Kopic's Doctor Who & Torchwood News |
- Crack attack, your thoughts and theories!
- Look Who’s Back!
- Arquette: 'Relationships take work'
- Fox: 'I used guns before Jonah Hex'
- Perez responds to Miley photo criticism
- Kendra Wilkinson 'moving back to Philly'
- Sony to launch premium PSN service
- 'Portal 2' coming to PS3 with Steamworks
- 'Twilight' scene reshot to be more erotic
- Cyrus: "I'm not trying to be s***ty"
- Tori Spelling: 'I hate weight rumours'
- Housemates comfort homesick Steve
- Diaz: 'I want relationship with myself'
- Rachael: 'I wouldn't date a short man'
- Pattinson 'doesn't understand Twilight'
- David apologises on 'bad boy TV'
- Gillan: Pregnancy Felt “Ridiculous”
- CNN: 'Larry King not being replaced'
- P Diddy: 'I was a savage boss'
- Alexandra Burke reveals leak source
- BBC Books unveil The Coming of the Terraphiles
- Cheryl's mum concerned by weight loss?
- Russell Brand: 'Katy is very sweet'
- Ben questions Rachael, Shabby friendship
- New From Big Finish Publishing
- Pond – Not the Girl Next Door
- Karen Gillan introduces The Pandorica Opens
- Why Christopher Eccleston Quit
- Grodd!
- Pandorica Pictures
- Whoniverse Floods the Portal Awards
- Eccleston “didn’t enjoy” Doctor Who environment
- Eccleston talks departure
- Bargain Benny
- Amy Pond in Radio Times
- Eccleston on Who Exit
- PubCon3 Update
- BBC America - Doctor Who: Cold Blood Preview (Flash video)
- Lodger Naked
- Kids Stare-Out Tennant
- Now I Can Sleep Again
- Vincent and the Doctor - Final ratings
- Final BARB ratings for Vincent and the Doctor
- June Big Finish Podcast
- Doctor Who and the Silurians
- Eleven Doctors in Character
- Pandorica Secrets Revealed?
| Crack attack, your thoughts and theories! Posted: 15 Jun 2010 10:00 AM PDT The unfolding crack mystery has captivated millions for the past few months, but all of our questions will finally be given answers in the finale two-parter, which kicks off this Saturday with The Pandorica Opens! Like the crack, our related discussion is very much ongoing, so head over there now to share your own personal thoughts and [...]  | ||
| Posted: 15 Jun 2010 09:52 AM PDT Major spoilers for the finale. Do not click if you want to remain unspoiled!  | ||
| Arquette: 'Relationships take work' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 09:04 AM PDT David Arquette says that communication is the key to his successful marriage to Courteney Cox. 
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| Fox: 'I used guns before Jonah Hex' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 08:53 AM PDT Megan Fox says that her father taught her how to use a shotgun as a child. 
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| Perez responds to Miley photo criticism Posted: 15 Jun 2010 08:50 AM PDT Perez Hilton responds to criticism after posting a fake picture of Miley Cyrus wearing no underwear. 
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| Kendra Wilkinson 'moving back to Philly' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 08:46 AM PDT Kendra Wilkinson will move back to Philadelphia with her football player husband Hank Baskett. 
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| Sony to launch premium PSN service Posted: 15 Jun 2010 08:43 AM PDT Sony announces details of a premium service coming to PlayStation Network called PlayStation Plus. 
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| 'Portal 2' coming to PS3 with Steamworks Posted: 15 Jun 2010 08:26 AM PDT Valve announces that Portal 2 is coming to PlayStation 3 with Steamworks support. 
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| 'Twilight' scene reshot to be more erotic Posted: 15 Jun 2010 08:12 AM PDT Robert Pattinson reveals that a scene from the new Twilight movie was reshot to be made more erotic. 
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| Cyrus: "I'm not trying to be s***ty" Posted: 15 Jun 2010 08:08 AM PDT Miley Cyrus says that her new provocative image is about consistency, not promiscuity. 
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| Tori Spelling: 'I hate weight rumours' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 07:58 AM PDT Tori Spelling blames stress, migraines and swine flu for her rapid and drastic weight loss. 
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| Housemates comfort homesick Steve Posted: 15 Jun 2010 07:52 AM PDT Dad-of-eight Steve is reassured by the group after his "wobble". 
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| Diaz: 'I want relationship with myself' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 07:41 AM PDT Cameron Diaz says that she has made a "conscious decision" not to get involved in a romantic relationship. 
