Christian Cawley's Blog, page 224

Noel Clarke Blasts Lack Of Diversity In Sci-Fi

Andrew Reynolds is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

Blasted news! No, wait… sorry, News Blast. Yes, that’s it, It’s Kasterborous’ patented News Blast!  Hurrah! Which today features: videos, games, memories, diversity in sci-fi and some invaders from space.

Noel Clarke: “Where is the racial diversity in sci-fi?”

The Artist Formerly Known as Mickey and triple threat Noel Clarke has shared his thoughts on diversity within sci-fi.

As his latest movie, the sci-fi thriller The Anomaly, hits cinemas Friday 4th July, Clarke spoke to the Belfast Telegraph about how, despite the importance of diversity in British film and TV, he’d much rather be writing the kind of roles that inspire fledging actors from any ethnic background:

“I have to just look at the glass as half-full all the time, as I do. I’m not going to sit around waiting for reports, I’m not going spend an hour-and-a-half reading a report when I could be writing a film that’s going to help actors of colour, or any actor.”

It’s a quiet call for quality that he hopes will also reflect our own rich, multicultural society:

“…Where are the Asian actors, where are the Chinese actors? It’s not just black people, it’s a whole mix. And I’m not saying you should have a film that looks like United Colours of Benetton or anything like that, but you should reflect the country you live in. But I haven’t got time, I’m just going to get on with it. And hopefully by doing what I do there are people of any race, of any disability that are going, ‘If he can do it I can do it’.”

Although he is keen to play down his importance, Clarke still feels proud to be a black actor taking the lead role in a sci-fi thriller on the big screen:

“It’s very important, and I feel like it’s unappreciated how important it is. Because the truth of the matter is, most likely, if I didn’t play this role, no actor of colour would have got this role. That’s the truth. We’ve got great actors like John Boyega now, who’s going to be in Star Wars. Hopefully he’ll be the beginning of a massive change.”

The Anomaly is released this Friday. You’ll also see Clarke in upcoming drama Chasing Shadows with River Song actress Alex Kingston later this year.

Series 7 Hits Amazon Instant Video

He might not be so sure anymore but you can relive the days where the Doctor was indeed a good man with Seasons 1-7 available now in HD/SD via Amazon Instant Video.

Despite missing The Day of the Doctor and Matt Smith’s departure, The Time of the Doctor, there are also a host of classic serials including Planet of Fire, The Claws of Axons and The Green Death available to purchase now in individual episodes or whole serials for £1.89 and £5.99 respectively.

What’s more if you subscribe to Amazon Prime, the first six seasons are available for free (Free I tells ya!) while Season Seven is available as single episodes/half season/whole season for £1.89, £3.99 and £9.99.

(With thanks to Joe)

Tenth Doctor with 3D Glasses in Doctor Who: Legacy!

Its final moments were recently voted SFX’s Greatest Sci-Fi Scene Ever and now you too can add a little greatness to your Doctor Who: Legacy game by unlocking the Tenth Doctor costume from Doomsday.

Rather than say, the heartbroken hologram from the beach (complete with wind-ruffled hair) or even (…shudder) the backpack clad, Ghostbusters aping Doctor from the previous episode, the Legacy programmers have sensibly gone for the Doctor that’ll never again miss anything passing through void space with these nifty 3-D glasses.

To claim your own Doomsday Doctor, simply enter the code from David Tennant News in Options–>promo and he’s all yours Share with your friends and, what’s more, the code won’t expire for a month.

Now just try not to think about that scene again, you know, where he was… and she said, and… I promised myself I wouldn’t cry…

Remember When Tom Baker Visited?

Dwelling on the fond memories brought racing back to prominence thanks to the Plymouth Herald’s photograph of the day Tom Baker came to meet competition winners at a local school – Alan Slade, father of two of the boys, David and Mark Slade, has gotten back in touch with the paper to shed some light on the day the Fourth Doctor came to School.

Featuring in the papers On This Day series, the photograph shows the Doctor signing a picture painted by the David – based on the story the young girl next to him had submitted and had won her and her fellow classmates this precious time with the Doctor.

As Alan explains:

“I think it was open to all the primary schools in Plymouth at the time, and the two of them had won the competition to meet Tom Baker. We still have the signed painting.”

It speaks volumes for the power of the Doctor and the magic that we imbue our icons, both childhood or otherwise, that Alan got in touch with the paper to share his abiding memories of the time his children met one of their heroes.

