Rememberance of the Daleks was indeed the best McCoy, a period the least to my Who fan liking. This was at least a production that showed maximum effort. And infinitely better than nuWho's 'Victory' of the Daleks. But then Series 5 was the first time any episode of nuWho dropped to or even below the quality of the McCoys for me. The others were Beast Below and the 'Silurian' two parter.
Someone’s clearly put a Perception Filter around the current Doctor Who production!
Earlier in the week, new companion Samuel Anderson took to the Twittersphere to give a rather important casting update - and it went virtually unnoticed.
We already know that George is guest-starring in the Lanzarote episode, (thanks to an earlier press release), but until now her role in the show has been unspecified. Some rumours suggest that she is a pupil from the Coal Hill School, and that showrunner Steven Moffat is attempting to recreate the original TARDIS lineup, (incorporating the Doctor, two teachers and a student.)
It seems as though we have been waiting since the dawn of time, but at last the word is out – Doctor Who returns in August!
While full details of the scheduling are yet to be announced, we reckon that Series 8 will commence on the August Bank Holiday weekend, on Saturday 30th.
When do you know the time is right to change something? Steven Moffat, mindful perhaps of some of Doctor Who’s recent shortcomings, has spoken at the Hay Festival last week about how he decided to revise the format, the results of which we’ll see in Series 8.
Said Moffat:
It needed to change. One of the hardest things ever to do, is to notice when your clever new idea is now your very old idea. We haven’t made much of a change to Doctor Who since it came back in 2005. It’s been the same show. It has maybe amped some things up and lowered some things, but it is basically the same.
This much is true. Even though the Eleventh Doctor’s introduction was seen as a brand new show, looking back you can see strong similarities between the 2010 show and the one that launched in 2005: the ability to fly the TARDIS, the Doctor’s knowledge about so much of space and time.
Moffat continues:
I just feel it needs to be a bit more different now, it just needs to be surprising again. We’ve got the hang of this, we need to change it. The rhythm has to alter, which it has.
Doctor Who is making the history books again – FOX Germany has announced that it will as-good-as simulcast Series 8 of the show this Summer…
The channel is claiming this is a world first and I’m inclined to believe them. Following the Guinness Book of Records success with the world’s biggest TV drama simulcast, this will apparently be the first time that a TV series has been broadcast overseas at (or very near) the same time as the world premier.
FOX Germany, linked to the National Geographic Channel, broadcasts largely US and British TV dramas to Germany, Austria and Switzerland and has premiered shows such as The Sopranos, Shameless and Sex in the City. They broadcast without ad-breaks in both German and English.
Another new teaser trailer for the upcoming eighth season of Doctor Who has arrived and while – yet again – it doesn’t feature anything that looks like actual episode footage, it does raise an intriguing question about the sort of villains we’re likely to see once Series 8 gets underway.
The new clip is called Two Hearts, in reference to the Doctor’s unique biology and follows the pattern set by previous teasers by opening with several shots of the TARDIS on fire and electricity surging through Twelve’s body and illuminating his cardiac system.
So, yeah, not a lot that’s new to go on in this trailer, image wise, but make sure you play attention to the voiceover that’s playing during the footage.
Yeah that creepy voice in the background certainly sounds like it belongs to Davros, the slightly psychotic creator of the Daleks who was last seen battling David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor in the Series 4 finale Journey’s End. Davros was assumed to have died when Ten and company left him behind as the Crucible self-destructed. But, of course, since this is Doctor Who – a show which has already resurrected the entire Dalek race multiple times – anything is possible.
And, of course, this could be all so much fan speculation, and this trailer could just be implying the (likely inevitable) return of the Daleks generally, but it’s pretty fun to imagine what a villain like Davros coming back might mean.
The previous Series 8 teaser trailer featured the debut of Capaldi’s Doctor – and a not at all subtle hint that Twelve may be a quite different sort of person than his predecessors, thanks to a worrisome voiceover from companion Clara.
The new season of Doctor Who begins on August 23 on both BBC One and BBC America.
That voice also sounds to me like the Dalek Prime Minister from Asylum of the Daleks. I can only assume that Steven Moffat will want to follow his own continuity. But I would enjoy being as wrong as anything!
There’s been a major leak at BBC Worldwide, resulting in the scripts for the first five episodes of Series 8 appearing online. The BBC has said sorry to all the fans and are investigating.
“BBC Worldwide is currently investigating a security issue around Doctor Who Series 8 where unfinished material has inadvertently been made public,” they say. “We deeply regret this and apologise to all the show’s fans, the BBC and the cast and crew who have worked tirelessly making the series.” (At least they’re stating that these are unfinished, so at least some polishing would be done in-situ… although how much is unknown.)