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| Rachael: 'I wouldn't date a short man' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 07:38 AM PDT Rachael reveals that she prefers taller men during a girly heart-to-heart. 
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| Pattinson 'doesn't understand Twilight' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 07:35 AM PDT Robert Pattinson admits that he does not understand Twilight as he has not read the books. 
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| David apologises on 'bad boy TV' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 07:27 AM PDT David is made to apologise to the house over 'indiscretions'. 
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| Gillan: Pregnancy Felt “Ridiculous” Posted: 15 Jun 2010 07:23 AM PDT Karen Gillan has remarked that she loved playing pregnant Amy Pond in Amy's Choice, the seventh episode of this year's series of Doctor Who.
Whilst the scenes by no means gave her anything as severe as "sympathy pains", Karen found herself taking the role to an almost method level:
Gillan played the role of a pregnant Amy wonderfully and added a real depth to her character that many actresses might have glossed over. She also went on to give a cryptic description of the final two parter of the new Doctor Who series, calling it "emotional". If all the rumours doing the rounds are true, we believe her…  | ||
| CNN: 'Larry King not being replaced' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 07:07 AM PDT CNN denies that it is looking to replace Larry King after reports suggested Piers Morgan as his replacement. 
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| P Diddy: 'I was a savage boss' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 06:48 AM PDT P Diddy admits that he was a savage boss and once fired an assistant who asked for a break. 
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| Alexandra Burke reveals leak source Posted: 15 Jun 2010 06:22 AM PDT Alexandra Burke reveals the source of leaks targeting Syco artists including herself and Leona Lewis. 
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| BBC Books unveil The Coming of the Terraphiles Posted: 15 Jun 2010 06:11 AM PDT BBC Books have released the cover and details for Michael Moorcock’s long-awaited Doctor Who novel, which has been named as The Coming of the Terraphiles! The story sees the TARDIS land on Miggea, a world on the edge of reality, where space-time threatens to collapse. It’s the venue for the grand finals of the competition to win the [...]  | ||
| Cheryl's mum concerned by weight loss? Posted: 15 Jun 2010 06:09 AM PDT Cheryl Cole's mother Joan Callaghan is apparently worried about the star's recent weight loss. 
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| Russell Brand: 'Katy is very sweet' Posted: 15 Jun 2010 06:05 AM PDT Russell Brand says that he doesn't mind it when Katy Perry embarrasses him because of her "sweet" nature. 
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| Ben questions Rachael, Shabby friendship Posted: 15 Jun 2010 05:53 AM PDT Ben suggests that Rachael and Shabby have little in common during a chat with Mario. 
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| New From Big Finish Publishing Posted: 15 Jun 2010 04:14 AM PDT When Carrie left her Ex, she wanted something to help her through the bad times. Something real... someone's story... something that would shine a light – and help her laugh along the way. So she decided to write it! After the Break-Up charts 28 year-old Carrie's life in the year following her divorce. The bad dates... the good friends... the times when she thought she couldn't go on... and the moment she realised she was finally OK on her own. If you've experienced a break-up and need some advice – or if you've always wondered exactly what's going on in a girl's mind after a split – then this is the book for you! 'It's a must-read for those who've just come out of a relationship – a blueprint for survival for women and a lesson for men!' - Alistair McGowan After the Break-Up is out in September, and is available for pre-order now.  | ||
| Posted: 15 Jun 2010 03:53 AM PDT Karen Gillian has hit back at the 'uproar' over Amy Ponds sexy fashion sense – saying she never wanted her character to just be 'the girl next door'.
Not conforming to stereotypes, being head strong and wearing short skirts may make her seem like an ideal feminist icon but to Karen, the thought never crossed her mind.
