Former Doctor Who lead Christopher Eccleston will be playing John Lennon in an upcoming British television drama commissioned by BBC Four about the life of John Lennon between 1967 and 1971. To further the Doctor Who connection, former Torchwood star Naoko Mori (who played Tosh on the show) will be playing Yoko Ono.
There is a lot of crossover between Doctor Who fans and Beatles fans, so there is sure to be some interest in the series. The roles I know Eccleston best for are those of the Doctor and Destro from G.I.Joe: The Rise of Cobra, so the question is if he can pull off a Liverpudlian accent. Since in the aforementioned roles he's done a Northern British accent (I believe his natural one) and a Scottish accent, he's likely capable of it.
So what do you think? Is Eccleston a good choice for the role of John Lennon?
The final episode of David Tennant's run on Doctor Who "The End of Time" has been posted online. Well, not the entire two-parter, but just the first three minutes or so. It was broadcast in England on the BBC as part of their Children in Need special. The first episode is scheduled to be shown in the U.K. on Christmas Day with the final episode on New Year's Day.
If you happen to be house shopping in the Brantford, Ontario area of Canada -- and if you're a British sci-fi fan -- I've found the perfect ivy-covered drive-by cutie for you.
Obviously, the current residents are huge Doctor Who fans -- unless most Canadians keep evil robotic killers in their home. I have no idea what the cuddly snow creatures to the north do with their free time -- besides crowding up against the U.S. border for warmth.
A closer inspection of the housing listing doesn't make it clear if the alien artifacts come with the jacuzzi, but I doubt you get the whole package with your down payment. But, if the Tardis is part of the deal, you can travel 30 years into the future when the mortgage is paid already off and move in for free.
Fantasy novelist Michael Moorcook will be writing a Doctor Who story. No, it won't be a script for the actual television show bur rather an original novel. He revealed this on his forum.
The mind boggles with regards to what a fantasy novelist like Moorcock could do with Doctor Who. He's used to antihero creations like Elric. Any spin he could put on the character would be interesting. As of yet, it's not even known which incarnation of The Doctor he'll be writing about.
The most appropriate Doctor for Moorcock to write about could be the first (played by William Hartnell), who had a subtle arrogance and sinister nature (arguably the least human of the bunch). I'd personally like to read a sixth Doctor story by Moorcock.
Moorcock has influenced legendary writers like Alan Moore. Whatever take he has on the Doctor Who universe will at least be interesting. What do you think?
The miniseries Torchwood: Children of Earth was a huge ratings and critical success. It was only a matter of time before show creator Russell T. Davies started talking, officially, about moving ahead with another season of Torchwood.
"The recession has hit British television, but fingers crossed, it will be a go. We expect things to start to move in January. We've got great ideas for the show. I think there's a further lease on life for many years to come, but certainly for a [fourth season]," Davies said.
Do Daleks wear jingle bells? Probably not. But the creator of Doctor Who's deadliest enemies is in stateside toy stores to celebrate the holiday season with the human species he's tried to kill off more than once.
His arrival is very timely when you consider it's November and time for pundits like me to start sending some gift ideas your way.
Since I'm more than comfortable shilling for the geek contingent, the good folks at Underground Toys sent the evil scientist (right) over for a visit. Though he's a bit of a grump -- the 12" high, radio controlled Davros should keep any Who fan entertained. The only question I have is whether he'll end up in the fans of kids or their sci-fi fan parents.
Someone on YouTube has smuggled a clip of the new Doctor Who CGI adventure that the BBC will be airing later this year titled "Dreamland". It's still the David Tennant version of the Doctor, so he gets one more go as the character before he becomes Rex.
And it looks... well, frankly, not that good. Oh, the story is great, I'm sure, and Tennant is as spot on as the Doctor as he ever was. It's the CGI. It looks primitive by today's standards. Topless Robot wrote the the style of the clip reminds them of the Reboot CGI cartoon from the 90's, and I have to agree. I recognize the BBC isn't Pixar, and I'm all for Doctor Who in other non-filmed forms, whether it's CGI, primitive animation or just plain old audio adventures. But if it's done, I'd rather it be done better than this.
However, I leave it to you to judge for yourself. What do you think of the clip?
The next Doctor Who special, The Waters of Mars, will be broadcast on BBC America on Saturday December 19th at 9 P.M. For those like myself whose cable company doesn't carry BBC America, we're S.O.L.
Of course, the BBC British broadcast date is November 15th. In that gap, I'm sure even the less technically adept fan in the United States can snag a copy of the show, and fans of the show tend to be more capable when it comes to technology. Not that I'm encouraging such behavior. I'm simply saying that a gap of a month is a LONG time in the digital world. The companies involved would have been better off with a gap of 24 hours. At that point, it's less likely that piracy will occur.
However, for those who are sticklers about this whole "copyright law" thing, you have your opportunity to see the program on December 19th. Hopefully you can wait that long.
(P.S. For those who need more David Tennant as the Doctor before his departure, he's currently appearing on the spin-off show The Sarah Jane Adventures in the U.K.)
Prepare for some spoilers. Don't say I didn't warn you. By the way, Matt Smith is the 11th Doctor (or the 12th, depending on how they spin David Tennant's extraneous regeneration) in case you didn't know.
Actually, it's not that bad. From an article posted on The Doctor Who News Page, it is learned that his new companion, Amy, is a police officer. In a few photos, he also seems to be wearing the remnants of Tennant's outfit. From the description, the Doctor is probably going through some post-regenerative trauma. When has the Doctor ever regenerated without trauma? Never, I think.
