Last Broadcast has done an interview with Elisabeth Sladen in which she tells why she won't be doing any more DVD commentaries for 2entertain. Among other topics, Sladen also talks about hating her new action figure, the third series of The Sarah Jane Adventures and the possibility of a Christmas special, plus future SJA cast changes. You can read it here.
Daleks take to the London skyline over the coming week.
To mark the release of the Doctor Who Series Four DVD box-set, a series of projections will be lighting up skies in both London and Cardiff.One of the projections will be a Dalek on Battersea Power Station.
Apart from the 2 mins trailer not much in terms of who news.
Thursday, 13 November 2008
Reviews and News Round-up
Lack of DW new this week since the departure of David tennant but first review of the latest SJA Ep4 The Mark of Berserker pt 1 and 2
The Mark of BerserkerBy Joesph Lidster Directed by Joss Angnew
What can we say about this episode well, we see the return of Clydes father who comes back after years of arguing with his wife then who runs off with his wifes sister. The main plot is that a pendant that controls humans and turn them berserk/mad with every control they use is jsut creative writing. The Boy in the beginning was there to show the consequence of the actions from using the pendant, The actor who plays clydes father is also the same guy who plyas Paul In eastenders also uses the same name in this story Paul then takes his son away with control of the pendant telling him to forget everything i mean this is emotional story for clyde as we see more of the character and his background, he has really made his charcter really strong, the father is just useless, even when he tries he doesn't the control of others is something that everyone wants to do but too much control makesyou berserke which joesph has turn brilliantly, the fianl scenes with SJA and her past will be something major in the next episode. overalll nice story, real emotional plot, strong characters and good plot lines.
Next Time The last Tempation of Sarah Jane part to be broadcast on CBBC channel 17 November 5:15pm BWT
DWM 402
Issue 402 is out Now price at £3.99 at is avialble at newsagents, tescos and WHsmith, the imahe is seen bllow, content publish shortly
Doctor Who Back Stage
Four hundred BBC Children in Need competition winners flocked to the Doctor Who studios near Cardiff this weekend for a once-in-a-lifetime backstage tour, raising thousands of pounds for disadvantaged children.
The lucky winners - who travelled from every corner of the UK - were treated to an unforgettable experience after beating off competition from tens of thousands of the show's fans. It's the first time the studios have been opened up to the public.
After opening the TARDIS doors at the BBC Wales studios, the winners came face-to-face with some of the Doctor's fiercest enemies, took a tour around the Torchwood hub, and even got a chance to take part in a specially written scene from The Sarah Jane Adventures.
As an extra bonus some of the shows' most well known faces - including Head Writer Russell T Davies, executive producer Julie Gardner and Torchwood stars John Barrowman and Eve Myles - made special appearances to welcome people to the experience.
"The weekend was absolutely fantastic!" said Russell T Davies. "Taking fans to the heart of where it all happens was truly wonderful. To be able to share the experience with them - the people who have supported us so much over the years - is a real honour."
"Everyone had an unforgettable experience and it was our pleasure to welcome them," added John Barrowman. "To see the excitement on their faces is what it's all about. It was fantastic, fantastic, fantastic!"
BBC Children in Need's aim is to positively change the lives of disadvantaged children and young people in the UK. The 2008 BBC Children in Need telethon. Source BBC Doctor Who
The lucky winners - who travelled from every corner of the UK - were treated to an unforgettable experience after beating off competition from tens of thousands of the show's fans. It's the first time the studios have been opened up to the public.
After opening the TARDIS doors at the BBC Wales studios, the winners came face-to-face with some of the Doctor's fiercest enemies, took a tour around the Torchwood hub, and even got a chance to take part in a specially written scene from The Sarah Jane Adventures.
As an extra bonus some of the shows' most well known faces - including Head Writer Russell T Davies, executive producer Julie Gardner and Torchwood stars John Barrowman and Eve Myles - made special appearances to welcome people to the experience.
"The weekend was absolutely fantastic!" said Russell T Davies. "Taking fans to the heart of where it all happens was truly wonderful. To be able to share the experience with them - the people who have supported us so much over the years - is a real honour."
"Everyone had an unforgettable experience and it was our pleasure to welcome them," added John Barrowman. "To see the excitement on their faces is what it's all about. It was fantastic, fantastic, fantastic!"
BBC Children in Need's aim is to positively change the lives of disadvantaged children and young people in the UK. The 2008 BBC Children in Need telethon. Source BBC Doctor Who
2 Images from the site can be seen below:
According to the daily record there is n interview and article with john simm
"I find some aspects of stardom quite strange, admits Doctor Who star John Simm
JOHN SIMM has been here, there and everywhere over the last couple of years and he is on the move again for his latest TV project, the hard-hitting historical drama The Devil's Whore.
Since 2006 John has been transformed from an actor with a fine reputation to a household name, courtesy of those key roles in Life On Mars and Dr Who. And while having no regrets about involving himself in either project, it's clear that the label 'star' sits heavily on his shoulders.
"It's not what I came into this business to be, it's never what I aspired to be," says John, relaxing between scenes on the set of The Devil's Whore near Cape Town.
"I'm okay with most aspects of recognition. I accept that kids are going to want my autograph when they see me in the street and clock me from Dr Who and I'm more than happy to oblige. But there are some parts of 'stardom' which I find strange. For example, when I'd finished Life On Mars and Dr Who I felt the need to disappear for a while, to step away from the spotlight.
