Christian Cawley's Blog, page 272

Mark Gatiss Heads To Brazil To Promote Doctor Who & Sherlock

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.

Acclaimed British screenwriter, producer and actor Mark Gatiss will be visiting Brazil in March in a special publicity tour for BBC Worldwide to talk about British drama including international TV sensation Sherlock and his work on global hit Doctor Who.

Gatiss, who is the co-creator and executive producer of Sherlock (which has sold to over 200 territories across the world) has been invited to speak at the prestigious Rio Content Market – an annual industry event for producers, TV content buyers and commissioners in Latin America.  At the conference, he will be giving a presentation on his career in British drama with a focus on Sherlock and also An Adventure in Space and Time – the drama about the genesis of Doctor Who which he wrote and produced last year as part of the brand’s 50th Anniversary celebrations. He will also talk about his work writing for and acting in various episodes of the sci-fi series.  The event will be hosted by TV journalist Liv Brandao and Brazilian stage director Claudio Botelho.

As part of the tour, Mark will also be meeting fans at two events specially organised by BBC Worldwide.  The first will be a screening of The Empty Hearse – the opening episode of the latest series of Sherlock, written by Gatiss and in which he stars alongside Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock’s brother Mycroft Holmes.  The screening will take place at Livraria Cultura (Cine Victoria) in Rio de Janeiro on Friday 14th March at 7pm.  As part of the event, Mark will take part in a Q and A and signing session with fans.

The second event will take place at Livraria Cultura (Shopping Iguatemi) in Sao Paulo at 7pm on Saturday 15th March.  Fans will have the opportunity to ask questions about Mark’s work Doctor Who, Sherlock and the recent drama An Adventure in Space and Time.  He will also take part in a limited signing of Sherlock and Doctor Who merchandise.  Further details of both events and how to obtain tickets will be released soon on www.doctorwho.tv/events, Details of the venues can be found at www.livrariacultura.com.br.

Commenting on the forthcoming tour Mark Gatiss says:

It’s fantastic that British TV is being enjoyed all across the world and I’m really looking forward to meeting Brazilian Doctor Who and Sherlock fans!

Sherlock and Doctor Who have both seen notable growth in Latin America in the last year, with a huge number of fans engaging with both shows on social media.  The official Sherlock Facebook page has seen an 80% increase in the number of Brazilian fans in the last year and the Doctor Who page a 54% increase – the highest for any country in the world. Both series air on BBC HD and BBC Entertainment in Brazil which are pay-TV channel wholly owned and operated by BBC Worldwide.  They are also both available on Netflix Latin America.

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Capaldi To Record New Doctor Who Experience Adventure Sequences?

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.

The Doctor Who Experience in Cardiff is a magical place, part interactive cinematic theme park ride part museum.

I was lucky enough to be there on opening day back in July of 2012 and experienced the thrill of the Matt Smith adventure (though my 2yr old son insisted on flying the TARDIS as I was, apparently, too old to know how to do it) and the ‘sqeee’ joy of seeing all the costumes and props and monsters upstairs in the exhibition.

Now it’s 2014 and we have a new Doctor on the way, and as such we shall be getting a whole new adventure at the Experience to go with it. Later this year the Experience will be closing down the Matt Smith adventure section for around six weeks, though the exhibition area will remain open through this time, in preparation for the brand spanking new Capaldi experience which will no doubt be filled with all the spectacular sights that we can expect in series eight in the early (we hope) autumn. This, much like the Matt Smith version, will feature specially recorded footage of the new Doctor who will, we assume, be guiding visitors on their adventure.

I know that I will definitely be making a trip to see this once its up and running, and quite possibly making a final pilgrimage to do the Matt Smith version one last time, and maybe, finally get my turn at flying the TARDIS. How about you, have you been, are you planning on going? How does this news affect your plans? Let us know in the usual way below.

(Via Cultbox)

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Is This The End for Character Building?

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.

Doctor Who fans have been calling for a deal with Lego for many years. Back in 2010 we got Character Building, a similar block-building system, but it never felt quite like the real thing, for obvious reasons.

