Christian Cawley's Blog, page 225

Just What Is The Secret Of Doctor Who’s International Success?

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.

In television, there are myriad reasons for something to fail but only ever one reason for it to succeed – the machinery is for nought if that spark isn’t there and, if asked “What makes this show a success?” mostly, it’ll be that first contact point; that ignition that most will recall.

Maybe it’s our capacity to tell stories, to spin a good yarn – nobody wants to hear: “It’s 60 hours a week slaving at a computer and occasionally smashing your face into the desk” that makes a show so successful.”

We want ‘Eureka!’ Not the other nights spent moping in the tub.

It’s a given that you’ll have to shed a little blood but really, all we want to hear about is the alchemy itself; not the individual elements that go into the mix.

Unfortunately for creative types, it’s never the same reason: sometimes it’s hard work and research, sometimes it’s conquering your fears and trusting your gut, and other times, it’s just plain, dumb luck.

This goes doubly so for that rare beast, an international sensation; you’ve read or heard it before, no other country could have produce this and that’s what makes it all the more profound to international audiences.

Take Steven Moffat’s comments recently to The Guardian at the Cannes Lions Festival, when asked what makes Sherlock and Doctor Who so popular in the States, he said:

The way you appeal to other cultures is to be yourself. Americans like British shows. If they elect to watch a British show they want it to be terribly British. Why wouldn’t they?

Just as with watching an American show – we want it to be full-on American.

The Britishness isn’t amped up (in Sherlock and Doctor Who). It comes from being made by British people.

There is something incredibly British about Doctor Who, but I couldn’t say what it is.

Maybe you can? Maybe there’s something in Doctor Who’s Britishness that makes it so appealing? Maybe it’s that sense of ‘otherness’ that sets it apart? But it’s not as if that is only unique to international audiences.

Recently I rewatched New Earth, the mostly forgotten opener to Series 2 and was struck by how different it was to anything else being shown around it.

It’s still true of the show now – it’s bookended by talent shows and Charlie from Casualty and it stands apart beautifully. You might not like how broad that particular episode is but you have to admire its chutzpah.

Is this due to it embracing its Britishness more so than any of its timeslot rivals? Is it that element of its DNA that gives, in this case, Russell T Davies the right to ditch convention so easily? Can you see Charlie from Casualty (yes, I know, he has a name) suddenly playing the ukulele on the ward and singing that the human race is a beautiful thing to a man with an iron gate through his pelvis?

I can, but nobody would watch it… twice.

So what makes Doctor Who so successful at adopting these different elements? The elements themselves or the show?

Success is an elusive, evasive beast – perhaps it’s not even a beast? It could be a hat; its success, it can be anything it wants – so what do you think makes Doctor Who such an international success?

The post Just What Is The Secret Of Doctor Who’s International Success? appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Will Peter Capaldi Return To The “Feel” Of Classic Doctors?

Danny_Weasel 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.

I can’t remember a time since the show returned that there has been so much buzz and speculation about a new Doctor as there has been for Peter Capaldi. The latest clutch of tidbits offered out speculates that our new Time Lord will be cut from the same cloth as the darker classics such as the Hinchcliffe era Tom Baker.

In the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine The Moff himself has gone on record saying that we will definitely be getting a more dangerous Doctor.

There would be little point in making as radical a change as we’ve made unless you’re going to go quite different with the Doctor. The last two Doctors have been brilliant, and have been your ‘good boyfriend’ Doctors. But the Doctor isn’t always like that. There is the sort of Tom Baker, Christopher Eccleston end of the spectrum, where he is mad and dangerous and difficult.

He goes on to say that it is time to shake the show up again, that even nuWho is getting old and considering it will be celebrating its 10th birthday next year the man has a point.

We need the kick-up-the-arse Doctor, in a way, to frighten you and make you think, oh, it’s a different show again.

Director Ben Wheatley has also weighed in on the topic saying that in the episodes that he was responsible for (episodes one and two of the new series) are indeed dark. Not really a surprise given the director’s past output, but how dark has he been allowed to take a BBC prime-time Saturday night show?

Oh yeah, Doctor Who is pretty dark, I think… It seems to me the episodes that we’re doing now seem more like classic Who. We’re going back to that style. But you’ll have to wait and see.

