Christian Cawley's Blog, page 97

It’s A Saucy Karen Gillan News Blast!

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.

Many would argue that a saucy Karen Gillan-focused article is one of the best News Blasts of all. Sadly, it doesn’t feature the former Doctor Who companion doing her best Carry On impressions (brief instances of such can be glimpsed from YouTube clips of The Kevin Bishop Show), but is nonetheless an incredibly attractive News Blast.

What else can I promise you? Oh, just the Loch Ness Monster, red carpet loveliness, a deleted scene, and chips.

Whoa, Nessie!

Karen has joined the ranks of those searching for Nessie. Sort of.

From next month, tourists on a boat trip across Loch Ness will be guided by Karen – or her voice, at least. She’s lent her vocal talents to an audio tour alongside expert Willie Cameron, as visitors journey across the Caledonian Canal, River Ness, Loch Dochfour, and onto the largest body of fresh water in Great Britain, Loch Ness itself. Freda Newton, owner of Loch Ness by Jacobite told Press and Journal:

“Karen Gillan is one of Inverness’ most famous and loved exports, like our own Nessie, which makes her the perfect choice to guide our customers along one of Scotland and the UK’s most famous stretches of water. We’re all really proud of her success and it’s great to have her on-board.

“We welcome thousands of visitors to the loch and surrounding area every year and have made some significant improvements recently to further enhance our offering to guests from home and abroad.

“Karen’s voice works really well alongside Willie’s for our cruise commentary and we know our guests will enjoy listening to her voice.”

Doctor Who has a few explanations for Nessie depending on different canons, but most notable TV examples are from Terror of the Zygons and Timelash.

Redhead on the Red Carpet

Karen wowed crowds gathering around the red carpet on the first day of this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival.

She joined a number of famous faces (including Ashley Jensen, Sam Robertson, and James Cosmo) at the premiere of The Legend of Barney Thomson, the directorial debut of Robert Carlyle. He said:

“It’s a different experience and I didn’t realise before I did this how much a director has to do. You go along as an actor and research the product and reverse and do it and leave with director there is so much build up and looking at the script and editing and musically editing. The filming was the easiest.”

Some whisky and some SERIOUS Scottish dances went down tonight. @edfilmfest

— Karen Gillan (@karengillan) June 21, 2015

Karen wore a stunning dress from Urban Outfitters apparently! Karen’s 10-minute short, Coward, debuted at the Festival on 19th June. Expect to hear about that soon!

Manly Tears

Exclusive @KarenGillan & @StanleyWeber deleted scene from #NotAnotherHappyEnding! Out now: http://t.co/tPYai5hV57 pic.twitter.com/keLu9vbmsA

— We Are Colony (@WeAreColony) June 18, 2015

WeAreColony, which gives behind-the-scenes content in film bundles, has released an exclusive deleted scene from Karen’s 2013 film, Not Another Happy Ending.

The film, directed by John McKay, centers around Jane Lockhart, a successful author with writer’s block. The only way she can overcome it is by being unhappy…

The scene sees Stanley Weber’s Tom crying “manly tears” when reading about the death of Jane’s mother. There are plenty of other behind-the-scenes material available, including on-set stills of the cast.

The Secret of Edinburgh

And just like The End of the World, we finish with chips. Hmm. Yeah. Sounds good, doesn’t it? Well, with Karen returning to Scotland for the Edinburgh International Film Festival, she was keen to grab some fried goodness – but had a special request.

Scotland tomorrow. First thing I'm doing is buying a pile of chips with chippy sauce. Edinburgh folk: you know what I'm talking about.

— Karen Gillan (@karengillan) June 14, 2015

This supposedly confused thousands of people. What is this ‘chippy sauce’ of which you speak, Karen? Is it something you got from your travels in the TARDIS? Or maybe something found on Xandar?

The Amazing Spider-Man writer, Dan Slott (summed up by the Daily Record as a mere ‘confused follower’) broached the topic, asking exactly what the hell she was on about. To which she replied, “The greatest sauce in existence.”

Okay, so we can finally reveal what this chippy sauce actually is: brown sauce, watered down with vinegar, found almost exclusively in Edinburgh. Ahem. Yep.

Meanwhile, Karen and author Irvine Welsh chatted about haggis burrito. Few batted an eyelid.

That’s all for now, but keep an eye on the K for further ginger loveliness. Also: stuff about Time Lords etc.

