Christian Cawley's Blog, page 390

Eve Myles Confirms and Denies Torchwood Return

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.

Is Torchwood coming back?

That’s certainly been the question that many people have been asking since good old Captain Jack Harkness and friends were last seen in Miracle Day all the way back in 2011.

Captain Jack and Gwen Cooper stand around doing nothing during a global catastrophe…

Since the successful miniseries aired, Torchwood has been in a limbo and although there seems to be the will, it’s the way that is causing some confusion.

But rest assured that the cast, and possibly the crew, still all have their fingers crossed that Torchwood has yet to have its day, as Eve Myles confirmed in a recent interview for BBC Breakfast.

Whilst talking about her new drama series that she’s starring in, Frankie, the actress was also asked if Torchwood was coming back. One tongue in cheek answer later and Myles was discussing with her interviewers exactly why she would like to bring the show back to the small screen and the possibilities of that actually happening.

Although Torchwood feels far from over, it does seem like we won’t see the show come back for at least a few more years, maybe if the BBC and American channel Starz can agree then we might get lucky but for now, it seems that the exploits of Captain Jack, Gwen Cooper and Torchwood will have to remain a mystery…

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No Announcement On New Doctor Who Star Until September?

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.

Big news on the announcement of the casting of the Twelfth Doctor is coming our way… but not until September – probably.

Reports indicate that the BBC will not be announcing the name of the actor involved until early autumn and that the filming of the 2013 Doctor Who Christmas special, followed by a full new series, will not take place until August or September2013.

Apparently, although the BBC wanted to start filming the Eleventh Doctor’s last hurrah in July, plans have been pushed back a bit which means that casting announcements have too

The official line continues to be that Matt Smith has not filmed his last scenes in the TARDIS as yet, despite what some have been suggesting (um, you mean us, right? – Ed) after his recent goodbye video.

What it doesn’t confirm, intriguingly enough, is that the role of the Twelfth Doctor hasn’t been cast; all that we’re offered is that the announcement has been delayed.

Moffat and his team always love to put a few red herrings out there for the public to dissect but could it be that the actor to take over from Matt Smith has already been cast and is waiting in the shadows to take over the role as Gallifrey’s most infamous child?

(Via Radio Times.)

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Destiny of the Doctor 8: Enemy Alien

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.

Coming soon from Big Finish Productions is the Eighth installment of the Destiny of the Doctor series, Enemy Alien, which continues the audio book adventure series counting down through the Doctor’s eleven incarnation’s right up to the anniversary date.

We’ve already seen entries written by such Big Finish luminaries and fans as Jonathan Morris, Andrew Smith and Nev Fountain and now it’s the Eighth Doctor’s turn to showcase the very best of what Doctor Who has to offer.

Written by Alan Barnes and performed by Charley Pollard actress India Fisher and Michael Maloney, this Eighth Doctor adventure is available to pre-order now from Amazon for release on the 1st August for £6.43 on CD

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Is a Blue Plaque for Terry Nation Likely?

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.

The Llandaff Society is hoping to celebrate the life of Dalek creator, Terry Nation, with a blue plaque on the home he grew up in Cardiff.

The man himself, Dalek creator Terry Nation

As reported by Wales Online, the group are hoping to get the blue plaque put on his childhood home in time for the 50th anniversary on November 23rd.

The society’s chairman, Geoff Barton-Greenwood, said:

“At the moment we are seeking permission from the owner of the house and, in addition, we want the BBC to take an interest in this, and possibly get one of the main characters from the Doctor Who series to do the unveiling.”

Geoff, who would love for Matt Smith to unveil the plaque, is waiting for the BBC’s head of drama publicity to get in touch with him.

Terry Nation lived in 113 Fairwater Grove West for the first 20 years of his life and was a schoolboy at Canton High School before going off to make his fortune in London, and subsequently in Hollywood as a scriptwriter.

Terry also came up with cult sci-fi shows Blake’s 7 and Survivors, and worked on The Avengers, The Baron, The Persuaders!, The Champions, Department S, and The Saint.

Geoff added:

“If you look at the duration of the Doctor Who series, over a 50 year period, and the fact that the Daleks appeared in the second series and have been there ever since as the arch enemy of the doctor, there must be something about them that has made them iconic to young people.