Gillian also suggested that Amy and the Doctor would never get together because he sees her more as an 'annoying younger sister'. You can read the full article on the thoroughly modern Miss Gillan in this weeks Radio Times (19/25th June.) You can see more of Amy and the Doctor in the penultimate episode; The Pandorica Opens which airs this Saturday at 18:40 simultaneously on BBC1 and BBC HD.  | ||
| Karen Gillan introduces The Pandorica Opens Posted: 15 Jun 2010 03:35 AM PDT Part one of this year’s finale, The Pandorica Opens, is fast approaching, and as such you can now watch its introduction video on the official site, in which Karen Gillan offers a few hints as to what’s in store for the Doctor and Amy in the episode! The site has also been updated with a gallery featuring a selection [...]  | ||
| Why Christopher Eccleston Quit Posted: 14 Jun 2010 11:40 PM PDT Why Christopher Eccleston Quit News Dated: 15/6/2010 Actor Christopher Eccleston quit Doctor Who after one series because he "didn't enjoy the environment and the culture" of the show. Eccleston, who is about to star in BBC Four biopic Lennon Naked, took on the role of the Time Lord when Russell T. Davies revamped Doctor Who in 2005. He told the Radio Times he was proud of the show but "wasn't comfortable" working on it. "I think it's more important to be your own man than be successful, so I left." "I was open-minded but I decided after my experience on the first series that I didn't want to do any more," he said. "I didn't enjoy the environment and the culture that we, the cast and crew, had to work in. I thought if I stay in this job, I'm going to have to blind myself to certain things that I thought were wrong." But the 46-year-old said the fact that he played the Doctor - and not that he had quit - was "the most important thing". "I really feel that because it kind of broke the mould and it helped to reinvent it. I'm very proud of it." In an initial statement announcing his exit in March 2005, the BBC said the actor was afraid of being typecast and had found the series gruelling. The corporation later accepted the statement was incorrect and that it had not spoken to Eccleston before releasing it. "They handled it very badly but they issued an apology and I dropped it," he added. [Source: BBC News website]  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 10:40 PM PDT Just thought I'd share with you this lovely David Finch cover for Action Comics #893 -  This is also the issue where we gain a regular back-up strip in the form of Jimmy Olsen by the very talented Nick Spencer and R.B. Silva. So that's Deathstroke in #892, Gorilla Grodd in #893, hmm, who'll be the guest villain in #891? We haven't told you yet. And as for #894...! There's also a new interview with me about Action up now at Digital Spy, and also one about Pulse, the number of online comments about which now boggle my mind, and make all of us at the production proud. We'll get you news on that as soon as we know. I really enjoyed alt.fiction in Derby: interesting crowd; very focussed one day event that might benefit from spreading out to two. I like their new definition of alternative fiction as encompassing all the different genres offer. And I saw a lot of old friends. There'll be a Ten Things this Sunday, and on that day I'll be soliciting for your things to feature on Twitter. I'll also be blogging midweek about my Marvel work. Until then, Cheerio!   | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 09:55 PM PDT The BBC have made available a seclection of images from the next episode of Doctor Who - the penultimate instalment, The Pandorica Opens. Starring Matt Smith and Karen Gillan as the Doctor and Amy, the episode also features Alex Kingston as River Song – not to mention a cast of monsters and Romans… We don't know much about The Pandorica Opens – only that the cracks seen throughout the series and the loss of Rory might start to make some sense. Catch the first part of the Doctor Who finale, The Pandorica Opens at 6.40-7.30pm on Saturday, 19th June on BBC One and BBC HD.  | ||
| Whoniverse Floods the Portal Awards Posted: 14 Jun 2010 08:58 PM PDT The nominees for the Portal Awards, an annual ceremony designed to recognize excellence in science fiction entertainment, have been announced, and you'll never guess Who's on it!
He's up for the Best Actor/Television prize against Torchwood's John Barrowman, and Lost's Matthew Fox, among others. It may prove to be quite the match between the the Doctor and the Captain; their performances of I-don't-want-to-go and Ianto's-dead-and-I-just-killed-my-grandson respectively each portrayed top-notch emotion and shed many a tear from their audiences. But if you think the Whoniverse attention stops there, then you must be a fairly new addition to the fanbase, in which case, welcome to a world where the talent never wavers! The accumulation of nominations between Doctor Who and Torchwood total not one, not two, but eleven chances at acquiring the honor that is a Portal Award! Karen Gillan (Amy Pond) and Eve Myles (Gwen Cooper) face off against three other actresses for the glory of Best Actress/Television, while Bernard Cribbins (Wilfred Mott) has been appointed a shot at Best Supporting Actor/Television.