Personally I think this is a great idea; it has been a while since we saw any real darkness to the Doctor. No offense to Matt Smith (or his legions of fans) but I never really saw a dark side to his Doctor, even moments like the Pandorica speech, the angry bit in The Beast Below (“nobody human has anything to say to me today”) or even the speech from The Rings of Akhaten all seemed a little, well, fluffy. Tennant gave us some wonderful dark moments, and quite frankly I think they stand up as some of the most memorable moments since the shows comeback, things like the punishments for the Family of Blood, the Time Lord victorious speech and everything about the episode Midnight (hands down my favorite episode of nuWho) all delivered a much darker Doctor and the results show that it works.

So I say bring on the horror, amp up the fear and lets get the kids hiding behind the sofa again!

But what do you feel; should the BBC be trying to keep the show kid friendly and tame? Will a darker edge alienate certain elements of the audience? Or do you think that a big shake up and back to basics approach is just what the Doctor ordered? As always we want to know what you think, so please do fill us in.

(Via Cinelinx.)

The post Will Peter Capaldi Return To The “Feel” Of Classic Doctors? appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

New Doctor Who Series 8 Lands August 23rd! [VIDEO]

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.

Getting excited about Doctor Who Series 8? The BBC has tonight confirmed a start date of August 23rd 2014, and as such has released these new images of the Doctor and Clara in the TARDIS, along with a trailer on BBC One!

You can see the trailer, placing the Doctor and Clara in completely new situations, above. The BBC tells us that the Series 8 premiere, with its title confirmed as Deep Breath, will be “feature length”!

Here’s how we shared the images on Facebook a few minutes ago, shortly after they were released:

Post by Kasterborous Doctor Who News.

As you may have read, Michael Pickwoad’s TARDIS interior – introduced in 2012′s The Snowmen - has been slightly adjusted with new lighting and a couple of other cosmetic adjustments. Meanwhile the Twelfth Doctor (Peter Capaldi) and Clara Oswin (Jenna Coleman) stand in suitably dramatic poses for what promises to be an extremely memorable run of episodes.

So far, Doctor Who Series 8 looks like this:

Episode 01, Deep Breath written by Steven Moffat. Directed by Ben Wheatley. Completed.
Episode 02, written by Phil Ford. Directed by Ben Wheatley. Completed.
Episode 03, written by Mark Gatiss. Directed by Paul Murphy. Completed.
Episode 04, written by Steven Moffat. Directed by Douglas Mackinnon. Completed.
Episode 05, written by Steve Thompson. Directed by Douglas Mackinnon. Completed.
Episode 06, written by Gareth Roberts. Directed by Paul Murphy. Completed.
Episode 07, written by Peter Harness. Directed by Paul Wilmshurst. Completed.
Episode 08, written by Jamie Mathieson. Directed by Paul Wilmshurst. Completed.
Episode 09, written by Jamie Mathieson. Directed by Douglas Mackinnon.
Episode 10, written by TBC. Directed by TBC (still in production).
Episode 11/12, written by Steven Moffat. Directed by Rachel Talalay. (Still in production.)

You’ll notice from the above that Steven Moffat has only written four episodes, with the tenth still to be confirmed. We’re hoping for a big name here, like Neil Gaiman or even – gasp – Russell T Davies.

Amazingly, D0ct0r Who Series 8 is almost upon us. You can set your diary and make social arrangements around it now – how exciting is that?!

The post New Doctor Who Series 8 Lands August 23rd! [VIDEO] appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

David Tennant Proud Of Doomsday’s Rose Separation Shock

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.

Doctor Who is the BEST thing on TV. We know this already. Genre magazine SFX is celebrating their 250th issue with a poll of the greatest 250 moments in sci-fi and fantasy history and it will come as no surprise to you, dear reader, that a scene from OUR SHOW heads the list.

Rose’s farewell to the Tenth Doctor on Dårlig Ulv Stranden (Bad Wolf Bay) was the favourite moment in science-fiction and fantasy as voted by 96,300 readers of SFX. Tennant said:

I feel very lucky to be standing on that beach… Whatever else I do, and wherever else I end up, this will be a moment I am forever proud to look back on.

The scene, from 2006′s series 2 finale Doomsday, is foreshadowed by Rose’s voice-over introduction about her death. Ultimately she doesn’t die but is trapped in a parallel universe where the Doctor cannot reach her. The scene takes place after the Daleks and Cybermen have been sucked back into the “void” and Rose nearly follows them, being rescued by her father from the parallel universe at the last moment.