Rather sweetly, Alan goes on to share with the paper (although it readers far too much like punched up copy to be his words) where his sons are now:

“David went on to play for Plymouth Albion Devon South West Rugby under-21s and senior teams, and is still involved with rugby at Devonport Services, where he coaches the under-13s youth rugby and is the facilities manager at Becton Dickinson Plymouth. Mark went on to play for Plymouth Albion and was captain for a couple of years and also played for Devon, South West under-21s and senior teams, and is now the Commercial Director at Maitlands, Plymouth.”

I wonder if they still think of the moment the Doctor came to School?

Not Space Invaders

Remember that time when the TARDIS, now armed with ‘advanced shooting power’ crash landed on the cactus-strewn Planet X (I’m just going to call it Space Texas; it seems to fit) where, trapped inside his craft by advancing horizontal, slightly off models of his deadliest foes (and for some reason, K-9) descended from the heavens; ready to trigger some sort of proximity alert; forcing the Doctor to either blast holes in their perfectly symmetrical rows or be forced to live in a temporal loop, re-spawning back at the start of their encounter every time they reached the same height as the TARDIS?

You know, like a certain popular video game developed in 1978 by Tomohiro Nishikado. You know the one, Space something…Invaders from Space, yes, that’s it.

Well, now you can blast K-9 to bits with Doctor Who X, the fun, undemanding Flash game from Addicting Games 360, ‘an archive of free addicting games.’

There’s so much quirk here it’s impossible to be too judgmental: Why do The Silence randomly float off into space? Why does everything explode into a shower of rocks? Did the Doctor fit a Sounds of Sci-Fi 1950’s ‘phew phew’ sound to his ‘advanced shooting power’ on purpose?

Oh and am I meant to blast K-9 to bits? The game doesn’t really delineate between rewards and penalties; I mean I wanted to shoot the orbiting Silence because it seemed like a challenge I would be rewarded for, ditto the punishment for blasting poor K-9 – it seemed like something I should be punished for.

Anyway, as derivative as it is; it’s a lot of goofy fun too.

Now man the guns! It’s time to blast me some Tin Dog! If you’re a fan of Doctor Who videogames, meanwhile, don’t forget to check out Kasterborous Magazine issue 2, in the Kasterborous Store now!

The post Noel Clarke Blasts Lack Of Diversity In Sci-Fi appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

The Cybermen Return In Series 8: How Do You Feel?

Jonathan Appleton is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

This article contains spoilers for Doctor Who Series 8! 

Still with us? Good on yer! The following concerns the Cybermen return in the next run of Doctor Who, currently being filmed.. If that much is enough for you, hit one of the links in the left column; to learn more, read on…

Yes, the silver giants are back! The Cybermen will return in the latter stages of series 8. This we know due to some extremely spoiler-ific pictures snapped for Wales Online and already analysed and pored over for what they reveal. So what do we know about what expect from their next appearance? Spoiler-phobics may wish to click away now…

The filming, in broad daylight in the middle of Cardiff, would seem to be for episode 12, the same story which will feature Michelle Gomez, confirmed by the BBC this week to be playing the Gatekeeper of the Nethersphere. The Cybermen in question will be the latest version as featured in Nightmare in Silver and the episode will also feature another old friend of the Doctor. If you want to know more, chances are you probably already do from the exhaustive observations recorded elsewhere online.

I've just been told it's episode 12 being filmed at the moment. The crew are using Bauhaus as a dressing room & base. pic.twitter.com/I7ywWvVD2Q

— AliciaMelville-Smith (@alicia_ms) June 30, 2014

So how do you feel about the Cybermen coming back? There’s a case to made that, of all the classic returning monsters, they have been the ones least well served since the programme was revived with few of their appearances since 2005 ranking among the very best that the new series has had to offer.

Different stories will all have their fans, of course, but many would argue that too often they’ve felt like all-purpose heartless villains, their appearances characterised by some uninspired plotting, with the Cybermen playing second fiddle to other evil masterminds such as John Lumic (Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel) and Miss Hartigan (The Next Doctor). Some of the new tricks tried by writers to inject new life into them, such as the Cybershades and the CyberKing, have perhaps fallen a little flat, literally in the latter’s case. In Doomsday the Cybermen even suffered the ignominy of getting a right old hammering at the hands (or should that be plungers?) of the Daleks!

Closing Time may have been a sweet little tale exploring fatherhood, loyalty and the need to face up to one’s responsibilities, but it won’t top anyone’s list of favourite Cyber stories. Nightmare in Silver, 2013′s eagerly awaited Cybermen return promised so much but has to go down as one of the biggest disappointments from that or any other year. It will be interesting to see if the 2014 Cybermen retain the new powers on display in that episode, where they were able to move at rapid speed and upgrade in an instant to overcome any weakness.