But that's not all! Alex Kingston (River Song) is up against – gasp – Leonard Nimoy from an episode of Fringe in the Best Special Guest/Television category! This honor in itself is certainly well-deserved for everyone's favorite backwards time-line companion! Hold your applause; it gets better – Russell T. Davies, head writer and executive producer of Torchwood and ex-fearless-leader of Who, is in the running for the Gene Roddenberry Award against The Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson! Don't tell me Doctor Who doesn't get the world recognition it deserves. Rounding up the event will feature Doctor Who, Torchwood, Lost, Fringe, and Stargate: Universe duking it out to be named the best series on television! Being an enthusiastic follower of all of these except the last, I can personally guarantee that this one will be a close race, yet I fully expect Doctor Who to come out on top, as it should. Sadly, there's no mention of Matt Smith on this year's list; perhaps there's only room for one incarnation at a time in this part of town. No doubt we'll be seeing him on next year's ballot, however, if he continues to act as well as he has! If you're in any way surprised that these Whovian nominations made the cut, you must not have been watching either programme. iPlayer is a wonderful place to start. For a full list of the Portal Award possibilities, Airlock Alpha should prove itself enlightening.  | ||
| Eccleston “didn’t enjoy” Doctor Who environment Posted: 14 Jun 2010 08:51 PM PDT Various news outlets are today covering Christopher Eccleston’s interview in the latest issue of Radio Times, in which he comments on his decision to leave Doctor Who after just one series. As BBC News reports, the actor told the magazine that he felt uncomfortable on set. He said: “I was open-minded but I decided after my experience [...]  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 08:49 PM PDT  The new Radio Times features an interview with former Doctor Christopher Eccleston. The article focusses on his role as John Lennon in the BBC film Lennon Naked (BBC4/BBHD, 9:30pm Wed 23rd), but he also discusses his departure from Doctor Who after just the one series:I was open-minded but I decided after my experience on the first series that I didn't want to do any more. I didn't enjoy the environment and the culture that we, the cast and crew, had to work in. I wasn't comfortable. I thought "if I stay in this job, I'm going to have to blind myself to certain things that I thought were wrong." And I think it's more important to be your own man than be successful, so I left. But the most important thing is that I did it, not that I left. I really feel that, because it kind of broke the mould and it helped to reinvent it. I'm very proud of it. The Radio Times (19-25th June 2010) is out now. http://gallifreynewsbase.blogspot.com   | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 08:47 PM PDT Just a couple of weeks to go in The Big Finish Sale, so time is running out to get the first six seasons of Bernice Summerfield at a crazy discount price. Just £95 for those first six years - and they include guest appearances by Draconians, Sea Devils and Daleks too! It's the perfect way to catch up before Season 11 starts in August...  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 07:30 PM PDT The latest edition of the Radio Times heralds the beginning of the end of the current run of Doctor Who – complete with cover and interview with Amy Pond actress Karen Gillan
After the success of Billie Piper, only Catherine Tate has really succeeded on making an impact as a companion - which is why Gillan was keen to avoid any formulaic "companion code" when playing Amy Pond. In her opinion, this has worked:
Of course, there are a few Amy naysayers out there – but as Karen has already seen (and been in!) the finale, she evidently knows what she's talking about. We'll have to wait and see how things turn out – in the meantime we can just pickup the latest Radio Times, on sale today.  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 06:48 PM PDT It's taken 5 long years, but finally Christopher Eccleston has felt ready to talk about his exit from Doctor Who…
Many Doctor Who fans were particularly upset by how the striking new lead – whose involvement brought the show bang up to date in terms of respect and public attitude – seemed to have quit without reason. It seems however that Eccleston has an unusual but refreshing attitude to his career.
This seems fair enough – Eccleston has appeared in big Hollywood movies (such as GI Joe) and episodesof US series Heroes since leaving Doctor Who. However as we've seen on occasions over the years, Eccleston – whose last episode was The Parting of the Ways in which his Doctor regenerated into David Tennant's popular Tenth Doctor – is not ashamed of having played the last of the Time Lords.
It's great that Christopher Eccleston has finally spoken about his experience on Doctor Who – the big question now is what didn't he enjoy, and why…? The full interview with Eccleston can be found in this week's Radio Times, out now.  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 05:43 PM PDT
As you can see, the event has a superb poster, designed by Colin Brockhurst which features the striking image of one of TV's other great legends (click image for larger resolution). Involved this time around are: * MC John Cooper With Sophie Aldred – former 1980s companion Ace – recently added to the list (which as ever is subject to professional commitments), this time around the guests will be talking about their six favourite things about their time of Doctor Who. This might be a person, a character, a scene – whatever they fancy really. Taking place on Sunday, July 18th, tickets cost a bargainous £19.50 a head and are available ONLY from www.wegottickets.com/event/83302 . More info on us, as ever can be found at www.thelass.co.uk or in our cosy little thread on Gallifrey Base  | ||
| BBC America - Doctor Who: Cold Blood Preview (Flash video) Posted: 14 Jun 2010 08:42 AM PDT Doctor Who - Cold Blood Deep in the bowels of the Earth, the Doctor and Nasreen (guest star Meera Syal) face captivity under the Silurians.  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 08:02 AM PDT Doctor Who Fans who love blurry pictures (of nothing) and tabloid journalism were given a treat by the Daily Star who believe images of Matt Smith's 'Little Matt' were seen by millions during Saturdays episode The Lodger.
