Kopic's Doctor Who & Torchwood News |
- Tuesday, March 1: Filming Locations in LA, New Orleans, NYC, Vancouver & more ... - On Location Vacations
- 'Unstoppable' on the right track - VillageSoup Belfast (blog)
- Torchwood: Week Seven Production - The Doctor Who News Page
- British Invasion - Multichannel News
- Torchwood: Week Seven Production
- The literary TARDIS: The Target Doctor Who novelisations - Shadowlocked (blog)
- Paul Rainey and Me on Video
- A Fond Farewell To Nicholas Courtney - Airlock Alpha
- Classic 'Doctor Who' Actor Nicholas Courtney Dies - Airlock Alpha
- Doctor Who Adventures 206
- Doctor Who MMO Coming This Year - Escapist Magazine
- Doctor Who: Worlds in Time
- Doctor Who star Nicholas Courtney dies aged 81 - Daily Mail
- Doctor Who companion Nicholas Courtney dies at 81 - TNT Magazine
- Torchwood: Week Six Filming - The Doctor Who News Page
- DWA 'Design-a-Monster' competition
- Rest In Peace
- Nebula nomination for Vincent and the Doctor
- RIP Nicholas Courtney: Splendid Chap, All of Him
- Torchwood: Week Six Filming
- Doctor Who stars lend a hand to charity
- Day of the Orange Lantern
- Nicholas Courtney 1929-2011
- Eve Myles talks about new series of Torchwood - ATV Today
- 'Torchwood's Eve Myles Spoils Us - Ology
- TARDIS at Raglan Castle
- Eve Myles: 'New Torchwood is electrifying' - Digital Spy
- People roundup - The Doctor Who News Page
- Doctor Who Experience opens
- People roundup
- BroaDWcast launched
- The Ark tops UK TV chart
- Docteur Who: ratings update
- Doctor Who: production roundup
- Fanzines & Archives
- Doctor Whooligan: Latest Doctor Who and Torchwood News - Upcoming Doctor Who ... - Anglotopia.net
- Blu-ray Deal: Torchwood Season 1 & 2, Children Of Earth - Geeks of Doom
- Guardian Audio Giveaway
- This Weekend and the Weekender
| Posted: 28 Feb 2011 07:15 PM PST
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| 'Unstoppable' on the right track - VillageSoup Belfast (blog) Posted: 28 Feb 2011 06:46 PM PST
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| Torchwood: Week Seven Production - The Doctor Who News Page Posted: 28 Feb 2011 10:30 AM PST
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| British Invasion - Multichannel News Posted: 28 Feb 2011 07:24 AM PST
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| Torchwood: Week Seven Production Posted: 28 Feb 2011 05:26 AM PST  A shorter week for the Torchwood production, with Presidents Day being a public holiday in the States on Monday. Cast name-checked during the week included John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Mekhi Phifer, Michael Colbert and Allyson Floyd, though of course many others were involved during filming! Also, Christopher Thomas Howell (The Outsiders, Criminal Minds, Southland, The Amazing Spider Man) mentioned in an interview with SouthLAndTVFans that he would shortly be joining the production. The weekend before saw the GallifreyOne convention take place in Los Angeles, during which there was a panel involving writers Jane Espenson and Doris Egan who discussed their involvement with the new series; this included dealing with the nuances between UK/Welsh and US modes of speech and the cultural differences in the meaning of words like 'vest', a discussion on the differences that seems to exist between the US and UK approach to scripting a series - especially in terms of the freedom that UK writers have (though with more re-writes), and how the enthusiasm of Russell T Davies 'infects' their own approach to writing! Episodes-wise, it was clarified that the last three episodes are still being prepared, with episode eight in third draft, nine nearly finished, and ten about to be written by Russell. The two writers also admitted that they'd already bandied about ideas for future stories, though no futher series of Torchwood have been commissioned (yet!) Times cited within reports are in Los Angeles local time, except where indicated TuesdayBack to Warner Bros for another long day's shoot. Filming continued on episode three, with John Barrowman, Eve Myles and Mekhi Phifer shooting scenes.Writer Jane Espsenson reported that there would be a production meeting for episode four that lunch time; she also clarified that the final three episodes were still in the process of being tweaked. Meanwhile, Shawna Trpcic also explained that no date had been set as yet for the release of the publicity photos. Jane also provided the first "TW-Spy!" photo of the week, giving us a glimpse of how studio backdrop looks on-set! Twitter gossip for the day included: 07:34 MC 6am call. Sick as a dog. God I want to sleep for 12 hours straight. WednesdayToday's "TW-Spy!" is from Alana Stone, who teased us with this shot of a set interior. This evoked a number of ideas, including: "ooohhh...is this at the new Hub?", "Now I really want to know what's behind the door.", "could the 'June 45' be significant?".The day also saw Kai Owen setting out to return to Los Angeles for some more filming; his time at Heathrow awaiting the flight turned out to be quite a 'happy hour'! (UK time) 14:10 Having a very large vodka tonic at Heathrow, Other Twitter chat included: 10:51 JE In scene that shot yesterday. Gwen: "I got you this." The Doctor Who News report on Torchwood last week also seemed to generate a bit of interest! 16:19 AF @doctor_who_news It's strange to see stuff I worked on posted as "news"! ThursdayTorchwood takes to the roads today! However, in reality this was to actually remain on-set at Warner Bros rather than out and about on the streets of Los Angeles! Whether there would be some "low-loader" shots later in filming is unclear, though scenes were filmed this way back in the UK along the M4.This was to be a late-nighter for filming in the (cold) studio, eventually wrapping around 3:00am. Meanwhile production meetings continued, with Jane Espenson heard to say: "Where does the reality end?", whilst the production office reported that prepping for episodes five and six were about to start as filming for episodes three and four continued. 