"So I did a play, Elling, in London, and every night I came out of the theatre there'd be this same guy there, asking for my autograph. I can understand somebody wanting me to sign my name for them once, but 19 times? Very strange.
"And I never realised what impact playing The Master was going to have on my seven-year-old son, Ryan. I'd take him to school in the morning and I'd feel like the Pied Piper with this huge gaggle of kids around me in playground.
"Ryan is proud of the fact that his dad's been in Dr Who - one of the reasons I wanted to be in the programme, in the first place, is because he's such a fan of the show - but he was a bit freaked out by all the attention and I'm sorry it happened that way.
"Though I'm not, by the way," adds John, hastily, "ruling out a return to Dr Who in the future.
"It's too exciting a show to be a part offor me to do that."
JOHN SIMM has been here, there and everywhere over the last couple of years and he is on the move again for his latest TV project, the hard-hitting historical drama The Devil's Whore.
Since 2006 John has been transformed from an actor with a fine reputation to a household name, courtesy of those key roles in Life On Mars and Dr Who. And while having no regrets about involving himself in either project, it's clear that the label 'star' sits heavily on his shoulders.
"It's not what I came into this business to be, it's never what I aspired to be," says John, relaxing between scenes on the set of The Devil's Whore near Cape Town.
"I'm okay with most aspects of recognition. I accept that kids are going to want my autograph when they see me in the street and clock me from Dr Who and I'm more than happy to oblige. But there are some parts of 'stardom' which I find strange. For example, when I'd finished Life On Mars and Dr Who I felt the need to disappear for a while, to step away from the spotlight.
"So I did a play, Elling, in London, and every night I came out of the theatre there'd be this same guy there, asking for my autograph. I can understand somebody wanting me to sign my name for them once, but 19 times? Very strange.
"And I never realised what impact playing The Master was going to have on my seven-year-old son, Ryan. I'd take him to school in the morning and I'd feel like the Pied Piper with this huge gaggle of kids around me in playground.
"Ryan is proud of the fact that his dad's been in Dr Who - one of the reasons I wanted to be in the programme, in the first place, is because he's such a fan of the show - but he was a bit freaked out by all the attention and I'm sorry it happened that way.
"Though I'm not, by the way," adds John, hastily, "ruling out a return to Dr Who in the future.
"It's too exciting a show to be a part offor me to do that."
The full interview can be seen here: http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/showbiz-news/celebrity-interviews/2008/11/12/i-find-some-aspects-of-stardom-quite-strange-admits-doctor-who-star-john-simm-86908-20888302/
The Devil's Whore begins on Channel 4 on November 19.
According to the Guardian Newspaper site, there is ana rticle about Julie Gardner moving to the US to take up head of BBC worldwide with Jane tranter.
The outgoing BBC Wales head of drama, Julie Gardner, who oversees shows including Doctor Who and Merlin, is set to join her current boss Jane Tranter in the US.
MediaGuardian.co.uk understands the Gardner is being lined up for a job with Tranter, the outgoing BBC Fiction controller, when she moves to Los Angeles on Boxing Day to head up BBC Worldwide's west coast drama and entertainment production operation.
Sources have said that Gardner is expected to joi
n Tranter in LA in late 2009 after she has finished work on her remaining BBC Wales commitments, with one insider saying she was being lined up either as Tranter's deputy or her head of production.
MediaGuardian.co.uk understands the Gardner is being lined up for a job with Tranter, the outgoing BBC Fiction controller, when she moves to Los Angeles on Boxing Day to head up BBC Worldwide's west coast drama and entertainment production operation.
Sources have said that Gardner is expected to joi
n Tranter in LA in late 2009 after she has finished work on her remaining BBC Wales commitments, with one insider saying she was being lined up either as Tranter's deputy or her head of production.
Gardner, who co-executive produces Doctor Who, announced in December last year that she would stand down from her role at BBC Wales in January.
There has been speculation that at least two of the Doctor Who specials could be filmed in the US, with Gardner going out to oversee them with a permanent move to LA soon after.
At the time of Gardner's announcement of her departure in December last year, Tranter described her as "one of the most impressive television executives in the UK".
"Her success over the past four years in BBC Wales drama has been unparalleled and her work on Doctor Who has earned her a place in TV history," she said.
A BBC spokesman said: "Julie has not announced any plans to move."
There has been speculation that at least two of the Doctor Who specials could be filmed in the US, with Gardner going out to oversee them with a permanent move to LA soon after.
At the time of Gardner's announcement of her departure in December last year, Tranter described her as "one of the most impressive television executives in the UK".
"Her success over the past four years in BBC Wales drama has been unparalleled and her work on Doctor Who has earned her a place in TV history," she said.
A BBC spokesman said: "Julie has not announced any plans to move."
The Full Article canbe found here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/nov/12/bbc-television
And Finally There is a Doctor who supplement with This months issue 402 of DWM that goes behind the scenes of DW and the future of doctor who and according to it states that russell T davies has denied any news of all living actors to play the doctor for children in need tommorrow and continues to say that don't eoxect any surpries as there is nothing planned for this years telethon except for the 2 minute pre-crdit sepuence for this yeras christmas special tne Next doctor.