They even went so far as to quote Who fans themselves:
Earlier today Kasterborous emailed Who fan Rich Johnston, who is in fact a former Doctor Who Comic writer, and was once the recipient of Punch magazines Young Writer of the Year Award, who said:
Johnston attributes the quote used by the Daily Star to a posting he made on the message board of Popbitch.com which actually says:
You may argue that people are always complaining that they are being miss-quoted in the press and that journalists themselves often teach trainees to get ready to have complaints from sources about their quotes once they see them in the harsh backlit glare of their computers. However this was taken from a website, where the actual words were written down and not just any part of a website, the forum section . Its considered bad journalism just thinking about taking a quote from what is a free discussion page and not, a grab-a-quote stop off for lazy journalists. All this begs the question; why go to the trouble of accrediting Johnston with the quote if the Daily Star was just going to change it anyway? Before the story was circulated in the echo chamber of the internet, anyone who could a) spell Rich Johnston b) has and knows how to use Google would find the quote and see it was inaccurate. The fact that they tried to hide this by citing 'on a website' for Johnston makes it all the more clear that the next two quotes are fakes with not a syllable of either appearing on Bleeding Cool or Popbitch. Citation is made all the more difficult now because other news sites are cautiously avoiding quoting Johnston, rather, sites like Digital Spy are crediting the whole thing to the Daily Star. Who writer Gareth Roberts recently found himself defending jokes made about Lady Gaga joining the cast of Who by the Daily Star after it miss-quoted him. A BBC spokesperson responding to the Daily Mail said:
Which makes a group of Who fans posting under the title "Doc-Cock-Watchers" (no, really) sound incredibly serious. So what does this have to do with Doctor Who? Well the next time you settle down to vent some much deserved spleen about any facet of the Whoinverse, just be careful whose looking in and make sure you get in touch.  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 06:33 AM PDT It's happened to many of us. Walking down the street, minding your own business when all of a sudden-wham! You're face to face with an actor or actress that you recognise from a film or a television show and you can do nothing but stare at them silently, looking ever so lightly like a stalker, as they walk on by.
Producers of the film instructed the 90 strong crowd of kids at the school not to stare or wave at the actor as he played out the scene which involved running from a car parked outside of the school. The lure of the tenth doctor proved a bit too much for some however, as they couldn't help but sneak glances and (what they thought were) subtle waves at Tennant which lead to numerous retakes. A parent commented:
Not your fault kids, anybody who's a fan of the show would have done the same thing! The Single Father is out later this year; the full article, which includes an amusing observation from a BBC spokesperson, can be found here.  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 06:01 AM PDT Twitter's #lesserdoctorwho strand has spent the last few weeks speculating on the stories that were changed at the last minute, when the producers decided that they weren't quite exciting enough for television. But this newly-leaked episode list reveals the whole truth about Doctor Who at its most repressed. Here are the titles of all the first drafts, before the monsters, cliffhangers, and random acts of mild fantasy violence were added... "An Unearthly Chive", "The Ordinary and Nearby Things in Serbo-Croat", "The Hegde of Destruction", "Volkswagen Polo", "The Keith of Marinus", "The ASBOs", "The Censored Rites", "The Rain of Telford", "Planet of Gnats", "The Harlech Invasion of Earth", "The Cress Queue", "The Mormons", "The Pleb Planet", "The Fourth Crusade" (ooh, subtle), "The Spaced Museum" (involves Simon Pegg being stuffed and put in a cabinet), "The Kiss-Chase", "The Time Mid-Fielder", "Galaxy Cookie Crumble", "Mission to My Uncle's", "The Urban Myth Makers", "The Daleks' Mastercard", "The Mascara", "The Arse", "The Comestible Toymaker", "The Bunfighters", "The Chaffinches", "The Warm Machines", "The Snugglers", "The Clenched Planet", "Power of the Horlicks", "The High Pandas", "Underwater Tennis", "The Spoonface", "The Macrame Terror", "The Chinless Ones", "Weevil of the Daleks", "Room of the Cybermen", "The Easily-Meltable Snowmen", "The Nice Warriors", "Enema of the World", "The Web of Ears", "Curry from the Deep", "The Wheel in Spain", "The Dick-and-Dominators", "The Mind Rabbi", "The Insertion", "The Scrotums", "The Smell of Meths", "The Space Pierrots", "The Fwoar Games", "Nobhead from Space", "Doctor Who and the Silly Urinals", "The Ambassadors are Deaf", "Infirm... Oh", "Terror of Joe Orton", "The Milder Evil", "The Corrs of Axos", "Colostomy in Space", "The Lehmans", "Day of the Dahl Ex" (it's about Stan Collymore), "The Curse of Pele's Dong" (you know his personal problems), "The Sea Brevilles", "The Mucus", "The Tie Monster", "The