13:21 MC Back at work FYI I did sleep for almost 20 hours straight. Feel better. FridayBack out on location for today, with scenes for episode four involving Kai Owen taking place in a hospital - this may have been a return to the Linda Vista Hospital where they filmed previously (a well-used film location), but wasn't confirmed. Another location mentioned by Michael Colbert was described being the "Lethal Weapon House"! The day was interrupted by rain (though fortunately not the snow that beset Los Angeles at the weekend!).Meanwhile, amidst concerns on Twitter about possible alterations to Jack's character, Jane Espenson reassured: "Not all 'straightening' Jack! Jack is very much still Jack! Fans will be pleased." 04:06 KO Damn! I'm wide awake, wide awake!! It's 4am here. I'm on set all day. As usual no filming took place at the weekend, though this doesn't apply to writers, as Jane Espenson observed on Sunday: 14:12 Working hard today on #Torchwood episode 8. How much can I get done before #Oscars? Key to initials: AF - Allyson Floyd (stand-in); AS - Alana Stone (fashion designer); BBC - BBC Torchwood (production office); JE - Jane Espenson (writer); KO - Kai Owen (Rhys); MC - Michael Colbert; MP - Mekhi Phifer (Rex Matheson); ST - Shawna Trpcic (costume designer) Kai Owen is due back to L.A. for three months of filming from the 12th March, and tweets intimated that he'll be joined by Tom Price too! 23 14:53(UK) Im back on Sunday, Then on the 12th March we all head out for three months!! Week Eight sees the production back into the heart of Los Angeles, with filming scheduled on Tuesday at the US Tower Building (also known as the Library Building) - a tall skyscraper at 633 West 5th Street - between 7:00am and 10:00pm; another unit is also active on the same day in a parking garage at 524 South Flower Street, between 6:00am and 2:00pm. Week 8 of Torchwood aka 80s revival week! | |||||||||||||||
| The literary TARDIS: The Target Doctor Who novelisations - Shadowlocked (blog) Posted: 28 Feb 2011 04:50 AM PST
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| Posted: 24 Feb 2011 06:02 PM PST Okay, so you remember me and indie comicker Paul Rainey were interviewed at Orbital Comics the other day? Well, you can now see the whole thing on their website. I think it's a pretty fun time, and Paul's a sweetheart. Also, I've been interviewed about the future of Action Comics by Newsarama. I've got my fourteen month old twin nieces in the house tonight, so I'll have to clear those piles of comics out of the spare room, or have them turned into goo. But tomorrow morning, I hope to see you at the Cardiff International Comics Expo. Cheerio!  | |||||||||||||||
| A Fond Farewell To Nicholas Courtney - Airlock Alpha Posted: 24 Feb 2011 12:49 PM PST
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| Classic 'Doctor Who' Actor Nicholas Courtney Dies - Airlock Alpha Posted: 24 Feb 2011 12:28 PM PST
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| Posted: 24 Feb 2011 11:45 AM PST  Also in this issue:
Issue 206 of Doctor Who Adventures magazine is out in the UK now. | |||||||||||||||
| Doctor Who MMO Coming This Year - Escapist Magazine Posted: 24 Feb 2011 10:40 AM PST
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| Posted: 24 Feb 2011 03:12 AM PST  The BBC Press Office have announced a new, multi-player game is in development.Entitled Doctor Who: Worlds in Time, the online game is being produced in partnership with games developer Three Rings, and is aimed to be "both highly engaging and fun, allowing players to socialize and foster genuine cooperation, building a global community where fans worldwide will now be able to experience first hand the exciting action and adventure synonymous with Doctor Who." For the first time ever, players from around the world will be able to follow in the footsteps of the eccentric and brilliant Doctor by travelling through time and space, exploring new worlds and encountering many alien races, both friend and foe. The game allows players to enter the TARDIS and be set a challenge by the mysterious Time Lord to help him defend civilized culture against infamous Doctor Who enemies. Robert Nashak, EVP Digital Entertainment at BBC Worldwide, said: Doctor Who: Worlds in Time will be a free-to-play multiplayer online game that invites players to save the universe by using their wits to solve time-bending puzzles and pulse-pounding challenges. Three Rings is the ideal team for this groundbreaking creative partnership. Not only are they visionaries in the online gaming space, they are lifelong Doctor Who fans with a passion for delivering the level of quality that our players will expect and deserve. Daniel James, CEO Three Rings, said: Three Rings is delighted and honored to have the opportunity to create an online game based on Doctor Who. Our goal with 'Words in Time' is to capture the imaginative spirit and depth of the series, whilst being fun and easy to play for all ages. The game is announced ahead of the San Francisco Game Developers Conference, and is expected to launch later in the year. You can keep up-to-date with the latest news on Worlds in Time by following BBC Worldwide Games on Twitter. | |||||||||||||||
| Doctor Who star Nicholas Courtney dies aged 81 - Daily Mail Posted: 24 Feb 2011 02:54 AM PST
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| Doctor Who companion Nicholas Courtney dies at 81 - TNT Magazine Posted: 24 Feb 2011 01:55 AM PST
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| Torchwood: Week Six Filming - The Doctor Who News Page Posted: 23 Feb 2011 01:35 AM PST
