The first official Postage Stamps in history to feature Doctor Who are now available in North America!

Our friends at the British Stamp Service in North America have limited supplies of all the official Doctor Who Postage Stamps issued in 2013 by Britain's Royal Mail! Celebrating the big 50th Anniversary, these limited edition stamps commemorate the entire history of Doctor Who.

A special set of 11 stamps features every doctor from William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton to David Tennant and Matt Smith. Each one of the Doctor's 11 incarnations gets his own stamp.

A Souvenir Sheet of five additional stamps features some of the Doctor's most famous adversaries: the Cybermen, the Ood, the Weeping Angels and, of course, the Daleks. A special stamp floating in the middle depicts the Tardis.

There are also exclusive collector Presentation Packs and Prestige Booklets featuring lots of full-color artwork as well as detailed narratives on each of the 11 Doctors by Doctor Who expert Gary Russell.

There's even a stamp sheet chronicling the evolution of some of the Doctor's legendary foes, including the Daleks, the Cybermen, the Silurians, and the Master - from Roger Delgado and Anthony Ainley to John Simm.

These are already among the bestselling stamps in British history---and very hard to find in North America at any reasonable price---so we were thrilled when we found out about this opportunity to get them in the U.S. and Canada.

+  Order the stamps now at: www.unicover.com/doctor.htm

[Source: Unicover]

The title of the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special has now been confirmed by the BBC as 'The Day Of The Doctor'.

We also have confirmation of the running time which will be 75 minutes approximately, as well as some of the other planned programming to surround the anniversary. 

Professor Brian Cox will be presenting a lecture on BBC Two on the science behind the hit show. This will be in addition to the drama 'An Adventure In Space and Time', written by Mark Gatiss. The one-off programme stars David Bradley, of the Harry Potter films, as William Hartnell.

BBC Four will introduce new audiences to Hartnell, with a re-run of the first ever story. The four episodes are being shown in a restored format, not previously broadcast in the UK.

BBC Two's flagship arts programme The Culture Show is to present Me, You and Doctor Who, with lifelong fan Matthew Sweet exploring the cultural significance of the BBC's longest running TV drama.

A 90-minute documentary on BBC Radio 2 will ask "Who Is The Doctor?" - using newly-recorded interviews and exclusive archive material to find an answer - while BBC Three will be home to several commissions.

Danny Cohen, Director BBC Television said:

"It's an astonishing achievement for a drama to reach its 50th anniversary. I'd like to thank every person - on both sides of the camera - who has been involved with its creative journey over so many years."

Smith has already started filming his final scenes as the Doctor, which are due to air in this year's Christmas episode. His replacement, Scottish actor Peter Capaldi, was announced in August.

Steven Moffat, lead writer and executive producer on Doctor Who said:

"50 years has turned Doctor Who from a television show into a cultural landmark. Personally I can't wait to see what it becomes after a hundred."

[Sources: BBC News]

a

It’s been almost three weeks since we launched our 50th Anniversary Poll, giving you the chance to rate the Doctor’s televised adventures, in an attempt to find fan’s number one story. 

In 2009, Doctor Who Magazine’s ‘Mighty 200’ poll rated The Caves of Androzani to be the number one story of all time, with the following story - The Twin Dilemma - consigned to last place. It’s been great to watch entries coming in over the last few weeks, and we’re somewhat pleased to say that neither of those stories occupy the position they did in the last poll, so there’s still everything to play for! 

Don’t forget that it’s not too late to get your votes in - you’ll find a link to download the survey form at the bottom of this post. All you need to do is rank the stories that you’ve seen between ‘1’ (terrible!) and ’10’ (the best of the best!) and email them to us at 50yearpoll@drwho-online.co.uk .

To give you something of a hint as to where things currently stand, here’s a story from each Doctor, along with it’s current placement in the chart (there’s a total of 239 positions), and it’s current average score. The scores alter slightly every time a new entry arrives in our inbox, so these tales could well end up in different places by the time the final votes are in! 

The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve 153    (63.58%)

The Space Pirates         236    (41.95%)

The Time Warrior         50    (77.45%) 

The Armageddon Factor         200    (57.36%) 

Earthshock                 23    (82.50%)

Vengeance on Varos         125    (67.67)

Ghost Light                  81    (71.96)

The TV Movie                  142   (65.22%)

Father’s Day                  68      (73.67%)

Smith and Jones          117   (68.35%)

The Name of the Doctor          12   (84.19%) 

The survey is available in several different formats, which you can get hold of at the bottom of this post. There’s an interactive PDF, which you can fill in using Adobe Acrobat, or if you’re a Mac user, you can fill it in using Preview. 

You can also print out the survey form, write on manually, and then scan or photograph to send us your scores. Don’t worry - it doesn’t have to be printed in colour if you want to save your printer inks! 

Finally, both pages are available as JPGs, so you can open them up in Photoshop, Microsoft Paint, or any other image editor, and add your scores that way. 

As long as we can clearly read the scores you’re giving to each story, and they’re on the survey form, that’s absolutely fine. Please don’t just list them in the body of your email, though!

Once you’ve filled in your form, you’ll need to email it to us at 50yearpoll@drwho-online.co.uk before 31st July 2013. We’ll be analysing the results throughout August, and we’ll announce them in early September. 

Will there be a new favourite Doctor Who story in time for the programme’s 50th Anniversary? There’s only one way to find out - get voting!

DOWNLOAD THE PDF VOTING FORM

(Link opens up a dropbox window, please select the 'download' button in the

top right-hand corner)

DOWNLOAD THE JPG VOTING FORM - PAGE ONE and PAGE TWO

[Source: Doctor Who Online]

Doctor Who Online needs you! 

In 2009, to celebrate the 200th Doctor Who story (Planet of the Dead), Doctor Who Magazine ran ‘The Mighty 200!’, a survey to find out just where those 200 televised stories sat within fan estimations. That poll led to the Fifth Doctor’s 1984 swan song, The Caves of Androzani being crowned the greatest Doctor Who story ever, with the following story, The Twin Dilemma consigned to the opposite end of the list, coming in as number 200.

Since that poll was conducted, however, there’s been almost 40 new adventures for the Time Lord, which has taken us into his Eleventh Incarnation, introduced us to the Ponds, revealed the secrets of River Song, and brought us a whole new universe of terror. Just where do these stories sit within the history of the programme? Are any of them able to displace The Caves of Androzani?

What we want you to do is mark each of the Doctor’s televised adventures out of 10, using the form below. A perfect score of ’10’ should really be reserved for the very best of stories - those which you feel are practically perfect. Similarly, a score of ‘1’ should only be given out to those stories which have no redeeming features at all. There’s no limit on how many 10s or 1s you can give, or any of the numbers in between, this is about how much you enjoy these stories. 

It doesn’t matter if you’ve not seen all of the Doctor’s televised adventures - just leave blank any that you don’t feel you can rate. The results will be displayed as an average of the scores given, so some of the older stories (which may draw less response than the more recent ones) won’t be losing out unfairly.

You’ll notice that we’ve split The Trial of a Time Lord into five separate options, just as the Doctor Who Magazine poll did in 2009. The story was originally broadcast in 1986 as a 14-part epic, and this is how we’d like you to rate it. However, it’s often thought of these days as being a collection of four separate stories with a linking theme, so you’re also welcome to give an individual score for those parts, too. While it will be the main story we use in the final ratings, we'll add in a sidebar with the individual scores for each segment, so you can see how popular (or otherwise!) they are.

In a strange twist of events, the 'Mighty 200' poll was conducted when the Tenth Doctor had only two more stories to come at the end of the year, and we'll be conducting our poll under similar conditions - with the final two Eleventh Doctor stories on the horizon! 
 

The survey is available in several different formats, which you can get hold of at the bottom of this post. There’s an interactive PDF, which you can fill in using Adobe Acrobat, or if you’re a Mac user, you can fill it in using Preview. 