All in all then, the Cybermen are surely due a classic episode, one to count among their most memorable appearances alongside the likes of Tomb of the Cybermen and Earthshock. The shots from this week’s filming are certainly promising. Let’s hope what we see on screen later this year truly delivers.

But enough from me! What do you think of the Cybermen returning? Is Steven Moffat due a gold star for bringing them back? Or should they have been kept on ice?

The post The Cybermen Return In Series 8: How Do You Feel? appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Quality Of Guest Casting Improved In Doctor Who Series 8?

James Lomond is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

Good news takes many forms though none so mind-squeezingly delicious as the casting of MICHELLE GOMEZ in the Doctor Who Series 8 finale!

Following the recent confirmation from the BBC, Gomez has this week featured in a Twitter pic alongside fellow Scot, Peter Capaldi as the Twelfth Doctor with some familiar silvery chaps in the backround. Largely known for her role as the unhinged staff liaison officer, Sue White, in hospital comedy, Green Wing, she has also performed with the RSC and none other than Big Finish – Gomez starred alongside Sylvester McCoy in the audio drama Valhalla. Most crucially of all – I LOVE this actress. If understated comic genius was a woman, and a wee bit mental, she would be Michelle Gomez. And we are SO lucky to have her…. (here’s a nugget of Sue White as proof):

Gomez is playing a character named the Gatekeeper of the Nethersphere – sporting period costume, an anachronistic tech-accessory in her hands and looking like Mary Poppins mid-lightening strike. Holographic interface? Another Timelord? Or could she even be an alternate version of Victorian Clara all grown up? What we know for sure is that Moffat’s very pleased to have her on board,

“I’ve known Michelle for years, and I’m thrilled to welcome her to Doctor Who. She’s everything we need – brilliant, Scottish, and a tiny bit satanic.”

The Scottish Mafia swells its ranks! We’re certainly getting a combination of wonderful talent and big names on the show this season. Alongside Gomez, Ben Miller and Frank Skinner both have sound comedy credentials. In fact Miller is apparently both Doctor of Physics and an ex-Footlight and Skinner is one of very few (surely?) Doctor Who guest stars to have had a number one in the UK singles chart, twice (not counting the Beatles!) Ashes to Ashes star, Keeley Hawes is another well known face in the UK as is Hermione Norris from her work on Spooks. And Tom Riley is something of an international star in his own right thanks to the title role in Davinci’s Deamons.

Do you think Series 8 has turned a corner in casting quality? It’s a strange question to ask in a way – what do we mean by quality? It can’t be what I’m talking about above. Kylie’s had a lot more number ones than Frank Skinner (thank goodness) and Series 2 showed off top comedian Peter Kay’s acting talents. Looking back we probably had some of the “biggest” names in Series 1 with Simon Callow as Charles Dickens in The Unquiet Dead and Zoe Wanamaker as Cassandra in The End of the World (both of whom, interestingly, were asked back later).

But there does * feel * like there’s something a bit special brewing with Series 8 and not just an exciting new lead man. Perhaps it’s the tone and feel that has changed? It’s been remarked that the Moffat era has used increasingly more blue light and shadowy mists than the more day-glow sunny RTD era. Might Series 8 cranking up its eerie Gothic side even more? And do you think the casting reflects that? (Of course I’ll eat my words if Frank Skinner is running around in a green fat-suit, imbuing paving stones with life).

So are we seeing a more “mature” or “darkly comic” line up of stars for a more sinister era or am I letting my hopes for the series affect how I read the cast list? Are you looking forward to a slightly more angsty Series or do you long for the farting in Downing Street? Tell us below!..

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Meet Titan’s Doctor Who Comics Creators At Forbidden Planet!

Christian Cawley is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

Celebrate all things Who at Forbidden Planet! Rob Williams and Al Ewing will be signing our exclusive Variant Cover of Doctor Who 11th #1 in Bristol on July 26th from 3 – 4pm, and they will be joined in London on 2nd August by artist Des Taylor to sign both Doctor Who 10th #1 and Doctor Who 11th #1, also from 3 – 4pm.

You should already know that Titan has taken over the Doctor Who comics license from IDW in North America; you may also know that due to DWM’s license, these comics will be of limited available in the UK. If you’re a fan of Doctor Who comics and can’t get your hands on imports, don’t worry – they’ll be available in digital formats.

Do, what’s with the two new series?

In the 10th Doctor’s adventure, Gabriella Gonzalez is stuck in a dead-end job in her family’s New York laundrette, dreaming of college and bigger, better, and brighter things.