They go on to ask people not to search for the scripts (and they’re very, very easy to find), mainly because it’ll spoil the series… hence the word ‘spoilers’! The BBC continue: “We would like to make a plea to anyone who might have any of this material and spoilers associated with it not to share it with a wider audience so that everyone can enjoy the show as it should be seen when it launches. We know only too well that Doctor Who fans are the best in the world and we thank them for their help with this and their continued loyalty.”
The fully-filmed episodes were reportedly posted online too, but were swiftly taken down.
BBC Worldwide is currently investigating a security issue around Doctor Who Series 8 where unfinished material has inadvertently been made public. It’s just the latest in a long line of leaks: most notably, Rose appeared online before it aired, thus tainting the relaunch of Doctor Who for many, and the email announcing that Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith, would be leaving also did the rounds.
How did this happen? Some are claiming it’s a publicity stunt, but that’s highly unlikely – it would mean the BBC were really desperate, at a time when publicity for the show is already kicking into a higher gear thanks to a brand new Doctor in Peter Capaldi. Those brief trailers, too, are teasing enough: we don’t need scripts to get all excited!
It sounds as if they were leaked after being sent to the newly-opened Miami headquarters for translation. That site has completely gone offline now. The watermark lists the script as belonging to Marcelo Camargo, but no one can find anything out about this member of the crew, if indeed he exists.
What positives can we get form this, without reading the scripts? The titles sound promising, but we won’t announce them right now. It confirms that Deep Breath, the first episode of the run, written by Steven Moffat and directed by Ben Wheatley, is “feature-length” – likely about 79 minutes!
It also appears that subsequent episodes, by Phil Ford, Mark Gatiss, Moffat, and Steve Thompson, are slightly longer than the average running time of previous series; only by a few minutes or so but that might be the olive branch the BBC are extending to us after supposedly cutting the series down by one episode.
The first, full trailer for the forthcoming series of Doctor Who has now been released by the BBC. The minute long trailer was broadcast on BBC One during the half-time interval for the World Cup Final at 8:57pm.
I like the fact Clara is having a difficult time warming up to the new Doctor. It might finally make her relationship with the Doctor interesting. I really didn't like how they wrote her character when she was with Matt Smith.
New sources have suggested that the Series 8 premiere of Doctor Who “Deep Breath” will be airing in select cinemas on August 23.
Speaking to DWW sources have indicated that the decision to simulcast the feature length Deep Breath came after the immense success of The Day of the Doctor in November of last year, the episode grossing £1.8 million ($2.91 million) at the UK box office alone.
There is no word on whether any potential airing in cinemas will be on a worldwide basis nor the extent of the release.
New sources have suggested that the Series 8 premiere of Doctor Who “Deep Breath” will be airing in select cinemas on August 23.
Speaking to DWW sources have indicated that the decision to simulcast the feature length Deep Breath came after the immense success of The Day of the Doctor in November of last year, the episode grossing £1.8 million ($2.91 million) at the UK box office alone.
There is no word on whether any potential airing in cinemas will be on a worldwide basis nor the extent of the release.
BBC America have announced a series of events taking place in the lead-up and aftermath of the series premiere of Deep Breath in the United States.
During the week before broadcast, the channel will premiere new specials relating to the show, including Doctor Who: The Ultimate Companion on the 16th August at 9:00pm, The Real History of Science Fiction: Time at 10:00pm, and then Doctor Who: The Ultimate Time Lord on the 18th at 10:00pm, which forms part of a marathon week of Doctor Who episodes.
On the day itself, Doctor Who: Live Pre-Show will be presented by Nerdist presenter Chris Hardwick at 7:30pm before the premiere airs at 8:00pm. Doctor Who is then followed by another premiere, Intruders, before the show is once again the focus in Doctor Who: After Who Live at 11:00pm - the show aims to feature a host of guests in studio, including writer/actor Mark Gatiss, plus behind-the-scenes footage.
The day after will see Make Your Own Sunday, featuring the top episodes voted for by BBC America viewers in an online poll that opens on the 6th August.
Meanwhile, as with the United Kingdom, the episode will have a cinematic release in the USA, though this will not be simulcast. Instead, BBC America have partnered with Fathom Events to present Deep Breath in a special screening event taking place in twelve cities from midnight, with full details to be announced on the 5th August.
This will be followed by a wider cinematic release on the 25th August, with over 550 cinemas showing the episode at 7:00pm and 9:30pm, accompanied by the prequel and behind-the-scenes material as seen in the UK (no Q&A).
Tickets are now available to purchase from participating venues and also online from Fathom Events.