You can also print out the survey form, write on manually, and then scan or photograph to send us your scores. Don’t worry - it doesn’t have to be printed in colour if you want to save your printer inks! 

Finally, both pages are available as JPGs, so you can open them up in Photoshop, Microsoft Paint, or any other image editor, and add your scores that way. 

As long as we can clearly read the scores you’re giving to each story, and they’re on the survey form, that’s absolutely fine. Please don’t just list them in the body of your email, though!

Once you’ve filled in your form, you’ll need to email it to us at 50yearpoll@drwho-online.co.uk before 31st July 2013. We’ll be analysing the results throughout August, and we’ll announce them in early September. 

Will there be a new favourite Doctor Who story in time for the programme’s 50th Anniversary? There’s only one way to find out - get voting!

DOWNLOAD THE PDF VOTING FORM

(Link opens up a dropbox window, please select the 'download' button in the

top right-hand corner)

DOWNLOAD THE JPG VOTING FORM - PAGE ONE and PAGE TWO

[Source: Doctor Who Online]

Will there be a new favourite Doctor Who story in time for the programme’s 50th Anniversary? There’s only one way to find out - get voting! 

The BBC have released a behind-the-scenes interview with Matt Smith and David Tennant.

The video, which teases some of the fantastic chemistry we can expect between the two of them, can be viewed below:

[youtube:2Em8lmmTNkA]

+  The 50th Anniversary Special airs on Saturday 23rd November on BBC One.

[Source: BBC]

Speaking to RedCarpetNewsTV at this year's BAFTA awards event, Steven Moffat talked about the tribute and refused to be drawn on specifics about the 50th Anniversary Doctor Who special.

Moffat, who can be seen in the interview view below, also added:

"Oh, I love you all, Doctor Who fans, but honestly, now and then, don't believe everything you hear or don't hear." 

[youtube:20pd6JqdyVI]

[Source: RedCarpetNewsTV]

The BBC have put together an official location report video from the recent filming in London for the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special.

Watch the Doctor Who location report video with Jenna-Louise Coleman, Jemma Redgrave and Ingrid Oliver, below:

[youtube:6IbgOJd-VGw]

The video confirms the as-yet unannounced casting of Ingrid Oliver.

UPDATE - Tuesday 9th April @ 1:00PM

Londoners were treated to the sight of a flying TARDIS swooping over Trafalgar Square this morning as Matt Smith and the team were in town shooting more scenes for the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special.

It was an early start for Matt Smith (The Doctor), Jenna-Louise Coleman (Clara), director Nick Hurran and the rest of the cast and crew but judging by the smiles it was worth it. At one point the famous blue box was suspended over Trafalgar Square with Jenna-Louise Coleman inside, peering out across the capital whilst the next moment saw another figure – looking like The Doctor – dangling from the TARDIS as it was suspended way above ground level!

The BBC have included a promotional image from today's shoot (pictured-right), and a promotional video below:

[youtube:Za6A6vh1nEk]

+  The 50th Anniversary Special is due to air on 23rd November 2013.

[Source: BBC Doctor Who website]

The read through for the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special took place earlier this evening, (Monday 1st April), the BBC Doctor Who site confirmed.

Current Doctor Matt Smith was joined by David Tennant (pictured-right) and many more familiar faces including Jenna-Louise Coleman (Clara) and Doctor Who’s head writer and executive producer, Steven Moffat.

Over the weekend it was confirmed that David Tennant and Billie Piper would both be returning to the show for the eagerly anticipated 50th Anniversary Special. It was also revealed that screen legend John Hurt would also feature in the adventure.

The episode’s production continues all this week and the special is expected to air on the show's anniversary on 23rd November 2013.

UPDATE - Tuesday 2nd April @ 00:01am
A second image (also pictured-right) taken at the read through has now been released, simultaneously confirming the casting of Joanna Page (The Syndicate, Gavin And Stacey, Love Actually), for the 50th Anniversary Special. 

[Source: BBC]

Silva Screen Records have sent DWO the cover and details for the forthcoming Doctor Who Original Soundtrack CD release of The Krotons.

Product Synopsis: 

Originally transmitted in 4 episodes on BBC1 between 28th December 1968 and 18th January 1969, The Krotons starred PATRICK TROUGHTON as the second Doctor. The soundtrack (or “special sounds”) were created by Brian Hodgson and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop: 

“For this story I mainly used the “Crystal Palace”, so called because its case was made of clear Perspex which exposed its workings. This machine, created by our engineer Dave Young, could mechanically sample 16 inputs and combine them into a single output in 4 prearranged patterns. The progression of the patterns was deliberately slow to create textures of sound. I was very much interested in exploring changing aural textures in tracks such as “The Learning Hall” and “Kroton Theme”.” Brian Hodgson, 2012. 

This soundtrack will be released on CD and Digital Download on the 13th of May. A Limited Run of 10″ Vinyl will also be made available, to be released at the end of May.

+  The Krotons Original Television Soundtrack is released on 13th May 2013, priced £10.75 (CD).

+  Preorder this product on Amazon.co.uk for £8.51.

[Source: Silva Screen Records]

BBC Cymru Wales confirms that Caroline Skinner has decided to step down as Executive Producer of Doctor Who. Caroline joined the show in 2011 as the Executive Producer alongside Steven Moffat and is now set to join BBC Drama Production in London.

Caroline Skinner says:

"It has been an honour to have been a part of Doctor Who, and a privilege to have worked with Steven Moffat and Matt Smith on this extraordinary show. I have hugely enjoyed my time in BBC Wales and would like to thank Faith Penhale, and our wonderful production team for their unending commitment and brilliance. I will miss them all enormously, but I'm leaving Doctor Who in fine form, with the new series starting at Easter and the fantastic plans for the 50th Anniversary already underway. I am delighted to be now returning to BBC Drama Production in London as an executive producer, and the new opportunities and projects that will bring."

Faith Penhale, Head of Drama BBC Wales adds:

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank Caroline for her contribution to Doctor Who since taking on the role in 2011, on behalf of both the BBC and the show. She leaves the show in good shape - there's a brilliant new series starting on Easter Saturday that will see the official arrival of the Doctor's new companion! And the 50th Anniversary plans are on track to deliver audiences an unmissable event! I wish her all the very best for the future."

Faith Penhale will take over as the executive producer on the 50th Anniversary with immediate effect.

Caroline will continue working on BBC Two's one-off drama An Adventure In Space and Time which forms part of the BBC's celebrations to mark the 50th Anniversary.

The recruitment process for a new executive producer for the next series will start shortly.

[Source: BBC Press Office]

BBC Worldwide announces The Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Celebration at London's ExCel in November.

The corporation’s commercial arm will bring thousands of the Time Lord’s fans together from across the universe for a very special 3-day indoor event on his birthday weekend 

BBC Worldwide is delighted to announce that it will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who – one of popular culture’s most iconic fictional heroes – with a spectacular three day event at ExCeL London, bringing together over 15,000 fans for the ultimate Doctor Who anniversary celebration beginning on Friday 22nd November.

Amanda Hill, Chief Brands Officer at BBC Worldwide said:

“We cannot wait to welcome Doctor Who fans from around the world to London in November. It’s going to be a spectacular weekend! Generations of fans young and old have been captivated by The Doctor and we’ve seen the show go from strength to strength, enjoying something of a global march over the past few years attracting new followers from Turkey to Brazil to South Korea.

2013 is an opportunity for fans around the world to come together and celebrate the glorious past, present and future of Doctor Who.”  

More details about the Doctor Who 50th Celebration Weekend at ExCeL London, including guests, intinerary, ticket prices and booking information will be revealed soon, alongside a host of other surprises.

[Source: BBC Worldwide]

Doctor Who DVD Producer, Ed Stradling recently conducted a video interview with Steven Moffat for last weekend's Gallifrey One convention in Los Angeles.

The 13-minute interview offers a few insights into the new series, and the 50th Anniversary special, with Steven stating at one point:

"Doctor Who, the 50th is approaching - various different things - a lot of different things. Don't believe the nonsense about one 60-minute film, that is complete nonsense."