Ah well at least we've got the 2 minute preview to look foward to.
Thursday, 6 November 2008
Who Next
Den of geek has published an indepth view of each invidual actor to repalce david tennant. The extract come from the site:
And so Tennant’s hanging up his TARDIS key. He will be an ex-Timelord. Apart from the 2013 and 2023 reunions with Messrs Baker and McCoy wheeled out in their bath-chairs of course.
It’s most likely that he’ll act his last on either Christmas Day or New Year’s Eve 2009. Of course, for those followers of the ‘Laverne As Doctor’ school of (mathematical) thought, they know that he’ll last until 17th April 2010. A ‘last gasp’ five minutes reprise at the start of an episode, or a full blown ‘transition’ episode? It remains to be seen. But right now people seem more interested in just who will be taking over, rather than when.
First, a bit of maths. Because you knew this bit was coming.
The eldest actor to step through the doors of the TARDIS for the first time was William Hartnell back in November ’63. He was 55 years and 10 months old. Second eldest was the 50 years and 6 month old Jon Pertwee. The youngest have been Peter Davison back when he was just 30 years 9 months and, of course, David Tennant at 34 years and 7 months. The average age of a Timelord on his (her?) first voyage has been 42 years and 2 months. This is something that, I think, we should take into account when choosing the next regeneration, especially given Steven Moffat’s (admittedly ten year old!) comments on the subject: “I don’t think young, dashing Doctors are right at all. He should be 40-plus and weird-looking — the kind of wacky grandfather kids know on sight to be secretly one of them.”
This is admittedly fairly tangible evidence, but it should be noted that the usual pattern on the series is that one Doctor is usually succeeded by his polar opposite. Stern and commanding Bill Hartnell followed by scruffy and whimsical Pat Troughton. Who was followed by the dandy and authoritative Jon Pertwee. Who was followed by the eccentric and otherworldly Tom Baker. Who was followed by a much younger and, well, nicer man. Who was followed by a loud and nasty man. Who was followed by a quiet and nice man. Etc. etc.
So, chances are we should be looking for a mirror-image of Tennant. Someone older, slightly less manic? Thus it would seem likely that Moffat’s ten year old words will probably hold true.
Who are the favourites, then?
David Morrissey is the 44 year old actor who shone in Blackpool and The Deal as well as appearing in The Other Boleyn Girl and also the wonderful State of Play, although my own personal opinion is that he was one of the weaker performers in this. I would qualify this by pointing out that firstly his role was less interesting than some of the others, and also that he was up against John Simm, James McAvoy and the wonderful Bill Nighy.
Morrissey hasn’t given any thoughts as to whether he would take the role or not, but his forthcoming appearance as the enigmatically titled The Next Doctor in this year’s Christmas Special have made him the odds-on favourite at 5/2.
Morrissey is tall, fairly old and somewhat brooding, with a real sense of gravitas, but also a rather engaging grin. He also looks very good when decked out like a big ponced-up Time Lord in the Christmas Special. All of this, for my money, makes him a very good choice indeed.
Let us not forget, too, that Morrissey is a Scouser, like Tom Baker and Paul McGann before him. The North has also produced two other Doctors – Eccleston (Salford) and Colin Baker (Rochdale, via London) so it’s certainly not a disadvantage to come from there. For the record, both McCoy and Tennant are Scottish, and the first three Doctors and Peter Davison all hail from London areas.
Morrissey is described as the favourite to succeed Tennant by most publications and I see no real reason to disagree with this.
Paterson Joseph is another 44 year old who hails from London. He has made his name in several mainstream television productions as well as in Neil Gaiman’s sci-fi epic Neverwhere and as the inimitable ‘Johnson’ in Peep Show. Oh, and he was in Bad Wolf. He also does ‘proper’ plays. Which is useful as that sort of experience is good for making the Doctor suitably overblown.
Joseph has the requisite gravitas and would also prove to be a fascinating contrast to Tennant. However, whilst he is excellent as the puffed up Johnson in Peep Show, I found him rather less convincing in Neverwhere.
Joseph has been quoted as saying that he would be interested in the role, but unfortunately I can’t find a specific quote. Oh, such poor journalism skills! His agent did, however, deny to us that he had been linked with the role here, saying "If Paterson had the part, it would have come through us, so I think that's a no..."
I do quite like Paterson, but I think I’d prefer David Morrissey in the long-run.
James Nesbitt is another actor in his early 40s who has soared to fame in series such as Cold Feet as well as appearing in TV dramas such as Jekyll and The Passion. Nesbitt is from Northern Ireland which would contrast nicely with Tennant’s chirpy Cockney barrow boy accent. Nesbitt was the favourite to succeed Tennant back in the Summer after the events of The Stolen Earth, but had already said, earlier in the year, when asked if he was to be Tennant’s replacement, “Definitely not. No. I couldn’t follow Chris or David. I thought they were both brilliant. But also it’s not really something that was my…I didn’t really grow up with it… I couldn’t follow David Tennant. He’s too good. That would be career suicide, following David Tennant in anything. He’s so good.”
We’ll take that as a ‘No’, then.