The post It’s A Saucy Karen Gillan News Blast! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Tennant, Capaldi & Doctor Who Crew: Backing The BBC

Richard Forbes 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.

Move over Gallifrey, the Doctor has a new home to save.

Broadcast’s #BackingtheBBC petition has received hundreds of concerned signatories, among them are some past and present Doctor Who cast and crew, including David Tennant himself – all signing in support of the famed public broadcaster, the BBC, in light of the recent political pressure its received from the reigning Conservative government.

A quick flip through the petition found a number of familiar names: David Tennant, of course, signed the petition earlier this month, as has Twelfth Doctor, Peter Capaldi; they were joined by Doctor Who writers, Chris Chibnall, Toby Whithouse, Peter Harness and James Moran. Toby Whithouse and Peter Harness are set to return to Doctor Who this autumn, both having written two-part stories for Series 9.

Chris Chibnall (The Hungry Earth/ Cold Blood; The Power of Three) especially gave a passionate defense of the BBC to support the petition’s campaign:

“How important is the BBC? It’s everything. It’s the creative soul of Britain. It’s the national conscience. It’s a beacon of consistent excellence, even in the face of reduced funding and numbskull opposition. It’s part of our DNA. The thing that we don’t say enough is: Britain adores the BBC. People prove it daily: they listen in massive numbers to BBC radio, watch BBC Television en masse and click on the BBC’s reliable, trustworthy in huge numbers.

“Where else in this country, where else in the world can you get so much quality programming, for such a paltry amount of money? It tells us who we are, while also questioning who we want to be. It takes risks, nurtures and trains talent, backs ideas, serves audiences who aren’t served elsewhere — not because it can monetise those things, but because it exists to culturally enrich us, collectively and individually.

“The BBC is the very definition of a civilising influence. And it does this while also being unafraid of the big and bold, the populist and popular. It thrills us, moves us and makes us laugh, consistently and successfully, throughout the whole of our lives. It’s more loved than politicians, the press, or its rivals. Which is why all of them attack it. And why we must fight now, to keep it shining for future generations. Every other country is envious of the BBC. We must treasure it more.”

What is all the fuss about, you might ask? Every ten years, the BBC’s own Royal Charter is reviewed by the government of the day, the next review is set to take place next year in 2016 when the current charter will need to be renewed at the year’s end.

The Royal Charter acts as a sort of ‘constitution’ for the BBC and it in turn serves as a delineation of its roles, responsibilities, editorial freedom, in addition to its revenue tools and executive structure. BBC television is funded through a license fee, currently ‘frozen’ at £145.00.

David Tennant is one of the stars #BackingTheBBC in tomorrow's mag.

Sign the pledge here: http://t.co/Zh1MiD7keq pic.twitter.com/WcNyfyecez

— Broadcast (@Broadcastnow) June 17, 2015

Recent political activity, however, has heightened concerns that the incoming review could be damning for the BBC. Meanwhile, the BBC too has announced its intentions to close BBC3 and provide said content online instead; all part of a greater effort by management to cut costs.

Earlier this year the Culture, Media and Sport Committee published a long-anticipated report entitled ‘Future of the BBC’ which, while not going as far as to call for the end of license fees, criticised the BBC for providing content, like BBC1’s The Voice, similar to programmes widely available in the market. Doctor Who, however, was ‘particularly noted’ in the committee report as popular with respondents during a short web consultation targeting younger viewers. A green paper from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, responding in part to this report and the future of the BBC, is expected before the House of Commons rises in July for the summer recess.

Many of the signatories of this recent petition expressed their disdain for the way in which the BBC was being used as a ‘political football’. The full pledge of the #BackingtheBBC petition included support for license fees and called for open renegotiations regarding the future Charter renewal, in addition to, of course, a ‘transparent, accountable and efficient’ BBC.

As always we invite you, dear readers, to share your thoughts and musings below on this ongoing dispute. Personally as a Canadian, while some of the rhetoric used against the BBC – that it’s ‘scandal-prone’, that it’s ‘wasteful’ or ‘irrelevant’ – resonates with my own opinion of the CBC, I can’t regard the BBC in the same light when as a cultural paragon it has continued to produce quality British programming, including Doctor Who to national and international acclaim. The results of the current license fee system speaks for itself in that respect and when even the Commons Select Committee admits there is ‘no better alternative to funding the BBC in the near-term other than a hypothecated tax or the licence fee,’ as Kasterborous has argued before, changing the BBC’s licensing seems like an unnecessary and risky experiment to play with a vital public service.