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| DWA 'Design-a-Monster' competition Posted: 23 Feb 2011 01:28 AM PST Doctor Who Adventures magazine has launched a 'Design a Monster' competition. The winner will see their creation battle the Doctor, Amy and Rory in a special comic strip in the magazine and be made into a model to go on display at the Doctor Who Experience in Olympia, London. Comic artist John Ross offers the readers some great tips to help them create the perfect creature:  The great thing about Doctor Who monsters is that they can be scary but a bit funny, too. For example, a really scary face could be balanced out by something quite wacky, like a foot that's joined on backwards, or one arm that's much bigger than the other. Things that tend to look good on monsters are wrinkles, extra eyes, fewer eyes, long tongues, tentacles, spots, stripes, spikes and funny-looking alien weapons/gadgets. Monsters based on animals are quite popular. For example, you could take the head of a rat and put it on the body of a chimpanzee and add tentacles. Posture is always something you have to think about, too. If your monster is strong and confident, it should stand straight and tall. If it's a bit more nervous and unsure of itself, it could be hunched over, possibly with slumped shoulders. If it's just a jumbled mass of tentacles with a head, it's a bit trickier to give an idea of the creature's personality. Your monster has to pose a threat to the Doctor, so will need some special powers or weapons. It could fire energy beams from its fingertips/tentacles, laser beams from its eyes or cannonballs from a hole in its belly - whatever you think is interesting. Weapons could be a giant device which could destroy the planet or a tiny alien flower which looks like a daisy but releases a scent which sends people to sleep. It's also good to colour your monster nice and brightly so he stands out in a crowd. How to enter Download the PDF entry form by clicking on the button below, then print it out and draw your monster! Fill in the monster's details, along with your name, age, address and daytime telephone number. Put the page in an envelope and send it to: DWA DESIGN, PO Box 8951, Market Harborough LE16 0EF, or scan the page and email your design to design@dwacomps.co.uk Download the pdf entry form For full terms and conditions please visit www.dwamag.com/design-a-monster. | |||||||||||||||
| Posted: 22 Feb 2011 11:37 PM PST Nicholas Courtney passed away yesterday at the age of 81, guys :( SJ.tv extends its condolences to his family and friends.  William Nicholas Stone Courtney 1929 - 2011  | |||||||||||||||
| Nebula nomination for Vincent and the Doctor Posted: 22 Feb 2011 11:05 PM PST  The Doctor Who story Vincent and the Doctor has been nominated for the The Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation in the 2010 Nebula Awards, an annual event held by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.The episode, penned by writer Richard Curtis, is the only television episode in this category, and is up against the films Despicable Me, How To Train Your Dragon, Inception, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, and Toy Story 3. The winners are selected by members of the SWFA during March, with the results announced at the Nebula Awards Banquet, taking place at the Washington Hilton, Washington D.C. on 21st May. Vincent and the Doctor had previously been nominated for a Mind Mental Health Media Award last year but lost out to Channel 4 drama Shameless. Doctor Who has been nominated for a Nebula Award twice in the past: The Girl in the Fireplace lost out in the Best Script category to Howl's Moving Castle in the 2006 awards, and the following year saw Blink miss the award in favour of Pan's Labyrinth - both were penned by the current lead writer, Steven Moffat. | |||||||||||||||
| RIP Nicholas Courtney: Splendid Chap, All of Him Posted: 22 Feb 2011 10:26 PM PST
The BBC, finally, have an obituary, though the best obituary is by actor Toby Hadoke in The Guardian. There are many lovely tributes to this lovely man, but Tom Baker has one of the first and most touching. Some of the better fan tributes come from Keith Topping and The Middleman creator and TV writer Javier Grillo-Marxuach. Additionally, Doctor Who DVD content producer Ed Stradling has a YouTube tribute. For me, Nick Courtney wasn't just the Brigadier. He was the gentleman who gave one of the most haunting, memorable performances I've seen on television in an episode of All Creatures Great and Small as a despondent man who has to put down his dog who represented the man's life. The look on his face when Christopher Timothy's James Herriot tells him the grave news is astounding: it's totally understated but packs an emotional punch that has stayed with me for decades. Coming to Doctor Who a little later, I was flabbergasted when I realized that was the same actor best known for saying "Chap with wings—five rounds rapid!" But that was Nick Courtney all over—the man was a talented actor who I wish had been given more opportunity to showcase his considerable abilities, particularly after the 1980s. I met Nick Courtney in 2004, where I interviewed him on stage with Richard Franklin at the Gallifrey One convention. It wasn't the most optimal of circumstances—Nick was in the middle of some kind of a dispute with Richard which made the whole interview a protracted, odd, somewhat difficult affair (I was asked to interview them separately though they compromised on coming together at the end). And yet, two things stood out to me from that experience. The first was, whatever the dispute was, I never learned what it was from Nick himself, who was too discreet a gentleman to talk about such private matters and was pleasant, cheerful and professional about the whole thing. The second thing that stood out to me happened later that afternoon as I sat and had a drink with him, his friend (and biographer) Michael McManus and others. When my gin and tonic came, I reached for my wallet. He gestured for me to hold fire. "This round's on the Brig," he said. That was Nick Courtney from my brief experience of him: Cordial, convivial, thoroughly decent. And he loved Doctor Who and its fans. He will be missed.