However, something has happened over the past few days which may have put an end to the wait. The Lego Cuusoo site – which handles fan builds and product requests – has a special feedback area, which explains itself thus:

Sometimes we have to turn down project submissions that refer to specific brands or licensed properties. We do this to avoid getting your hopes up for something we know we aren’t able to make. In these cases, we already know the LEGO Group can’t secure licensing rights to produce construction toys based on a particular brand or property, due to a conflicting interest with a third party.

Last week, the self-same site published an update:

Resolved Past Licensing Conflicts
We now welcome projects based on the following licenses that used to have conflicts:

Doctor Who – February 2014

Last updated February 25, 2014

Now, you may have seen this news since it was announced. We decided to hold back a few days to see if anything formal was announced by Lego, BBC Worldwide or – more crucially – Character. After all, their Character Building range has been supplying fans with building-block Doctor Who toys. Has it’s license for this type of toy come to an end?

All we have to go on is the Lego Cuusoo announcement, but either way it is pretty intriguing, and very exciting for any fans who have been holding out for genuine Lego Doctor Who sets. Head over to lego.cuusoo.com to register and upload your suggestions to perhaps one day see Dalek playsets, TARDIS interiors and even the Captain’s bridge from The Pirate Planet!

So, what do you think? Has the Character Building range come to an end where Doctor Who is concerned? And if that particular license has been lost, what might be on the cards for Character following their controversial switch to the 3.5″ figures?

(With thanks to Gareth | Image credit Shadowman)

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The Time of the Doctor Hits US Store Shelves Today!

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.

Tomorrow is March 4, 2014, which means that North American fans can pick up their copy of Doctor Who: The Time of the Doctor on DVD and Blu-ray!

With over 60 minutes of sensational bonus features including an hour-long special celebrating Matt Smith’s tenure as the Eleventh Doctor, this is a must-have for any Doctor Who fan’s collection.

The final appearance of Matt Smith as the Doctor – and the first for Peter Capaldi – also features Daleks, Cybermen, Silence and Sontarans (among others) and has a suggested retail price of $14.98 ($18.74 in Canada) for the DVD and $19.98 ($24.98 in Canada) for the Blu-ray.

Of course, you could buy from Amazon, where the two versions are available for an awesome $9.99 and $11.99.

If you want it tomorrow, however, it might be time to make arrangements to start queuing…

The post The Time of the Doctor Hits US Store Shelves Today! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

The Time of the Doctor Hits US Store Shelves Tuesday!

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.

Tomorrow is March 4, 2014, which means that North American fans can pick up their copy of Doctor Who: The Time of the Doctor on DVD and Blu-ray!

With over 60 minutes of sensational bonus features including an hour-long special celebrating Matt Smith’s tenure as the Eleventh Doctor, this is a must-have for any Doctor Who fan’s collection.

The final appearance of Matt Smith as the Doctor – and the first for Peter Capaldi – also features Daleks, Cybermen, Silence and Sontarans (among others) and has a suggested retail price of $14.98 ($18.74 in Canada) for the DVD and $19.98 ($24.98 in Canada) for the Blu-ray.

Of course, you could buy from Amazon, where the two versions are available for an awesome $9.99 and $11.99.

If you want it tomorrow, however, it might be time to make arrangements to start queuing…

The post The Time of the Doctor Hits US Store Shelves Tuesday! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Captain Knight Recalls Lost Doctor Who The Web of Fear

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.

Have you got The Web of Fear DVD yet? Or are you still waiting for it to turn up in the post like me (darned second class delivery!) One person with a special interest in this new release is Ralph Watson, Captain Knight in the story, who’s been sharing his memories of the classic Second Doctor tale in a recent interview.

Chatting with BBC Radio Norfolk, Watson speaks fondly of Patrick Troughton who, during journeys to rehearsals, was eager to show off his latest artistic efforts:

Patrick and I got on terribly well… He knew that I’d studied fine art at university and he used to do paintings, you know. One of his hobbies was to do copies of master paintings, usually impressionists… He used to bring them in the car and take them out of the glove box and say ‘what do you think of this then?’