Still, times change, and Mr. Nesbitt’s views may change with them. He’s the 2nd or 3rd favourite for the role depending on which betting shop you go to, but I’m really not convinced by him as the Doctor at all. There’s something innately unlikeable about him and, dare I say it, a little too brooding. He’d be like Colin Baker but without the nice bits. Murdering companions left, right and centre. No, a bit too scary for me, I think. Also, his many affairs with co-stars and beauty contest winners would surely count against him being any sort of acceptable children’s role model. And that, too, is something to be considered.
Speaking of ‘scary’, the 47 year old Robert Carlyle is also one of the favourites. Another Glaswegian, Carlyle jumps effortlessly from terrifying psychopath (‘Begbie’ in Trainspotting) to, well, lovely (‘Hamish Macbeth’ in, erm, Hamish Macbeth). Good range of styles, then. Very Tennant/Tom Baker in that regard, then. He’s also quite the method actor, which would make things very interesting indeed, I think.
Back in March, Carlyle said that the role of the Doctor was “David's part and nothing to do with me, so I can't really think about it at the moment. But would I do it? Possibly."
He’d be a return to the the gruffer, edgier alien of earlier Who, taking in not just Tom Baker’s eccentricities, but also Colin Baker’s and, I think, Bill Hartnell’s cantankerousness and attitude that would say “No. Seriously. Do not f*** me around.”
And that provide an interesting contrast to Tennant. One to think about, I feel.
James McAvoy, a wee slip of a lad at 29 is also one of the front-runners. He’s not issued any quote regarding this wave of attention but I think he can be discounted for two reasons. Firstly, he seems reluctant to commit to long-running series (such as when he quit Shameless during its second series, plus he's got Wanted 2 to film) and, secondly, he’s rather too close to Tennant in several ways – Scottishness, youth, good looks, likeability – that he would most likely be seen as just a younger version of the older man. Still, bloody good actor, though!
John Simm has ten years on James McAvoy and is currently at 10-1 in the bookmakers. Again he’s a good actor but, in comparison to James McAvoy, he does have a much more obvious ‘dark side’ (as seen in his earlier turn as The Master) that goes well with the likeability he has shown in things such as Human Traffic and State of Play. Again, Simm’s made no comment on the role, but I feel that the only things handicapping him would be that he’s already played a major part in the series, and that he’s rather too similar to Tennant in age. Another one to keep an eye on, though.
Russell Tovey is supposed to be Russell T. Davies’ choice as Tennant’s successor, and the 27 year old Tovey is keen to play up to this by responding to the question of succession with, "Of course! It's awesome.” My own opinion would be that Tovey is far too young and also far too bland for the role. I’ve also not been struck by any particular skills he has as an actor. He also strikes me as very ‘stagey’ and not particularly natural.
Rhys Ifans was an early front-runner (at 8-1) who seems to have dropped down the field somewhat since his fans have stopped putting large amounts of money on him to succeed Tennant. Ifans is 40 years old but really hasn’t been in a great deal else of note other than Notting Hill. He has the eccentricity certainly, but I’m not sure that he has much else. A rather colourful lovelife and one time membership of Welsh stoner band ‘Super Furry Animals’ may also sully him as a children’s role model. A Welsh Doctor would certainly be interesting, but I don’t think that Ifans is your man.
Chiwetel Ejiofor has done the reverse of Ifans, in that he has come from nowhere to be seen as one of the front-runners for the role. He’s a 34 year old classical actor who’s also appeared in a fair few films such as Love Actually. He’s certainly a good actor and has the awards to prove it, but I’ve never noticed anything particularly Doctor-like about him. Still, he certainly has room to prove himself.
Anthony Head seems too obvious for the role in my opinion. A successful sci-fi icon already, I’m sure he’d be a perfectly adequate Doctor, but I don’t think he’d make a particularly edgy or interesting one. A ‘safe pair of hands’ as it were. I’d still take him over Ifans or Tovey, though.
David Walliams. Oh dear. At 14/1, apparently. I’d rather not think about that one, really. The campest, squealiest bits of Tennant mixed with the campest, squealiest bits of, erm, who? Bonnie Langford. No. Please. No.
Alan Davies. Personally, I find Alan Davies innately annoying and he provides a big reason for not watching QI. I wouldn’t want to be similarly put off from Doctor Who. He’d be a parody of a Doctor, I feel – seriously lacking in any real depth.
Jason Statham is also, inexplicably, at 14/1. He’s a good actor, but a bit of a stereotypical ‘hard man’. He’d certainly provide a good contrast to Tennant, but would the novelty wear off too quickly?
Richard E. Grant. See ‘Anthony Head’. Woefully predictable and, let’s face it, has he really done anything worthwhile since Withnail and I?
Nigel Harman. Another, like Grant, at 16/1. Ex soap-star who’s trying to get into ‘serious’ things. Good luck to him. I don’t think he’s Timelord material, though.
Bill Nighy. Allegedly the original first choice of RTD to be Doctor Number Nine. I think that to have him in charge at the series’ 2005 relaunch might have been slightly foolhardy, but I do think that he would have made an excellent successor to Eccleston. Quirky, odd looking and genuinely a brilliant actor, Nighy would have my vote for Doctor Eleven. At the start of this year he declared that, "It's a timeless role. At one time I was rumoured to be up against Judi Dench for the role but I was never asked. It would be a very interesting part to do.” I think that Nighy would be truly iconic in the role. And, of course, the age thing (Nighy is 58) would make a good contrast with Tennant. Although he’s still quite gangly and eccentric with it. Hmm. Maybe David Morrissey does provide more contrast, after all?