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| Posted: 22 Feb 2011 08:32 PM PST After the excitement of the previous fortnight, last week was a relatively quiet week for the Torchwood cast and crew.Eve Myles rejoined the team in Los Angeles, with John Barrowman, Mekhi Phifer, Dichen Lachman, Michael Colbert and Bill Pullman all involved with filming during the course of the week. Filming was away in private throughout this week, with Monday kicking off at the Orlando International Airport. No other exterior locations were reported last week, with other work taking place back at the Warner Brothers Studios lot. As usual, followers were able to pick up little pieces of gossip from cast and crew via Twitter. Times cited within the reports are in Los Angeles local time. MondayMonday saw the Torchwood team at another airport, this time the Ontario International Airport in Los Angeles (filming took place at Cardiff International Airport three weeks previously). Mekhi Phifer and Dichen Lachman were reported to be on location. Meanwhile, Jane Espenson clarified some differences between the UK and US film schedules.07:25 AS Had to be at work at 4:12am in Ontario. I have my Valentine, TuesdayEve Myles returned to production in the US, which sounded to be another 'bloody' affair according to Mekhi Phifer. Scenes today were back on the Warner Bros lot. As previously reported, whilst exteriors may have been filmed in Wales, the respective interiors have been shot back in the States, something Jane Espenson reports as meeting the Welsh cast's approval!10:55 ST Beautiful Eve back with us today. Even slimmer after all the action WednesdayAfter a few days absence, a welcome return to "TW-Spy!" today as we get to see the inside of the costume truck (Captain Jack, Simpsons-style!), Russell T Davies with a (very!) large cheese, and a set visit by actress/producer Kim Evey.Kai Owen also revealed that he'll be heading back to L.A. next week, which indicates that the return to the UK for filming wasn't to happen after all. 07:43 ST One of the walls in the costume truck :-) ThursdayMichael Colbert revealed more plane antics for the cast and crew, though this is was on a set rather than a inside a real plane. He also noted that a number of the production crew were unaware that they were working on a series with quite a legacy!09:31 ST Eve Myles told Kim Evey that she is the voice of one of FridayAnother day on set, and more mysterious items that may or may not be what they seem! With conventions and holidays on the way nobody wanted another late night Friday, though Bill Pullman continued to keep everybody entertained as production completed for another week.13:42 BBC It seems the line between salad dressing and Speaking of Bill Pullman, his fan site published a photo of him with John Barrowman in their Jack/Oswald mode! SaturdayFriday brought an end to filming for the week, and an extended weekend was due with a holiday on Monday for Presidents Day, not to mention Jane Espenson and Doris Egan attending the GallifreyOne convention over the weekend too!However, it wasn't a complete halt to proceedings: 01:20 BBC We're location scouting in a couple of hours! Director of Photography Nate Goodman also commented on Torchwood so far ... 19:26 NG One week back from Wales. Saw some of Ep 1 cut together. Epic. Key to initials: AS - Alana Stone (fashion designer); BBC - BBC Torchwood (production office); DE - Doris Egan (writer); DL - Dichen Lachman; JE - Jane Espenson (writer); KE - Kim Evey (visitor); MC - Michael Colbert; MP - Mekhi Phifer (Rex Matheson); NG - Nate Goodman (director of photography); ST - Shawna Trpcic (costume designer) With a short break for Presidents Day, production resumes Tuesday, though with Kai Owen confirming that he is flying out to Los Angeles on Wednesday it seems that the anticipated return to the Welsh shores for filming is not to be this week, after all! | |||||||||||||||
| Doctor Who stars lend a hand to charity Posted: 22 Feb 2011 07:50 PM PST  Stars from Doctor Who have designed candle holders to be auctioned for the ILLUMINATE Campaign, an offshoot of The Cure Parkinson's Trust. The auction on eBay began yesterday and will finish at 7.00 pm on Friday 4th March 2011.Peter Davison (the fifth Doctor and Bernard Cribbins (Wilfred Mott) have both designed an image to be used on a candle holder. Also in the auction are hand signed photos by Davison and Katherine Jenkins (Abigail Pettigrew, A Christmas Carol). Other celebrities who have appeared in Doctor Who and have designed a candle holder for the auction are Harry Lloyd (Jeremy Baines / Son of Mine, Human Nature / The Family of Blood), Roy Hudd (Max Miller, Pier Pressure, Big Finish Audio), Louise Minchin (Newsreader, Torchwood: Children of Earth), Julia Sawalha (Emma, The Curse of Fatal Death, Red Nose Day parody episode), who has signed a photo, and Ricky Gervais, who appeared as a slug-like monster alongside David Tennant as the tenth Doctor in a scene in Extras - The Special.   Britain's favourite celebrities have personally designed these 34 candle holders, which will be auctioned on eBay for 10 days starting 7pm on 22nd FEBRUARY 2011. Only one candle holder of each design has been made … making each of them truly unique. These top quality, bone china candle holders, are made in Stoke on Trent and filled with 100 hour white wax. They are approximately 75mm in diameter and 92mm tall and come in a specially made presentation box. The design has been kiln-fired onto the candle holder, during the manufacturing process, to make it permanent. Remember - the items for auction here are truly unique - only one of each design exists. Additionally we are auctioning 10 hand signed photographs sent to us by celebrities in response to our appeal for support. Included with every item is a Certificate of Authenticity signed by The Cure Parkinson's Trust's Managing Director. If you decide not to bid for a candle holder, perhaps you might donate to The Cure Parkinson's Trust instead? By donating to the Cure Parkinson's Trust you are investing in the hope of a future without Parkinson's. | |||||||||||||||
| Posted: 22 Feb 2011 05:39 PM PST Before I say anything else, I'd like to note the passing of Nick Courtney, the Brigadier from Doctor Who. I met, and drank, with him several times, and he was always the most charming man. His talent was, I think, a little underestimated. You don't become beloved by accident. He was very much the human point of view to a generation of Doctor Who fans, so good a foil that he was often the lead. An excellent man. Out today, on a happier note, is Action Comics #898, the issue where Orange Lantern Larfleeze returns to battle Lex for the power he's seeking. By the end of it, a few things about the quest become a lot more clear. You can find the first five pages here. Meanwhile, MTV Geek interviewed me about Knight and Squire and put me through a quiz in British slang, to find out if, I don't know, I was secretly from Idaho. And I wouldn't normally link to positive reviews of my work, but Colin Smith is two thirds of the way through a serious examination of the Action Comics/Secret Six crossover. It's not that it's very flattering so much as that it's a rare pleasure to see comics being reviewed as seriously as this. Okay, back to the grindstone I go, and I hope to see some of you at the Cardiff convention on Saturday. Cheerio!  | |||||||||||||||