Knee Doctors", "Bar-Nibbles and Monsters", "Jeux Sans Frontieres in Space", "Gannet of the Daleks", "The Green Douche", "The Time Woggler", "Invasion of the Dinah Shores", "Bollocks to the Daleks", "The Monstrous Pele's Dong" (after the treatment), "Planet of Spyware", "Rowboat", "The Parking Space", "The Sultana Experiment", "Genitals of the Daleks", "Revenge of the Sideburn Men", "Terrier of the Zygons", "Planet of Eejits", "Invalids of Mars", "The Adenoid Invasion", "The Brain of Mo Mowlam" (now even I've hit my good taste barrier), "The Spuds of Doom", "The False Nose of Mandragora", "The Thing That Dangles from the Back of the Cat's Throat and That the Mouse Uses as a Punchbag in 'Tom and Jerry' Cartoons of Fear", "The Shit Assassin", "The Face of Weebles", "The Roberts of Death", "The Nipples of Weng Chiang", "The Horror of Gla... Oh, Wait, Paul Magrs Has Already Done It", "The Wish-It-Had-Stayed-Invisible Enemy", "Imagining a Fondle", "The Sunbed Makers", "Underpants", "The Invasion of Rosemary and Thyme", "The Reebok Operation", "The Pyrex Planet", "The Scones of Blood", "The Handjobs of Tara", "The Power of Krill", "The Armageddon Factsheet", "Density of the Daleks", "Settee of Death", "Retcher from the Pit", "The Nightmare of Ewoks", "The Horns of Michael Nyman", "The Letcher Hive", "Dead Loss", "Full English Breakfast", "State of Decaf", "Warriors' Gateaux", "The Rob Green of Traken", "Legopolis", "Cats Revolt Her", "Four to Dounreay", "Kinda" (pronounced the other way), "The Vivisection" (my brother-in-law actually thought it was called that), "Bloke Orchid", "Earthchops", "Cancelled Due to Volcanic Ash in the Eighteenth Century", "Arc of Banality", "Cowdance", "Mawdryn Unplugged", "Dermititus", "Hen-Night in Kent", "The King's Detox", "The Three Doctors, a Dodgy Impression, and a Waxwork of Tom Baker", "Warriors on the Cheap" (trad), "The Awankening", the next one's too rude to print, "Rusty Ret-Con of the Daleks", "Planet of Ire", "Chavs of Androzani", "The Twin Dialysis", "Tacky Old Cybermen", "Vengaboys on Varos", "Skidmark of the Rani", "The Too-Little-Too-Late Doctors", "It Doesn't Actually Get Any Lesser Than This", "Revelation of the Diabetics", "Thighs of a Time Lord", "Time and Jim Varney", "Paradise Towels", "Delta and John Barrowman", "Dog on Fire", "Remembrance of the Dulux", "The Sloppy Mess Patrol", "Sylvia's Nemesis", "The Greatest Blow in the Galaxy" (wrong in at least two ways), "Cattle Field", "'Oh F***, It's Fenric'", "Goat Light", "Some Trifle". That is all.   | ||
| Vincent and the Doctor - Final ratings Posted: 14 Jun 2010 05:15 AM PDT  Final figures for Episode Ten, Vincent and the Doctor, published by BARB show the story was watched by 6.76 million viewers.On BBC One the programme got 6.29 million watching where it was the second most watched programme for the channel for the week, just being beaten by Tuesday's EastEnders. An additional 0.47 million watched on BBC HD and when added together the programme totalled 6.46 million viewers. Final figures for ITV1 HD are not available, so a full top thirty programmes of the week can't be calculated. Doctor Who stands at 18th for the week without HD figures added. If HD figures are included, it will almost certainly rise one place to be the 17th most watched programme of the week. The BBC Three Sunday repeat did not rank high enough to get into the top 30 for the week. Full ratings for the series so far can be found in Gallifrey Base. http://gallifreynewsbase.blogspot.com   | ||
| Final BARB ratings for Vincent and the Doctor Posted: 14 Jun 2010 05:13 AM PDT BARB have today revealed that the Doctor and Amy’s encounter with Vincent Van Gogh in Episode 10 was watched by an official audience of 6.76million. 6.29million tuned in for Vincent and the Doctor on BBC One, with an additional 0.47million on the HD channel, making Doctor Who the second most watched programme of the day, behind the [...]  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 04:14 AM PDT Finally, the June Podcast has arrived. Nick Briggs and David Richardson present a clip-packed podcast, covering the new Eighth Doctor season, The Companion Chronicles, The Lost Stories and so much more. Paul Spragg presents a special Highlander report, reads out your emails and introduces a brand new competition. We also reveal last podcast's competition winner. There's also a slice of sandwich talk, some plates rattling and a lot of the usual nonsense. You have been warned...  | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 02:51 AM PDT
This Malcolm Hulke created "villain" was not so much a villain at all – at least that was the point of the story. They were in 1970, and again in 2010 shown to be a proud, intelligent race won just happened to be residents of planet Earth, along with man. The drama of both these stories was based around the fact that both races felt the planet was theirs, and wasn't particularly thrilled at sharing. A big deal with the Silurians is their NOT being a random angry enemy – at least not all of them, anyway. That's what made their appearance in 1984's Warriors of the Deep not nearly as good for me, as it was mostly rampaging in that story. 2010's version is a mix as there's some rampaging (by just a few) and the regal intelligence.
