Doctor Who News, Articles, Cast and Crew Interviews

[Sakura]

if moffatt comes back even as just a writer at least the show will have writers who KNOW the show and science fiction in general..... most of the core writers for the last 3 years have been mainly drama writers instead of sci fi writers

while theres nothing fundamentally wrong with that... its more that the current core writers just dont have a good feel for the show theyve been writing for

[Alan]

Doctor Who – The Collection: Season 17
Thursday, 7 October 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...season_17.html

Season 17, the penultimate season starring Tom Baker as the Doctor, will be the next to be released as part of the Doctor Who Collection series.

Doctor Who – The Collection: Season 17 was originally shown between September 1979 and January 1980 consists of the following stories

• DESTINY OF THE DALEKS
• CITY OF DEATH
• THE CREATURE FROM THE PIT
• NIGHTMARE OF EDEN
• THE HORNS OF NIMON
• SHADA

In 1979, Tom Baker’s Doctor was in full flight. With Douglas Adams (The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy) as script editor, the series leaned into Baker’s penchant for humour and paired his Doctor with a regenerated Romana (Lalla Ward) as his travelling companion. Together, they would form one of the most popular Doctor/companion duos of all time.

Although Season 17 was halted behind-the-scenes by strike action (resulting in the season finale being abandoned part-way through production), it remains a beloved slice of Doctor Who history, featuring the return of Davros and the Daleks, and one of the all-time classic stories, Douglas Adams’ own City Of Death.
With all episodes newly remastered from the best available sources, this Blu-ray box set also includes extensive and exclusive Special Features including:

• BRAND NEW DOCUMENTARIES
• Including a Making-Of documentary for Destiny Of The Daleks, and new featurette for The Creature From The Pit.
• TOM TALKS
• A candid interview with Tom Baker as he gives us his unique take on life, the universe and everything.
• DOUGLAS ADAMS TRIBUTE
• Friends and colleagues remember the Doctor Who writer/script editor and creator of The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy.
• IN CONVERSATION
• Matthew Sweet chats to Bob Baker, writer of Nightmare Of Eden, co-creator of K9 and one of the creative forces behind Wallace & Gromit.
• BEHIND THE SOFA
• New episodes with actors Colin Baker, Katy Manning, Matthew Waterhouse, Nicola Bryant, June Hudson, Graeme Harper & Mat Irvine
• LALLA WARD INTERVIEW
• An extensive interview discussing her first year on the programme.
• UPDATED SPECIAL EFFECTS
• View Nightmare Of Eden with optional new effects
• SHADA
• An updated version of the ‘lost’ story, completed with enhanced animation and presented in six episodes for the very first time, alongside the original 1992 VHS and 2017 versions
• EXCLUSIVE NEW AUDIO COMMENTARIES
• With Tom Baker on episodes of Destiny Of The Daleks and City Of Death, and Lalla Ward & Catherine Schell on City Of Death
• EXTENDED EPISODE
• An early cut of The Creature From The Pit Part Three
• BLU-RAY TRAILER
• A familiar face returns in a brand new mini-episode of classic Doctor Who
• IMMERSIVE 5.1 SURROUND SOUND
• On Destiny Of The Daleks and Shada
• RARE GEMS FROM THE ARCHIVES
• BBC archive material covering the promotion of this season
• CONVENTION FOOTAGE
• A triumphant 1997 appearance from Tom Baker
• HD PHOTO GALLERIES
• Including many previously unseen images
• PRODUCTION SUBTITLES
• Behind-the-scenes information and trivia on every episode
• SCRIPTS, COSTUME DESIGNS, RARE BBC PRODUCTION FILES AND OTHER RARITIES FROM OUR PDF ARCHIVE

Davros Rises! | The Collection: Season 17 Announcement Trailer

The Collection will be released on 13th December 2021 and is available to pre-order on Amazon

[Alan]

Doctor Who Returns: 31st October
Saturday, 9 October 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...t_october.html

The BBC has announced that Doctor Who will return to screens in the UK and in the USA on Sunday 31st October.

The thirteenth series, since the return of the show in 2005, will debut on BBC One in the UK and BBC America in the states.

The six episodes will all be grouped under the title Doctor Who: Flux and star Jodie Whittaker in her final series as the Doctor.