| Posted: 22 Feb 2011 12:45 PM PST   Born in Egypt, William Nicholas Stone Courtney spent his childhood and education in a variety of places - his father serving in the diplomatic service - before entering the Webber Douglas School of Singing and Dramatic Art after completing his National Service in 1950. He then entered rep in 1952 - his first job being actor/ASM in Cromer! - before a move to London brought him to the world of television. His first appearance in this media was as a Warrant Officer in the 1957 series Escape, followed by playing King Charles II in Looking About and Mark Norman in an episode of No Hiding Place. He was then to appear throughout the 1960s in shows like Callan and Sword of Honour, as well as popular fantasy genre titles like The Saint, The Champions, The Avengers, and Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) (alongside Master-to-be, Roger Delgado). His first brush with Doctor Who was to be as Space Security Agent Bret Vyon in the First Doctor epic The Daleks' Master Plan. For Doctor Who fans, of course, he will always be remembered as UNIT stalwart Lethbridge-Stewart. Originally slated to play Captain Knight in the Second Doctor adventure The Web Of Fear, he was 'promoted' to the role of Colonel by director Douglas Camfield when original actor David Langton pulled out, and returned a year as a newly promoted Brigadier in The Invasion, a role he was to become associated with for over forty years! Appearing as one of the main characters throughout the Third Doctor's incarnation as the UK head of UNIT, he was then to appear with every other classic series Doctor, both during the television show's original run and through the Big Finish audio adventures. Name-checked a number of times in the revived series of Doctor Who, Sir Alistair was to eventually return in the spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures in 2008 - the actor being re-united with 70s co-star Elisabeth Sladen. Work continued after his departure from Doctor Who, appearing in shows such as All Creatures Great And Small and Sink or Swim (both alongside Fifth Doctor Peter Davison), Shelley, Yes, Prime Minister and Only Fools and Horses; he also played Lt. Col. Robert Witherton in 1993's Then Churchill Said to Me. More recently, he appeared in popular shows like The Bill, Doctors, and Casualty. In 2008 he played the Archbishop of Canterbury in Incendiary. In 1997, he became the Honorary President of the Doctor Who Appreciation Society, a position he was very proud to hold. There have been two autobiographies on his life, Five Rounds Rapid! in 1998 and Still Getting Away With It in 2005; his memoirs were also released by Big Finish as A Soldier In Time in 2002. He is survived by his wife Karen, his son Philip and daughter Bella. William Nicholas Stone Courtney (16th December 1929 - 22nd February 2011) Special Tributes: Tom Baker, Steven Moffat (via BBC Doctor Who), GreyhoundLeader (Nicholas Courtney's official site). Media coverage: Sat: The Independent; :Fri: TVlia (Spanish), MyJoyOnline; Thu: Unreality TV, Airlock Alpha, Pure People (French), The A.V. Club, AceShowbiz, The Telegraph (Blog), TNT Magazine, Mirror, MTV, The West Australian, Adelaide Now; Wed: BBC News, BBC Doctor Who, BBC America, RadioTimes, The Guardian, The Telegraph, Daily Mail, Express, Belfast Telegraph, AOL News, CBS News, Digital Journal, The Stage, Big Finish Productions, SFX, io9, The Register, Den of Geek, Digital Spy, The Sun, Metro, The List, Geeks of Doom, Anglotopia, Zap2It, ATV Today, TV.com, MediaSpy, Kansas City Star, AlloCiné (French) "Very sad to hear about Nick Courtney – I was enormously proud to have interviewed him for DWM, and to have enjoyed his company many times." - Tom Spilsbury, DWM "Sad news about Nick Courtney, though. Lovely, gentle man. Interviewed him several times. He'll be missed." - Ben Cook, DWM "So very sad about Nick Courtney. A truly lovely man." - Clayton Hickman, writer "has no words to decribe the loss of Nicholas Courtney, a true gentleman and much loved icon. RIP, with a heavy heart" - Toby Hadoke, Moths Ate My Doctor Who Scarf "Very sad news about Nicholas Courtney. A true gentleman, a wonderful actor, a dear friend - splendid chap, all of him." - Barnaby Edwards, Dalek operator "So sad to hear about Nicholas Courtney. A wonderful actor, a childhood hero, a treasured friend, and the kindest, funniest, gentlest of men." - Nicholas Pegg, Dalek operator "Aw...Nick Courtney is trending worldwide. Feel the love. RIP" - Murray Gold, composer "Nick Courtney really meant something to my generation of Who fans. His performance- funny, emotional, restrained, human - heart of the show." - Paul Cornell, series writer "Desperately sad to hear that Nicholas Courtney has passed away. A childhood hero and the sweetest of gentlemen. Splendid chap. All of him. x" - Mark Gatiss, series writer/actor "News reached Gary Russell and I of Nick Courtney's passing. A terribly sad end to our #Gally week. Best wishes to his family. A true gent." - Phil Ford, writer "Very sad news about Nicholas Courtney. Lovely guy who knew how to live life. RIP." - Joe Lidster, writer "Damn, just saw the Nicholas Courtney news. Such a shame." - James Moran, series writer "I never properly met Nicholas Courtney when he came to Cardiff for SJA. What a shame I now never will." - Edward Russell, Senior Brand Executive for Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures "Very sad news about Nicholas Courtney. A lovely bloke and fab actor who will be sorely missed." - Sam Watts, composer "When I pitched the FORGOTTEN to IDW, the only tale I knew I wanted to tell at that point was one with the Brig. #NicholasCourtney" - Tony Lee, Graphic novelist Video by Ed Stradling, via YouTube On a personal note, it was a shock to hear the news tonight about Nick; having got to know him personally from my DWAS days, I have many fond memories of driving him to various promotions and being regaled by his stories down the local. Off-duty, he was as much the gentleman as he appeared in public, and will be sadly missed by family, friends and fandom alike. Chuck          | |||||||||||||||
| Eve Myles talks about new series of Torchwood - ATV Today Posted: 22 Feb 2011 10:25 AM PST