So when a strange man with an even stranger big blue box barges into her life on the eve of the Day of the Dead celebrations, talking about an infestation of psychic aliens, she seizes her chance for adventure with both hands. After Donna’s tragic exit, the Doctor thought he was done with companions.

But Gabby Gonzalez is going to prove him wrong – if she survives the night!

And the 11th Doctor brings us a whole new story – an all-new ongoing series, with a time-twisting leap into the unknown!

Alice Obiefune has just lost her mother when the Doctor explodes into her life. But what does a grieving young woman have to do with the career of a 70s musician, an amnesiac alien time traveler, and a terrifying cosmic threat? In the wake of the second Big Bang, discover what the Doctor gets up to when Amy and Rory aren’t around!

Plus, every issue includes a “Titans” strip and a brand-new humour strip!

For full details of the event in Bristol visit the Forbidden Planet page, and find the lowdown on the London event at the same website. These new Doctor Who comics are released on July 23rd, and we’ll be reviewing them both!

The post Meet Titan’s Doctor Who Comics Creators At Forbidden Planet! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Time To Defend The Peter Cushing Dalek Movies

Alex Skerratt is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

That’s right, Kasterborites – it’s time to defend the Peter Cushing Dalek movies of the 1960s. “But are they ever under attack?” I hear you ask.

Well yes, actually. You may think it’s just the anonymous posters on the forums who like to challenge the films’ integrity, (“Are they canon?” being the oft-asked question!), but the gaming-and-movies site IGN recently took a swipe at the spin-offs in an article about the TARDIS interior…

“In Doctor Who and the Daleks and Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150, the Doctor is actually the human inventor (surname Who, seriously) of the TARDIS. This is reflected in the science lab appearance of the TARDIS interior. Although not strictly canon, it’s worth flagging up here, to illustrate how utterly rubbish Doctor Who could have been in the hands of Hollywood execs.”

Ouch!

Is such an analysis justified? I mean, canon or not, like them or not, is it fair to imply that Mr Cushing’s adventures were “utterly rubbish”? I would like to question this slightly controversial comment from IGN! (I would also like to question why they have referred to the second film as Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150 when everyone knows it is, in fact, Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D. Pfft!)

Pedantry aside, I understand why some people feel negatively about these movies. For a start, they didn’t feature the ‘current’ Doctor Who (William Hartnell) or, indeed, any of the series’ regulars, despite the fact that they were movie adaptations of First Doctor stories. Furthermore, they clearly weren’t rooted in the television series’ mythology – Cushing’s ‘Doctor Who’ was, as IGN points out, a madcap inventor with a TARDIS in his back garden, not a wandering traveller from a distant world. And yes, the TARDIS interior was basically a naff-looking laboratory, with curtains.

Yet I for one am very grateful for these films. I became a Doctor Who fan during a very strange period in the show’s history; it was a year after the television movie had been broadcast, and I was desperate to collect all of the old videos, most of which you couldn’t find for toffee, despite the fact they had only been released a couple of years previously. But for some reason, these Peter Cushing tapes were in abundance in my local W.H. Smith, and in the same way that people say that the Target novelisations were as close as they could get to, say, Planet of the Spiders, these movies were the best possible imitation of the Hartnell gems that I craved. The original stories were never going to be repeated on terrestrial T.V., and all of the available videos had been snapped up years ago, so I genuinely never thought I’d get to see the real things. And let’s be fair - they are very, very true to Terry Nation’s original scripts, and offer a faithful retelling of those Dalek classics. In short, they got me through a very difficult period of Who starvation, and I shall be eternally in their debt!

Furthermore, you can’t deny the influence they’ve had on the relaunched Doctor Who. Just look at those Dalek bulbs! Not a technical term, I know, but come on, they’re good – much more distinctive than the stubby maglites that plagued them right up until the series’ cancellation. And Russell T Davies obviously liked the bulbs as well, as he copied them wholesale for the pepperpots’ triumphant return in 2005. As well as those TARDIS doors – oh, those TARDIS doors! Why did it never occur to anyone to make the TARDIS’ exterior doors match up with the interior doors? It seals the illusion that they’re inside a police telephone box, as opposed to a studio. It bothered me incessantly as a pedantic nine year-old (not much has changed!) and yes, it’s true that Cushing’s TARDIS may lack a certain air of magic or mystery, but in some ways it’s the most successful interior of the classic run; it contains the optimum threshold!

