Christian Cawley's Blog, page 339

Peter Capaldi: “Gentle, strong, powerful”

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.

Peoples of the Whoniverse, do not fear: Peter Capaldi’s Doctor will be nothing like the foul-mouthed Malcolm Tucker from The Thick of It, owing to the fact that, actually, Capadldi is quite a nice chap!

According to the Thick of It‘s creator, Armando Iannucci , the 55 year-old actor will display a range of likeable qualities when he takes up the Time Lord mantle in December.

Speaking to the Metro, Iannucci said:

The thing about Peter as Malcolm is he is very angry, but he is actually a very gentle, funny guy. I imagine you will see that range of him going from being gentle to quite a strong and powerful personality and I am really looking forward to it.

This is indeed welcome news, as the thought of a red-faced Capaldi exchanging expletives with a pack of enraged Plasmatons isn’t a good one. Iannucci definitely thinks he’s the right man for the job, though. In fact, he’s surprised he wasn’t offered the job sooner.

I was slightly nervous when I thought he might get it and we were still making The Thick of It. There was a time when David Tennant stood down and I knew Peter would be really good, so when it did finally happen I was pleasantly surprised but it wasn’t a huge surprise because he would be tremendous.

It’s hard to disagree – Peter Capaldi will, indeed, be tremendous in the role, although we doubt he’ll be meeting any Plastmatons.

But you never know…

 

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Short Story Anthology Celebrates the Golden Years

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 Information Network (or DWIN for short) has a long history of providing Whovians on the other side of the Atlantic with their regular Time Lord fix, all the way back to 1980 in fact when the network was first brought into existence, making it the longest running Doctor Who club on the continent.

Their mission statement is “the celebration and promotion of Doctor Who and its Fandom” and a mighty fine job they seem to be doing of it with not only an award-winning bimonthly fanzine entitled Enlightenment, but also with its regular fan fiction anthologies; Myth Makers for short stories and Myth Makers Presents for novel length and special collections (also both award-winning) and attract some rather big names from the literary worlds of Doctor Who including those whose works have appeared in various ‘Short Trips’ collections as well as writing stories for Bernice Summerfield and Iris Wildetyme collections.

The latest such collection is Myth Makers Presents: Golden Years and features twelve stories covering all eleven incarnations of the Doctor.

The stories in Golden Years demonstrate what we love about Doctor Who, and why it endures.

Monsters, time travel and exotic alien worlds. Horror, drama and humour. Golden Years celebrates the many eras of the series, featuring the Doctor in his many aspects: whether magician, scientist, wanderer, battle-scarred survivor or Machiavellian chess-player.

The anthology is 92 pages, perfect bound, and features stories from authors who have previously contributed to Who lore via BBC Books, Short Trips, Obverse Books and other Myth Makers productions and features artwork by Carolyn Edwards, Andy Walker and Iain Robertson (whose work you might have seen on Kasterborous many years ago).

If you do purchase a copy you will also be helping out a good cause with your money, as the anthology is entirely non-profit, with all proceeds going to St John Ambulance Canada.

More information, and how to order is available from www.clarksbury.com/mythmakers.

(With thanks to Matt)

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We May Not Have Seen The Last Of River Song…

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.

When we last saw River Song, she was dead. Somehow linked to Clara and following the Doctor around Tranzalore, the Child of the TARDIS provided some guidance to her husband in The Name of the Doctor. And then she was gone.

Now, however, it seems that the perennially non-linear Mrs Who is coming back – possibly for one last, final meeting with the Doctor.

As you’ll see above, actress Alex Kingston has told BBC America

I look forward to sharing more of [River] with you in the future, but… spoilers!

Might we see her again at Christmas? Could River be appearing in the 50th anniversary?

Or could she, hope-upon-hope, be finally put to rest in a way that is honest and loyal to the character. Remember Forest of the Dead?

The last time I saw you, the real you — the future you, I mean — you turned up on my doorstep, with a new haircut and a suit. You took me to Darillium to see the singing towers. Oh, what a night that was! The towers sang and you cried. You wouldn’t tell me why, but I suppose you knew it was time. My time. Time to come to the Library. You even gave me your screwdriver; that should’ve been a clue.

