The team over at Unbound have been in touch with news of a new Kickstarter project to fund their Across Time and Space: An Unofficial Doctor Who Companion book - the ultimate journey through the Whoniverse by a life- long fan. The new beautifully designed 800-page book contains reviews of all 852 episodes of the televised Doctor Who story up to the end of the Jodie Whittaker era.

Head of Publishing for Unbound, Mathew Clayton developed the project with author Tony Cross based on his story-by-story blog The Patient Centurion which he began in 2011 and now runs to over 200,000 words. The epic undertaking includes an introduction from Doctor Who podcast host and Sunday Times bestselling author Daniel Hardcastle.

The Guinness Book of World Records cites Doctor Who as the longest-running science fiction television show in the world as well as the most successful science fiction series of all time, based on its overall broadcast ratings, DVD, and book sales.

Since the first episode was broadcast in 1963, the Doctor Who series has attracted a very large, loyal, and devoted fan base. This proudly unofficial book written by a fan for the fan community is about celebrating that fanbase in all its vibrant, vociferous, idiosyncratic, and argumentative glory. Many professional Doctor Who writers, for both the current TV series and the books began their careers writing for fanzines including Paul Cornell, Rob Shearman, Matt Jones, Marc Platt, and Stephen James Walker. Russell T Davies was himself a childhood fan of the series and wrote a Doctor Who novel before reviving the show.

Everyone that pledges for the book at the standard level will receive:

• 800-page large format book (234 x 153mm) and eBook.
• An Excel spreadsheet that lets you map your journey through the Whoniverse and keep a record of what you have watched and what you own.
• Your name printed in the book as a supporter (along with the name of the first episode you watched).
• Invitation to a series of watch parties hosted by Tony starting with the very first Dr Who episode 'An Unearthly Child' on November 23, 2021, the 60th anniversary of its first broadcast.

Mathew Clayton, who was also a former publisher of the official BBC Doctor Who books said:

“In a previous job I was lucky enough to be the commissioning editor for the official range of Doctor Who books. We published some great titles but being 'official' was also a straight- jacket - you can't offer opinions! You can't say who the best Doctor was (Tom Baker, obviously) or who the best companion (another no brainer: it has to be Rose). And it struck me that the best thing about being a fan is having opinions and sharing them (whether agreeing or disagreeing) with other fans. But in official books there is no room for a fan's point of view or expertise. This is not just a book by a fan - but there are various ways fans can become involved in the project whether attending watch parties with Tony or having their name and the first episode they watched printed in the book. The rest of the entertainment industry recognises the importance of fans - it's time that publishing caught up.”

Author Tony Cross said:

"Across Time and Space is a journey through all of televised Doctor Who. It began as a blog. I had decided to watch all of Doctor Who in order... It's not meant to be the final say on anything. They're my opinions. But I wanted something that might encourage others to take up the journey. To dip back into the William Hartnell era. Or find out why Sylvester McCoy is hard done by. It's why there's a spreadsheet with the book: you too can map your progress, if you're that way inclined. And I don't expect people to agree with my opinions. Indeed, I'd be disappointed if you did. You can use this as a guide or read the blogs once you've watched the story and curse my foolishness or praise my perspicacity. You can mock my attempts to compare stories to Shakespeare plays. You can see through my blatant nostalgic love for Tom Baker and (almost) all his works.”

+  Across Time and Space is now live on Kickstarter!
+  Follow @Unbounders (Ubound) on Twitter!
+  Follow @Mathew_Clayton (Matthew Clayton) on Twitter!
+  Follow @Lokster71 (Tony Cross) on Twitter!
+  Follow @DrWhoOnline on Twitter!

[Source: Unbound]

At DWO there's nothing we love more than wrapping our brains around a puzzle, and these Doctor Who-themed puzzles from Say What You See, really captured both of our hearts. They're taken from the Official Doctor Who Say What You See app that was released a few years back, which was one of our favourite apps at the time.

If you've not played the game before, the Say What You See app is a bit like the TV show Catchphrase, only instead of trying to solve individual puzzles, you have a giant painting with 50 of them to solve. Take a look at this Tardis-themed painting for example:

This canvas contains references to both classic and modern Who, featuring puzzles that represent companions, planets, episode titles and monsters. Check out the "Sea Devil" in the bottom right - amazing, right?

Say What You See are currently running a Kickstarter to bring the app back, complete with the three Doctor Who paintings - That's 150 Doctor Who puzzles! They also have 47 other paintings which come with the game, on similarly geek-friendly subjects like Fantasy Movies, Superheroes, Super Villains, and Sci-Fi Movies.

This is the Fantasy Movies canvas: 

The artwork is really spectacular, and the puzzles are great fun to unravel. The Kickstarter is only running for two more weeks though, so unless you have your own TARDIS, you should head over to their page before time runs out altogether...