Finally, if you’re still wondering whether these 60s flicks are worth their salt, (looking at you IGN), then I have just two words to say: Peter Cushing. He is incredible. Yes, trying to squeeze him into the twelve-regeneration line-up causes more headaches than The Valeyard or even John Hurt, but that doesn’t matter – he plays the part so brilliantly; he’s the perfect mix of grandfather, scientist, hero, doddering eccentric and – dare I say it – quintessential Brit. He could so easily have been a television Doctor Who, and while I would have preferred William Hartnell, he is an excellent alternative. More power to you Mr Cushing! Or should I say, Mr Who…?

So there you are – lots of reasons to dust down those old video tapes, (I assume that if you have the DVDs then you don’t need convincing!) Need I say more?

Oh yes – Daleks

The post Time To Defend The Peter Cushing Dalek Movies appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Colin Baker Among Guests As TimeWarp Comes to the South West!

Philip Bates is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

A new event is coming to the South West this weekend: TimeWarp features a great cast of actors and actresses, and sees the Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker, paired with Peri Brown herself (aka Nicola Bryant) once more.

The event couples Q&A sessions with signings and photo shoots at much more accessible prices than many other conventions. And it’s not just the Sixth Doctor era represented either: there are companions from across Classic Who, including Mark Strickson (Turlough), Katy Manning (Jo Grant), Deborah Watling (Victoria Waterfield), and Richard Franklin (Captain Yates).

Event organiser, Ian Fraser, told Kasterborous:

I think the guest list itself is exciting; in any circumstance, having so many of the BIG companions all at one time rarely happens because actors have very busy schedules… It’s a signing in one sense, but then we’ve given attendees all the extra bits that they’d normally only get at a convention – but without the huge ticket cost!

Keep your eyes out for a full interview with Fraser in which he discusses planning TimeWarp, and the legacy of the first convention he held in the South West, 18 years ago.

Davros, or Terry Molloy as some may know him, will also be appearing on Sunday, alongside Seventh Doctor era Script Editor, Andrew Cartmel (who we previously interviewed about his Script Doctor rerelease), and The Greatest Show in the Galaxy‘s Dee Sadler (Flowerchild).

Here’s the full list of stars:

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY:

Colin Baker *; Nicola Bryant; Wendy Padbury; Sarah Sutton; Deborah Watling; Damaris Hayman; Will Thorp; and Derek Martin.

SATURDAY ONLY:

Louise Jameson; and Mark Strickson.

SUNDAY ONLY:

Katy Manning; Dee Sadler; Andrew Cartmel; Terry Molloy; and Richard Franklin.

*Please note that Colin Baker will be appearing across the weekend, but will leave at 1pm on Sunday due to work commitments.

TimeWarp is held in Weston-super-Mare at The Playhouse (just back from the sea front) on 5th-6th July 2014. Find out more at the event’s website. Tickets are obtainable in advance or on the door.

Kasterborous will be there. Will you?

The post Colin Baker Among Guests As TimeWarp Comes to the South West! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

A New Rani, A New Dalek Game and A New Spider-Girl?

Philip Bates is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

Today, there’s more news than is socially acceptable. If you’re of a nervous disposition, take a sip of tea, read slowly and, if all else fails, watch City of Death for a while.

Engage safety. And three, two and… spike.

Siobhan Redmond IS The Rani!

Big Finish has announced that they’re bringing the Rani back!

It was the idea of the late, great Kate O’Mara who initially portrayed the rogue Time Lady in The Mark of the Rani and Time and the Rani, desperate to play the character once more. Producer, David Richardson remembers:

The Rani’s return was very much prompted by Kate. Her agent contacted me and said that she would love to reprise the role with us, and when I mentioned this to executive producer Nicholas Briggs and script editor Alan Barnes they leapt at the opportunity.

Justin [Richards] wrote The Rani Elite for us, and we were just a few weeks away from recording when the terrible news reached us that Kate had passed away. At first, we were not sure what to do – until Kate’s agent again got in touch again, and said that it had been Kate’s wish that we proceed with a new incarnation of the Rani.

Siobhan Redmond will star as the Rani after impressing the Big Finish team in Revenge of the Swarm, out in August (and sees the return of the big bad shrimp from The Invisible Enemy – and even though I just insulted him, I really do have a soft spot for that episode. After all, contact will be made).

Whilst I’m pleased to see the character return, it probably won’t end the “SUCH AND SUCH IS THE RANI!” fan speculation that takes up 62.357% (roughly) of the internet. Clara is the Rani! The TARDIS is the Rani! That Cyberman who kidnapped Angie in Nightmare in Silver is the Rani!