[Alan]

Doctor Who: Flux | Official Trailer | Doctor Who
15 Oct 2021

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDUvFdGu6JE

Doctor Who

One epic story. Six thrilling chapters. Doctor Who: Flux premieres 31st October.

[gnoel809]

Best unexpected Doctor Who reference: on tonight's episode of The Rookie (season 4, ep 4, titled Red Hot), Nathan Fillion's character states that the house he and other officers are searching "is a lot smaller on the inside." The sergeant on scene (who is the last guy you'd expect to say this) says "Like a reverse TARDIS." Another reason I'll watch anything Nathan Fillion is involved in.

[Alan]

Doctor Who: Flux
Monday, 18 October 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1..._who_flux.html

The BBC have released a trailer ahead of the return of Doctor Who later this month.

Doctor Who Flux is a six-part story that debuts in the UK and in the USA on Sunday 31st October, with a debut in Australia the following day.

It stars Jodie Whittaker in her final full series as The Doctor, although she will appear in three specials next year leading up to the regeneration of the thirteenth Doctor.

The images show the return of several classic monsters.

The six-part series is described by showrunner Chris Chibnall as six chapters of the same novel, the first time a series of Doctor Who has comprised a single story. The decision to make the series a single story was taken due to restrictions imposed by filming under COVID secure conditions.

Each episode has been written by Chibnall himself except for episode four which was written by Chibnall and Maxine Alderton, who wrote last seasons' story The Haunting of Villa Diodati.

The directing credits are shared by two directors. Jamie Magnus Stone has looked after episodes 1, 2, and 4. Stone directed the previous series opener, Spyfall as well as Praxeus; Ascension of the Cybermen and The Timeless Children.

The three remaining episodes have been directed by Doctor Who newcomer Azhur Saleem, who was recommended to the production team by composer Segun Akinola.

Alongside Whittaker is Mandip Gill returning as Yasmin Khan. They are joined by John Bishop, who plays Dan Lewis, the newest companion to step into and be amazed by the wonders of the TARDIS.

Returning to the series are the Sontarans, first created by Robert Holmes for the 1973 story The Time Warrior. Chibnall promises the Sontarans will pose a real threat to The Doctor with one episode focusing on the warriors. The look of the aliens has been updated by series designer Ray Holman who told Doctor Who Magazine he went back to the original design to get inspiration for their 2021 makeover.

Doctor Who: Flux can be seen on BBC One on Sunday 31st October at a time to be confirmed.

Jodie Whittaker has already filmed the final three episodes of her tenure as The Doctor which will be screened next year. Her final episode will be part of a special season making the 100th Anniversary of the BBC.

Doctor Who: Flux | Official Trailer | Doctor Who

The 2023 season, making Doctor Who's 60th Anniversary, will be written by returning showrunner, Russell T Davies.

[cosmichobo]

Best unexpected Doctor Who reference: on tonight's episode of The Rookie (season 4, ep 4, titled Red Hot), Nathan Fillion's character states that the house he and other officers are searching "is a lot smaller on the inside." The sergeant on scene (who is the last guy you'd expect to say this) says "Like a reverse TARDIS." Another reason I'll watch anything Nathan Fillion is involved in.

It's interesting when a US show references WHO. I know The Big Bang did it a fair bit, but you're talking about a geek sitcom, so that's understandable. Still remember the episode of NCIS that made a similar reference to the one you mentioned - the guys were looking inside a shipping container, and Tony... or... err... one of them made a TARDIS joke, too.

[Alan]

Doctor Who: The Halloween Apocalypse
Wednesday, 20 October 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...pocalypse.html

The BBC has announced that Episode One of the new Doctor Who series will be titled The Halloween Apocalypse.

The story will premiere on BBC One at 6.25 pm, on Sunday 31st October, appropriately enough Halloween night.

It will be screened in the USA on BBC America later that evening and in Australia on ABC One the following day.

On Halloween, all across the universe, terrifying forces are stirring. From the Arctic Circle to deep space, an ancient evil is breaking free. And in present-day Liverpool, the life of Dan Lewis is about to change forever.

Why is the Doctor on the trail of the fearsome Karvanista? And what is the Flux?

[Alan]

Doctor Who - Series 13 - Flux
Saturday, 23 October 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...s_13_flux.html

With one week to go until the return of Doctor Who, the BBC has released more details about the upcoming series.