+  Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/swys/say-what-you-see-ultimate-edition?ref=628b1j

[Source: www.swys.co.uk]

Awesome Writers, James Moran (Doctor Who, Torchwood, Cockney's Vs Zombies) & Cat Davies (Connie, KEEN-wah), have joined forces for a cool new Horror short about a man-eating shed, and they need YOUR help with their Kickstarter project!

About the project:

A dark and twisted laugh out loud comedy about a man’s love for his shed… that eats people. Brought to you by an established, award-winning team, prepare for the night of the living shed… Starring comedy icon Sally Phillips (Smack the Pony, Veep, Miranda, Green Wing, Bridget Jones) and award-winning actor Shaun Dooley (Gunpowder, Broadchurch, The Woman in Black, Misfits, The Awakening).

The project also features contributions from BAFTA-nominated Composer, Ben Foster (Doctor Who, Torchwood), and Illustrator Andy W. Clift - who worked on some of DWO's VortExtra episodes (you really should check out the AMAZING artwork he did for us for 'An Unearthly Child'!)

The project is less than £2,000 short of their £10,000 target, with just a few days to go, so please give whatever you can to help fund this AWESOME film!

Kickstarter Project Link:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jamesmoran/blood-shed-comedy-horror-short-about-a-man-eating

Project Promo Video:

[Source: Kickstarter]

Our friends over at Lasermad are known for creating some weird and wonderful nixie devices but this time they really have made time fly:

"Hovering just above the ground, the Beacon floats in defiance of gravity, suspended by unseen forces. An orange glow begins to form around delicately crafted wires, surrounded by rarefied neon, inside the giant single glass tube that forms the main part of its structure as it prepares to transmit another sequence of apparently random numbers. 

The sheer scale of the internal electrode structure implies this was intended to be seen clearly over vast distances, possibly even the other side of a large room. Again it signals to an unknown observer. 

'01:08 am'

May we present the world's first and only levitated nixie clocks. Once set up correctly it will hover above the base for as long as it is powered, displaying the time and date on digits of glowing metal and glass."

You can see it in action over on their Kickstarter for this project:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lasermad/time-flies-levitating-nixie-clock

or visit their shop https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Lasermad for more down to Earth nixie gadgets, clocks and board games.

[Source: Lasermad]

Here at DWO, we love to get behind a great Kickstarter project, and one of our old team members, George Watson (creator of our awesome Series 4 flash animations), has teamed up with Doctor Who Writer, Tom MacRae, for an awesome short film project titled 'Time Tramp'.

'Time Tramp' is the story of brothers Sammy and George who come across a tramp living in a shed claiming to be from the future.

Written by Tom MacRae ('Doctor Who', 'Threesome', 'Lewis', 'As If'), directed by George Watson ('Twelve', 'Child') and produced by Tom Webb ('Twelve', 'Child'), 'Time Tramp' is a coming-of-age story set somewhere between the real world and the imagination of the younger of the two brothers that the story follows. The pre and early teenage years are some of our most formative, children find themselves torn between wanting to be old enough to cross the road by themselves rather than hold mummy’s hand, but also young enough to still be lost in their own imaginary worlds. This story crosses those two worlds.

George (14) and his younger brother Sammy (8) live in a small council flat in London’s docklands. They are just a stone’s throw from the vast financial citadel that is the Canary Wharf district, but they might as well be in another world. And Sammy often is. He spends his time dreaming of ‘Space City’, the world that he imagines and the gods and monsters that occupy that world. Back in reality the two brothers spend their time trawling the Thamesmead post-industrial wasteland, George always looking after his dreamer younger brother. One day they come across the TRAMP after he saves young Sammy’s life when he slips off a roof. The tramp claims to be from the future and to have important information that will change both their lives for the better. Sammy, of course, is quick to believe him, whilst George remains cautiously cynical. The information that he wishes to impart is that Sammy has something special to offer the world, but it is up to George to make the right decisions to ensure he gets there.

'Time Tramp' is a short film with a heart warming story aimed at the whole family. It is the third collaboration between up-and-coming director George Watson, and producer Tom Webb, and the first time the pair will have worked with the incredibly talented writer Tom MacRae, who as George's mentor, came to write the script due to his passion for the story.

The reason the team are utilising crowd funding is because of the ambition of the project. The last short they worked on was the intense relationship drama 'Twelve' (recently shown at the London Short Film Festival) which stared BAFTA winner Monica Dolan, and Joseph Mawle, but this is a much bigger adventure! The shoot will be predominantly outside - using London's ever changing docklands landscape as a fourth character - there is a stunt, many visual effects that capture the imaginations of the young boys, and none of that comes cheap! The other reason is so that the audience for the film - you! - can stay in constant contact with the filmmakers, and let them know your thoughts and have your input, in what will be a two-way process. 

This film is for its audience, the team want you to be involved at all stages, and that is why many of the rewards include visits to the set and even the opportunity to star as an extra! So, please pledge generously...!

Watch the promotional trailer, below:

+ Support the 'Time Tramp' Kickstarter Project!