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| 'Torchwood's Eve Myles Spoils Us - Ology Posted: 22 Feb 2011 09:16 AM PST
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| Posted: 22 Feb 2011 08:15 AM PST The majestic medieval backdrop of Raglan Castle in South East Wales will be the temporary home of the TARDIS throughout this February half-term until Sunday 27 February. The Welsh Assembly released the news on their website earlier today:  The arrival of Doctor Who's world-famous blue telephone box at Raglan follows its recent appearance at Caerphilly Castle.BBC Cymru Wales and Cadw, the Welsh Assembly Government's historic environment service, have been working together over a number of series to provide Doctor Who with some unusual and unique historical filming locations, including Neath Abbey and Caerphilly Castle. The TARDIS will be located in the Fountain Court area of the castle for visitors to admire. Jayne Rowlands, Cadw's Head of Presentation, said: "It's fantastic that we are able to welcome the Doctor's TARDIS to Raglan Castle this half-term, and we expect it will prove a big hit with fans from both the UK and overseas." | |||||||||||||||
| Eve Myles: 'New Torchwood is electrifying' - Digital Spy Posted: 22 Feb 2011 05:38 AM PST
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| People roundup - The Doctor Who News Page Posted: 21 Feb 2011 06:43 AM PST
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| Posted: 21 Feb 2011 04:14 AM PST  After several test days and special preview visits, the Doctor Who Experience finally opened to the general public on Sunday morning.Current Doctor Matt Smith was on hand at the Experience, during which he was to meet 'himself' in the form of a life-sized model: "I think he's sort of a bit musclier than I am! It's a surreal experience to have an image of yourself in 3D. So weird but one of the wonderful privileges of this particular job - you get rather mad experiences." The encounter didn't faze him, however, as he then straightened up his alter-ego's tie! Executive Producer and lead writer Steven Moffat said about the project: "We're not setting out to frighten anyone, but kids will come here expecting it to be a bit scary, and I don't think we will be letting them down. But with the Doctor on screen following you around, hopefully you will know that you are in safe hands. After all, the Doctor always wins." A video is available via the Experience home page, plus coverage of the launch via Sky News and Digital Spy. BBC Radio 1's Jo Whiley also visited the launch, which can be heard on her latest show from her website, which includes photos from the Experience.
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| Posted: 21 Feb 2011 01:32 AM PST Billie Piper returned in The Secret Diary of a Call Girl amidst a huge blaze of press coverage; speaking about her career plans and a possible Hollywood calling: "I keep thinking about it, but then I like England; to be out there with a baby and to do seven, eight auditions a day is just not massively appealing at the moment." On future Call-Girl: "I think we've pretty much been everywhere with the stories and as that's at the heart of every episode, you wouldn't want to exhaust it to the point of just complete ridiculousness and seediness. I really like this job but you always want the story to have legs and not be that you're scraping the bottom of the barrel. I think if we go any further then we might be guilty of that." And on the future: "I just want to do something radically different and I don't know what that is yet. I think I've just chosen things that have interested me and then kept trying new and different things. It has worked out well and I can thank Doctor Who for all of that really. It was wholly responsible for giving me a great opportunity." [various] Torchwood star John Barrowman has recently been embroiled in media discussions over who might replace Bruce Forsyth when he eventually retires from presenting the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing, with reports that both he, gameshow presenter Vernon Kay, and The One Show house Alex Jones are vying for the position. However, the stories have been refuted by new BBC1 Controller Danny Cohen, who said that Bruce would carry on for as long as he wanted to. [Sun, Western Mail, Mirror] Karen Gillan has been voted the 77th in men's heath and fitness guru site Ask Men's Top 99 Women for 2011. Fifth Doctor Peter Davison reminisces about a visit with his family to New Zealand, which tied in with the islands' Armageddon convention last Autumn. During their trip, they visited Wellington, the Weta workshops, Napier, Lake Taupo, Tepau and the Coromandel peninsula; speaking on Lake Taupo: "You can take a fishing boat out on the placid waters, see hot steam coming out of the ground at The Craters of the Moon – reminiscent of an early Doctor Who landscape – and watch the majestic Huka Falls." [Daily Mail] Catherine Tate has expressed an interest in taking up directing; speaking at a platform event at the National Theatre in London, the actress said: "I directed for the first time at Christmas, a short film for TV. I would like to do more. I have got a project but I don't know what's happening with that." [Express] Alex Kingston discussed her feelings towards her Doctor Who character River Song in the Readers Digest: "I'm not allowed to breathe a word about the new storylines... otherwise, they take away my sonic screwdriver. When I was first offered the part, I had no idea how successful the new Doctor Who was because I was in the US. But as soon as I read the script, I fell in love with River. She provides a very complex link to the Doctor's life and ever since I saw Alien, a little bit of me has wanted to run around a spaceship shooting intergalactic monsters." [Press Association] Mark Strickson has been based in Qatar for the last couple of years, and recently talked about his filming projects at the Qatar Natural History Group, during which he regaled its members with tales of his adventures over the years, including his time in Doctor Who. [Gulf Times] Welsh Opera singer and recent Doctor Who guest star Katherine Jenkins announced that she and long time partner Gethin Jones would be getting married. (Jones has also featured in Doctor Who under monster costumes during his tenure as a Blue Peter presenter). [BBC News] Third Doctor Jon Pertwee's son Sean explains why he never expected to follow in his father's footsteps when David Tennant was announced as leaving: "No, I never said I wanted the part, but there is a financial tale behind how the rumour started. For a laugh I tried putting a £50 bet on me to play the next Doctor because I thought I was in with a chance, but all the boys I knew in Islington decided I must have some inside