My grandson has vast images of them on his walls. It has made a big impression on him. Just like it did on his father, who is now 41.”

It is hoped Cadw will provide half the funding for the memorial, which would be made either from ceramic or aluminium.

There is no official blue plaque scheme in Wales but there is a civic initiative scheme run by the Welsh Government agency.

A BBC spokeswoman said:

“Terry Nation was a fantastic writer and we would be happy to support this recognition of his creative talent.”

We reckon all Doctor Who fans will be thrilled to see the plaque in place – so fingers crossed!

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Moffat to Speak at TV Drama Writers’ Festival

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.

Steven Moffat is among those set to speak at this year’s TV Drama Writers’ festival.

Moffat will deliver this year’s keynote speech, in conversation with fellow Doctor Who writer Toby Whithouse, at the event being held at Leeds College of Music on June 26-27.

The event, organised by the BBC Writersroom, is curated by writers Emma Frost (The White Queen) and Jack Thorne (The Fades).

Also in attendance for sessions will be writers Chris Chibnall (Broadchurch), Dennis Kelly (Utopia), Bryan Elsley (Skins), Sally Wainwright (Last Tango in Halifax) and BBC Controller of Drama Ben Stephenson.

Kate Rowland, the BBC’s Creative Director of New Writing and Head of Writersroom said:

“As curators of the 2013 TV Writers’ Festival, Emma Frost and Jack Thorne, two of our most dynamic writers, have chosen the theme of conflict at the heart of drama and the art of being a writer.

With a keynote debate on sex and violence, the role of the Commissioner with Ben Stephenson and Anne Mensah, Chris Chibnall on Broadchurch and a Face to Face with the brilliant Steven Moffat, this year’s Festival is bound to provoke, entertain and challenge in equal measure.”

Applications for tickets to the event are now closed.

(via Digital Spy)

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BFI Doctor Who at 50 Screenings Update

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.

Here’s your regular update on the Doctor Who BFI screenings, with plenty of exciting news to digest!

Those of you lucky enough to get your hands on a pair of tickets to the screening of Remembrance of the Daleks taking place on Saturday 27th July (one lucky Kasterborous writer got their tickets confirmed last week, we’ll give you a clue, he’s writing this article now) will be delighted to discover that the guests for the screening have been announced and it’s a fantastic line up.

Not only will Seventh Doctor actor Sylvester McCoy be in attendance with Ace actress Sophie Aldred, they will also be joined on stage by Doctor Who legends Mike Tucker and Andrew Cartmel, Ben Aaronovitch and Dick Mills. All these key Doctor Who players from the classic series, brought together under one roof for a very special Q & A session!

But for those of you that did not get tickets, there is one last hope-the BFI is holding a competition to win two tickets as well as a copy of their book 100 Science Fiction films, all you have to do is visit the competition page and answer the question. Closing date for the competition is July 19th.

On a different note, August 2013’s screening should have been the TV Movie starring Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor but due to guest availability, this has been postponed to a little later in the year as BFI spokeswoman Liz Parkinson confirmed:

Due to guest availability, we’ve moved our Eighth Doctor event to a little later in the year, so our Ninth Doctor event has been brought forward.

That’s right, the tribute to the Ninth Doctor will take place sooner than you expected. We imagine that they will be announcing the guest appearances for this screening in July, who will appear onstage? Could it be Billie Piper, Noel Clarke or maybe even Christopher Eccleston?

BFI Champions will be able to enter for tickets from July 1st, BFI members from July 2nd, remember though the ballot will close on Friday 5th July and be decided over the weekend of 6th and 7th July with all entrants being notified on Monday 8th July if they have been successful or not.

Any tickets reserved for Champions and members through the ballot will be held until 8.30pm on Friday 12th July, and any that are unclaimed by will be released for public sale on Saturday 13th July.

Got all that? Good luck to everyone trying to get a ticket!

Ninth Doctor Screening Update

With the recent news that, due to guest scheduling, the Eighth Doctor TV Movie would be replaced with a screening from the Ninth Doctor’s era, the BFI has confirmed that epic two-part adventure Bad Wolf and The Parting of the Ways will screen as August’s Doctor at 50 offering.