The post Tennant, Capaldi & Doctor Who Crew: Backing The BBC appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

UNIT: Extinction’s Impressive Cast Expands Once More!

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 all very, very excited about UNIT: Extinction, a four-disc boxset from Big Finish that blurs the line between their Classic Doctor Who license and nuWho, featuring Jemma Redgrave as Kate Stewart and Ingrid Oliver as Osgood.

And the audio company has announced some new guest stars, one of whom may be a familiar face to Whovians… because for a while, his name was rumoured to be connected to the role of the Twelfth Doctor!

Steve John Shepherd will play Simon Devlin, the pioneer behind Futuretech – a technological giant that holds the key to the Nestene Consciousness’ latest plan at worldwide domination. Most will recognise Shepherd from EastEnders, where he played Michael Moon.

“Steve was suggested to us by his agent just at the same moment as I was sending off an email to ask for him!” says producer, David Richardson. “He has such a magnificent, rich voice, and he makes Devlin a true power to be reckoned with.”

The Nestene will be played by Nick Briggs, best-known as the voice of the Daleks and Cybermen. Devlin is aided by his security chief, Jenna Gold, played by Karina Fernandez (Pride; Mr Turner), who Richardson calls “an astonishing talent.”

Tracy Wiles plays journalist Jacquie McGee, who gets right in the middle of all the action, while her put-upon assistant, Tim Stevens is played by Derek Carlyle. “Since her first appearance for us in [the 2014 audio with Colin Baker’s Sixth Doctor] Masters of Earth, Tracy has become a real friend of Big Finish,” says David. “We’d have her in everything if we could – but she was so perfect for the role of the determined Jacquie.”

The cast is already very impressive, with Luther‘s Warren Brown previously announced, so this latest batch of stars just adds even more gravitas to the drama.

UNIT: Extinction, the first of four new UNIT boxsets, is released in November. And we can’t wait.

The post UNIT: Extinction’s Impressive Cast Expands Once More! appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

David Tennant Cast in Chew Comic Adaptation

Katie Gribble 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 has been revealed that our very own David Tennant, who played the energetic, sand-shoe wearing Tenth incarnation of our favourite Time Lord, has been cast in the animated feature adaptation of the popular comic series, Chew, due for release later this year.

Chew, written by John Layman and illustrated by Rob Guillory, is a comic series based on the exploits of detective Tony Chu, a man who has a dark secret. Tony is a “cibopath”. What does that mean? In layman’s terms this means that he can discern psychic impressions from whatever he eats. It means that he’s a great detective as long as he doesn’t mind nibbling on the corpse of a murder victim to find out who did it and why. In his line of work he has to do some pretty weird things and now the government knows of Tony’s secret.

David Tennant will be voicing the detective’s mentor-turned-villain, Mason Savoy, in the new film which is attracting great interest with Steven Yuen (The Walking Dead) and Felicia Day (The Guild, Buffy, Supernatural) already on board. Layman says:

“The cartoon is going to be a direct adaptation of the first [graphic novel], which introduces and really focuses on the relationship between Tony Chu and Mason Savoy… I can’t express how awesome it is to be there in the recording sessions, being there as the words you wrote to be printed on a page are brought to life in an entirely different way. Especially when it’s being done by an actor the caliber of Tennant.”

This is an exciting time for our Tenth Doctor with this new role adding to David’s recent spate of villainous roles with the announcement earlier this year that he will be appearing in the Marvel universe as villain Zebediah Killgrave, or The Purple Man, in the upcoming Netflix series A.K.A Jessica Jones speculated to premiere later this year.

In the wake of these announcements, here’s to more news from our favourite Tenth Doctor in his journeys beyond the Whoniverse.

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From The Clockwise Man to The Stealers of Dreams: Ranking the Ninth Doctor Novels

Jeremy Remy 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 May 2005, just months after the renewed series of Doctor Who hit our screens, the BBC launched the New Series Adventure novels. There had been several Doctor Who book series before the New Series Adventures, including the novelizations through Target; the New Adventures (NAs) and Missing Adventures (MAs) through Virgin; as well as the (at the time, ongoing) Eighth Doctor Adventures (EDAs) and Past Doctor Adventures (PDAs) from BBC.