It came ahead of some uber-classic moments like Darth Vader revealing he is Luke’s father, the chest-burster scene from the original Alien film with the demise of War Doctor, John Hurt’s character. Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Firefly, Bladerunner and The Matrix all make it in to the Top Ten with a couple of surprises and poor old Trek didn’t get a look-in…

So why has this struck such a cord with viewers? Undoubtedly there’s something about the combination of Russell T Davies’ writing and the performances from Piper and Tennant. Billie Piper in particular nails the dialogue – you believe every emotions she goes through and in particular how much it hurts knowing that she can never be with the Doctor again. Tennant pitches it perfectly – the “lonely God” cut off seconds before he can admit his all-too-human feelings (thank goodness – RTD knowing just when to rein it in). The scene rubber-stamps the chemistry that we’d seen between the Doctor and Rose over the first two years of the show’s return – remarkable given that the Doctor had been played by different actors for each year!

We see Rose’s story come full-circle. She had lost a father before she was old enough to know him then got him back. Her boyfriend was a coward but found his chutzpah. Her mother was jumping from bloke to bloke looking for the love she’d lost – and got him back (with another sprog on the way). Rose was in a job she hated but now was doing something that used her skills and challenged her. And at the same time the adventurous life she craved and her best friend – the man she loved – were taken away from her.

And this, I think, is part of what makes the scene stand out so much. When RTD brought the show back, he wasn’t afraid to give it the Buffy treatment and bring love, kissing and *feelings*. Whereas the Doctor had never really been a love interest for other characters or for the audience, he was suddenly, um, kinda cute. And the sort of energetic dazzling chap that a lot of fan-girls (and guys) could get all gooey over. It introduced a whole new viewership to the show and stopped mainstream science-fiction being something just-for-boys. And THIS was where that whole new viewership – in to the lovey stuff – got their dramatic pay-off. Search YouTube for “Doomsday reaction” to see a collection of teenaged emotional meltdowns. Or head over to our article initially announcing the good news to see a breakdown.

But why listen to us when you can take it from the Doctor himself:

I remember worrying on the day we shot this scene that as I was actually a projection from inside the TARDIS my hair shouldn’t be blowing in the wind. 

That seemed terribly important at the time, and although we didn’t find a solution to it, it bothered me for weeks. Then I saw the finished scene and of course all that matters is the end of the Doctor and Rose’s story. Russell had weaved some glorious magic for two seasons and it all came together so perfectly in this scene that people still talk to me about it with misty eyes all these years later (and I suspect they always will).

Of course any poll like this is going to have its own biases – fans of particular things being more likely to respond with a vote. What do you think, Kasterborites – agree with the numbers? Is this the greatest moment in sci-fi/ fantasy and more importantly is it the greatest moment in Doctor Who?

Here’s the Top 10, as voted for by SFX readers:

THE LIST:

1: Doctor Who - The Doctor and Rose say farewell at Bad Wolf Bay in Doomsday

2: Avengers Assemble - The Hulk destroys Loki

3: Alien - John Hurt’s chest-burster scene

4: Firefly - Mal Reynolds kicks a baddie into Serenity’s engine intake (episode: The Train Job)

5: Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back - Darth Vader reveals he is Luke’s father

6: Blade Runner - Roy Batty’s “Tears in rain” monologue improvised by Rutger Hauer

7: Game of Thrones - “The Lannisters send their regards” (The Red Wedding)

8: The Matrix - Neo dodges bullets in the slow-mo bullet-time scene

9: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Novel) – Dumbledore’s death

10: Back To The Future - “Where we’re going, we don’t need roads.”

So what do you think? What else should have made it in? And do you agree with me that Susan’s farewell from 1964 easily beats #5…?

(Via D-T News.)

The post David Tennant Proud Of Doomsday’s Rose Separation Shock appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Steven Moffat Continues as Showrunner for Series 9!

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.

In the new issue of Doctor Who Magazine, Steven Moffat has confirmed he plans to continue as showrunner for Series 9, expected next year.

When questioned in his regular column how far in advance he plans each series, he says:

Sitting here, right now, just before the finale shooting block, I’ve figured out the cliffhanger to the penultimate episode of the next series. And it’s a whopper. Ohh, I don’t think you’ll see this coming!

