As 2018 draws to a close, Toby Hadoke has released his annual look back at those from the Doctor Who universe whose lives drew to a close in the past twelve months.

 

Remembering those people from the world of Doctor Who who we lost this year.

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Actress and comedy legend June Whitfield has died at the age of 93.

June Whitfield made an enormous contribution to British comedy with a career stretching over 70 years. Her single appearance in Doctor Who came in 2009 in The End of Time, when, at the age of 84, She played Minne Hopper, a member of the silver cloak tracking down the Tenth Doctor.

June Whitfield was born in Streatham, London, in 1925. Her first stage appearance was at the age of three at Robinson's Dance Studio. After studying to be a secretary she enroled at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1944.

Whitfield began her career in radio in the 1940s appearing with Wilfred Pickles. In 1951, she had her first credited television role in The Passing Show, and she joined the London cast of the musical South Pacific.

In 1953 she had her big break joining the radio comedy series Take it from Here, starring Jimmy Edwards and Dick Bentley. She played Eth, fiancée of the dim Ron Glum and earned a place in the nation's heart.

For the next 15 years, Whitfield had many supporting roles on television, including in Dixon of Dock Green, Arthur's Treasured Volumes, The Arthur Askey Show, Faces of Jim, The Benny Hill Show, Steptoe and Son and Frankie Howerd. She had a place in one of the greatest comedy skits of all time, playing the Nurse to Tony Hancock's Blood Donor.

In 1959 she made the first of her four appearances in the Carry On film series.

The 1960s saw her as a leading lady with regular parts in a succession of television comedy series. Beggar My Neighbour ran for four years before Whitfield teamed up with Terry Scott in Scott On.... The partnership was so successful that the two worked together for the next ten years with many viewers assuming they were actually married. A Comedy Playhouse sitcom pilot called Happy Ever After developed into a series running for five years. The couple then appeared together in the Terry and June which ran for 65 episodes.

After appearing an episode of French and Saunders in 1988, Whitfield was asked to play Jennifer Saunders Mother in the sitcom Absolutely Fabulous a role that introduced her to a new generation of fans.

From 1984 until 2001, she was a regular on the Radio 2 satire programme The News Huddlines. From 1993 to 2001, she played Miss Marple in 12 radio adaptations of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple books

Work continued into her ninth decade with appearances in Coronation Street and EastEnders. In 2013, Whitfield became the inaugural recipient of the Aardman Slapstick Comedy Legend Award, a recognition of her lifetime's contribution to the world of comedy.

June Whitfield was appointed a Dame in the 2017 Queens Birthday Honours.

Jon Plowman produced the first four series of Absolutely Fabulous for the BBC. He paid tribute to the actress

Very sad at the news of the death of the wonderful June Whitfield. There was no-one with more warmth or a better ability to just "place" a line ,always an act of utter precision. Hit after hit! Take it from Here Terry and June Absolutely Fabulous over seven decade. A great loss

June Whitfield died peacefully in her sleep early on Saturday morning. She is survived by her daughter Suzy.

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The latest magazine special from Doctor Who Magazine is their annual Yearbook, covering the developments in Doctor Who over the last year.

THE DOCTOR WHO MAGAZINE YEARBOOK 2019

Jodie Whittaker’s debut as the Doctor was one of the television events of 2018 and a landmark in Doctor Who’s long history.

The latest Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition explores the making of Series 11 in unprecedented detail. Highlights among the exclusive interviews include:

• Percelle Ascott (The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos)
• Jonny Dixon (The Woman Who Fell to Earth)
• Shobna Gulati (Arachnids in the UK, Demons of the Punjab)
• Julie Hesmondhalgh (Kerblam!)
• Ed Hime (writer, It Takes You Away)
• Phyllis Logan (The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos)
• Susan Lynch (The Ghost Monument)
• Pete McTighe (writer, Kerblam!)
• Vinette Robinson (Rosa)
• Ellie Wallwork (It Takes You Away)
• Jodie Whittaker (The Doctor)
• Joy Wilkinson (writer, The Witchfinders)

Editor Marcus Hearn says:

We’ve packed an incredible amount into the latest Yearbook. It was always our intention to create the ultimate guide to Series 11, and this issue includes much of the material that we’ve been gathering with the cast and writers since the beginning of 2018.

The Doctor Who Magazine Yearbook 2019 is on general sale from 3 January.

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The BBC have released a new trailer for next week’s episode of Doctor Who, hinting at the return of an old adversary

 

Coming Soon: New Year’s Day | Doctor Who

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As part of their festive advent calendar, today Candy Jar have released their book Companions: Fifty Years of Doctor Who Assistants as a free download. Author and Lethbridge-Stewart range editor Andy Frankham-Allen said:

“When Shaun told me that Candy Jar would be giving away something every day for twenty-five days I thought he was mad. I said, “You’ll regret it by day seventeen”, and indeed he did. However, I do feel that he has pulled it off, just! To be honest, I have actually enjoyed many of the freebies, particularly the Eileen Younghusband documentary. So, I am really pleased that he has chosen Companions as the Christmas Day giveaway. It deserves to be out there again. For six months I watched every episode of Doctor Who, and the book, in my opinion, encapsulates what is great to be the Doctor’s best friend. And Christmas is certainly a good time to celebrate this.

The book culminates their free downloads over the last few weeks, which have included sample book and audio chapters as well as brand new works. Keren Williams, publishing coordinator at Candy Jar, explained the thinking behind the advent calendar:

It’s a Christmas tradition that we give away some short stories to our loyal readers, and this year I thought why don’t we go the whole hog and really spoil everybody? I feel that, despite Andy’s reservations, the giveaways have been successful. I have certainly received many emails from readers who have been looking forward to each day. Perhaps this is something we might repeat in the future. Time can only tell.