Richard Coyle is at 18/1. He played ‘Jeff’ in Moffat’s excellent Coupling series. Coyle has proved he has the eccentricity required for the role, as well as some superb comic timing, but it would probably take the serious edge away from the part. Also, Coyle and Moffat are believed to not be on speaking terms since Coyle’s hurried departure from Coupling back in 2003.
Aidan Gillen is a 40 year old Irishman who has been in Queer as Folk and The Wire. Interesting choice, but pales into insignificance compared with some of the above.
Sean Pertwee is also trading at 18/1. Pertwee seems to have quite a propensity for taking on bad roles in bad films and should really only be considered as a big treat for fans of his Dad.
Harry Lloyd is at 20/1. He’s also 24 years old. He plays ‘Will Scarlett’ in Robin Hood. He is a child. Where’s the gravitas in that?
Marc Warren, aka Elton Pope from Love and Monsters is also trading at 20/1. Interesting character and pretty good actor, but again I’m not sure he’d bring anything truly exciting to the part.
The final person at 20/1 is Jack Davenport. Another Coupling actor, by way of This Life and the Pirates of the Carribean films. Davenport’s a very good actor with a lot of range and can do ‘serious’ and ‘comedy’ very well, but again he doesn’t seem to be suitable Doctor Who material. I wish that I could define it better than that, but it’s a hard trait to put one’s finger on!
The Daily Mirror reports that ex-EastEnders actor, Tom Ellis, is under consideration. Ellis played Tom Milligan in The Last Of The Time Lords. According to the rag, a BBC source says, "Tom is the frontrunner for the job and is very interested." Interesting choice, but a little too clean cut and lacking edginess.
Adrian Lester stated earlier this year that “there’s no reason why they couldn’t have a black doctor…though I want to play him first.” Adrian has a good film career behind him, but might well be overshadowed by Paterson Joseph in his aim.
Alexander Armstrong is a good bloke and a top comedian, but would probably come across as just an older Tennant. (25/1)
Daniel Radcliffe is a child. (25/1)
Also at 25/1 we have Catherine Tate. Interesting, but extremely divisive! I imagine that Moffat is quite keen to move away from RTD in a lot of ways, thus taking one of his companions would probably not be the right way to go. Anyway, we know that if we’re going for a female, then Lauren Laverne’s your lady!
Burn Gorman, aka Owen Harper in Torchwood has a similar vibe to Marc Warren, and is probably about as suitable for the role as he.
Julian Rhind-Tutt is annoying and dandified. (33/1)
Rupert Penry-Jones is in Spooks. He is at 33/1. Again, he seems to lack the ‘Doctor’ vibe.
Stephen Fry, however, is also at 33/1. His appointment would be pretty popular with a certain part of the fanbase I think, but it would also feel rather like novelty casting. If we want a bumbling eccentric in the role, then I think Nighy would handle it better than Mr. Fry.
John Barrowman is also running at 33/1. As much as I love Captain Jack, again I don’t think that this would be a wise decision. Just too young and, well, American for the role. Plus, can we really have a Doctor who’s so obviously led by his genitals?
Ben Miles is another Coupling actor (playing ‘Patrick’). Again, I feel that like a lot of the above, he’s a bit too clean-cut for the role of the Doctor. I think he’s probably just been included on these lists to cover all of the Moffat bases.
David Suchet. What? Poirot? Hmm, quite a leftfield choice this one. I think he’d have quite a Sylvester McCoy vibe to him, actually. Not sure how popular that would be with the massed ranks of the public, though.
Hugh Laurie. 50/1. See ‘Stephen Fry’.
Billie Piper. 50/1. And what would happen if the Doctor met Rose again? You might fulfil the fantasies of the viewers of Belle du Jour, but I don’t think it would make suitable prime time TV. Next!
At 66/1 we have Gary Oldman (Good actor, but I’d much rather take Alan Rickman if we were going for this sort of vibe), Matt Smith (another youngster), Paul Bettany (a former Class-A drug user. Naughty, naughty! The ‘Daily Mail’ will be outraged!), Joel Beckett (‘Lee’ from The Office. Again, another Gorman/Warren type), and, bizarrely, Christopher Eccleston. About whom we shall not comment!
80/1 has Alex Kingston (have they ever seen the series?), Benedict Cumberbatch (Very good in Hawking, but perhaps a little too young), Dean Lennox Kelly (‘Shakespeare’ from that Shakespeare episode) and Christopher Villiers. My favourite of these by a country mile has to be Lennox Kelly. He’s the right age, the right amount of contrast to Tennant and could, I think, conceivably pull it off.
100/1. Ricky Gervais. No. And not bloody Eddie Izzard, either.
150/1 Hugh Grant. He stated “ The danger with those things is that it's only when you see it on screen that you think, 'Damn, that was good, why did I say no?' But then, knowing me, I'd probably make a mess of it,” which is quite sweet, but again, seems a little too obviously a charicature of the role in the same way that Anthony Head would.
Also at 150/1 we have Russell Brand and Vinnie Jones. Again, about whom I shall not comment.
200/1. Robbie Williams. Shush now.