When the BBC New Series Adventures (NSAs) launched there were some notable differences from previous books. First, each of these new books was hardcover with a larger font—meaning the word count was somewhat smaller. Second, there was a stronger tie to the televised series. This was particularly true when compared to the NAs and EDAs, which continued the Seventh and Eighth Doctors’ plots after their time on screen. Finally, the themes and tone of the NSAs were written for a wider audience than previous texts. The philosophical contemplations, cross-continuity references, violence and adult themes that often popped up in earlier texts were gone, in favor of a text which was more accessible to new and younger audiences.

Characters in the New Series Adventures directly reflected the current televised cast. Having launched concurrently with the renewed series, the first batch of books included the Ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler. These books were, in release order: The Clockwise Man by Justin Richards, The Monsters Inside by Stephen Cole, and Winner Takes All by Jacqueline Rayner. This batch is most easily placed, in order, between Aliens of London / World War Three and Dalek. The second batch of books, released later that year, included the Ninth Doctor, Rose and Jack Harkness. These books were, in release order: The Deviant Strain by Justin Richards, Only Human by Gareth Roberts, and The Stealers of Dreams by Steve Lyons. The first two books in this batch are most easily placed between The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances and Boom Town, with the third book between Boom Town and Bad Wolf / Parting of the Ways.

Published almost a decade ago, the narratives for these books hold up well—potentially better than some of the 2005 televised episodes—and they bring a feeling of nostalgia for the Eccleston years. While each book is well worth picking up, a few stand out above the others. To help you choose which books to seek out for the first time, or to dust off and revisit, we’ll rank each novel for quality, readability, and general entertainment.

As a note, readers should keep their eyes open for Bad Wolf references, which—just like the televised episodes—appear in each book in the Ninth Doctor NSAs.

#6: THE CLOCKWISE MAN

Justin Richards makes this list twice, having been the only author to write more than one New Series Adventure for the Ninth Doctor. In this story, the Doctor and Rose are on the hunt for a murderer stalking the streets of London in 1924. Upon losing the TARDIS, the Doctor drags Rose into a conspiracy of refugees from the Russian Revolution, and both fall under the cold stare of a mysterious cat. The story includes clockwork robots and references to the Time War, themes now familiar to nuWho fans.

Comparing this text to the previous BBC and Virgin novels, it is clear that the target audience for the first of the NSAs is significantly younger than past novels, but the story is solid enough to remain interesting despite the less challenging reading level.

That said, it reads very quickly, there’s a cliché connection to Tsar Nicholas II, and major character’s personality alters abruptly near the end. It’s a fun romp, but may leave the reader wanting.

#5: WINNER TAKES ALL

Jacqueline Rayner has written several novel-to-audio adaptations for Big Finish, in addition to being one of the few female authors writing Doctor Who novels. Her contribution to the NSAs includes the first appearances of Mickey and Jackie in novel format. When Rose convinces the Doctor to bring her home to visit, they soon discover London falling under the spell of a video game known as Death to Mantodeans. Only Mantodeans are real, as are the Quevvils who are at war against them, but the Quevvils need humans to fight their battles for them.

Of the early NSAs, this story probably has the silliest villain, but that isn’t necessarily an inaccurate representation of Series One. The characterizations of the Doctor, Rose, Mickey and Jackie feel and sound very much like their televised counterparts. Likewise, the adventure plays out the nuWho theme of aliens attacking London under the guise of something banal. Still, giant porcupine aliens with projectile quills make for a hard sell.

#4: THE DEVIANT STRAIN

In The Deviant Strain, the Doctor and Rose are joined by Jack Harkness for the first time in novel format. The TARDIS team lands at an abandoned Soviet naval base, only to be joined by Russian Special Forces. A flash of psychic paper and the team is entangled in a situation involving disease and a vampire-like menace.

Better than Richards’ first stint with the NSAs. Yet, while the alien menace is interesting, the threat is overly complicated and never quite seems to achieve the author’s intention. What could have been Doctor Who a la John Carpenter gets jumbled into a Cold War thriller with folklore, aliens, and technological shenanigans.

Despite the odd mix, it somehow all works and the story retains a reader’s interest through to the end.

#3: THE MONSTERS INSIDE

Stephen Cole is known by many for his work as range editor for the BBC Past Doctor Adventures and Eighth Doctor Adventures. Here, Cole introduces a new family of Raxacoricofallapatorians—the Blathereen—who would later appear in The Sarah Jane Adventures. This novel tells the story of the Doctor and Rose’s visit to the Justicia prison star system, later mentioned in the episode Boom Town. Separated almost immediately upon their arrival, the TARDIS crew soon become prisoners on separate detention planets.