[Sources: Ben Stoddart, George Watson]

Here at DWO were always keen to help out our friends from other sites and companies, and Martin Johnson (of Big Finish acclaim) is no exception. His brand new Science Fiction audio drama series, Osiris, is entering the last few days of its Kickstarter project.

Osiris Synopsis:

A spaceship buried beneath Sherwood Forest for thousands of years brings epic unexpected space adventure to Jason Fox.

Check out the video promo for Osiris, below:

[youtube:CsH7z2VaC6Y]

The kickstarter project ends on 31st December 2013!

+  Preorder Osiris via Everybodyelse now!

[Source: Martin Johnson] 

Our friends over at PixelWho have been in touch with details of their exciting new Kickstarter project for a new visual catalogue of Doctor Who characters.

The PixelWho project came about through a desire of the graphic designer and artist, Nathan Skreslet, to combine his passion for the British science fiction program Doctor Who with the 8-bit artistic style of 80’s video games, which also carries a great deal of nostalgia for him. It is an attempt to be the most complete visual catalogue of Doctor Who characters in order to celebrate the creativity and dedication of all the artists who have worked on the program over the last 50 years.

The overall goal is to document every character, both significant and insignificant, from every Doctor's respective movie/series runs. Nathan freeze frames DVDs and scours episode screen captures in order to recreate each character accurately and roughly to scale. Every pixel is individually laid by hand; no computer conversion program is used. His art is a true labor of love which requires dedication and time. For example the 10th Doctor poster took 4 months of work to create. The lost episodes of William Hartnell’s (the 1st Doctor’s) era were recreated by referencing production photos, telesnaps, and promotional materials. The smaller PixelWho items and posters are printed locally in Virginia. The large Doctor posters (1st and 10th) are printed in Florida by a specialized eco-friendly printer. 

The Doctor Who art prints are high-quality limited edition lithograph prints. They are individually numbered; only 500 of each Doctor's poster have and ever will be made. Nathan has now completed the art for the 4th Doctor, Tom Baker's, epic 7 seasons run. All the main and incidental characters are represented over two posters, over 700 in all. 

To help fund the printing of these new posters, PixelWho has started a Kickstarter campaign and the project has been noticed by some distinguished people. They've been honored with being selected as a Kickstarter Staff Pick. They''ve also been featured on the news site Kasterborous.com. And they did a very fun interview for the podcast over at Mind of the Geek. Interest in the project is really heating up.

PixelWho is run by a husband and wife team. While Nathan is the artist, Ly is the business brain. Both Nathan and Ly have enjoyed finding their niche in the world of science fiction conventions where they have been met with great enthusiasm for the artwork and had many interesting conversations with other Whovians. Ly currently manages PixelWho's web presence while Nathan busily creates new artwork for PixelWho and a variety of other design projects. Nathan is thrilled that his beloved cult science fiction show is now once again a worldwide sensation that it deserves to be, and he has more people to have Whovian discussions with. 

+  Support PixelWho's Kickstarter campaign by clicking on the following Link.

[Source: PixelWho]

Doctor Who celebrates its 50th anniversary with plans of some specially commissioned dramas, one off episodes and a few other treats along the way, but what about the fans?

Doctor Who’s older enthusiasts that have risen through the ranks of the BBC have been bringing the show to life on television. Other fans have been looking after the production of Doctor Who Magazine, the Big Finish Productions and all sorts of other Doctor Who related things! Then there’s you – the fans who have been keeping the passion of the show alive by watching it, buying it and talking about it until your face literally turns a TARDIS shade of blue!

Independent production company FTS Media are getting involved in the celebrations, with their film ‘Doctor Who: Celebrating 50 Years Of Fandom’. They say on their website:

‘Doctor Who fans are like no other, devoted to the Time Lord and his companions, but vilified for their passion. We want to know why. Why so much enthusiasm, and why do people think it’s so different to any other hobby? Where other documentaries have lingered on the negative side of fandom, we want to celebrate the passion that lies within fans of Doctor Who, and how their passion managed to keep the’ show alive. We’ll explore how Doctor Who fans have incorporated their devotion into everyday life, from writing blogs and books, to those who make it their mission to collect every TARDIS Teapot, Dalek Duvet and Cyberman Clock!’

FTS Media will be speaking to Who fans from all over the world as well as well-known Doctor Who faces, such as Robert Shearman, and the most recently announced Louise Jameson who played Leela, companion to Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor. They’re also planning on speaking to Adventures with the Wife in Space creator Neil Perryman and also ‘The Wife’ herself! 

They launched a funding campaign on Kickstarter, which has been a great success – but they are still looking for a little bit more! With just 4 days left at the time of writing this, they still have some fantastic rewards available in return for your support, ranging from key chains and pin badges to signed books and beautifully hand crafted items! They also have a range of specially commissioned art prints titled the ‘Doctor in the Dark’ series, and these are definitely worth getting your hands on!

If you want to find out more about the contributors, or to pledge your support to this fantastic project, just visit http://bit.ly/FTS-DW50.

+  Follow FTS Media on Twitter.
+  Like FTS Media on Facebook. 

[Source: FTS Media]