Like a lot of people, Watson was initially sceptical when told that the long-lost story had been found (“it was like the Holy Grail”) until he was contacted by the BBC. Intriguingly, it turns out he was something of an early missing episode hunter himself:

I used to go in the back way to Television Centre and it used to have skips, and I used to look in the skips…. I’ve got some tapes here of Kenneth Williams…. I looked in a skip and it said Kenneth Williams and I thought ‘oh, that’s worth a listen!’

What a shame he didn’t see some Doctor Who episodes as well! But at least we can now enjoy Ralph Watson’s performance in The Web of Fear. As he modesty says himself:

I thought I was quite good in it! I thought the boy was alright!

The Web of Fear can be ordered now from Amazon, where the £20.42 RRP is reduced to just £13.82!

(Via Life, Doctor Who & Combom).

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Hey Quick Reads: Where’s Our Doctor Who Book?!

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’re big fans of Quick Reads, an initiative to get people reading, here at Kasterborous Towers, but this year, it appears we’ve been let down.

Since 2006′s I Am A Dalek, we’ve had some fantastic little books from Quick Reads; they even tempted the mighty Terrance Dicks into forging new stories about Cybermen and Judoon. But this year, there’s a Jeffrey Archer short story compilation, a gritty tale by Lynda LaPlante, and a tome about putting up curtains (or something) called Blackout by Emily Barr. That’s right – no Doctor Who!

We’ve had five Tenth Doctor books, and a measly two Eleventh Doctor ones. There was a one-year break from the range between Code of the Krillitanes and 2012′s Magic of the Angels. Last year’s The Silurian Gift (which was bold enough to bring back the Myrka!) looked to have cemented Doctor Who back into the range’s regular releases, but alas.

It seems there are so few Eleventh Doctor books on sale, and it really is a great shame. One from Quick Reads may have been an olive branch from the BBC to the minds of the masses, a sign to say, ‘don’t worry, we’ll never forget about Matt either.’

Maybe next year…?

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UK Fans May Not See Titan’s ‘Who’ Comics in Stores

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.

Dear Titan Comics,

First of all, the upcoming Doctor Who comics look great, and I’m seriously looking forward to seeing both the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors in action – as well as the Twelfth, whenever that ongoing series will launch.

But I am dismayed to hear that, come 23rd July 2014, whilst all US fans will be rushing to their local Midtown Comics store (or, if you will, a 7-11) to grab at the beautiful issues, with cover art by Alice X. Zhang, UK fans will have to bemoan their fate, knocking down copious amounts of alcohol, playing the violin, and watching Meglos to drown out our own despair. Because, even though Doctor Who has “BRITISH” written all over it – not actually (give me time, and a crayon) – your mighty-fine-lookin’ comics won’t be easily available in the United Kingdom due to a messy licensing issue.

The problem, as I’m sure you’re aware, is that only Doctor Who Magazine has the rights to distribute comic books in Britain. It’s a horrible situation that probably means smaller comic stores won’t be able to stock your upcoming Who titles.

There were rumours that you, Titan, were buying DWM, but BBC Worldwide has denied this once, twice, three times a Time Lady, so I guess that really isn’t going to happen.

The same problem arose when – sorry to mention a rival of yours – IDW was bringing out their comics, and The Escapist notes how this was overcome:

“Titan Comics will have to distribute Doctor Who to North American bookstores, who in turn can sell the books to British bookstores. It’s like watching the effects of a paradox from outside of time, but you don’t want to touch it just in case it destroys the universe.

 

Sure, this is pretty much what British shops needed to do when IDW ran the show, but IDW is based out of San Diego; racking up shipping charges is a little more understandable in that context. At the end of the day, British Doctor Who fans will still get their Doctor Who comics, but delays and mark-ups will remain an issue.”

So here I am, asking you to approach the kind folks at BBC Worldwide and ask for their permission. I hear they like Dalek-shaped cookies. Make sure there are enough though: last time, Derek in PR got left out, an argument ensued and Christopher Eccleston withdrew from The Day of the Doctor after being called a “rapskallion.”