The younger target audience can, at times, be a bit distracting. However, the voices of the Doctor and Rose are well developed, and the story is engaging. If you aren’t a fan of technobabble, there are moments that might disappoint, but links to other areas of the Whoniverse should make it worthwhile.

#2: THE STEALERS OF DREAMS

Steve Lyons regularly pops up across Doctor Who media, writing novels, short stories, audios and comics. In The Stealers of Dreams, he tells the story of a world where fiction is outlawed. The arrival of the Doctor, Rose and Jack—who live lives that sound as fantastic as fiction—make them instant outlaws.

The Stealers of Dreams is the second novel to feel as if it has found a way to truly embrace the shorter, all-ages format. Figuring out the overarching mystery is part of the fun, but the story holds up to a reread. In fact, knowledge of what’s to come only seems to make a second read through more fulfilling, as it offers a chance to see the structure of the narrative and the subtle clues missed during the first reading. The three protagonists are each given their own unique sections of the story, before bringing them together for the fulfilling conclusion.

#1: ONLY HUMAN

Gareth Roberts has written some fantastic episodes of Doctor Who, as well as some of the best NAs and MAs for Virgin (many of which have been adapted to audio for Big Finish). His novelization of Douglas Adams’ unaired Doctor Who adventure, Shada, was a fantastic read and the highlight of the 2012 BBC novel releases. It should be no surprise that he tops the list of New Series Adventures with Only Human.

The Doctor, Rose and Jack arrive in modern-day London, only to find a Neanderthal man named Das. While Jack watches over Das, the Doctor and Rose travel back to 29185 BCE, in an attempt to determine what brought him to the present in the first place. Upon arriving, however, they discover a group of researchers from the future. There begins an adventure spanning millennia.

Only Human is the first text in the NSAs to really feel as if the author has figured out how to best use the format. Written for all ages, it doesn’t seem to talk down to any member of the audience. Also, it embraces the shorter format, never slowing down, even as it reaches the final pages. And, while the story includes several humorous moments, it never tips over the edge into the realm of silly.

Certainly the best of the first six volumes of NSAs, Only Human by Gareth Roberts is a highly recommended read.

If you haven’t yet read the New Series Adventures of the Ninth Doctor, or any of the Doctor Who stories presented in novel format, these stories are a fantastic way to get a little more Doctor Who between seasons. So, which book are you planning to read or re-read? If you’ve read some or all of these stories before, how would you rank them differently? If you’re a New Series Adventure fan, where would you rank the Ninth Doctor novels in comparison with the Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth and War Doctors’ NSAs?

The post From The Clockwise Man to The Stealers of Dreams: Ranking the Ninth Doctor Novels appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

The First Series 9 Trailer: Exciting & Pointless

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.

BBC America has released the very first teaser trailer for Series 9… and it’s both thrilling and kind of a disappointment.

Oh, don’t get me wrong: trailers are great and this one at least is directed nicely, giving us a cool close-up with the TARDIS, but there’s no, y’know, actual clips. Maybe it’s too early for clips.

Nonetheless, it’s good to get confirmation that the show returns this Autumn/Fall. Odds are on for the end of August (there’s a Bank Holiday then!) or the first weekend in September.

This teaser debuted in the finale of Orphan Black.

Series 9 will see Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor and Jenna Coleman as Clara Oswald return to traveling through time and space across 12 episodes, with writing talent including Toby Whithouse (The God Complex), Mark Gatisss (Cold War), and Jamie Mathieson (Mummy on the Orient Express). Two female writers also join the roster: Torchwood‘s Catherine Tregenna, and Sarah Dollard (Being Human).

Showrunner, Steven Moffat has scripted the opening two-parter, The Magician’s Apprentice/ The Witch’s Familiar, and you can learn more about Series 9 from our dedicated news summary.

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An Incredible Tenth Doctor Watercolour – In 90 Seconds!

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.

Kasterborous started out over a decade ago as a way of exploring the Doctor Who universe by pairing interesting articles with stunning art. Co-founder Anthony Dry is well-known and well-respected in the Who world, his work appearing in the DVD boxsets, on stationary sets, and even adorning the walls at the Doctor Who Experience.

And naturally, we’re always on the look-out for some great illustrations. Artist, Graeme Neil Reid recently contacted us with the incredible video above in which he created a watercolour painting of Tenth Doctor, David Tennant, in front of the citadel on Gallifrey.