This not only confirms that he’ll be in charge of the series, but also that the two-parters will be returning (something previously alluded to by Rachel Talalay, director of the finale). Moffat stated that Series 9 would not be a split series, as Series 6 and 7 were, in January and thus also confirmed that a Series 9 had been commissioned.

Personally, I’m over the moon that Moffat will be staying for what is expected to be Peter Capaldi’s second run of stories. I think his era has been one of the strongest in the show’s history. I know some people who would disagree with that, but I’m desperately trying to ignore the negativity that is always so rife on this beautiful beast we called the Internet.

What do we think, Kasterborites? Pleased Moffat’s staying? Annoyed? Fuming? Or just happy that Doctor Who remains fresh and relevant over 50 years after it first debuted?

The post Steven Moffat Continues as Showrunner for Series 9! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Doctor Who Magazine #475 Out Now!

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.

This month’s Doctor Who Magazine stars that wonderful trio of sword-wielding, grenade-loving, leather-clad loveliness: the Paternoster Gang!

In the six-page feature, editor, Tom Spilsbury catches up with Neve McIntosh, Dan Starkey and Catrin Stewart, aka. Vastra, Strax and Jenny! Catrin, in particular, praises Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith, and remembers when she fought alongside him in last year’s The Crimson Horror:

He was so playful and in the moment. Every take was different, he had so many ideas and his energy is infectious. He is so generous and so lovely. It helped because I was so nervous as they were my big scenes and he made me feel at ease.

Last issue was the final Eleventh Doctor comic strip – but Twelfth Doctor, Peter Capaldi is yet to make his debut. Taking over the regular comic strip for a multi-part story is, of course, the Paternoster Gang. The Crystal Throne is written by Scott Gray with art by Mike Collins.

And that’s not all! Here’s what else you can expect from DWM #475:

DWM pays tribute to the life and times of the Kate O’Mara, the actress who played the Rani in Doctor Who during the 1980s.
Former script editor Andrew Cartmel talks to the writers he employed on Doctor Who‘s silver anniversary season back in 1988: Ben Aaronovitch, Graeme Curry and Stephen Wyatt.
Terrance Dicks – script editor, writer and novelist supreme – talks about his work on Doctor Who in the 60s and 70s.
Showrunner Steven Moffat answers readers’ questions in his regular column.
The Fact of Fiction takes a detailed look at the 1977 Fourth Doctor adventure, The Talons of Weng-Chiang.
The Time Team watch the Tenth Doctor and Donna meet Agatha Christie in 2008′s The Unicorn and the Wasp.


Jacqueline Rayner and her family take a trip to see a new police box in Relative Dimensions.


The Watcher poses more questions and reveals dubious secrets from the archives in Wotcha!


Reviews and previews of the latest CDs and books.


The DWM crossword, prize-winning competitions and much more!

Doctor Who Magazine #475, priced £4.99, is on sale at all good newsagents right now!

The post Doctor Who Magazine #475 Out Now! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

The Day of the Doctor in Entertainment Weekly!

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.

We all knew The Day of the Doctor was gonna be something special. We trusted Steven Moffat. And he delivered. That’s why it’s picking up accolades left, right, and centre! Entertainment Weekly #1316, dated 20th June 2014, particularly shines a light on a scene that sent a chill down the spine of even Cybermen: The Curator.

“The Fifty Best TV Scenes” features Tom Baker’s return to Doctor Who as the 39th best scene from June 2013 to June 2014. I think you’ll agree: that’s pretty good going!

You’ll see Broadchurch (written by Dinosaurs on a Spaceship‘s Chris Chibnall) on the same page at #37; in particular, when Beth confronts Ellie about the true killer and utters the words, “How could you not know?” Frankly, it’s really quite unsettling and upsetting. Furthermore, Sherlock‘s wedding scene between John Watson and Mary Morstan – as written by Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss and Steve Thompson – from The Sign of Three came in at #5. Flippin’ good episode, that.

If you so fancy, pop along to your nearest newsagent to secure your copy. It’s the one with Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum (those of 22. Jump Street fame) on the cover.

What other scenes would you have liked to see in the Fifty Best of June 2013-14? I do love the Doctor flying in, hanging from his TARDIS (reminiscent of The Eleventh Hour), thanks to UNIT. When the Tenth Doctor and Eleventh Doctor both sit down, cross their arms and shove their feet on the table – that’s just superb, really reinforcing that this is exactly the same man. Who can forget all the Doctors – “all thirteen!” – saving Gallifrey?