The Series 1 finale saw the Ninth Doctor risk everything to save Rose Tyler in a battle against the Daleks, and marked the first ever appearance of the Tenth Doctor, so not only do you get Skaro’s finest on the big screen, you also get two Doctors for the price of one!

The screenings will take place on Saturday 24th August at 2pm at BFI Southbank,although guest speakers are yet to be announced but the good people at the BFI are yet to let us down in that respect.

The screening for the Eighth Doctor’s adventure is yet to be confirmed but a September slot seems likely. For more information visit the BFI’s What’s On page.

(Via Doctor Who News.)

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Jenna Goes To Pemberley

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.

The all star casting announcements for the adaptation of the PD James classic Death Comes To Pemberley get even better this week as the BBC add more well known names to the production with a few familiar faces from the world of Doctor Who.

The adaptation, by Juliette Towhidi, is described by the BBC as a:

Remarkably inventive homage to Austen [and] brings her much-loved world to life in an original and suspenseful way.

Following the announcements of the starring roles as Anna Maxwell Martin – who you’ll recognise from 2005′s The Long Game (playing Elizabeth), Matthew Rhys (playing Darcy) and Matthew Goode (playing Wickham), there has also been confirmation of none other than our own Jenna-Louise Coleman (playing Lydia Wickham).

Meanwhile, James Norton, from 2013’s Cold War, is also case as Mr Alveston. There will also be several other appearances by well known BBC talent including James Fleet (The Vicar Of Dibley) as Mr Bennett, Penelope Keith (To The Manor Born) as Lady Catherine de Bourgh and Doctor Who-hating misery guts Trevor Eve (Waking The Dead) as Sir Selwyn Hardcastle.

The production begins filming this month on location in Yorkshire and is being supported with investment from Screen Yorkshire.

Directed by BAFTA-winning director Daniel Percival (Dirty War) and executive produced for the BBC by Polly Hill, Death Comes To Pemberley is a murder mystery tale set six years after the events of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.

Death Comes To Pemberley will be shown on a BBC channel in the near future.

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Cover Story: Radio Times at 90

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.

Radio Times and the Museum of London have teamed up to stage a brand new exhibition – Cover Story: Radio Times at 90 – marking the ninth decade of the publication with an exclusive Doctor Who display.

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Fans will be able to become a cover star themselves alongside a genuine life-size Dalek against the iconic backdrop of Westminster Bridge – recreating the award-winning 2005 cover ‘Vote Dalek’ Radio Times cover.

The other covers featured in the exhibition comprise a veritable who’s who of British broadcasting, including Tony Hancock, The Goon Show, Only Fools and Horses, EastEnders, Coronation Street and Call the Midwife.

The exhibition will take visitors from the BBC’s first radio transmission to today’s multi-channel offer, through landmark broadcasts, archive clips broadcast artefacts and original Radio Times photography and artwork, including pieces by CRW Nevinson, John Gilroy and influential British graphic designer Abram Games.

Ben Preston, Radio Times Editor, said:

“To flick through the covers of Radio Times over the past 90 years is to watch a popular history of Britain unfold: Royal weddings; Coronations; the outbreak of war and peace; moon landings and even a victorious World Cup, household names created and stars born – all have graced the cover of Radio Times. No other magazine can rival Radio Times for showcasing the work of some of the nation’s finest artists and photographers, creating unforgettable magazine covers that resonate today. In our 90th year, it is fantastic to work with the Museum of London to celebrate Radio Times heritage and continued success.”

Other highlights include an illuminating original 1941 Luftwaffe Stadtplan von London map which plots Radio Times’ Waterlows printing plant in Park Royal, London, as a Nazi air-raid target alongside transport hubs, factories and landmarks.

Jim Gledhill, Museum of London Curator:

“The history of broadcasting in Britain has strong associations with London as the birthplace of the BBC. Radio Times has been an integral part of this history, so it is fitting that the Museum of London mark its 90th anniversary.”

First published by the BBC in London on 28 September 1923, Radio Times has had a long, illustrious life, documenting popular culture in TV and radio and national events watched by millions. Radio Times remains relevant in the digital age as Britain’s best-selling quality magazine with almost 900,000 weekly sales and 3 million monthly visitors to RadioTimes.com.