You can watch the full interview with Steven Moffat below:

[youtube:h7VQrnMzjrU]

+  Follow @EdStradling on Twitter.

+  Follow @DrWhoOnline on Twitter.

[Source: Gallifrey One]

Steven Moffat has (quite possibly deliberately) added fuel to the rumours that past Doctors might return for the 50th Anniversary Doctor Who Special.

Speaking at the recent BBC Drama Commissions event, and subsequently quoted by The Mirror newspaper, Moffat had the following to say regarding plans for the special:

“Getting the other Doctors involved would be very fitting for the anniversary episode, wouldn’t it?”

Initially The Mirror newspaper failed to state the source of the quote, but DWO today got confirmation that it was indeed at the BBC Drama Commissions event.

Matt Smith has also added fuel to the rumours, having been quoted saying:

“How amazing would it be to see Tom Baker? Can you imagine seeing him back in the scarf? That would be so cool! Paul McGann is a great Doctor – I say bring back Chris and Dave too.”

+ Woud you like to see past Doctors return for the 50th Anniversary Special? Vote Now in the DWO Forums!

[Sources: The Mirror; DWO]

Silva Screen Records have released the tracklising for the upcoming Doctor Who Soundtrack release of 'The Caves Of Androzani'.

Product Synopsis:

First time release for the music from this seminal 1984 Doctor Who adventure in which Peter Davison regenerated into the sixth doctor played by Colin Baker.  

The Caves of Androzani was Roger Limb’s seventh of eight contributions to the series, and the first of his two very successful collaborations with director Graeme Harper.

This is the first release in a series of archive recordings from Silva Screen to celebrate the 50th anniversary of this most British of television series.

Tracklisting:

1. Doctor Who (Opening Theme) (00'39") 
2. Androzani Minor (01'46") 
3. Gun-Runners (00'59") 
4. Morgus and Chellak (01'06") 
5. Death Sentence (01'36") 
6. Sharaz Jek (01'49") 
7. Death Under the Red Cloth (02'10") 
8. Androids (00'50") 
9. Next Time It'll Be for Real (01'07") 
10. Nobody Lives for Ever (02'16") 
11. Spectrox (01'11") 
12. Salateen (00'32") 
13. Exile (01'06") 
14. Clever Little Android (00'44") 
15. Two Kilos, What a Deal (00'50") 
16. The Magma Beast (02'14") 
17. Blind Fools (00'34") 
18. Tear His Arms Out (02'37") 
19. Stage Three (01'54") 
20. Geostationary Orbit (01'43") 
21. The Girl Will Be Alone (01'00") 
22. Peri Abducted (01'28") 
23. Vertical Descent Pattern (00'32") 
24. It Could Have Been Worse (02'08")
25. Do You Think I'm Mad? (02'56") 
26. The Doctor Pursued (03'13") 
27. Mud Burst (01'58") 
28. Morgus and Stotz (01'03") 
29. Face Off (01'11") 
30. Morgus Kaput (00'37") 
31. Not Beaten Yet (01'21") 
32. Milk of the Queen Bat (07'04") 
33. Return to the TARDIS (00'50") 
34. Is This Death? (02'18") 
35. Doctor Who (Closing Theme) (01'20")  

Further titles are yet to be confirmed, but Silva Screen have informed DWO that there will be 7, possibly 8 Doctor Who titles this year.

+  The Caves Of Androzani Soundtrack will be released on 25th March 2013, priced £10.75.

+  Preorder this product from Amazon.co.uk for £10.75.

[Source: Silva Screen Records]

Hot on the heels of the launch of their Doctor Who Statuaries, Harlequin Goldsmiths have now launched their Doctor Who Ladies Jewellery Collection.

The current Harlequin Goldsmiths Doctor Who Jewellery product catalogue includes:

-  Silver Charm Bracelet - from £24.99
-  Silver TARDIS Charm - from £29.99
-  Silver Dalek Charm - from £29.99
-  Silver Doctor Who Charm - from £29.99
-  Silver TARDIS Key Charm - from £29.99
-  Silver Sonic Screwdriver Charm - from £29.99
-  Silver TARDIS Drop Earrings - from £39.99
-  Silver TARDIS Stud Earrings - from £39.99
-  Silver Dalek Drop Earrings - from £39.99
-  Silver Dalek Stud Earrings - from £39.99
-  Silver Sonic Screwdriver Drop Earrings - from £39.99
-  Gold-Plated Charm Bracelet - from £39.99
-  Gold-Plated TARDIS Charm - from £44.99
-  Gold-Plated Dalek Charm - from £44.99
-  Gold-Plated Doctor Who Charm - from £44.99
-  Gold-Plated TARDIS Key Charm - from £44.99
-  Gold-Plated Sonic Screwdriver Charm - from £44.99 
-  Gold-Plated TARDIS Drop Earrings - from £54.99
-  Gold-Plated TARDIS Stud Earrings - from £54.99
-  Gold-Plated Dalek Drop Earrings - from £54.99
-  Gold-Plated Dalek Stud Earrings - from £54.99
-  Gold Plated Sonic Screwdriver Drop Earrings - from £54.99
-  Silver TARDIS Pendant Necklace - from £64.99
-  Silver Dalek Pendant Necklace - from £64.99
-  Silver Sonic Screwdriver Pendant Necklace - from £64.99
-  Gold-Plated TARDIS Pendant Necklace - from £89.99
-  Gold-Plated Dalek Pendant Necklace - from £89.99
-  Gold-Plated Sonic Screwdriver Pendant Necklace - from £89.99

The Gentlemen’s Doctor Who Jewellery Collection will be available to pre-order from May.  

+  Check Out the Harlequin Goldsmiths Doctor Who website.

+  Follow Harlequin Goldsmiths on Twitter: @HarlequinGifts.

[Source: Harlequin Gifts]

Radio Times starts its celebrations of 50 Years of Doctor Who with four free postcards of classic Doctor Who Radio Times covers with each issue – there are two sets of postcards to collect.

Also in this week’s Radio Times - What’s coming up to celebrate Doctor Who's 50th birthday:

November 2013 marks 50 years of Doctor Who on TV, and RT will bring you all the news as it unfolds – starting with some of the treats coming up. The most hugely anticipated event is surely the Anniversary special on BBC1.

All details are firmly under wraps – and it doesn’t even start filming until spring, but fans worldwide are praying for a multi-Doctor escapade, perhaps with a few former best friends and best enemies thrown in. Could it actually happen? And would all the surviving actors be available – and willing – to appear in such a celebration?

Tom Baker famously declined to participate in The Five Doctors in 1983, and the first three actors to play The Doctor are now long dead. But if William Hartnell can be recast (in The Five Doctors and now in An Adventure in Space and Time) is it conceivable that other actors might convince in Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee’s shadows? This might all be pure fantasy, but what is known is that showrunner Steven Moffat has been toiling with the script.

He tells Radio Times:

“I’m mostly excited, a little bit nervous, and aware of trying not to let people down.”

An Adventure In Space And Time:

Radio Times is chuffed that Mark Gatiss is calling his drama about Doctor Who’s birth An Adventure in Space And Time. This was the tagline RT printed on the billing for episode one in 1963 (below) and indeed on all 253 editions in the 60s. For Gatiss, the 90-minute special (filming now and due to air in November on BBC2) is “quite simply a dream come true”. He describes it as “the story of how an unlikely set of brilliant people created a true television original”.

David Bradley (Argus Filch in the Harry Potter films) is playing William Hartnell, the actor who was initially reluctant to take on the role of the mysterious time traveller. He soon fell in love with the character and was sad to leave in 1966. He died in 1975. Bradley says when Gatiss offered him the part, “I almost bit his hand off.” Our first picture of Bradley in character shows him on the second day of shooting last week, with Lesley Manville as Hartnell’s devoted wife, Heather.