I know they film out of order, but it feels odd to know already what his outfit is going to look like. Here is one other possible minor spoiler: in the scenes filmed, the Sonic Screwdriver gets destroyed (and Matt Smith was slightly injured in the process). Between Matt Smith's age and that plot device, it's like Steven Moffat is trying to copy the Peter Davison era.
David Tennant and Simon Pegg will star in John Landis' next film Burke and Hare. Tennant will soon be stepping down as the lead character in Doctor Who and while Pegg has mostly been in movies as of late (such as the recent cinematic remake of Star Trek), he is known for co-creating the television cult fave Spaced.
It will be interesting to see them work together since Pegg is a big sci-fi fan. He appeared in the first season of Doctor Who as "The Editor," before Tennant came on board. Sadly, the movie probably has very little science fiction involved since it's about a pair of famous 19th century grave robbers. What do you expect from the man who brought us An American Werewolf in London?
It's also good to hear that director John Landis apparently isn't career-dead either and has just moved shop to England (hopefully only temporarily). Animal House and The Blues Brothers are two of my favorite movies of all time.
Every once in a while, the British television show Doctor Who is revamped. This is usually done by replacing the lead actor and his supporting crew. However, it is also done by changing the logo of the series. As a result, certain logos are associated with certain eras. Yesterday, the BBC has revealed on their website the logo to be associated with the Matt Smith era of the show. They also have a video of the historical logos of the show.
I don't have a particular favorite logo, although I liked both the "diamond" logo of the 70's, most closely associated with Tom Baker's era, and the "neon" logo of the 80's, which spanned three Doctors (Tom Baker, Peter Davison and Colin Baker). The current one isn't bad either with the cylinder thing with pointy ends (what is that shape called?).
A video preview of thenew logo is available on certain sites such as Topless Robot. What do you think of it? Which logo has been your favorite?
The new series of Doctor Who comes closer and closer, and the list of involved talent is really starting to build up. It's been confirmed that Richard Curtis will write an episode. With some of his more popular work being Four Weddings and a Funeral, Love Actually and Bridget Jones's Diary, Curtis seems like a rather unusual contributor. Of course, he also did Blackadder and The Vicar of Dibley for television, but neither of those things are very sci-fi-related or timey-wimey.
Curtis's films seem to have the most luck when working with ensemble casts, so maybe he can work this same magic on the small screen and introduce some new characters worthy of sticking around. We haven't really had that since Sally Sparrow (and maybe Nightingale, if only to complete the duo) from "Blink". Also, the new Doctor and the new companion are both young and attractive, a combination poised to perfectly fit into Curtis's romantic-comedy specialty.
Former Doctor Who lead actor (or current, depending on how you measure it) David Tennant did a quick television interview with PBS for the TV Critics Press Tour. He'll be taking over as host of their series Masterpiece Contemporary.
In the interview, he briefly glosses over his experience in Doctor Who (as well as the Harry Potter franchise) and discusses the relative importance of public television between England and America. He also discusses his Lou Reed t-shirt. I think Doctor Who has influenced David Tennant's fashion sense. In his personal television appearances, he always seems to sport a casual jacket similar to that of his former character (albeit over a t-shirt).
Any long-time Who fan is very familiar with the relationship between PBS and Doctor Who, as that was the channel that the program could be found on in the 1970's and 1980's. It's a nice interview. Tennant will be a terrific host for that program. The video follows.
Before Doctor Who fans say good bye to David Tennant in the BBC's final three specials of 2009, they'll get a little extra colorful bonus Tennant from the Beeb's Red Button service and the Who website.
Doctor Who: "Dreamland" is the show's first venture into "3D" CG animation, and that makes for a stylistic representation of the Tennant's tall, skinny Time Lord. Writer Phil Ford (a veteran of both live action Who and Torchwood) takes the The Doctor to a diner in Roswell, New Mexico where all manner of alien shenanigans are going on.
American fans won't get to see the six-part series in its first run, as they're blocked out of video feeds on the BBC's websites. If only there were other websites that showed online video (illegally) posted by fans. Oh, well.
Filming is underway for season five (called series five in the U.K.) of the adventures of everyone's favorite Time Lord, Doctor Who, and naturally, a few secrets of the next season have already been leaked.
For the benefit of those who don't wish to be spoiled, the goodies will be revealed after the jump. The rest of you can go about your business.
Former Doctor Who lead Christopher Eccleston will be playing John Lennon in an upcoming British television drama commissioned by BBC Four about the life of John Lennon between 1967 and 1971. To further the Doctor Who connection, former Torchwood star Naoko Mori (who played Tosh on the show) will be playing Yoko Ono.
The final episode of David Tennant's run on Doctor Who "The End of Time" has been posted online. Well, not the entire two-parter, but just the first three minutes or so. It was broadcast in England on the BBC as part of their Children in Need special. The first episode is scheduled to be shown in the U.K. on Christmas Day with the final episode on New Year's Day.
If you happen to be house shopping in the Brantford, Ontario area of Canada -- and if you're a British sci-fi fan -- I've found the perfect ivy-covered drive-by cutie for you.
Fantasy novelist 
The miniseries 
Do Daleks wear jingle bells? Probably not. But the creator of Doctor Who's deadliest enemies is in stateside toy stores to celebrate the holiday season with the human species he's tried to kill off more than once.
Prepare for some spoilers. Don't say I didn't warn you. By the way, Matt Smith is the 11th Doctor (or the 12th, depending on how they spin David Tennant's extraneous regeneration) in case you didn't know.
David Tennant and Simon Pegg will star in John Landis' next film 
The new series of Doctor Who comes closer and closer, and the list of involved talent is really starting to build up. It's been confirmed that 
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