And in conclusion? Personally I’d be ecstatic with either David Morrissey or Bill Nighy. Let’s just hope that the final choice isn’t too bland, too young, or too Tennanty.
And so Tennant’s hanging up his TARDIS key. He will be an ex-Timelord. Apart from the 2013 and 2023 reunions with Messrs Baker and McCoy wheeled out in their bath-chairs of course.
It’s most likely that he’ll act his last on either Christmas Day or New Year’s Eve 2009. Of course, for those followers of the ‘Laverne As Doctor’ school of (mathematical) thought, they know that he’ll last until 17th April 2010. A ‘last gasp’ five minutes reprise at the start of an episode, or a full blown ‘transition’ episode? It remains to be seen. But right now people seem more interested in just who will be taking over, rather than when.
First, a bit of maths. Because you knew this bit was coming.
The eldest actor to step through the doors of the TARDIS for the first time was William Hartnell back in November ’63. He was 55 years and 10 months old. Second eldest was the 50 years and 6 month old Jon Pertwee. The youngest have been Peter Davison back when he was just 30 years 9 months and, of course, David Tennant at 34 years and 7 months. The average age of a Timelord on his (her?) first voyage has been 42 years and 2 months. This is something that, I think, we should take into account when choosing the next regeneration, especially given Steven Moffat’s (admittedly ten year old!) comments on the subject: “I don’t think young, dashing Doctors are right at all. He should be 40-plus and weird-looking — the kind of wacky grandfather kids know on sight to be secretly one of them.”
This is admittedly fairly tangible evidence, but it should be noted that the usual pattern on the series is that one Doctor is usually succeeded by his polar opposite. Stern and commanding Bill Hartnell followed by scruffy and whimsical Pat Troughton. Who was followed by the dandy and authoritative Jon Pertwee. Who was followed by the eccentric and otherworldly Tom Baker. Who was followed by a much younger and, well, nicer man. Who was followed by a loud and nasty man. Who was followed by a quiet and nice man. Etc. etc.
So, chances are we should be looking for a mirror-image of Tennant. Someone older, slightly less manic? Thus it would seem likely that Moffat’s ten year old words will probably hold true.
Who are the favourites, then?
David Morrissey is the 44 year old actor who shone in Blackpool and The Deal as well as appearing in The Other Boleyn Girl and also the wonderful State of Play, although my own personal opinion is that he was one of the weaker performers in this. I would qualify this by pointing out that firstly his role was less interesting than some of the others, and also that he was up against John Simm, James McAvoy and the wonderful Bill Nighy.
Morrissey hasn’t given any thoughts as to whether he would take the role or not, but his forthcoming appearance as the enigmatically titled The Next Doctor in this year’s Christmas Special have made him the odds-on favourite at 5/2.
Morrissey is tall, fairly old and somewhat brooding, with a real sense of gravitas, but also a rather engaging grin. He also looks very good when decked out like a big ponced-up Time Lord in the Christmas Special. All of this, for my money, makes him a very good choice indeed.
Let us not forget, too, that Morrissey is a Scouser, like Tom Baker and Paul McGann before him. The North has also produced two other Doctors – Eccleston (Salford) and Colin Baker (Rochdale, via London) so it’s certainly not a disadvantage to come from there. For the record, both McCoy and Tennant are Scottish, and the first three Doctors and Peter Davison all hail from London areas.
Morrissey is described as the favourite to succeed Tennant by most publications and I see no real reason to disagree with this.
Paterson Joseph is another 44 year old who hails from London. He has made his name in several mainstream television productions as well as in Neil Gaiman’s sci-fi epic Neverwhere and as the inimitable ‘Johnson’ in Peep Show. Oh, and he was in Bad Wolf. He also does ‘proper’ plays. Which is useful as that sort of experience is good for making the Doctor suitably overblown.
Joseph has the requisite gravitas and would also prove to be a fascinating contrast to Tennant. However, whilst he is excellent as the puffed up Johnson in Peep Show, I found him rather less convincing in Neverwhere.
Joseph has been quoted as saying that he would be interested in the role, but unfortunately I can’t find a specific quote. Oh, such poor journalism skills! His agent did, however, deny to us that he had been linked with the role here, saying "If Paterson had the part, it would have come through us, so I think that's a no..."
I do quite like Paterson, but I think I’d prefer David Morrissey in the long-run.
James Nesbitt is another actor in his early 40s who has soared to fame in series such as Cold Feet as well as appearing in TV dramas such as Jekyll and The Passion. Nesbitt is from Northern Ireland which would contrast nicely with Tennant’s chirpy Cockney barrow boy accent. Nesbitt was the favourite to succeed Tennant back in the Summer after the events of The Stolen Earth, but had already said, earlier in the year, when asked if he was to be Tennant’s replacement, “Definitely not. No. I couldn’t follow Chris or David. I thought they were both brilliant. But also it’s not really something that was my…I didn’t really grow up with it… I couldn’t follow David Tennant. He’s too good. That would be career suicide, following David Tennant in anything. He’s so good.”
We’ll take that as a ‘No’, then.
Still, times change, and Mr. Nesbitt’s views may change with them. He’s the 2nd or 3rd favourite for the role depending on which betting shop you go to, but I’m really not convinced by him as the Doctor at all. There’s something innately unlikeable about him and, dare I say it, a little too brooding. He’d be like Colin Baker but without the nice bits. Murdering companions left, right and centre. No, a bit too scary for me, I think. Also, his many affairs with co-stars and beauty contest winners would surely count against him being any sort of acceptable children’s role model. And that, too, is something to be considered.