Call the Midwife star Jessica Raine has been cast as producer Verity Lambert (then just 27), while Brian Cox (the international film star, not the prof) is playing the “father” of Doctor Who, Sydney Newman, a flamboyant Canadian who was BBC head of drama.

The only surviving member of the quartet who created the series is Indian-born director Waris Hussein. He’s helped Gatiss with his “meticulous research” and is delighted to be a key character in the drama. “I am to be portrayed by my doppelganger, Sacha Dhawan, a handsome actor. Vanity prevails!” he jokes. Recently seen in Last Tango in Halifax, Dhawan was one of the original History Boys (in the play and movie).

Filming began on 3rd February at BBC Television Centre, on what is likely to be the last drama made on the site before it’s redeveloped.

Executive producer Caroline Skinner tells Radio Times:

“As the BBC moves out of TV Centre, we are moving the cast and crew for An Adventure in Space and Time in! It’s a fantastic opportunity to film this momentous story in the actual location – a little bit of television history .”

Plus an exclusive shot of David Bradley as William Hartnell on his second day of shooting, we also look ahead to plans for the 50th anniversary and to the new series at Easter.

+  Radio Times is released Today, priced £1.60.

+  Order both issues with all 8 x Postcards from just £5.99 from CompareTheDalek.com.

[Source: Radio Times]

The BBC Press Office has confirmed that the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special will be shown in 3D.

Below is the release that BBC Controller, Ben Stephenson issued today:

“As part of the BBC's blockbuster celebrations to mark the Doctor turning 50, fans will be able to see the Time Lord and his adventures like never before - in 3D!  To be broadcast using some of the BBC’s HD capacity.

It's a nationwide celebration of both Doctor Who and the BBC because I think they are so synonymous. We will be doing a big Doctor Who special in 3D which is very exciting and feels very innovative.

We will be doing it on cinema screens as well. We are working out the logistics of that at the moment because we need to make sure the main BBC1 experience remains absolute value for money for the audience.

There will be lots of aliens and daleks and things like that – or maybe there won't. There are many different things to take into account and we will also have a Christmas special after that and it all connects. Or maybe it doesn't. There's lots to work out."

Steven Moffat, lead writer and executive producer, said:

“It's about time. Technology has finally caught up with Doctor Who and your television is now bigger on the inside. A whole new dimension of adventure for the Doctor to explore."

Steven Moffat is still working on the script for the show which will be filmed, like most of the series, in south Wales, and will follow an eight-part run of Doctor Who.

The BBC have also uploaded a showreel for their upcoming drama, which features a couple of new clips from Doctor Who:

+  Are you looking forward to seeing Doctor Who in 3D? Vote Now in the DWO Forums!

[Sources: BBC Press Office; The Guardian]

 Day Thirty-Nine: A Change of Identity (The Reign of Terror, Episode Three)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-Nine: A Change of Identity (The Reign of Terror, Episode Three)

Dear diary,

There's something of a conception of the First Doctor as being a bit of a fuddy-duddy. He's often thought of as a bit of a bumbling, kindly grandfather figure, who's not quite the Doctor, but fills the same role. It's not helped by the regular occurrence of 'Billy Fluffs', either.

Here, though, the First Doctor is absolutely fantastic. The way he handles himself in the clothes shop, and the way he them presents himself to the jailer, it's an image of a man who's in full control. It's easy enough, when looking at these scenes, to imagine the 'old man' stuff is little more than an act - a way to disguise a devilishly intelligent man, who knows how to manipulate the situation to get what he wants.

Of course, it all seems to have backfired come the final scene, in which the ring that the Doctor has bartered away comes back to haunt him.

It's also nice to see the series starting to make use of its new ability to shoot in TV Centre itself. Though a few episodes I've already been through were made there, this is the first time, really, that the full implications of this can be seen on the screen. An early scene of a busy French street, into which the Doctor enters is fantastic - it's grander than I'm used to seeing on the show, and really does help to make this story feel bigger than usual.

The shots of William Russell's scenes, still shot on film (he was, presumably, still in Spain!) continue to look like something from a production other than Doctor Who. In this episode, he makes an escape from his prison cell, and the more I watch it, the more I lament that fact that more of the show doesn't look like this. The film really does give these scenes a rich texture that's sadly lacking in other places. Mind you, they still remind me of early Eastern European cinema!

I'd not considered it when writing yesterday's entry, but a lot of that feel may come from the director himself. I'd forgotten that Henric Hirsch had directed the story, and was from Hungary. There could well be intention behind the style, rather than it simply being a side-effect of shooting these scenes early on. It's almost a shame that we'll be loosing this style.

Oh, and all right. I didn't want to mention it too much yesterday, but let's be honest; Susan is rubbish in this story, isn't she? I'm wondering, now, if this may be where my entire dislike for Susan had come from. All the way through this marathon, I've been pleasantly surprised by how much I've taken to her - but here…!

All she's done so far is whine and moan… here, she nearly ruins their only chance of escape by complaining instead about her headache and her bad back and how tired she is… I'm hoping this is all leading somewhere, or there's no reason to be kicking up such a fuss! If she'd not been on holiday back during The Aztecs, I'd think they were getting ready to pack her off on one now!

Tomorrow is going to be interesting; I'll finally reach one of the new animated episodes! I've been excited to see them for quite some time, so I'm sure it's going to be a sleepless night, tonight. It's like Christmas Eve - I'm waiting for Santa to come!

Next Episode: The Tyrant of France

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-Eight: Guests of Madame Guillotine (The Reign of Terror, Episode Two)

Dear diary,

All the regulars have managed a bit of a break for a trip to Spain, now, then! I'm surprised that I've never noticed it before, but the last four stories have each seen time taken off by one of our regulars. I think watching in order like this makes things more apparent, as does the shift between videotape and film. There was a time that I'd never really noticed the shift, but now I spend more time watching archive telly than modern stuff (I don't even own a television!), I've become more accustomed to it.

The absence of William Russell from the story is done in a slightly odd way; it's a mixture of the 'cutting right out of the story' that we had in The Keys of Marinus and The Sensorites with a bit of the 'only there for pre-filmed inserts' seen in The Aztecs. I say this because Ian still appears in his cell, and during a brief shot early on, but there's some bizarre attempts to hide him in other scenes.

One particularly noticeable one starts with Ian having just been chucked in the cell, and not responding to Susan's calls. I'm a bit surprised they didn't at least play in a recording of William Russell reassuring her or something!

I think it's also quite noticeable simply because of how different the Ian bits of the story look. The fact that they're shot on film, combined with what seems to be an unusually high exposure rate make them look like Russian cinema of the 1920s (my specialist subject at degree level. That came in useful…). It's never more noticeable than when we cut to a reaction of Ian while they're trying to appeal - you almost expect it to cut away to a caption!

All of this sounds like I'm complaining, which I'm not, really. This has been another episode I've enjoyed, although I'm not overly sure that a lot has happened. In many ways, this feels like the second half of an Episode One - everyone is being moved into the right position, and the strands of the story are being introduced. On the one hand, we have Ian being given a mission to seek out James Stirling. Susan and Barbara are being carted off to meet the Guillotine (setting up, I'm sure, a daring escape for tomorrow's episode!), and the Doctor is making his way to Paris.

With the Doctor's part in the story, we're given the series' very first location footage - and it's really quite good! The shots linger on a bit, perhaps; there's one show of the Doctor crossing a cornfield that seems to hold on just to say 'look! It's not a painted backdrop! He can keep walking!', but they're all really effective. The locations chosen are great, and it's pretty easy to picture them as being in France. It helps that the weather seems to have stayed nice for the day!

A lot gets made of the scene in An Unearthly Child, where the Doctor considers using a rock to smash a caveman's skull. It's often cited as an example of the Doctor's callousness at the very start of the series. I even talked about it for this very blog about a month ago (and concluded that, actually, it's not as bad as people make it out to be).