Jodie Whittaker, Mandip Gill, John Bishop and Jacob Anderson star in an epic six-part adventure that will take the Doctor and her friends to the edge of the universe and beyond, in a battle for survival.
Packed with action, humour, terrifying new villains, and iconic returning monsters such as the Sontarans and the Weeping Angels, the new series of Doctor Who tells one story across a vast canvas.

It features a host of acclaimed British acting talent including Rochenda Sandall, Annabel Scholey, Craig Parkinson, Kevin McNally, Sam Spruell, Robert Bathurst, Steve Oram, and Thaddea Graham.

From Liverpool to the depths of space, via the Crimean war and a planet named Atroposwhich shouldn’t even exist, fighting old foes and new creatures from beyond our dimension, the Doctor and company face a race against (and through!) time to uncover a universe-spanning mystery: what is the Flux?

Synopsis - Chapter One: The Halloween Apocalypse
On Halloween, all across the universe, terrifying forces are stirring. From the Arctic Circle to deep space, an ancient evil is breaking free. And in present-day Liverpool, the life of Dan Lewis is about to change forever. Why is the Doctor on the trail of the fearsome Karvanista? And what is the Flux?

With the series launching next week, the cast and production team have been talking about their experiences making series 13.

Full article with interviews here: https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...s_13_flux.html

[Alan]

Chapter Two Trailer | War of the Sontarans | Doctor Who: Flux
1 Nov 2021

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SH-nUi0xDwc

Doctor Who

"I accept your offer of a massacre!" 'War of the Sontarans' premieres 7th November.

[iiradned]

Doctor Who star Jodie Whittaker on her final season and why she was tempted to stay on the show longer

"There was a point where I was definitely like, 'Uhh, I don't know,'" says the actress. "We started this [season] and I was like, 'I don't know if I'm going to be able to commit to this decision.' Wonderfully, going into it, it didn't feel like either of us were being held to our own conversation. It was still very much, between me and him, a very active conversation."

She continues, "But at the point when you're filming and you go, 'Right, what are we doing?,' there was just something about it that was like, 'I think it is the right time.' I know at some point there will be another Doctor, and I feel I can wholeheartedly give them this, through tears, and go, 'Aww, mate, you lucky f---er, you are being given an absolute pearl.' I want people to know that I really did fully throw myself into it and give it all I've got so that I've not shortchanged anyone."

[Alan]

Bob Baker 1939 - 2021
Friday, 5 November 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...1939_2021.html

The film and television writer Bob Baker has died at the age of 82.

Bob Baker wrote some of the best-loved stories from the classic Doctor Who era, co-creating the Doctor's beloved robot dog K-9. He was the screenwriter behind the acclaimed Wallace and Gromit series of films.
Born in Bristol in the west of England in 1939, Bob Baker initially trained as a monumental stonemason, chiseling other peoples' words onto gravestones.

In the early 1960's he teamed up with writing partner Dave Martin and together they wrote several stage plays before moving into television, working on popular series such as Z Cars.

In 1971, they were commissioned for their first story for Doctor Who. The Claws of Axos was the first of eight stories over nine seasons.

For the third Doctor, they wrote The Mutants and The Three Doctors, the story that marked the tenth series of Doctor Who and which introduced the character of Omega.

In 1975 they were back writing for the fourth Doctor. Over the next four years, they would contribute The Sontaran Experiment; The Hand Of Fear; The Invisible Enemy; Underworld; The Armageddon Factor and Nightmare of Eden.

It was The Invisible Enemy which saw the arrival of K-9. The robot dog was originally intended for this story only, but the producer Graham Williams made a late decision to have him join the Doctor in the TARDIS where he stayed for the next four years.

The character was written out of Doctor Who in 1981 but featured in a pilot for a new series K9 and Company, where he starred alongside Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith. In 2006 K-9 met the Tenth Doctor in the story School Reunion. and would feature in the Doctor Who Spinoff The Sarah Jane Adventures. In 2010 a new K-9 TV series was made in Brisbane, Australia.