(Although I can, without doubt, confirm that Kasterborous editor, Christian Cawley, is the Rani. He looks incredible dressed as Bonnie Langford too, but don’t let that get around.)

The Rani Elite is out in December.

David Bowie IS… The Twelfth Doctor?!

Never thought I’d type that.

Peter Capaldi is a fan of Bowie and it seems the idea of having a buttoned-up white shirt (with rigidly starched collar) under his now-iconic get-up was inspired by the Ashes to Ashes singer’s Thin White Duke look!

Capaldi apparently attended three of the four concerts Bowie held in Glasgow, only missing the fourth for lack of funds. And that, dear reader, is the story of every music lover.

And a little fact for you: David Bowie’s eyes aren’t different colours. He has anisocora – unequal pupils – giving the effect of different colours. Have that, Wikipedia!

And Karen Gillan ISN’T Spider-Girl!

Former companion, Karen Gillan is going to be in one of the biggest movies of the year, Guardians of the Galaxy, as the super villain, Nebula. But what if she were to portray a Marvel super heroine? Well, she’d like to be a female version of Spider-Man!

SFX suggested Spider-Woman – or one of her 326 alter egos, namely Julia Carpenter – but the redhead instead went for May “Mayday” Parker aka. Spider-Girl, the future daughter of Peter and Mary Jane. Actually, the possibly future daughter after Amazing Spider-Man lost its way (following J. Michael Straczynski’s brilliant run) and had its main character turn to the devil for help, thus eliminating his marriage to MJ from time and space. Look, it’s complicated, okay? Karen wants to be Spider-Girl. That’s all you should take away from this.

And yes, that above is her naked selfie to promote her show, Selfie. You can thank me later.

A Day in the Life of: Leela

A Day in the Life of, the mini-conventions that ran throughout The Wilderness Years, is to return with Louise Jameson, who played the wonderful Leela from The Face of Evil to The Invasion of Time.

Neil Goodman resurrects the Q&A, photo and signings sessions, which he co-founded with the Timeless fan club in the 1990s, at the newly-reopened Penarth Pavillion. Louise is a genuinely lovely person to chat to, so expect some great, witty anecdotes on 10th August. Adult tickets are £12 and £8 for children/concessions.

As a welcome change, autographs are free (though you’re limited to three per person), and profits got to Penarth Arts and Crafts Ltd.

Find out more from WalesOnline – who also has a nice little quiz about the Doctor and Rose Tyler. Beware: the first question is a tricky, timey-wimey one… while others are just amusing.

No Doctor Who at SDCC 2014!

It’s been announced that there won’t be a Doctor Who panel at this year’s San Diego Comic Con.

That comes as a shock: every time the SDCC rolls around, the team put on quite a show and everyone always has a good laugh. Matt and David certainly had a good time when they regularly turned up.

Mind you, it comes very close to Doctor Who‘s worldwide tour, so efforts are understandably going into that instead. Nonetheless, the TARDIS crew will be represented at the event: BBC America’s booth wants to display your fan art to thousands of convention goers, so be sure to get out those crayons!

Arrow Keys Versus The Daleks!

Upset about SDCC? Well, check out this unofficial free Dalek game demo in which you star as the Tenth Doctor. It’s good fun and could easily become addictive.

It looks like the Doc could use his sonic screwdriver against them, but I can’t figure out how. If you do, leave a helpful comment at the bottom. Please. Seriously. Give a guy a break.

I Need A Doctor: The Musical

This comedic play is about sitting in a doctor’s waiting room whilst kids run around screaming, an OAP coughs into his palm and rubs it onto your shoulder, and the receptionist sneers at you all and sprays you with air freshener. What’s that? It’s actually written by two proud Whovians,Jessica Spray and James Wilson-Taylor? It’s still about waiting rooms though, right? Right?!

Okay, so the pair have actually come up with an hour-long musical, completely unauthorised but more fun than The Twin Dilemma anyway.

I Need A Doctor – The Whosical is at Hayes’ Beck Theatre, Grange Road, on 3rd July.

Siiiiiinging in the Rain

You’re still annoyed about there being no Doctor Who SDCC panel? This tweet from The Sims 3 starring the Eleventh Doctor doing a little jig in the rain is sure to cheer you up.

And if you’re still moping about, just think: no panel means no exclusive trailers which will cause an uproar and set fan against fan. Yeah; thought that’d shut you up.