Could Steven Moffat finally let that scene play out? Might River have an encounter with the Twelfth Doctor, one fleeting, final moment before heading off to The Library?

We shall see…

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Missing Episodes Returned? What Is Going On?

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.

Well I don’t know about you but I had to take a step back from the madness of Doctor Who yesterday amid cries of victory in the ongoing war against time and the missing episodes. Have lost portions of the show’s history been miraculously rediscovered?

In advance of a later article in which we’ll attempt to explain just why there are 106 missing episodes of classic Doctor Who, we’re first going to flip things a bit. There are voices of dissent among the ranks; however, these are notable voices.

For instance:

Doctor Who Magazine editor Tom Spilsbury.

@W15_DAN No, it's nonsense, I'm afraid.

— Tom Spilsbury (@TomSpilsbury) October 6, 2013

Brand Manager Edward Russell.

It's Sunday. The weather's gray and the papers are full of rubbish. So here's a REALLY cool picture of Madonna. pic.twitter.com/Wh8qcJiwql

— Edward Russell (@edwardrussell) October 6, 2013

Restoration Team man (and therefore someone likely to be closely involved with any discovery) Paul Vanezis.

@StewartLundNZ I would love it to be true. But it isn't.

— Paul Vanezis (@PaulVanezis) October 6, 2013

So, what IS going on? Have these episodes been found or not? Are these three chaps being deliberately misleading? It seems unlikely that they should at this stage, given that elements in the press claim that the ship has sailed. With a speculated release date of Wednesday it would seem churlish for anyone to continue with any pretence.

The truth, then, is really that nothing has really changed since last week. There is a rumour about missing episodes being found. There is some sort of screening taking place in the coming days (it might be a hotel, it might be at the BFI depending upon who you believe) and the episodes might be released.

Until we can actually access these videos on iTunes, Amazon or wherever, they remain missing.

We await official confirmation with bated breath.

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Missing Episodes Omnirumour Turned Up To Eleven [UPDATED]

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.

Hot on the heels of the the missing episodes rumour hitting the printed press this morning, the Radio Times claims tonight that two long-lost episodes are set to be released online this week.

Just when we thought the rumour had been put to bed, RadioTimes.com has been lead to believe that two digitally restored episodes from the Patrick Troughton era will be listed on iTunes (and presumably other platforms) from Wednesday.

In addition, a BBC statement said:

There are always rumours and speculation about Doctor Who missing episodes being discovered – however we cannot confirm any new finds.

A spokeswoman apparently told them

We can’t confirm because it’s not true, as far as I’m aware.

It’s not clear if she also denied the claim.

So what do we think? It’s not inconceivable, given previous aspects to this ever-growing rumour. However, we’d have thought that the BFI was the place to unveil and release such things, rather than iTunes.

After all, everything turns up on iTunes these days…

(Via Radio Times.)

Update: BFI Event Announced

Since we published the report above we’ve since learned from The Mirror that a press screening has been arranged this Tuesday night (October 8th) with a BBC spokesman stating:

There will be big news this Tuesday regarding lost Doctor Who episodes. It is great that in the show’s 50th year, fans will now be able to look back with classic episodes as well as looking to the future with the new film-length episode in November.

For some fans watching their lost episodes will be like going back in time.

Details are as yet unknown, but those attending the event will no doubt be informed as to what exactly is going on. A press screening suggests at least one lost episode has been uncovered.

We’ll have more as it becomes available.

BLIMEY!

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Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time #9 Out Now

Nick Kitchen 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 ninth installment of IDW’s Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time series, celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who with a 12 issue run, is now available. Issue #9 features, you guessed it, the Ninth Doctor and everyone’s favorite companion, Rose Tyler.

This issue promises some major revelations for the Prisoners of Time story-line:

“Who has been kidnapping the Doctor’s companions? The Doctor’s mysterious enemy revealed!”