info so they piled in behind me. When the betting shop staff asked who I was, the boys told them my father had played Doctor Who so they called head office about it and then declared all bets off. The next thing I knew I was in the news as running for the part, but I think it stemmed from trying to put £50 on myself. I'd love to have a guest part, but when it comes to the main role my father was too big an act to follow." [Telegraph] Former First Minister for Wales, Rhodri Morgan, pays tribute to outgoing BBC Wales Controller Menna Richards, during which he also reflected on how he almost ended up in Doctor Who back when the series first started filming in 2004: "I'm still kicking myself though. If you knew how my grandchildren rate having a First Minister in the family tree compared to playing a tree on Doctor Who in relative street cred in the playground, you'd understand why, too!" [Western Mail] BAFTA winner and Oscar nominee Colin Firth was interviewed on Twitter by Vue Cinemas, during which he was asked about Doctor Who: "I'd never rule out a part in Doctor Who or Torchwood – especially Doctor Who. I'd also love to play a villain like Moriaty in Sherlock Holmes." Finally, speaking of the Oscars, Tariq Anwar is also nominated for an Editing award for The King's Speech; the film editor worked back on Fourth Doctor stories The Face of Evil, The Sun Makers and Shada during the 1970s. | |||||||||||||||
| Posted: 20 Feb 2011 09:06 PM PST  It is the brainchild of prominent New Zealand fan Jon Preddle, and is the culmination of many years work travelling and collating information from broadcasters etc. to create a site providing comprehensive coverage of 20th Century Doctor Who, with airdates and screening schedules from 1964 onwards for more than 70 fully-profiled countries. Have you ever wanted to explore exciting foreign worlds? Worlds where El Doctor Misterio battles with the Dalekios; where Hombres Metalicos seek venganza; where the Sechst Doktor encounters Zweimel Einstein and Kybermanner; where Le Docteur Who is trapped by L'Araignee whilst seeking Les Yeux de Maurinius? The site was launched at the weekend's GallifreyOne convention in Los Angeles, with layout design by Preddle, John Lavalie and Steven Warren Hill.And have you have ever wondered:
It is still a work in progress - currently estimated to be around 75% complete - and the site has a plea for further assistance and information in order to create the most complete record of Doctor Who's broadcast possible: As with any research of this nature, there are gaps in the information - and perhaps even errors. If you can assist us in any way by filling in any of the gaps, or if you've got additional information, such as foreign newspaper articles, clippings, copies of TV listings, or sales literature that we can use, or if you spot something that is wrong or you plain just disagree with, please drop us a line Jon Preddle is not shy of long-term projects, he is also the author of Timelink: The Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to the Continuity of Doctor Who, a two volume book exploring the complex continuity of the show, which has taken the author some fifteen years to compile! The books are due to be published by Telos Publishing at the end of February. | |||||||||||||||
| Posted: 20 Feb 2011 08:13 AM PST  The Official Charts have been published for this week, and the "TV on Video" chart reveals the William Hartnell adventure The Ark, released last Monday, has entered the charts straight in at number one, knocking off the two popular Vampire genre series from the top spots, The Vampire Diaries and True Blood.
The Doctor's Christmas adventure, A Christmas Carol (released 24th January), remains in the chart at number 37, down five places from the previous week. The Official Charts Company has compiled the United Kingdom's media charts since 1998, which are sourced from over 4000 retailers. The charts are updated every Sunday at 7:00pm. | |||||||||||||||
| Posted: 20 Feb 2011 05:07 AM PST  Series Five of Doctor Who continued on France 4 on Saturday, featuring Le labyrinthe des Anges (1+2) and Les Vampires de Venise. The shows achieved 375,000 viewers, 2% of the total viewing audience at that time (8:35pm onwards). Whilst this is a drop in the total viewers from last week (453,000), the audience share has remained the same.The evening also saw a repeat of Torchwood: Les Enfants de la Terre on NRJ 12 in the same time slot - the five episodes achieved a rating of 219,000 viewers (1%). Audience figures for Saturday can be viewed at Premiere, which shows that Danse avec les stars on TF1 was once again the highest show on French television that day. The first three episodes of Series Five - Le Prisonnier Zéro, La bêtes des bas-fonds and La victoire des Daleks - are repeated on Tuesday evening, from 10:00pm (local time). | |||||||||||||||
| Doctor Who: production roundup Posted: 19 Feb 2011 09:18 AM PST  Back at the beginning of the month, David Walliams revealed that he would be appearing in an episode of the next series of Doctor Who; more details have now been released regarding his role by the BBC and other media outlets:It's been confirmed that David Walliams will appear in the new series. He'll feature in a spooky episode playing a character called Gibbis. Walliams said, "I am a huge fan of Doctor Who and am so looking forward to working with Matt Smith and running up and down some corridors with him." His episode has been written by Toby Whithouse, whose previous contributions include The Vampires of Venice and School Reunion.  Further casting details for episodes have been revealed through agencies over the course of February.Spotlight lists a number of guest stars under the direction of Peter Hoar. Actress Frances Barber plays a character named Kovarian; recent roles include Elizabeth in the BBC Christmas Tale Nativity, and Janice in ITV's The Fattest Man in Britain. Christina Chong plays Lorna Bucket - she will feature as an Interpreter in the forthcoming film sequel, Johnny English Reborn. Meanwhile, Joshua Hayes takes on his first television role as a character named Lucas.  Actor Geoffrey Burton has been listed as "Nasa Man" - though no director has been listed, this credit would seem to tie in with the American-themed opening two-parter for the series written by Steven Moffat and directed by Toby Haynes. Burton is better known for stage roles, but has appeared in Law and Order and Family Affairs.Michael Begley has been listed as appearing as Mulligan in the just finished episode three written by Steve Thompson and directed by Jeremy Webb (coverage below); the actor has recently featured as Mark the hospital chaplain in Being Human, and as Orson in the revived Minder.  