Speaking of ‘scary’, the 47 year old Robert Carlyle is also one of the favourites. Another Glaswegian, Carlyle jumps effortlessly from terrifying psychopath (‘Begbie’ in Trainspotting) to, well, lovely (‘Hamish Macbeth’ in, erm, Hamish Macbeth). Good range of styles, then. Very Tennant/Tom Baker in that regard, then. He’s also quite the method actor, which would make things very interesting indeed, I think.
Back in March, Carlyle said that the role of the Doctor was “David's part and nothing to do with me, so I can't really think about it at the moment. But would I do it? Possibly."
He’d be a return to the the gruffer, edgier alien of earlier Who, taking in not just Tom Baker’s eccentricities, but also Colin Baker’s and, I think, Bill Hartnell’s cantankerousness and attitude that would say “No. Seriously. Do not f*** me around.”
And that provide an interesting contrast to Tennant. One to think about, I feel.
James McAvoy, a wee slip of a lad at 29 is also one of the front-runners. He’s not issued any quote regarding this wave of attention but I think he can be discounted for two reasons. Firstly, he seems reluctant to commit to long-running series (such as when he quit Shameless during its second series, plus he's got Wanted 2 to film) and, secondly, he’s rather too close to Tennant in several ways – Scottishness, youth, good looks, likeability – that he would most likely be seen as just a younger version of the older man. Still, bloody good actor, though!
John Simm has ten years on James McAvoy and is currently at 10-1 in the bookmakers. Again he’s a good actor but, in comparison to James McAvoy, he does have a much more obvious ‘dark side’ (as seen in his earlier turn as The Master) that goes well with the likeability he has shown in things such as Human Traffic and State of Play. Again, Simm’s made no comment on the role, but I feel that the only things handicapping him would be that he’s already played a major part in the series, and that he’s rather too similar to Tennant in age. Another one to keep an eye on, though.
Russell Tovey is supposed to be Russell T. Davies’ choice as Tennant’s successor, and the 27 year old Tovey is keen to play up to this by responding to the question of succession with, "Of course! It's awesome.” My own opinion would be that Tovey is far too young and also far too bland for the role. I’ve also not been struck by any particular skills he has as an actor. He also strikes me as very ‘stagey’ and not particularly natural.
Rhys Ifans was an early front-runner (at 8-1) who seems to have dropped down the field somewhat since his fans have stopped putting large amounts of money on him to succeed Tennant. Ifans is 40 years old but really hasn’t been in a great deal else of note other than Notting Hill. He has the eccentricity certainly, but I’m not sure that he has much else. A rather colourful lovelife and one time membership of Welsh stoner band ‘Super Furry Animals’ may also sully him as a children’s role model. A Welsh Doctor would certainly be interesting, but I don’t think that Ifans is your man.
Chiwetel Ejiofor has done the reverse of Ifans, in that he has come from nowhere to be seen as one of the front-runners for the role. He’s a 34 year old classical actor who’s also appeared in a fair few films such as Love Actually. He’s certainly a good actor and has the awards to prove it, but I’ve never noticed anything particularly Doctor-like about him. Still, he certainly has room to prove himself.
Anthony Head seems too obvious for the role in my opinion. A successful sci-fi icon already, I’m sure he’d be a perfectly adequate Doctor, but I don’t think he’d make a particularly edgy or interesting one. A ‘safe pair of hands’ as it were. I’d still take him over Ifans or Tovey, though.
David Walliams. Oh dear. At 14/1, apparently. I’d rather not think about that one, really. The campest, squealiest bits of Tennant mixed with the campest, squealiest bits of, erm, who? Bonnie Langford. No. Please. No.
Alan Davies. Personally, I find Alan Davies innately annoying and he provides a big reason for not watching QI. I wouldn’t want to be similarly put off from Doctor Who. He’d be a parody of a Doctor, I feel – seriously lacking in any real depth.
Jason Statham is also, inexplicably, at 14/1. He’s a good actor, but a bit of a stereotypical ‘hard man’. He’d certainly provide a good contrast to Tennant, but would the novelty wear off too quickly?
Richard E. Grant. See ‘Anthony Head’. Woefully predictable and, let’s face it, has he really done anything worthwhile since Withnail and I?
Nigel Harman. Another, like Grant, at 16/1. Ex soap-star who’s trying to get into ‘serious’ things. Good luck to him. I don’t think he’s Timelord material, though.
Bill Nighy. Allegedly the original first choice of RTD to be Doctor Number Nine. I think that to have him in charge at the series’ 2005 relaunch might have been slightly foolhardy, but I do think that he would have made an excellent successor to Eccleston. Quirky, odd looking and genuinely a brilliant actor, Nighy would have my vote for Doctor Eleven. At the start of this year he declared that, "It's a timeless role. At one time I was rumoured to be up against Judi Dench for the role but I was never asked. It would be a very interesting part to do.” I think that Nighy would be truly iconic in the role. And, of course, the age thing (Nighy is 58) would make a good contrast with Tennant. Although he’s still quite gangly and eccentric with it. Hmm. Maybe David Morrissey does provide more contrast, after all?