Now that’s a teaser (#thisishowitsdone)! The cover artwork also features the creepy mask kid from the Series 1 episodes, The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances. Will the issue see the return of the Chula? Who’s been snatching up his companions?

 

Will there be creepy mask people?

If you’re following along with the series, now is the time to find out! It’s available from IDW online, the Comixology mobile app, and your favorite local comic shop.

(IDW)

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Sunday Paper Claims 106 Missing Episodes Found

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.

Under the headline “Over 100 long-lost Doctor Who episodes found by dedicated fans – in Ethiopia” the Sunday Mirror today takes the so-called omnirumour into the mainstream – on the say-so of a fan’s friend…

We all know the story by now – the rumour has been circulating since last year and has been covered here a couple of times – but this is the first time it has made the daily press in any significant way.

What makes this report all the more unusual is that the papers were supposedly tipped off by a bloke whose mate told him it was true. Says Stuart Kelly (apparently a Doctor Who expert):

I was told by a friend that the ­episodes have been found in Ethiopia. The BBC is ­negotiating to get them back right now. I really can’t say any more than that.

It’s interesting, because I’ve been told that the episodes have been found in Singapore, Hong Kong and Ghana. Doesn’t actually make it true, though, does it?

The Sunday Mirror quotes a BBC source:

It is a triumph and fans ­everywhere will be thrilled. This is a really big deal for the BBC and is set to make them millions from the sale of the DVDs.

Yep, they freely attributed that rentaquote to someone from the BBC (rather than making it up, as it is based on the bleeding obvious.)

But what do you think? More stuff and nonsense or has the ongoing nature of the rumour changed your mind?

(With thanks to James Whittington)

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Amy Pond Not Returning For 50th Anniversary

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.

We pretty much knew it already but Karen Gillan has this week confirmed that Amy Pond isn’t in the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special.

Chatting to the Radio Times, the no-longer-flame-haired actress made it clear that she isn’t in the 75 minute special which goes out on November 23rd.

I’m not in it, just to put that out there.

But will the former time traveller be watching the worldwide simulcast of The Name of the Doctor?

I think I’m going to be in America, so I’ll probably round up all the people who like to watch Doctor Who in the area. We’ll probably watch it and drink PG Tips and eat Jammy Dodgers, if I can get them.

(Via Radio Times.)

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Watch the PodKast Live – NOW!

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.

It’s time for our monthly live podKast this weekend, and from 3pm/10am EST tomorrow (Sunday, October 6th) UK time we’ll be on Google Hangouts to record this week’s show – and we want you to get involved!

Topics under discussion this time around include the Doctor Who Figurine Collection, some of the big news of the past week (including, perhaps, David Tennant’s accent – both his own and his thoughts on that of others…) and The Three Doctors. That’s right, as the weeks wend their timey-wimey way to the 50th anniversary, we’re taking a look at the Doctor’s previous anniversaries, starting off with 1973′s trio of Time Lords.

To take part, you can head to our Google Hangout or YouTube page from 3pm UK and 10am EST US time where James, Christian and Brian will be ready to talk – and be talked back to!

Watch out also for updates on Twitter and Facebook between now and then.

If you’re reading this from 3pm, you should be able to view the podKast above.

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Watch the PodKast Live, 3pm on Sunday!

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.

It’s time for our monthly live podKast this weekend, and from 3pm tomorrow (Sunday, October 6th) UK time we’ll be on Google Hangouts to record this week’s show – and we want you to get involved!

Topics under discussion this time around include the Doctor Who Figurine Collection, some of the big news of the past week (including, perhaps, David Tennant’s accent – both his own and his thoughts on that of others…) and The Three Doctors. That’s right, as the weeks wend their timey-wimey way to the 50th anniversary, we’re taking a look at the Doctor’s previous anniversaries, starting off with 1973′s trio of Time Lords.

To take part, you can head to our Google Hangout or YouTube page from 3pm UK and 11am EST US time where James, Christian and Brian will be ready to talk – and be talked back to!

Watch out also for updates on Twitter and Facebook between now and then.

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