Following up, Sharon Ament, Museum of London Director added:

“Some of the most momentous moments from Radio Times’ considerable cannon will be on our walls. That’s not only rather splendid but totally apt as this publication has been a large part of much of our culture for the past 90 years.  With its roots in London there was a point when no sitting room was without this magazine, it was a weekly ritual to pore over its pages.

The Museum of London tells the story of the world’s greatest city and its people, and it is Londoners who have led the way as both the producers and consumers of broadcast media. Now Radio Times has a significant presence in another sort of living room – that of a vibrant and buzzing museum. I can’t wait for it to open.”

Cover Story: Radio Times at 90 is free to visitors, and is open from Friday 2 August 2013 until Sunday 3 November 2013 at the Museum of London.

This is one of two exhibitions this year at the Museum of London which focuses on the London’s media. Later in the year, the museum will host the UK Picture Editors’ Guild Awards 2013, opening in November.

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Introducing: The Ark in Space

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.

As part of our 50th anniversary celebrations, we’re looking back at some of the pivotal tales of all of time and space, taking on one Doctor each month, running up to November – and An Unearthly Child…

1975’s The Ark in Space is a masterclass in Doctor Who, written by arguably the person who knew the show best, Robert Holmes. I love it. It’s probably my favourite Fourth Doctor serial – and I’m certain I’m not on my own in this assertion.

Despite it being only his second on-screen adventure, Tom Baker has said that it was his favourite serial to film; 2005-2010 showrunner, Russell T Davies stated that it’s his favourite Classic Who story; and current showrunner, Steven Moffat confessed to Doctor Who Magazine that it remains his favourite Fourth Doctor tale.

But for a storyline so well-received and so loved, it had a troublesome genesis…

Giving the Helmic Regulator Quite a Twist

The Ark in Space had three – or possibly even four – writers, though the majority of these drafts might not even be recognisable. It’s been suggested that the tale has its origins in an idea by Douglas Adams (City of Death; The Pirate Planet) entitled Ark, though it was producer, Philip Hinchcliffe, who set its tone: something noticeably more ‘adult’ than some previous adventures, ie. darker.

The synopsis of Space Station was submitted in December 1973 and just one month later, writer and Who newcomer, Christopher Langley was commissioned to script four episodes. Hinchcliffe and script editor, Holmes, decided that the space station would be a lynchpin for Season 12, using the concept of an abandoned Earth in The Sontaran Experiment and the actual station set – Nerva – again in Revenge of the Cybermen. After Tom Baker’s debut storyline, Robot, these serials, alongside Genesis of the Daleks, create a Season-long arc – quite fittingly, really!

But Langley’s scripts were deemed unsuitable, so the notion was passed on to established Who name, John Luccarotti (The Aztecs; The Massacre of St. Bartholomew’s Eve). The four-part story sounds pretty madcap, but some basic familiar elements have their origins here, notably an alien race invading an ark in which the human race are cryogenically frozen. However, Holmes told Doctor Who Magazine that Lucarotti was unable to complete rewrites:

“He was living on a boat in Corsica at the time and there was a postal dispute so the scripts came in – after I’d outlined the sort of story we wanted – a bit later than expected. When the second episode came in, we could see it was veering off the course that we wanted but it was too late to do anything about it. Then when the last bit came in, Philip [Hinchcliffe] said, ‘We can’t use this thing – we’ve eighteen days to get it right’. That was just before the director, Rodney Bennett, arrived. So I took it home and totally rewrote it.”

Holmes first wrote The Krotons (1968-69) and The Space Pirates (1969) for the Second Doctor before writing the Third Doctor’s brilliant debut tale, Spearhead from Space. Many, many scripts followed, making Holmes the most prolific 20th Century Doctor Who writer, including fan favourites like Pyramids of Mars (1975), The Time Warrior (1973-74) and The Caves of Androzani (1984).

Indomitable!

As well as being immensely popular in retrospect, The Ark in Space even garnered great contemporary critical reception.

9.4 million people watched the first episode, solely revolving around the new TARDIS team, apart from two voiceovers and a cryogenically-frozen Technician Dune (Brian Jacobs). And an incredible 13.6 million watched part 2, making it the highest-charting serial of Classic Who as the fifth most-watched show of the week. Only 2007’s Voyage of the Damned and 2008’s Journey’s End beat this remarkable achievement, ranking as the second-highest (alongside The Stolen Earth) and number one in the charts respectively.