But my vote goes to Matt’s goodbye in The Time of the Doctor. Talk about there not being a dry eye in the house: I still struggle to form any meaningful sentences for an hour after rewatching it. Utterly, utterly heart-breaking, but Matt and Jenna just nail it. And yep, I’ll always remember when the Doctor was you, Matt.

Will Doctor Who Series 8 make it into next year’s list? Well, who knows? Who. Nose. Knows.

(Thanks to Drew. Have a pint on Christian.)

The post The Day of the Doctor in Entertainment Weekly! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Bad Wolf Bay: The BEST Sci-Fi Moment!

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.

The 250th issue of the excellent SFX, a UK science fiction and fantasy magazine, goes on sale today and includes a poll from over 90,000 readers on the top 250 moments in the genres. Billie Piper and David Tennant (and really Russell T Davies and director Graeme Harper with them) come out on top in first place with the Tenth Doctor’s farewell to Rose from 2006′s Doomsday.

Tennant is quoted as saying that people still talk about that scene with “misty eyes” almost eight years later. The Daily Star seem to have the Bad Wolf Bay return visit from the end of Series 4, but here’s the real moment again:

For the sadistic here’s a reaction video of a young lady’s heart imploding at the “Rose Tyler…” moment:

And for the less sadistic here’s confirmation that the Norwegian for “bad” sounds like “Dalek”:

Star Trek fans are not gonna like how the Top 10 turned out, as you can see…

THE LIST:

1: Doctor Who - The Doctor and Rose say farewell at Bad Wolf Bay in Doomsday

2: Avengers Assemble - The Hulk destroys Loki

3: Alien - John Hurt’s chest-burster scene

4: Firefly - Mal Reynolds kicks a baddie into Serenity’s engine intake (episode: The Train Job)

5: Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back - Darth Vader reveals he is Luke’s father

6: Blade Runner - Roy Batty’s “Tears in rain” monologue improvised by Rutger Hauer

7: Game of Thrones - “The Lannisters send their regards” (The Red Wedding)

8: The Matrix - Neo dodges bullets in the slow-mo bullet-time scene

9: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Novel) – Dumbledore’s death

10: Back To The Future - “Where we’re going, we don’t need roads.”

What would be at the top of your list of greatest sci-fi/fantasy moments? (Personally I’d go for Susan’s farewell from Dalek Invasion of Earth but I’m a golden oldie…)

The post Bad Wolf Bay: The BEST Sci-Fi Moment! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Top 5 Rides For A Doctor Who Theme Park

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.

Hasn’t the World Cup been exciting? Great skill, terrific goals, heated controversy…

What’s that you say? Football’s not your thing? You fancy a day out instead? A trip to the funfair should do it! How about the new Doctor Who Theme Park that’s just opened in Stockbridge? They’ve got all sorts of exciting things there!

Kasterborous presents for you a sneak preview of the top five Doctor Who rides!!!

Celestial Toymaker’s Playroom

In which you’ll be guided by a weird bloke dressed as a mandarin who says he only wants to play a few games with you. All seems nice enough and a couple of your party even manage to win a couple of rounds until there’s this really complicated Trilogic Game and you get, like, all confused and stuff, cos you’ve never even played it before and it’s just, like, so unfair cos he’s played it loads of times before so he wins and then he starts getting really nasty and brings out all his death stuff until you, like, do an impression of him and that defeats him.

The Land of Fiction

This is a big white room, almost a void really, where slow moving robots and slow moving toy soldiers will hunt you. One of your party will change appearance after you get mixed up on a rearrange-the-picture type game but don’t worry because he’ll come back as he should be soon enough. And the replacement friend will be happy because he’ll be able to put it on his CV and go to conventions on the strength of it.

The Matrix

Calm down, it hasn’t got Keanu Reeves is it. Here you’ll be stranded in an imaginary reality that very quickly gets very painful when you get your foot trapped by the model railway. Keep quiet about it for goodness sake; Health and Safety would have a field day with that.

It doesn’t get any more pleasant when someone tries to drown you in the water slide and this old lady who’s watching complains and tries to get the whole horrid thing shut down.