It’s a brilliantly inspiring time-lapse, and Reid is experienced in creating these lovingly-rendered depictions of the Doctor, his friends, and – of course – his enemies! Just check out his Tumblr and you’ll see most of the Doctors, homages to Series 8, and a healthy dose of Cybermen too.

We also love this video of Reid drawing a highly-detailed Silurian – one from the creature’s first appearance in 1970.

Graeme has worked for 2000AD, The Judge Dredd Megazine, and even the Radio Times. Here’s hoping we see a lot more of his Who-inspired sketches in the future!

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Sean Pertwee IS The Third Doctor (Well, Nearly)

David Power 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.

Sean Pertwee, son of Third Doctor actor Jon Pertwee, recently posted a fan edited picture of himself onto his Instagram in which he’s been made to look like his father.

And it’s really rather awesome.

Son and Hair . Doctor Pennyworth #DW3

A photo posted by Sean Pertwee (@seanpertwee) on Jun 17, 2015 at 3:05pm PDT

This isn’t the first time Sean has been aware of his visual similarity to his father. Last year he posted his Halloween costume to Instagram…

He added the caption:

“Guess Who I’m going as tonight ? #isthereadoctorinthehouse #nyc.”

It’s taken the Internet by storm, so we’re pretty sure Steven Moffat would’ve seen it. How would you feel if Sean appeared in Doctor Who playing his father’s iconic role? A Third and Twelfth Doctor special? Just think how similar Capaldi’s Time Lord is to Pertwee’s! In a previous interview, Sean revealed that his dad knew Peter and that Capaldi is:

…an extremely lovely gentleman. He was very kind to my family when my father passed away, he was big fan of my dad’s actually.

Sean is currently starring in Gotham on FOX as Alfred Pennyworth, which has been renewed for a second season, and also appeared as Lestrade in Elementary, the (actually fantastic) take on Sherlock.

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Time Heist: Doctor Who Jewellers Broken Into Twice in One Month

Connor Farley 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.

Rowley’s, a jewellers in Penarth, South Wales, has expressed their devastation at the realisation that thieves targeted their store for the second time in a month.

The owner of the store, Petra Barberini said:

“It’s hard to survive for any retail business these days but incidents like this knock the stuffing out of you. We try to put a brave face on but it’s devastating…

“We have to keep things in perspective. Nobody has been hurt and when you see the tragedies around the world it pales into insignificance. As a family, we try to battle on as best we can and get business running as normally as possible.”

The store made headlines in 2014 when they were specially selected to supply replicas of the golden ring that the newly appointed Twelfth incarnation of the Doctor, Peter Capaldi wore in his first series in the role. The store created an exact copy of the gold double-banded piece, that also has a green amber stone on the ring.

Luckily for the store and its owner, this time around the thieves were not able to get into the main store (which was the case when it was first burgled last month), the only damage to the store being a shattered front window with the pesky thieves then proceeding to take five display watches. The specially made Doctor Who ring was not a victim of the crimes committed on the store and can still be purchased in store right now.

South Wales Police have confirmed that an investigation into the break-in is underway.

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Doctor in Distress: Help Fund Colin Baker’s New Sci-Fi Project

Billy Garratt-John 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.

Colin Baker’s Last Man on Earth is seeking funding. The project, which has over £2,700 of their £10,000 goal in three days, is a twist on the modern “end of the world” tale taking place before the final days of civilisation. The cunningly named “pre-apocalyptic” short film is being funded in a similar vain to Sophie Aldred’s Strangeness in Space, which was backed by 615 people and surpassed its initial funding target of £15,000.

The sci-fi thriller tells the story of a virologist researching a cure for cancer. The Indiegogo synopsis declares that the film follows “(their) decisions and their consequences” and is “a story told about the future in the present day”. Hardcore Doctor Who fans may remember the BBV direct-to-video production The Airzone Solution, which also featured Colin Baker as a man of science on the trail of a government conspiracy. But it also featured a love scene between Colin and Nicola Bryant, so let’s try to forget about that one.

“Jack Levy and Darren Langlands have written a brilliant script,” says Colin. “I’m looking forward to filming it. I hope you enjoy watching it.”

An extra incentive to donate to the film’s budget comes in the form not only of rewards depending on how much you give to the production team (which includes copies of the shooting script, a signed copy of the DVD by Colin Baker himself, and the chance to appear alongside Baker in the film), but also in the guise of a charitable donation to Cancer Research UK and The Christie.

The campaign ends on 17th July.

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