All this means that, whilst Forbidden Planet should still be able to get copies, we’ll be lucky to get the July issues by the time Peter Capaldi makes his debut.

Other than that, however, I’m sure your series will be superb, and if you’re ever looking for a writer, I know one or two that resemble myself but come with the pseudonyms ‘Suade McKenzie,’ ‘Leon H. Parkerfield’ and ‘Mary Westmacott.’

Thanks for your time.

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Rare 1960s Doctor Who Cards Appear On eBay!

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.

Now here’s something you don’t see very often – rare 1960s Doctor Who cards, on eBay!

These fascinating items have surfaced thanks to a memorabilia collector who’s selling off some of his acquisitions, (with the promise of more to come, so this could be an account to watch…) The items in question are two complete sets of collectible cards; first, the Doctor Who Adventures cards, which were given away with Wall’s ice lollies; second, we have the Doctor Who and the Daleks cards, given away with Cadet’s Sweets.

There are 36 cards in the first set and 50 in the second, and they originate from a “pet and smoke-free home”, as well as being presented in protective binder. The seller also promises a full money-back guarantee should the items prove to be unsatisfactory, so there is a minimal risk to any investment. Moreover, it is worth noting that, whilst there are very slight signs of age on some of the cards, they appear to have been exquisitely preserved – a real ‘must’ for early Who fans.

Particularly intriguing is the moment where the Daleks meet the Voords on card 3 of 50. Just one question, though… Is it canon?!

The auction ends on Thursday – head to eBay now to place your bids!

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Reviewed: Antidote to Oblivion

Meredith Burdett 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.

After many years, the Sixth Doctor finally gets a full rematch with Sil, a nasty little slug-like creature whose only drive in life is greed, self-fulfilment and profit. And boy was it worth the wait.

Antidote to Oblivion finds the Doctor and his friend Flip answering a Time Lord distress call which brings them to future London, one where Sill has established some dastardly business dealings to extort money from the local populace. But this time around, Sil has bigger plans that have moved far beyond merely grasping at small amounts of currency, this time he’s got a bigger business transaction in motion and it may just result in the general genocide of the population of the planet.

Writer Philip Martin returns to the Doctor Who fold to start Big Finish off in 2014 and manages to successfully offer a fresh and yet still familiar story for Sil the Mentor to act at his most ruthless. Serving as a sequel to not only the televised Sixth Doctor stories Vengeance on Varos and The Trial of a Time Lord: Mindwarp, Martin also uses this opportunity to tie up a loose end from his story Mission to Magnus, which was unmade for television but produced by Big Finish some years ago under their Lost Stories range.

Martin’s explorations of body horror are used again here but rather than focussing on physical transformations as he did in his 1980’s Doctor Who episodes, the writer updates his scripts to give them a more 21st Century feel and mixes human experimentation with germ and chemical warfare, not only utilising his strengths as a storyteller but also proving the fact that he’s moved forwards with the times to establish what scares a modern-day audience. Episode 3 of this 4 parter makes for some very dramatic listening indeed as the Doctor and Flip are isolated together as they fight off manifestations of germs that mean to break out into the rest of the world. With only the Doctor and his friend using their will to keep the various diseases at bay, there truly are some great moments of tension for the listener.

Antidote to Oblivion also ties up some of the looser storylines from The Trial of a Time Lord, not all but just a few of the puzzling questions from Martin’s original segments that may have left viewers scratching their heads. Maybe answers is a strong word but certainly a few helpful hints to help to ease the pain of a mystery that has lasted for nearly 30 years.

Where this story really works is with the ever engaging performance from Nabil Shaban as the slimy Sil. Shaban still shines as the character and his relish and humour help to keep this story moving forward at all times. Shaban is wonderfully evil and tantalisingly sadistic in his scenes as Sil; his rapport with the character is second to none and is surely one of the most memorable performances in Doctor Who both on and off-screen.

This is not only a fun and riveting start to the 2014 Big Finish Doctor Who range but also a much-anticipated return from not only Nabil Shaban but also writer Philip Martin.

Antidote to Oblivion is available from www.bigfinish.com now on CD or via download.

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