Other TV work by Bob Baker included the Children's TV Hits Into the Labyrinth and King of the Castle. For adults he contributed scripts for Bergerac and Shoestring as well as Public Eye and Call me Mister

Baker was a very successful, screenwriter becoming closely associated with the productions of Ardman Animations, writing, with their creator Nick Park, award-winning shorts such as The wrong Trousers, A Close Shave, and A Matter of Loaf and Death. In 2006 he co-wrote the feature film The Curse of the Were-Rabbit which won the British Acadamy Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film.

In 2013 Baker wrote his autobiography entitled K9 Stole My Trousers with help from Laurie Booth.

Bob Baker is survived by Marie, his wife of thirty years, and his children and Grandchildren

[Alan]

Clifford Rose 1929 - 2021
Saturday, 6 November 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...1929_2021.html

The actor Clifford Rose has died at the age of 92.

Clifford Rose appeared in the 1981 Tom Baker story Warriors' Gate where he played Rorvik the captain of the privateer ship that transported the time-sensitive Tharils.

He was most famous for his powerful portrayal of Standartenführer Ludwig Kessler, the ruthless Gestapo officer, in three series of Secret Army.

Clifford Rose was born in Herefordshire in the West Midlands of England. After studying at King's College London he sought a career as an actor appearing in repertory theatre and later as a founding member of the Royal Shakespeare Company.

His first television appearance was in 1959, in the adaptation of Arnold Bennett's Hilda Lessways. Many character appearances followed including roles in Roads to Freedom, Elizabeth R, Callan, Justice, The Pallisers, How Green Was My Valley and The Devil's Crown.

In 1977 he was cast as Sturmbannführer Ludwig Kessler in Secret Army, the series detailing the work of the prisoner evasion lines that helped British pilots escape from occupied Belgium during World War II. It was a powerful multi-layered performance that explored the ruthlessness of the German commander as well as his personal qualities as he fell in love with a Belgium woman.

His performance saw the character return in his own spin-off series, Kessler, exploring the fate of the character after the end of the war,

He later played SS General Hans Kammler in the miniseries War and Remembrance and appeared in Fortunes of War and played Judge Critchley in Alan Bleasdale's drama GBH.

Film roles included parts in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and The Iron Lady, and he had a small role as the Dean of Windsor in The Crown.

He was the winner of the Clarence Derwent Award 2009 for his performance in The Chalk Garden at the Donmar.

[Alan]

War of the Sontarans
Saturday, 6 November 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...sontarans.html

Doctor Who returns this weekend for the second chapter in the Flux series, War of the Sontarans

During the Crimean War, the Doctor discovers the British army fighting a brutal alien army of Sontarans, as Yaz and Dan are thrown deeper into a battle for survival. What is the Temple of Atropos? Who are the Mouri?

The episode sees the return of the Sontarans, first seen in the 1974 story The Time Warrior. The warriors, created by Robert Holmes, have returned many times to battle The Doctor, most recently in the 2008 story The Sontaran Stratagem / The Poison Sky.

In the episode, the Doctor teams up with Mary Seacole, played by Sara Powell. Seacole was a British-Jamaican, healer, and businesswoman who set up the so-called British Hotel behind the lines during the Crimean War.

The episode can be seen in the UK on BBC One at 6.15 pm on Sunday. Full global broadcasts are listed at This Week in Doctor Who

It can be streamed on the BBC iPlayer on Netflix, on Amazon Prime and Britbox depending on location.

Doctor Who: Flux | Official Trailer | Doctor Who

[Alan]

Flux: Chapter Three - Once, Upon Time
Saturday, 13 November 2021 - Reported by Marcus

https://www.doctorwhonews.net/2021/1...upon_time.html

Doctor Who returns this weekend for the third chapter in the Flux series, Once, Upon Time

Time is beginning to run wild. On a planet that shouldn’t exist, in the aftermath of apocalypse, the Doctor, Dan, Yaz and Vinder face a battle to survive.

The episode is directed by Azhur Saleem making his Doctor Who debut.

It stars Jodie Whittaker as The Doctor alongside Mandip Gill as Yasmin and John Bishop as Dan.

The episode can be seen in the UK on BBC One at 6.30 pm on Sunday. Full global broadcasts are listed at This Week in Doctor Who

It can be streamed on the BBC iPlayer, on Netflix, on Amazon Prime and Britbox depending on location.

Doctor Who: Flux | Official Trailer | Doctor Who