Richard Coyle is at 18/1. He played ‘Jeff’ in Moffat’s excellent Coupling series. Coyle has proved he has the eccentricity required for the role, as well as some superb comic timing, but it would probably take the serious edge away from the part. Also, Coyle and Moffat are believed to not be on speaking terms since Coyle’s hurried departure from Coupling back in 2003.
Aidan Gillen is a 40 year old Irishman who has been in Queer as Folk and The Wire. Interesting choice, but pales into insignificance compared with some of the above.
Sean Pertwee is also trading at 18/1. Pertwee seems to have quite a propensity for taking on bad roles in bad films and should really only be considered as a big treat for fans of his Dad.
Harry Lloyd is at 20/1. He’s also 24 years old. He plays ‘Will Scarlett’ in Robin Hood. He is a child. Where’s the gravitas in that?
Marc Warren, aka Elton Pope from Love and Monsters is also trading at 20/1. Interesting character and pretty good actor, but again I’m not sure he’d bring anything truly exciting to the part.
The final person at 20/1 is Jack Davenport. Another Coupling actor, by way of This Life and the Pirates of the Carribean films. Davenport’s a very good actor with a lot of range and can do ‘serious’ and ‘comedy’ very well, but again he doesn’t seem to be suitable Doctor Who material. I wish that I could define it better than that, but it’s a hard trait to put one’s finger on!
The Daily Mirror reports that ex-EastEnders actor, Tom Ellis, is under consideration. Ellis played Tom Milligan in The Last Of The Time Lords. According to the rag, a BBC source says, "Tom is the frontrunner for the job and is very interested." Interesting choice, but a little too clean cut and lacking edginess.
Adrian Lester stated earlier this year that “there’s no reason why they couldn’t have a black doctor…though I want to play him first.” Adrian has a good film career behind him, but might well be overshadowed by Paterson Joseph in his aim.
Alexander Armstrong is a good bloke and a top comedian, but would probably come across as just an older Tennant. (25/1)
Daniel Radcliffe is a child. (25/1)
Also at 25/1 we have Catherine Tate. Interesting, but extremely divisive! I imagine that Moffat is quite keen to move away from RTD in a lot of ways, thus taking one of his companions would probably not be the right way to go. Anyway, we know that if we’re going for a female, then Lauren Laverne’s your lady!
Burn Gorman, aka Owen Harper in Torchwood has a similar vibe to Marc Warren, and is probably about as suitable for the role as he.
Julian Rhind-Tutt is annoying and dandified. (33/1)
Rupert Penry-Jones is in Spooks. He is at 33/1. Again, he seems to lack the ‘Doctor’ vibe.
Stephen Fry, however, is also at 33/1. His appointment would be pretty popular with a certain part of the fanbase I think, but it would also feel rather like novelty casting. If we want a bumbling eccentric in the role, then I think Nighy would handle it better than Mr. Fry.
John Barrowman is also running at 33/1. As much as I love Captain Jack, again I don’t think that this would be a wise decision. Just too young and, well, American for the role. Plus, can we really have a Doctor who’s so obviously led by his genitals?
Ben Miles is another Coupling actor (playing ‘Patrick’). Again, I feel that like a lot of the above, he’s a bit too clean-cut for the role of the Doctor. I think he’s probably just been included on these lists to cover all of the Moffat bases.
David Suchet. What? Poirot? Hmm, quite a leftfield choice this one. I think he’d have quite a Sylvester McCoy vibe to him, actually. Not sure how popular that would be with the massed ranks of the public, though.
Hugh Laurie. 50/1. See ‘Stephen Fry’.
Billie Piper. 50/1. And what would happen if the Doctor met Rose again? You might fulfil the fantasies of the viewers of Belle du Jour, but I don’t think it would make suitable prime time TV. Next!
At 66/1 we have Gary Oldman (Good actor, but I’d much rather take Alan Rickman if we were going for this sort of vibe), Matt Smith (another youngster), Paul Bettany (a former Class-A drug user. Naughty, naughty! The ‘Daily Mail’ will be outraged!), Joel Beckett (‘Lee’ from The Office. Again, another Gorman/Warren type), and, bizarrely, Christopher Eccleston. About whom we shall not comment!
80/1 has Alex Kingston (have they ever seen the series?), Benedict Cumberbatch (Very good in Hawking, but perhaps a little too young), Dean Lennox Kelly (‘Shakespeare’ from that Shakespeare episode) and Christopher Villiers. My favourite of these by a country mile has to be Lennox Kelly. He’s the right age, the right amount of contrast to Tennant and could, I think, conceivably pull it off.
100/1. Ricky Gervais. No. And not bloody Eddie Izzard, either.
150/1 Hugh Grant. He stated “ The danger with those things is that it's only when you see it on screen that you think, 'Damn, that was good, why did I say no?' But then, knowing me, I'd probably make a mess of it,” which is quite sweet, but again, seems a little too obviously a charicature of the role in the same way that Anthony Head would.
Also at 150/1 we have Russell Brand and Vinnie Jones. Again, about whom I shall not comment.
200/1. Robbie Williams. Shush now.
And in conclusion? Personally I’d be ecstatic with either David Morrissey or Bill Nighy. Let’s just hope that the final choice isn’t too bland, too young, or too Tennanty.
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