Why, then, does no one mention this episode? The Doctor - in an attempt to escape from a captor and get back on with his mission - tricks him into bending down… then whacks him with a shovel! You could argue that he just knocks him flat on the back, but that doesn't seem to be the implication from the way its been directed. Crikey! This is by far the most violent we've seen the Doctor so far. I'm baffled that it doesn't get brought up more often!

Oh, and I don't want to dwell on it, but blimey, Susan must be driving Barbara mental.

Next Episode: A Change of Identity

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-Seven: A Land of Fear (The Reign of Terror, Episode One)

Dear diary,

I love it when this marathon throws up odd little coincidences. The first recon I watched - for Marco Polo - came on the same day that I saw The Hobbit in its 48fps version. Coming home from that to a tele snap recon that was less than 48 frames per minute? Bit of a culture shock.

Today, I've embarked on The Reign of Terror having spent my afternoon in a cinema watching Les Miserables . It's a full on French Revolution Day for me! Thankfully, having spent two-and-a-half hours trying to stay awake in the cinema (the misses loved it, though, so that's something…), I've really rather enjoyed this.

I should say, before I discuss the episode itself, that I've been purposely avoiding the Reign of Terror DVD for quite some time, now. I started thinking about this marathon several months ago, before we had any preview clips, and so I've avoided them ever since. It's been a tricky ten days or so since the DVD turned up, because I can hear the newly animated episodes calling to me… Still, it's only another few days, and I'm sure I'll appreciate them more by watching them in context like this.

I didn't mention it yesterday, but the cliffhanger comes rather out of nowhere, doesn't it? I've just spent a while praising how far the Doctor has come as a character over the course of this first series, and how much he's bonded with Ian and Barbara, and then one slightly mis-stepped sentence, and the Doctor's throwing them off the ship!

It still feels a bit odd here, when he sets them down and tells them to be off. I'm not sure if it's all going to come round by the end of the story, with him announcing that he doesn't really want them to go (Ian muses early on that he's not really that disappointed that they're off on another adventure together), but for now it feels more than a little jarring. It seems like the Doctor has gone right back to his old self again. Still, i I like the idea that the faults we've witnessed with the TARDIS are quite recent, as is the Police Box look, and that the Doctor isn't used to not having control over his ship yet.

And then we're off! The first time I saw Reign of Terror (many years ago, on a poor quality VHS) I knew that it was the first time the series had done any location work - and I thought it was these opening scenes in the woodland! Looking at it now, on a freshly spruced-up DVD, and having spent just over a month looking at the show's sets, it's quite clear that this bit is only a studio, but it's still looking pretty good.

I was also a bit surprised to work out that this is the first child we've seen in the series since the kids at Coal Hill right back in the first episode. Coming at it from the Matt Smith era, where lots of stories revolve around children, it seems quite bizarre! I'm guessing from his panicked look towards the end of the episode that he'll be back to help the Doctor out during Episode Two.

The cliffhanger here is pretty good, and certainly better than the last episode's. Ian, Barbara, and Susan getting carted off to Paris while the Doctor remains stuck in a burning farmhouse is very typical of Season One - splitting the team up ready to get the adventure going - but it works well enough. I'm also quite keen on the model of the burning farmhouse; The effect of the roof caving in is particularly well done.

All in all, it's a good start to the story, as I've come to expect from historical stories. I'm looking forward to following it on…

Next Episode: Guests of Madame Guillotine

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-Six: A Desperate Venture (The Sensorites, Episode Six)

Dear diary;

It's nice to have Barbara back, but this is the first time that one of the regular cast's absences hasn't really worked. In The Keys of Marinus, it didn't feel strange that the Doctor was missing, because the rest of the characters were busy moving from place-to-place anyway. In The Aztecs, Susan gets a few brief scenes in every episode anyway, even if she is separated from the rest of the group.

Here, we see Babs returned as a part of the plot - she's reading the letter Carol was forced to write - and it just feels wrong. The rest of the cast have been down on the Sense Sphere for two-and-a-half episodes, so Barbara feels out of place here. It's even more jarring to have her taking part in the story, which has shifted considerably since we last saw her.

As for the rest of the story; it's been rather good. The story changes route again, as much of the action is set down in the aqueduct, moving us away from the Sensorite city, where things have started getting desperate. When the (former) City Administrator starts making people write letters to explain their absences, it all starts to get a bit too much.

It's a shame, having seen him plotting and scheming for so long, that the entire subplot about his character is swatted away so simply at the end with a very basic 'The map proves his treachery. We'll sort him out'. I was hoping for a grander denouement.

It's something which has become something of a theme with these longer stories - both The Daleks and Marco Polo stretched on for a long time, but the final episode had me wanting more. It always feels as though five episodes are sent setting things up, and then 25 minutes at the end isn't enough to pay it all off. A shame.

Meanwhile, with the Doctor and Ian, I really enjoyed the stuff about the survivors of the previous visit to the Sphere. I'd (sort of) pieced together what was happening in the Aqueduct, so it's nice to see that coming to fruition. What did surprise me, considering my complaints earlier in the story about how obvious the script was (the whole water instance, for example…) is how well it all ties together.

We're told early on that the previous spaceship had blown up when it tried to take off and that they suspected the other humans had stowed away on board. Here, we find that they'd been hiding down in the Aqueduct, and the destruction of the ship was their doing.

The warfare angle is an interesting one, and again, it all ties in to the way we've seen the Sensorite's mind-reading powers affecting John early on in the story. The captain of the little group is particularly fun, and it's a bit of a shame that we only get him for the one episode.

On the whole… The Sensorites is nowhere near as bad as people make it out to be.

There are times - Episode Four, to be precise! - where I thought the reputation this story has gathered over the years was going to turn out to be entirely accurate, but then it manages to swing itself round quite well during the second half.

There's enough variation in the story to keep things interesting. The first two episodes are heavily focussed on the spaceship, before shifting to the city for episodes three, four, and five, and then to the Aqueduct for the final part. The dialogue is possibly the story's biggest failing, but even that improves as time goes on.

One thing, though… What was the 'monster'? Was it just the rebel group of humans trying to keep the Sensorites out of the Aqueduct? Why did they batter up the Doctor's coat if they'd been waiting for a 'human' as a sign that the war was over? That was a bit of a letdown…

Next Episode: A Land of Fear

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-Five: Kidnap (The Sensorites, Episode Five)

Dear diary,

It's strange, really. We're back to a situation where not much happens in this episode, and yet it's held my attention throughout. It looks like the third episode really was just a blip - The Sensorites isn't half bad.

There's quite a lot to love in this episode, too. I enjoyed the continuing schemes of the City Administrator, and the way he turns the death of the Second Elder to his advantage, trying to frame the Doctor was rather good work. As soon as the jacket defence came up, I thought it would be a case of drawing it out a bit to fill some time, so I was glad to see it dealt with immediately.

The whole situation with the jacket is something to praise, actually. In so many episodes (and this isn't something that Doctor Who is uniquely guilty of), our heroes go through all manner of things, and then return to the TARDIS looking as pristine as the moment they stepped out of it. It's quite odd to see the Doctor's jacket torn to shreds, but it's effective.

The only other story to use this to such a good effect is right back in An Unearthly Child - the regulars are all much worse for wear by the end.

It's nice, too, to see them making plans for the return of Jackie Hill in the next episode - I'd worried that she'd either just appear from nowhere, or that she wouldn't turn up until somewhere near the end, when the rest of the cast make it back up to the space ship. I wonder what she's been doing up there all this time?

Something I've been meaning to talk about for a few days (but keep forgetting!) is the TARDIS' role in the stories to this point. In every story (with the obvious exemption of The Edge of Destruction), the Doctor, Ian, Barbara, and Susan all have to be forcefully separated from the ship in some way - the story is usually about them trying to get back to the TARDIS.

In An Unearthly Child, they're banged up in the Cave of Skulls. In The Daleks, they can't leave until they get the fluid link back from the Dalek City. Marco Polo has the TARDIS physically taken away from them, and the same is true of The Keys of Marinus, when Arbitan puts it inside a force field until they do his bidding. The Aztecs sees the ship shut away inside the locked tomb, and here the Sensorites steal the lock.