If you still feel like shouting about today’s frankly extensive news, the comments section below is looking awfully lonely right now…

The post A New Rani, A New Dalek Game and A New Spider-Girl? appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Exclusive Interview: Event Organiser, Ian Fraser Talks TimeWarp and Kate O’Mara

Philip Bates is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

Time Warp , a new convention which couples Q&A sessions with photo shoots and signings, comes to the South West this weekend (5th-6th July 2014), and Kasterborous caught up with the organiser, Ian Fraser.

The convention has an incredible guest list – but you can see that for yourself: Colin Baker (The Sixth Doctor); Nicola Bryant (Peri); Katy Manning (Jo Grant); Wendy Padbury (Zoe); Louise Jameson (Leela); Terry Molloy (Davros); Sarah Sutton (Nyssa); Mark Strickson (Turlough); Andrew Cartmel (Script Editor for the Seventh Doctor era); Will Thorp (Toby Zed in The Impossible Planet/ The Satan Pit); Deborah Watling (Victoria); Richard Franklin (Captain Mike Yates); Damaris Hayman (The Daemons’ Miss Hawthorn);  Dee Sadler (Flowerchild in The Greatest Show In The Galaxy); and Derek Martin (HAVOC stuntman; Image of the Fendahl).

Though he’s arranged conventions before (and attended many across the UK), this time, Ian Fraser set out to make something a little bit different…

K: What’s the most exciting thing about TimeWarp?

FRASER: I think the guest list itself is exciting; in any circumstances having so many of the BIG companions all at one time rarely happens, because actors have very busy schedules. There were another couple of great companions on the list, but they simply couldn’t make the date because they were either abroad or travelling back from events abroad – but if it all goes well this time, then they have already said that they love the concept of doing this hybrid event.

It’s a signing in one sense, but then we’ve given attendees all the extra bits that they’d normally only get at a convention – but without the huge ticket cost! I don’t think it’s been done before – there’re two possible reasons; either no one’s really thought of anything like this… or people want one or the other!

How did you find organising an event now, compared to your first one in Weston-super-Mare?

It was a lot harder in some ways. When I did my first one, way back in 1997, I was younger, more naive and didn’t see problems as problems. As you get older and you realise the full extent of costs: needing it to work because, at the end of the day, it costs a lot to put on – everything you don’t think of when you’re younger and just do them as they crop up: insurance before you can go in the building, microphones, venue, hotels, actors, travel… It’s a big deal!

And now also I feel a sense of responsibility to the actors, that it should work for them, and that people attending can get to see and do as much as possible. We’ve given them choices, we’ve tried not to do it so that if you want autographs, you’re missing talks; if you’re listening to a talk, you’re not getting your photo taken. But letting people know that it’s on is easier now than it was then – when I did the first one, the series hadn’t been on TV since 1989, so there wasn’t a current Doctor, there wasn’t a series to watch and to get people interested in. Now Doctor Who is big news, and there’s a newly discovered respect for what these originals actors did and what they achieved, with no money and no hi tech effects… A great story is a great story when you’re a kid even if you can actually see that they just had to pin the arm back on the Sea Devil before they shot the scene or whatever. Who cares? It’s the excitement – making you jump – and just enjoying it without over analysing it.

What advantages does Weston offer for an event? I guess the chance to go to the seaside in the middle of summer is quite a draw!

At a previous event, there was no public transport and no parking! Weston offers everything, really, but especially a day out at the seaside. It’s British and it’s got a ethos of having simple fun: a laugh; quirky; British; candy floss… So what you need is a place that can cater for everyone, fans, families alike. You need to be able to get there, even if you don’t drive; you need to be able to find the venue.

And using a great theatre like The Playhouse means you can hopefully be a little bit more theatrical. It’s not a faceless conference room in a hotel (nothing against that!) but you feel like it’s more of an event – you’re being a kid again, you’re going to the pantomime. You’re meeting those people you actually watch on a quiet winter night when you pop on your favourite Doctor Who DVD… They’re there! You can talk to them, ask them questions.

That ‘Wow’ moment: that still happens to me. You suddenly realise who you’re talking to and you’re thinking, ‘yikes, when you left (in the one with those horrible green maggots) when I was a kid, I bloody cried – and now you’re here laughing and making me feel that it’s all okay.’

So if it is successful, you plan to do a follow-up?

If it’s successful I would do another. I’d like to get it back to being a regular ‘must go to’ and make it the most interesting event. There’s a lot of good will from the actors, which I’m flattered by, and there were things that were on the drawing board and progressing for this time that we realised we just couldn’t cram in… but we’d love to do it next time around and that would make fans sit back in their seats and think, ‘I never thought I’d see that!’

Joining the great cast of actors and actresses, you’ve got the superb Andrew Cartmel; if there are any follow-up events, would you like to expand and include further behind-the-scenes crew?