Viewing figures for The Ark in Space remained high – 11.2 million for part 3, and 10.2 million tuning in for the final episode – and many praise the horror elements throughout. Holmes, in 1977, commented:

“Of course it’s no longer a children’s programme. Parents would be terribly irresponsible to leave a six-year-old to watch it alone. It’s geared to the intelligent fourteen-year-old, and I wouldn’t let any child under ten see it. If a little one really enjoys peeping at it from behind the sofa, until Dad says ‘It’s all right now – it’s all over,’ that’s fine. A certain amount of fear is healthy under strict parental supervision.”

The story foretold the horror-film franchise, Alien, starring the Xenomorphs, a parasitical creature whose nature resembles the Wirrn. Its second stage in their life cycles, ‘Facehuggers,’ is particularly reminiscent of the Wirrn transformation. (This stage is often criticised for being realised with bubble wrap, which, although invented in 1957, wasn’t a household item when The Ark in Space was broadcasted.)

Despite building on the central concept of 1966’s The Ark, Holmes’ masterpiece ushered in a new era of Doctor Who, reflected in the tale’s tone, maturity, outer-space setting and design (and its ideas are further explored in 2010’s The Beast Below). Roger Murray-Leach, designer, said in the Special Edition DVD documentary, A New Frontier:

“I saw it as a chance to get away from some of the more fantastical sets that had been around; to get away from the wobbles… The budget was the most daunting thing, but it always was on Doctor Who.”

The set is beautifully utilised by director, Rodney Bennett (The Sontaran Experiment; The Masque of Mandragora) and Nigel Wright, in charge of studio lighting, nonetheless impressive in reality as on screen. Kenton Moore, aka Noah, said:

“It felt, in essence, cathedral-like: it felt vast; it felt spacious; and those sheer white walls and the cryogenic chambers themselves, the plastic covers I thought were very, very convincing. And a bit chilling too.”

Saying Something Important

But the serial isn’t just about the scares. Like all good Who, it mixes the macabre with deeper messages, one of which is neatly summed up by the Doctor when faced with the entire human race in one room; all colours, all creeds: “all differences finally forgotten.”

And yet this idea is both expanded upon and undermined throughout.

This notion is enfeebled almost immediately after Harry asks if the room really contains the entire human race. “Well,” the Doctor replies, “its chosen descendents.” Indeed, those wakened from their sleep are all white, middle-aged Brits. In fact, Vira (Wendy Williams) was written as black, but obviously, this didn’t come to fruition.

Only the very best are selected to survive and carry on the human race, and Noah is immediately concerned that the TARDIS crew pose a threat. They’re undesirables. Vira and Noah were paired up as life partners, a symbol of a controlling society, breeding out any seemingly-negative traits.

Nonetheless, what the Doctor, Harry, Sarah, Vira and co. try to avoid is becoming anything other than human. The idea of the Wirrn works in the same way as the Cybermen; an enemy that are uniform, a hive mind with no clear singularity. This is made clear when Noah mistakes himself for Dune, having absorbed his memories, perhaps his identity. Utterly chilling stuff.

We even find out why human beings are quite the Doctor’s favourite species, in this memorable speech:

“Homo-sapiens. What an inventive, invincible species. It’s only a few million years since they crawled up out of the mud and learned to walk. Puny, defenceless bipeds. They’ve survived flood, famine and plague. They’ve survived cosmic wars and holocausts. And now, here they are, out among the stars, waiting to begin a new life; ready to outsit eternity. They’re indomitable. Indomitable.”

In the end, humanity prevails, of course. That’s surely the story of Doctor Who.

It’s all down to a core concept of evolution: survival of the fittest. Only the most adapt, only the best survive. The Ark in Space will always be remembered, Doctor Who will always survive – because it is the best.

The post Introducing: The Ark in Space appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Daleks’ Master Plan 4: Devil’s 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.

Rick Lundeen’s adaptation of The Daleks’ Master Plan is generating great interest across the web, with a lot of websites linking to us. So let’s continue with this week’s episode, Devil’s Planet, in which the Daleks resolve to recapture the Time Controller!

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If you want to download and read at your own pace, the PDF is now available from the Kasterborous Store. CBR and CBZ versions will follow.

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