The Psychic Circus

Enjoy the magnificent Psychic Circus but watch out for the deadly clowns who have the place in their grip. When you beat them by turning the Gods’ power against them (it’ll work, I promise) there’s a really good bit when you saunter away looking all casual and it explodes behind you and you don’t even flinch. It’ll burn the clothes off your backside but it’ll look so cool.

Warehouse on the Ood Sphere

One for the video game fans, this one. You get trapped in this big warehouse full of boxes and this bloke operating a big claw thing tries to grab you with it and you have to evade him.

Not much more to it than that, really.

But there’s a big brain there as well and a gross bit where a bloke’s head splits open and he turns into an alien, which is quite good I suppose.

Disclaimer

There isn’t really a Doctor Who Theme Park, readers. Of course there isn’t! (This is merely inspired by a forum thread.) But if there were, what would be your top ride?

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Thursday News: Series 8 Finale Photos – and the Drunk Giraffe!

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.

Saddle-up Kasterborites and tighten those stirrups for the Drunk Giraffe, spoilertastic photos, and Ecclestone’s stateside shenanigans! Mount your news-horse and get ready for a gallop through the latest Who-updates with today’s News Blast…

Gillan & Smith delight at Wizard World Comic Con

Cool is NOT Cool!

Last weekend, Matt Smith and Karen Gillan entertained guests at Philidelphia’s Wizard World Comic Con with renditions of both the “Drunk Giraffe” dance move and a revised version of their a cappella Doctor Who theme. Check out the footage via the Radio Times website. They’re a wonderful best-mates double act and looked to be enjoying their time with the fans. Lovely stuff!

SPOILER ALERT – Series 8 finale set photos…

Blastr has flagged up intriguing snaps of the Who production team filming at Cardiff’s National Museum – a location familiar from series 5′s finale as the natural history museum housing the Pandorica. More recently it stood in as the interior of the National Museum in Trafalgar Square in 50th anniversary special, The Day of the Doctor, where one mysterious Curator discussed the fate of Gallifrey with the Eleventh Doctor (via art).

WARNING – spoilers below! From *this* moment on, you’ve been warned…

The photo shows a prop – a black plinth and obelisk being carried into the museum. On it is a large orange circle with a smaller adjacent circle (Gallifreyan script?) and the words “Rest in peace – we promise.”

Your guess is as good as ours (probably better) but this throws up a tantalising list of possibilities.

1) Is the Doctor returning to the National Gallery? Is this about the search for Gallifrey – or does it seem a bit soon? The Moff did suggest it was going to be a loooong story arc…

2) We know episode 8 may be titled “Mummy on the Orient Express” and Moff hinted that the Doctor would be catching up on his phone calls. At the end of Series 5 he took a call from a Queen (not sure which one) about an “Egyptian Goddess loose on the Orient Express… in space.” Said Goddess was apparently sealed into the “seventh obelisk”. The prop is an obelisk – just saying…

3) Call me crazy (used to it) but while that does look like Gallifreyan script, it *also* looks like a Cyberman’s eye. Again. Just saying.

END OF SPOILERS!

Best-Library-Ever holds Doctor Who Day

This Thursday 26th June, from 2-3:30pm, the Noble library (good name) in Oklahoma will be holding a special Doctor Who-themed event for teens. The event is presented by “Ben” who is presumably an AWESOME librarian, will involve a variety of activities and attendees are encouraged to dress as their favourite characters. The event is part of the Teen Summer Reading Program and registration can be done online, by phone or on the day.

Eccleston in US Drama this month

HBO drama, The Leftovers, premiers on 29th June and deals with the people who are left when 2% of the Earth’s population vanishes, three years on… Christopher Ecclestone, the actor behind the Ninth Doctor and Doctor Who‘s return to television in 2005, plays a priest in Mapleton, a community struggling to come to terms with their missing friends and family. Take a look at the trailer over at CBR Spinoff – Paterson Joseph, another Brit actor who played Rodrick in Doctor Who‘s Series 1 finale and if often cited as a possible future Doctor, makes an intense-looking topless appearance…

So tell us your thoughts – were any of you at Gillan & Smith’s panel for Wizard World Comic Con? What do you make of the Series 8 spoilery photo? And will you be watching Eccleston in The Leftovers? Tell us below…!

The post Thursday News: Series 8 Finale Photos – and the Drunk Giraffe! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.