I've mentioned (lots!) how the Doctor has changed over the last month or so, but it's interesting to note how the others have, too. Ian and Barbara are a part of the adventure, now, not just looking to get home (though they do still have that ambition). Susan gives the impression that she's always quite enjoyed the adventures.

The point is; following the Doctor's announcement yesterday that he wasn't content just curing a problem if he could stop it at the source, the idea of having to take the TARDIS away from him is growing less important. We're at a stage, now, where the crew will get involved in the adventures because they want to, not because they're forced to. That's going to be interesting to keep an eye on as we move forward…

Next Episode: A Desperate Venture

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-Four: Race Against Death (The Sensorites, Episode Four)

Dear diary,

It's not something you often see said, but actually, I quite like the design of the Sensorites. No, genuinely! I've been meaning to mention it for a few days now. There's one or two obvious flaws (those feet are very impractical. You'd better hope they never have to run anywhere…), but on the whole it's a good design.

It's quite well realised, too. There's one or two instances where the joins are perfectly visible, but as I've said before, I'm watching a VidFIREd version of this story on a 21.5" iMac screen. This isn't the natural format for this show. On the whole, I really like them.

Shortly before watching this story, I stumbled across a redesign of the creatures on the blog 'Mels Art Stuff'. I really liked it, and I've had it in mind while watching… but it's not a million miles away from what we've got here! It's this exact design with a bit more freedom of budget.

Now then, if that opening has sounded pretty positive, it's because I've enjoyed today's episode! I know! I resolved to go into it with a positive outlook, as assuming it would be like yesterday's installment was going to get me nowhere. It's a good thing, though, because this one's been rather good.

The Doctor very quickly deduces that it's the water infecting the planet, which is good. I'd worried that even after it was so spelt out in the last episode, they'd leave it running as a mystery for a while. The main complaint that I hear about The Sensorites is that it's dull, and I feared that would be because the solution was clear to us long before the characters arrived at it.

And once that deduction is out of the way, the story rattles on at quite a pace! There's even chance for a montage, with the Doctor working on an antidote, Susan caring for Ian, and the Sensorites testing water for the poisons. Part of the fun of watching the montage is seeing everyone get into position ready for the shot to return to them, as cutting was out of the question due to time and budget. Plus, Hartnell pulls some wonderful faces while trying to look as though he's concentrating.

Alongside this, we've got the thoroughly evil City Administrator trying to get rid of 'The Humans' as best he can. There's some interesting parallels to The Aztecs, here, but with the morality angle almost completely removed. There, Tlotoxl was desperate to show up the TARDIS crew as false (when they actually were being), while here, the City Administrator is trying to prove that Ian's 'illness' is false (though it's not).

And then there's the Doctor. His transformation into the character we know and love is pretty much complete, now. He's found the solution for curing Ian, and it can be scaled and applied to the rest of the planet, but that's not enough for him. To quote the Doctor himself; 'Why cure something when we can stamp it out?'. It's great to see him at this stage, finally.

Oh, and then there's even room for a cliffhanger involving a monster! Brilliant!

Next Episode: Kidnap

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-Three: Hidden Danger (The Sensorites, Episode Three)

Dear diary,

Oh, all right, then. This one was a bit of a slog. I'm starting to worry that my desperate attempt to find good in a story usually considered to be terribly dull may be a tougher task than I'd anticipated.

I'm not even completely sure what the problem is. Plenty happens in the episode; they have another encounter with the Sensorites, they leave Barbara on the ship so that Jackie Hill can take a couple of weeks in Spain, we meet another group of Sensorites, and Ian falls victim to the disease that's been wiping them out, as we discover by the filling on of a lot of back story.

Actually, that's it. That's the problem. The 'filling in'. It's not the greatest writing of all, is it? There's a very real attempt to make the Sensorites seem like a three-dimensional race, but it's not done very subtly. Perhaps the worst offender is the scene where two of them set up a disintegrator machine to use against our heroes.

The dialogue between the two is along the lines of 'Is their hurt on the left, or the right? Or is it in the centre, like ours [because we're aliens! See? Aliens! Our hearts are in a strange position! Because we're aliens!]'. As if that wasn't clunky enough, they then decide to set it to the centre anyway. If they have no reason to assume that their hearts wouldn't be in the centre, then why bring it up? Poorly done.

And the disease is none-too-subtle, either. It's actually quite a nice set up, and a good way of shifting the focus of the story slightly for the remaining episodes; the first two were about encountering the Seonsorites, the other four are about curing their ills. Except…

When the Doctor, Ian and Susan are given glasses of water, a big point is made that they've been served the 'basic' water, which is filtered down through an aqueduct from the hills. The Elders don't drink this water, but Ian takes a sip. A few minutes later, a point is made that the disease affects all of the Sensorites. Except the Elders. Who don't drink that water. And then Ian suddenly starts to show symptoms of the illness. Shortly after drinking the water.

I know that Doctor Who is aimed at a family audience with a large number of children watching, but after we've sat through four episodes of The Aztecs, which is rich in history and very deep, this just feels… well. patronising.

The dialogue, aside from being so clunky, continues to be functional as in the last episode. There's even one exchange which goes along the lines of 'But how?' / 'I will explain…'. I think this is the main thing making The Sensorites a bit of a chore now.

Still, we're at the half-way point. Maybe things get better from here as Peter R Newman gets used to writing for the series? Once the world of the Sensorites is set up, he may be able to tell a decent story to keep me hooked…

Next Episode: A Race Against Death

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-Two: The Unwilling Warriors (The Sensorites, Episode Two)

Dear diary,

It's January 2008. I've recently moved out of home for the first time, and I'm living with a fellow Doctor Who fan called Alex. I don't know if Alex reads the 50 Year Diary, but I hope he does. Hi Alex.

Anyway, around the same time, I'd gained a new girlfriend, who when she was back from university on one occasion told me she wanted to watch Doctor Who. Hooray! Good times! What was even better is that she wanted to watch it from the start. Apparently, I was raving about the classic stuff so much, she wanted to see what all the fuss was about.

So the deal was made, we'd watch one story a week, during her couple of days back from uni. We started, of course, with An Unearthly Child, followed by The Daleks (Though I seem to recall skipping most of this one because it was boring!) and then The Edge of Destruction. We skipped Marco Polo, as a description of a recon had met with a stoney stare. For some reason, we ended up skipping The Keys of Marinus and The Aztecs, too. If I had to guess, I'd say that by this stage, she'd given up on wanting to watch them all, and decided to just go for ones she liked the sound of, instead.

So, The Sensorites was the next on the list. I was excited, I'd never seen it before! What's more, living with Alex meant that I suddenly had access to all the Doctor Who stories that I'd never owned on VHS or DVD. The whole library! In the same house as me! I remember setting up The Sensorites in the VHS player (having to take the plastic wrapper off first. Evidently, Alex hadn't ever watched it, either…), watching Episode One, thinking it was quite good, starting Episode Two…

And the tape cut out. The tracking went all weird, then the screen went to static. Fast forwarding back and forth brought some brief images of men in a sewer (I'm guessing that's still to come) and not a whole lot else. We more-or-less gave up on trying to watch the classic ones after that.

The one thing I did get to think at the time, thanks to seeing the first few minutes of this second episode before the tape cut out, has still held true today, though. Basically; 'How does the cliffhanger look so good at the end of Episode One and so stupid at the start of Episode Two?!'. The cliffhanger works so well because of the eerie way that the Sensorite is pawing at the window. Here, he just stands there like an over-familiar neighbour watching you eat dinner through the window.

Thankfully, standing around staring is still very effective when used in the right way - and John is pretty unnerving while he's in contact with the Sensorites. There's something about the way he stares right down the camera lens at us that really jars with what we're used to in the series, so it leaves you feeling a bit on edge. It's one of the things that's saving the story for me.