Mark Jermin Management has also listed two child actors to appear in roles this series.Edmond Moulton appeared in the two-part story written by Matthew Graham and directed by Julian Simpson, playing a character named Adam. Oscar Lloyd's character has yet to be revealed; he appeared in the BBC's Lark Rise to Candleford as the original Sidney, and has since been prominent as Will Wylde in ITV's Emmerdale. In Production After the media-intensive, public-friendly filming for Doctor Who in Charlestown at the beginning of the month, February has since seen the production crew retreat from sight back into studio and other private locations to continue work on the Steve Thompson-penned episode three. Though 'over the horizon', Hugh Bonneville continued to regale us with tweets on the 'high seas' during the course of his filming schedule: 07 19:07 Skulduggery on the high seas was knackering today.Work on the episode continued until Tuesday last week, as reported by Director of Photography Dale McCready: 13 22:46 last two days shooting on this show, it's been a nice short blast. Next Time ... Production on the next block is now under way, with a base being set up in Porthcawl this weekend in readiness for filming. | |||||||||||||||
| Posted: 18 Feb 2011 09:35 AM PST The Third Zone In this issue:
Rassilon's Rod: Issue 3 
20 pages, A4 UK - 'Gift' £1.50 by paypal to davidmacgowan@hotmail.com REST OF WORLD - 'Gift' £3 by paypal to davidmacgowan@hotmail.com Fish Fingers and Custard: Issue 4  In this latest Issue:
As always, please paypal the payment which applies to you as a gift to: fishcustardfanzine@googlemail.com UK: £2.00 Worldwide: £3.00 Doctor Who Appreciation Society's Celestial Archive: Voices from the Past  Having started in 1976 the Society has accumulated over the years a huge library of material, and in this part of the website we will make the best parts available for you to view, with a new theme added each month.Wherever possible we have presented the selected articles in their original format, to give a true flavour of what those old publications were like. In the coming months we will present a selection of items drawn from Society publications - Celestial Toyroom, TARDIS, Cosmic Masque, STINFOs and more, including correspondence and photographs you may not have seen. Although we have an almost complete set of DWAS publications much of what has been printed over the years was 'of it's time' and is unlikely to be of general interest today. Therefore, in order to present the best of what is available we have selected articles, features and interviews based around specific themes and will bring them together here in different categories. There are also a small number of Society publications that we can present in their entirety and some will also be available to view online in due course.
Oxford University Doctor Who Society - Tides of Time archive: First Doctor special  The Tides of Time started publishing in 1990, just as BBC Video turned their attention towards releasing more Doctor Who on VHS and also increased the proportion of black and white serials in their schedule. This context, combined with fannish curiosity about the early years of the programme and a scholarly drive to seek the essence of Doctor Who in the origins of the series, meant that Tides has never neglected the first Doctor. I've now uploaded some fiction featuring the first Doctor published over the years, as well as a few story reviews and our tribute to Sydney Newman.All the articles are scans from the original photocopied or inkjet-printed fanzines, except for the reviews of The Aztecs and The Dalek Invasion of Earth where the quality of the originals was too poor. These have been reset. All the articles remain the copyright of the contributors. Fiction
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| Doctor Whooligan: Latest Doctor Who and Torchwood News - Upcoming Doctor Who ... - Anglotopia.net Posted: 18 Feb 2011 09:10 AM PST
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| Blu-ray Deal: Torchwood Season 1 & 2, Children Of Earth - Geeks of Doom Posted: 18 Feb 2011 04:19 AM PST
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| Posted: 17 Feb 2011 03:23 AM PST This weekend sees UK newspaper The Guardian giving away two audio adventures of the Eleventh Doctor:
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| This Weekend and the Weekender Posted: 16 Feb 2011 02:04 AM PST This Saturday I'll first be popping my head round the door at Picocon at Imperial College, London, then, from 4pm, I'll be doing a signing, alongside indie comic creator Paul Rainey, at Orbital Comics, on Great Newport Street, followed by a panel discussion around 7pm. Should be fun. You may have noticed that I've utterly failed to do any sort of report on the SFX Weekender. The truth is, I'm working too hard. I had a great time, staying in the Tor Books cottage, with China Mieville, Mark Charan Newton, Peter F. Hamilton, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Gary Gibson, editor Julie Crisp and editorial assistant Chloe and Amy. I felt slightly out of my depth in such intellectual company, in front of folk I'm now proud to call my publishers, but to whom I haven't really proved myself yet. I drove out into the wastelands to see the nuclear power station and have tea on the edge of Romney Marsh. I appreciated a fantastic event which put a bigger, more diverse audience in front of SF and fantasy authors than any other UK convention can provide. I did a signing where a little girl looked up at Peter Hamilton's huge fort of huge novels and said 'I can read big letters and small letters'. I appreciated the power of Baby Davros. I had a pint with Moffat, and several more with several others. You know who you are. I partied so hard that it took me the best part of a week to get over it. I like the SFX organiser ethos, I like the dancing girls (but there should be an equal number of dancing boys), I like this new mainstream SF audience that's growing here, who don't think they're in a ghetto. With the complaints of last year listened to, I think something big's growing here. And the booksellers apparently did good business. The way of the future, I think, prose and media hand in hand, authors and publishing people having a great time networking and meeting the audience as actors take the stage. Hmm, that sounds a lot like San Diego. This photo by Danie Ware, who organised our signing at the Forbidden Planet table:  That's Adrian, Peter, Gary and me. If I see you on Saturday, do say hello. Cheerio! |
The Doctor Who world has been rocked by the sad news that one of its elder statesmen, Nicholas Courtney, who played Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge Stewart from 1968-onwards to his last appearance in 2008 in The Sarah Jane Adventures has died at the age of 81. 
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