If we did more, then I’d love to get Terrance Dicks! All those people who were behind the scenes, making the magic happen, despite the restrictions on them… I think the actors learn a lot from it as well. A lot of the time, they don’t know that so-and-so had to write a script in three days because the other one fell through, and I think that’s interesting for them and fills in sometimes a bit of back history into why maybe something happened – or why a monster was a bit rubbish in design! – and I like the honesty it brings out in the actors too.

As someone interested in how it all happened, I actually want to know if the companions felt a bit neglected, or if a director was a bit of a git to them because they were seen as regulars and that director felt lumbered with them. When I watch a DVD for the first time, I always watch it with the commentary on!

I think Andrew Cartmel will be a mine of information and know what plans were, what did happen, what could have happened – but my heavy influence will always be to feature  main cast and guest actors.

It’s with great sadness that we had the great Kate O’Mara to be announced as she’d agreed to appear alongside Colin and Nicola and that would have been outstanding. She was still so enthusiastic about it and determined that she WOULD bring the Rani back, so for me, I was flattered to be photographing her with this in mind. She was so kind, professional and made me feel welcome at her home and worked hard with me… That that’s a memory I’ll always treasure. Nobody can take that away.

Big thanks to Ian Fraser for an insight into putting together an event like this.
TimeWarp takes place this weekend in Weston-super-Mare’s Playhouse Theatre (just a few streets back from the sea front). Tickets are available in advance or at the door.
Head over to the event’s website to find out more.

The post Exclusive Interview: Event Organiser, Ian Fraser Talks TimeWarp and Kate O’Mara appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Get Both Issues Of Kasterborous Magazine For Just £2.99!

Our second Kasterborous Magazine is out now, as you should know by now (you didn’t? Look to the left.) It is a special dedicated to Doctor Who video games, and we had a lot of fun making it. In fact, some of the content was originally intended for issue 1, which shows you how long ago we started work on the fanzine, available in PDF and on demand printed versions.

Charting the history of Doctor Who video games over a 30 year period, we manage to interview game designers, artists and even review pretty much every digital adventure the Time Lord has enjoyed over the years.

If you haven’t got the first or latest issues yet, now is the time to act. Both Kasterborous Magazine issues 1 and 2 can be picked up for just £2.99 on the Kasterborous Store until June 30th!

Meanwhile, we have made some plans for issue 3. However, it will really depend on how well issue 2 is received, so we really would like to see your feedback.

Feel free to tweet, email or comment below, or use the Kasterborous Magazine Facebook group to share your thoughts.

Catch Arthur Darvill As The Who’s Keith Moon!

If Doctor Who ever does a musical episode, someone should give Arthur Darvill a call.

The Rory Pond-Williams actor comes from a musical family (his dad was a professional organist) and is also known to be pretty good on the guitar and keyboards. For the last year, he has also been starring the musical stage production of Once, the adaptation of the hit indie film.

Recently, BBC Radio 4 re-broadcast a 2011 audio play called Burning Both Ends, in which Darvill portrayed Keith Moon, the ill-fated drummer of The Who.  Sean Pertwee (hey, that last name sounds familiar…) could be heard opposite Darvill as Oliver Reed, an actor on whom Moon apparently had quite an influence.  The two had a friendship during the 1970s as The Who rose to higher and higher heights of fame.  (Moon was also friendly with members of The Beatles and Led Zeppelin).

The 45-minute play surely detailed some of Moon and Reed’s debauchery, including heavy drinking, drugging, and partying.  Moon almost singlehandedly coined what most modern people think of as “the rock star life”–partying every night, trashing hotel rooms, and throwing TVs through windows.  In fact, the lifestyle ended his life prematurely, at the young age of 32 in 1978.  Strangely enough, Arthur Darvill turned 32 himself about two weeks ago.

Burning Both Ends was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 24 June 2014, but can also be heard for the next few days on BBC iPlayer.  BBC America’s Anglophenia page has a short article about the play, meanwhile.

Kasterborites, if Doctor Who were ever to do a musical episode, who should they enlist to help out?  Arthur Darvill could appear as a music-possessed Rory, but could any other Who stars help out musically?  Maybe Bernard Cribbins (Wilf) could come in and whistle some “Right Said Fred” (er, the song, not the band)?  One-time pop band member Peter Capaldi has some musical talent, and former Tenth Doctor David Tennant (who took his stage name from The Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant) did star in Blackpool…

So, how long before a band–called The (Doctor) Who?–made up of our favorite actors is appearing on The X Factor?