I can't say I've yet seen why it's got such a reputation among fandom. Sure, it's not the most action-packed of stories, but it's not bad (at least so far). If anything, I found that this episode held my attention even more than the last had. There's some unusual things in here, such as a full two minutes in which only two lines of dialogue are shared, while Ian and Barbara explore the ship looking for the Sensorites.

What does strike me as odd, though, it the way Ian reacts to them. He finds something to use as a weapon, and scares them with it if they try to move. Doesn't he even think to try talking to them? It seems a bit strange, especially given that they're perfectly willing to have a chat just a few minutes later…

So far: not as bad as reputation suggests. It's just bog-standard Doctor Who …

Next Episode: Hidden Danger

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty-One: Strangers in Space (The Sensorites, Episode One)

Dear diary,

The Sensorites has a bit of a reputation, doesn't it? It's the 'boring' story of Season One, and one of the most boring ever, supposedly. I've seen it said that many people give up trying to do a Doctor Who marathon while trying to get past these six episodes. A shame, really, because this first episode offers up a lot of promise.

Oh, now, don't get me wrong. Even in this first episode there were a couple of minutes when I noticed my attention wandering (Still, nowhere near as badly as during The Screaming Jungle*…). It's very much a *talking episode, isn't it? But although we've got all these characters talking to each other, none of them are actually saying anything. Whereas The Aztecs was full of lovely dialogue between the cast, this feels much more functional. It's all very much descriptive dialogue.

It's a good thing, then, that this episode sports some of the best direction that we've had in the series to date. Over Christmas recently, BBC Wales was singing praises to the heavens for the shot of Clara entering the TARDIS for the first time, in a camera move that takes us from outside the small box to the inside in one sweeping motion.

Here, though, we've got the opposite - a shot that follows the TARDIS crew from a discussion inside the ship, out through the doors and directly onto the spaceship. As if that wasn't a grand enough moment, Susan then turns back around… to face the police box exterior. It's very well done, so much so that I actively had to skip back on the DVD to watch it again and make sure that my mind hadn't just filled in some gaps itself.

The direction continues to be great throughout, as we see closeups of hands, with the Sensorite removing the TARDIS lock, and then John cutting out the door opening system so that he can stalk Susan and Babs around the corridors. It has to be said, John is one of the most disturbing things we've had in the series. Forget the Daleks, here we've a man staring solely down the camera lens in silence before clutching his head and breaking down. It's genuinely un-nerving, and the direction only serves to help.

And then we've that stunning cliffhanger, as a creepy figure paws at the window of the ship. I've seen that cliffhanger before, and it's still a bit off-putting now. The sheer weirdness of the creature helps to make it one of the best we've had…

…Which is certainly more than can be said for the cliffhanger to the last episode. The whole thing hinges on the fact that the TARDIS says that it has stopped, but is also still moving. The Doctor is stumped. Susan hasn't ever seen anything like it. It's Barbara who hypothesises that they've landed inside something, and then they're all surprised to find that it's a spaceship.

Coming at the same time as a scene in which our regulars reminisce over recent events, and the Doctor even talks of adventures he's had 'quite some time' before Ian and Barbara joined them, are we really supposed to believe that this is the first time the TARDIS has ever landed on a moving spaceship? Really? The Doctor even helps to fly it later on in the episode!

Still, it's a strong start to the story. Now fingers crossed that this is one which might surprise me. You see, I've seen this first episode before, but I've never made it to the end. But not because I was bored! That's a story for tomorrow… (how's that for a cliffhanger!)

Next Episode: The Unwilling Warriors

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Thirty: The Day Of Darkness (The Aztecs, Episode Four)

Dear diary,

The Aztecs is something of an odd one, morally. There's a moment in this episode where Autloc - the time traveller's only supporter among the Aztecs for some time now - declares that Ian and Susan 'serve a false goddess', and out heart really sinks. Their final friend has turned against them, and joined sides with the evil Tlotoxl.

Except… well… he's only stating the truth! Barbara is a false God! She is deceiving Autloc, and trying to deceive the rest of the Aztecs for her own reasons, however 'right' she may believe her reasons to be. It's an interesting stance for a Doctor Who story, when villains are often painted as far more black and white.

During Marco Polo, I commented on how Tegana was almost a pantomime villain. He was evil for his own reasons, planning to steal the TARDIS and use it to help wage war. The only reason that he was a part of Polo's caravan was so that he could assassinate Kublai Kahn. He was just pure evil, in the same way that the Daleks, or the Voord have been in this season, too.

Tlotoxl, on the other hand, while still being prone to a few pantomime outbursts, is only trying to seek the truth. He knows that Barbara is lying to them (even more so after yesterday's episode, where she specifically tells him she's fake!), and seeks only to prove this to the others. Oh, sure, he goes about it in something of a devious way (trying to get them all killed on more than one occasion is one way to deal with your problems!), but it's hard to dislike him entirely.

What's interesting is that the character's painted throughout as truly believing in sacrifice. After an attempt to halt one earlier in the story sees the intended victim throw himself from the temple, Tlotoxl claims that his death is still the cause of godly intervention. During this episode, though, it's made much more clear that he knows it's all a farce, commenting that 'the darkness will come and go! A sacrifice must be made!'.

While on the subject of Tlotoxl, I've been waiting until now to praise John Ringham's performance. He's simply fantastic throughout this story. He's genuinely chilling when he wants to be - never more so than during his stare to camera during the story's first cliffhanger - and great fun throughout. I'm going to miss him as we move on to a new time and place.

It's nice, too, to see the Doctor gently supporting Barbara, as he tells Cameca that the gods really do want sacrifice to stop. He knows it's all fruitless, but it's nice to see him siding with his companion when he knows how strongly she feels about it.

As the story's rating will attest, I've really rather enjoyed The Aztecs. I've always known that it's quite a good one, somewhere in the back of my mind, since the first time I saw it, but it's nice to have that confirmed here.

I won't go into much detail about the story as a whole, as I've done that through the various entries on the four episodes. It's lovely to see Barbara given a story that is so totally 'hers'; the series at this stage is still very much an ensemble piece, and it works so well as a result of it.

Next Episode: Strangers in Space

Doctor Who executive producer Steven Moffat has been talking about what viewers can expect from the new series, which is set to resume on Saturday 30th March on BBC One. 

Speaking at the Radio Times covers’ party, Moffat teased:

“We’ll be up in the air, we’re under the water, we’re on a fantastic alien planet, we’re back in time, we’re forward in time, and the Doctor’s greatest secret is in jeopardy.” 

The upcoming eight episodes - which see Matt Smith teaming up with new companion Jenna-Louise Coleman - will include instalments written by Moffat, as well as Luther creator Neil Cross, Neil Gaiman and Mark Gatiss. 

In November, Doctor Who will, of course, celebrate its 50th anniversary and Moffat was also asked about whether he was apprehensive as regards the forthcoming anniversary: 

“You can’t do this job if you’re nervous all the time. So, seriously, I’m mostly excited, a little bit nervous and aware of trying not to let people down.” 

When probed about how big the event would end up being, the writer replied:

"Pretty big. But, you know, I don’t want people to get bored just yet. So let’s just wait and get our next eight episodes out of the way before we start talking about it.”

+  Series 7: Part 2 begins on Saturday 30th March 2013 on BBC One.

[Source: Radio Times]

 Day Twenty-Nine: The Bride of Sacrifice (The Aztecs, Episode Three)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Twenty-Nine: The Bride of Sacrifice (The Aztecs, Episode Three)

Dear diary,

There's some fabulously elaborate hats in this story, aren't there? Barbara's, Tlotoxl's, even Autloc's. If you're something of a hat fan, this really is the story for you.

But actually, the design of this story on the whole is really rather good. I spent a lot of time during the last story praising the design and the thought that had gone into the world, especially during the later episodes. A similar praise can be given to this story, as well. The temple, in particular, is a wonderful design, and there's a lot of great detail involved - occasionally, the camera follows characters as they roam from the inside to the out, and you can see the 3D effect on the patterns carved into the surface - it's all really effective.