I felt huge bits of this could have been cut out. This is borne out in most of the fact that Episode 1 is mostly the Doctor and UNIT standing around in offices and whatnot. It almost reminds me of Picard on Star Trek: The Next Generation being in the middle of a battle, and calling for a conference room meeting. It's not all that really, but it does start out slow, and I think the first three episodes could have been done in one. Here's an example of that from the first few episodes. Most of Episodes 2 and 3 feature more posturing between UNIT and the people at the base, with one not wanting to give way to the other more or less. There's a few trips into the caves (actually a lot over the run of all seven episodes), and down there is some bad CSO effects, although it probably was a big deal in 1970. Speaking of effects, there's some nice camera work in Episodes 2 and 3 which is meant to be the point of view of a Silurian. One rogue Silurian is going around on the surface attacking people (one of which is companion Liz Shaw in an episode cliffhanger) – some of this footage turned up in the confidential episode for the 2010 Silurian stories. By the third epiode, everyone is still running around trying to figure out what's going on. The modern series would have sorted this out 10 minutes into the first episode, yet we're still looking for the one rogue Silurian on the surface midway through the third. The two series have major differences in pacing, and this story REALLY shows it. We don't actually see a proper Silurian in full until 22:25 of Episode 3, that episode#s cliffhanger.
If you're reading this on kasterborous, it's highly likely you've seen this story before, and as such know the ending. Still, I won't blow it, as it's one of the better endings of not only a Pertwee story, but a Doctor Who story period. Most of them just end, but this one ends on an emotional kick that's exceptionally good. The only better moment in Pertwee's era for me is the last few minutes of The Green Death when the Doctor bids farewell to Jo Grant.  Future stuff: Not counting the Silurians themselves, there's a couple of actors here who appeared in other episodes.
Here's a few shots of them in their various appearances:  
The Silurians themselves have gone through an overhaul. The original 1970's version (for obvious reasons) seriously looks like a man in a rubber suit. I suspect that's partially why they're not often shown to be in bright light or fully visible. Here's a look at the three times the Silurians have appeared in the show:
Aside from the long standing joke used in show dialogue about "The Doctor? Doctor Who?", this is of of the rare times the phrase "Doctor Who" is used. This time in the title. Officially, this story is titled 'Doctor Who and the Silurians", and not just "The Silurians". The other times this is used is in the credits for many years where The Doctor was called "Doctor Who", and also in the Hartnell story "The War Machines", where the Doctor is erroneously called "Doctor Who" by name in the show. One other oddity here. The Doctor refers to his own age thusly, "You know, I'm beginning to lose confidence for the first time in my life — and that covers several thousand years." This of course contradicts several other age markers in the series. He said he was about 400-450 years in the Troughton serial, "Tomb of the Cybermen". The fourth Doctor said he was 749 years old in "Brain of Morbius". The Sixth Doctor said he was a "900 year old Time Lord", and finally in the classic series, The Seventh Doctor said on screen that his age was 953. He also said it was the same age as the Rani. Anyway, when the show returned in 2005, The ninth Doctor said he was 903 years old in "The Empty Child", and the Doctor's age has more or less kept up with real world time since then. It's one of the harder things to reconcile, as it's so contradictory. In summary, I liked the Silurians, but only half of it. I felt the slow pace early on hampered things, and might tune people out who prefer a speedier pace of story. Still, once you get past that, it's pretty good story from about Episode 4 onwards. I'll probably hear it from people who like slower pace stories, and I generally do too, but I think it's too slow early on here. Overall Story Information: Story Title: Doctor Who & The Silurians Jon Pertwee – The Doctor Specific Episode Information:
External Links of Note: Ordering this story: Doctor Who and the Silurians was released on DVD in 2008, and is available for purchase a couple of ways. You can either buy it individually, or as part of a larger set entitled Beneath the Surface, which also includes The Sea Devils and Warriors of the Deep. The individual release of The Silurians appears to only be a US release, however. Finally there is a BBC dramatization which can be purchased as an audiobook download. Here are some links for all this:
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| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 01:42 AM PDT Character, makers of the successful Doctor Who figures, are to release a new, combined set featuring all eleven Doctors, presented in a "TARDIS" box. All of the figures are newly moulded with different costumes/head sculptures to those previously released individually or in other sets. The set will also be released in the USA by Underground Toys. The Eleven Doctors set is due out in the UK in August. http://gallifreynewsbase.blogspot.com   | ||
| Posted: 14 Jun 2010 01:39 AM PDT Have the secrets contained within the Pandorica been revealed?  |
The actress, who played the played the alternate version of Amy with remarkable conviction, commented:
Skirting the issue of her hemline Gillian told the Radio Times that she believes that what Amy wears is typical of any 21-year old.
Actually, you probably will: David Tennant.
Meanwhile, as far as stories are concerned, Children of Earth is up against The End of Time, but they both face fierce competition from the similarly-titled finale of Lost, known as The End, while tales from Fringe and Smallville were also named as possibilities for the category of Best Episode/Television. Although one of them has nothing to do with Doctor Who, the first three items listed in this paragraph showcase a high enough quality to make them all very, 
Eccleston was Russell T Davies' shock choice as the Ninth Doctor when the series re-entered production in 2004, but after just 13 episodes, the actor – who appears alongside Naoko Mori in Lennon Naked later this month on BBC Four – quit.
The paper 
It seems however, that some children at a school in Glasgow have no such problem when coming face to face with well known faces as former Doctor Who star David Tennant found out whilst filming scenes for a new BBC drama, The Single Father.
When I started out doing this series of classic who reviews, the initial group of stories was going to be ones that had some connection (if loosely) to the current series of Doctor Who. Some aren't obvious to some (Edge of Destruction, Castrovalva), but the most obvious one is this one, a review of the early Pertwee story, The Silurians.
Anyway, back to 1970. This story was indicative of its era (as is its mostly bad incidental music). Stories were generally longer and more stretched out during this time. The original Silurians story ran 7 episodes (the modern equivalent of 3.5 episodes). I always felt this was too long, and my feelings on this haven't changed a whole lot watching this now 40 year old story for this review. Its not just the fact that the story is 7 episodes, because Inferno from the same season is also 7 episodes, and that is better paced. Thing is Inferno has an alternate universe to play around with for a couple of episodes; The Silurians does not, and I think suffers a lot early on because of that.
Episode 4 is when the meat of the story starts. The Doctor's immediate reaction is to offer the hand of friendship, while the humans do little but talk - pretty much this is the path for the rest of the story. It's the contrast between the Doctor wanting to explore things with a calm head and the Brigadier wanting to blunder in the military way. The Doctor eventually makes contact with the Silurians, and we discover there are the kind there that have the mindset of the Brigadier that want to attack the humans, much like the character of Restac in the 2010 Silurian stories. There is a lot of back and forth with the Silurians and UNIT and the humans in the facility about what to do. A lot of posturing and all that kind of bluster we've seen in many stories. But this diminishes the story, because while I'm not a fan of the slow paces first three episodes, episodes 4 through 7 are much better paced, a lot of the time is spent trying to diffuse a disease released into the world by the Silurians; or at least some of them. This actually was my favorite bit from the whole story. This isn't so much an issue with the revived series, but the classic series talked several times about worldwide situations, and how things can be bad around the world. But other than getting reports via phone through the Brigadier, we rarely saw things like that. This story showed some of that, and I liked it. When Masters got to London, we saw him in the ticket booth, saw people being affected, I enjoyed that scale. I felt it far more conveyed the problem than just hearing the Brig or Liz talking to someone on the phone about it. The virus/cure plotline stuck through a few episodes, and I thought it helped push the last four episodes quite well.
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