Less attractive is the school they've got Susan shut away in. During the last episode I wondered why they'd shot Carole Ann Ford's scenes on film, when there were no fights or stunts involved. It was only today that I realised she must be on a holiday (and a quick check confirms that, yes, she was away for these two weeks, her scenes in the school being filmed alongside Episode Five of The Keys of Marinus), and so only just involved in the plot.

It's to the story's credit that I've never noticed this before. Just as the Doctor's absence was successfully explained away in the last story, they've managed to keep disruption to a minimum here. This feels much more like the 'Doctor-lite' episodes of the 21st century incarnation of the show - I'm thinking in particular of Midnight, in which Donna appears for a couple of minutes at the top and tail of the story, but you never realise she's not there.

What surprised me, when we cut to a pre-filmed insert of Susan during this episode was that I actually smiled to myself. I was pleased to see her! I stated a few weeks ago that I wasn't the biggest fan of Susan, and that I'd likely spend a lot of time complaining about her, but actually, she's nowhere near as bad as I recall. Oh, sure, there's a few moments of over-reaction and one or two instances where I'm less-than-keen, but I've warmed to her more than I'd expected. I like that.

The downside to all this, though, is that while I was glad to see her, I hadn't actively missed her from the plot. If you'd asked me before her scene what was missing from the story, 'Susan' wouldn't have been my first thought. I sung praises yesterday for Ian and Barbara as characters, and the pair of them with the Doctor is more than enough to keep me satisfied.

Speaking of which, we've another one of those moments where I praise how far the character of the Doctor has come! Oh, I know, I do it every few days, it seems, but we keep on getting these moments! I'll stop doing it at some point. Promise. Here, as he tells Ian of the secret tunnel into the tomb;

IAN

Where did you get hold of this?

THE DOCTOR

My fiancée.

IAN

I see. (beat. He realises.) Your What!?!

It's a great little moment, and it's beautifully played by both men. I couldn't let it pass without a mention…

Next Episode: The Day of Darkness

DWO attended the 2013 Toy Fair at London Olympia, and got the chance to sample some of the exciting Doctor Who products due out this year.

This year's range of Doctor Who products from Character Options were a joy to behold, with a real focus on the 50th Anniversary.

Past Doctors, Daleks and other monsters all feature in the 2013 product line-up, with a special Union Jack covered Anniversary Dalek (pictured-right). We're gonna dub this the 'Marmite' Dalek, as it will no doubt divide some sections of fandom with a more purist nature.

DWO grabbed 5 Questions with Mark Hunt (Character Options' Brand Manager) regarding the range:

1) 2012 was a fantastic year for the Doctor Who Character Options range, especially with the further development of the Character Building products. What does 2013 hold for the range and do you have any teasers we can look forward to?

After huge popular demand from fans, 2013 will see the launch of a range of new series 3¾ inch figures and playsets. The new collection will succeed the incredibly successful 5 inch figures portraying both characters and storylines from the new series including The Eleventh Doctor, his new companion Clara as well as many of the foes he has met over the past 50 years.

To travel from one adventure to another, no new series would be complete without a TARDIS. The new 3¾” scaled Spin and Fly TARDIS has motion-activated interactive sound effects to bring the action to life. We also have some very special 50th Anniversary product for later in the year…but that is top secret!

2) What was the catalyst behind the decision to reduce the size of the figures from 5" to 3¾?

This is the 50th anniversary year of Doctor Who and we wanted to create something that was new for the brand and refresh our product offering, and create some demand amongst both avid collectors, fans and children. 

Our market research showed that many children today are collecting smaller figures and boys action figures across the market are moving to this size.

The new size also allows us to bring a more affordable price point that we would not be able to at this time with a 5-inch figure. This again is reacting to the market conditions and makes the figures more accessible to more fans. Again in such a special year it was important that we cater for as many as possible. 

3) Do you have a particular favourite Doctor Who product since you joined the company?

I’m a massive Tenant Fan! 10th Doctor all the way!

4) Will Character Options continue to produce Exclusives through Forbidden Planet and Toys R Us, and if so can we continue to expect a mix of classic and new series exclusives?

We have some very exciting 50th Anniversary product that should please all fans as they will be available across all retailers. Overall our product range will have a good mix between classic (5-inch) and Series 7 Part 2 (3 3/4-inch).

5) Finally, if you could have one round trip in the TARDIS, anywhere in time and space, where would you go and why?

After our trips to Hong Kong and London Toy Fair...my bed!

* * *

With so many great products coming out, DWO have compiled a list of upcoming products for 2013 from Character Options, below:

Character Options 3¾" Action Figure Range

- Series 7 Action Figure Assortment, new action figure size (3¾").
6 to collect, including; Weeping Angel, Dalek, Clara Oswin, The Doctor & Cyberman.

- Series 7 Action Figure Playsets, each comes with an exclusive accessory and can be interconnected.

- Doctor Who 'Spin & Fly TARDIS', in-line with new 3¾" range.

Character Options - Other Doctor Who Products

- Sound FX Daleks (Wave 2), (5").
Supreme Dalek (The Dalek Invasion of Earth) (1964), Guard Dalek (The Chase) (1965), Supreme Dalek (Planet of the Daleks) (1973), Supreme Dalek (Resurrection of the Daleks) (1984), Supreme Dalek (Remembrance of the Daleks) (1988) & Ironside Dalek (Victory of the Daleks) (2010).

- 50th Anniversary 'Iconic Scenes Collector's Sets'. Includes; The Invasion (2nd Doctor), The Invasion Of Time (4th Doctor) & Asylum Of The Daleks (11th Doctor) sets. (5").

- 11 Doctor's figure pack re-issue. (5").

- Sonic Screwdriver re-issues; 3rd, 4th, 10th & River Song sonics.

- Limited Edition 50th Anniversary Collector's Dalek. Features Lights, Speech and Sound FX.

- Doctor Who Mashems. Launchable, twistable, squishable character heads, foil packaged in a blind bag. 4 to collect; Weeping Angel, Silurian, Dalek & 1 other Monster TBC.

- Doctor Who Q.L.A Device, Cleric Wars Gun & App.

Character Building Doctor Who range

- Character Building 50th Anniversary, 11 Doctors blind packs.

- Character Building 11 Doctor's figure pack re-issue (variation).

- Character Building 'Monsters' Micro-Figure Multi Pack.

- Character Building 'The Ponds In New York' Micro-Figure Multi Pack.

- Character Building 'Cyberman Speeder' Mini Set.

- Character Building 'Dalek Skimmer' Mini Set.

Before Character Options came out with their Character Building range, DWO contacted Lego on numerous occasions to recommend Doctor Who Lego sets, owing to the demand we get from our visitors - in fact, it's one of the most popular merchandise requests we get on the site.

We paid Lego a visit at this year's Toy Fair and spoke to Emma Owen (Lego PR & Promotions Manager) and asked her about Lego's position on Doctor Who product:

"Obviously we realise the popularity is massive in the UK for Doctor Who and as I've heard as well it's popular overseas but it doesn't have that complete global appeal, which obviously we have to have when developing a product. We don't develop products that are just one country specific. It has to have mass appeal because obviously the investment that goes behind a product business-wise, we're operating on a complete business sense"

You can also listen to our brief Lego interview with Emma Owen below:

Look out for some other great products this year too. Paul Lamond Games will be releasing the first Doctor Who DVD game, which promises to challenge even the most dedicated fan! Star Cutouts will be releasing some fantastic new cutouts and masks, featuring characters from both the New Series and the Classic Series. Zeon have a rather extensive range of products coming out this year, including, USB devices, Mugs, Teapots, Cookie Jars, Money Boxes, Watches, Alarm Clocks, Keychains, Mint tins, Keychains and Pens (to name just a few).

More on all of these products as and when we receive more details. 

[Source: DWO]