You can find all the festive giveaway on the Candy Jar website.

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James Marsters, the star of cult television shows Buffy, Angel, Smallville and recent hit Runaways, is reprising the role of Captain John Hart for his own adventures in the Torchwood audio universe.

The rambunctious, deadly and ever-so charming captain will be back at the helm in a new four-story box set, The Sins of Captain John, created by Big Finish Productions in association with BBC Studios.

Captain John Hart made his audio debut in The Death of Captain Jack, released in March 2018. In this story he killed the entire Torchwood team – including John Barrowman’s supposedly immortal Captain Jack Harkness. He also married Queen Victoria and had no less than three ‘relationships’ with characters from history.

James Marsters told us about returning to the role, and the world of Torchwood.

Doing The Death of Captain Jack was incredible! I have missed doing Torchwood so much. Beyond being proud of playing a part in it, the character itself is a blast to play, and those two episodes just weren’t enough.

Set for release in January 2020, The Sins of Captain John will see Captain John Hart leading the universe into rack and ruin in four new adventures…

1. The Restored
2. Escape from Nebazz
3. Peach Blossom Heights
4. Darker Purposes

In these stories we’ll find the villainous anti-hero thriving in Restoration London, exploring gas planets, playing ‘Stepford wife' and kissing (then killing) countless victims… Just a day in the life of a rogue Time Agent!

Writer, David Llewellyn, tells us what to expect

Writing The Death of Captain Jack was a total blast, and both James Goss (producer of the Torchwood range) and I realised we could have a lot more fun with Captain John Hart, providing James Marsters was happy to return.

Captain John is this chaotic, disruptive, insubordinate force of nature; completely amoral and unpredictable, so that gave me a lot of freedom! Writing is often a case of knowing when to hold back, when to tread a more subtle line, but with Captain John it’s the complete opposite. And setting it before Torchwood on television meant we were able to go to places where Torchwood can’t.

Torchwood fans will also find answers to many of the questions and plot points that have so far been left hanging from the beginning of the television show. More details on what in the future.

The Sins of Captain John, out for release in January 2020, is available for pre-order from Big Finish at £28 on CD or £25 on download, rising to £35 on CD and £30 on download at general release

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The television Producer and Director Bill Sellars has died at the age of 93,

Bill Sellars directed the 1966 Doctor Who story The Celestial Toyroom, which saw the creation of the character of the Toymaker.

Sellars joined the BBC in the 1960's working on the drama A for Andromeda as a Production Assistant. Director roles followed on Compact, United and The Newcomers.

The majority of his work for the Corporation was as a Producer, responsible for some of the best loved drama series of the time. He produced 29 episodes of the Sunday night deama The Brothers, giving Colin Baker one of his first major roles. His best loved series was the adaptation of James Herriot novels about the life of a Yorkshire vet, All Creatures Large and Small, starring a young Peter Davison as Tristan Farnon.

All Creatures Great and Small won him two awards nominations, a BAFTA nomination for Best Drama Series in 1979, and a Primetime Emmy nomination for Best Children's Series in 1990.

Perhaps his biggest misfire was a producer of Triangle, the soap set and shot on a cross channel ferry on its journey across the North sea.

Other series include One by One, Flesh and Blood and The Terracotta Horse.

On retirement he managed The Georgian Theatre Royal in Richmond, Yorkshire, the oldest and most complete Georgian theater in the world.

Bill Sellars died peacefully in his sleep.

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SPACE have confirmed when they will be showing the New Year's Day special, Resolution:

As the series continues to break from tradition, the TARDIS touches down for the brand-new DOCTOR WHO New Year’s Day special, Tuesday, Jan. 1 at 8 p.m. ET. In “Resolution,” as the New Year begins, a terrifying evil is stirring, from across the centuries of Earth’s history. As the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker), Ryan (Tosin Cole), Graham (Bradley Walsh) and Yaz (Mandip Gill) return home, will they be able to overcome the threat to planet Earth?

Leading up to the premiere of the festive special, Space airs the NEW YEAR, NEW DOCTOR marathon, giving viewers the chance to catch up on Jodie Whittaker’s first season as the traveling Time Lord, beginning 9 a.m. ET on January 1.

Seasons 1-10 of DOCTOR WHO are available to stream now, exclusively on Crave. Season 11 and “Resolution” stream exclusively on Crave beginning June 2019.

DOCTOR WHO is produced by BBC Studios.

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Doctor Who: The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos had an official rating of 6.65 million viewers, according to figures released by the Broadcasting Research Audience Board, BARB.

6.48 million watched the episode on a conventional TV set. However the BARB 4-Screen Dashboard shows that an additional 73,000 watched on their PC, 51,000 watched on a Tablet device and 44,000 watched on a smartphone These figures make Doctor Who the 18th most watched programme of the week ending 2nd December.

Top for the week was Sunday's final of I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here getting 13.04 million watching.

Doctor Who in 2018 had an average consolidated audience of 7.96 million viewers. This is the highest year average since 2013, which was boosted by including the 50th Anniversary special.

The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos had an Appreciation Index score of 79

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The BBC have released some new images to promote the forthcoming New Year's Day special, Resolution, which as well as featuring the regular cast also includes Charlotte Ritchie as Lin, Nikesh Patel as Mitch, and Daniel Adeboyega as Aaron.

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Issue 533 of Doctor Who Magazine includes a preview of the New Year's Day episode, Resolution

Guest stars Charlotte Ritchie and Nikesh Patel, director Wayne Yip and writer Chris Chibnall feature in DWM’s exclusive preview of the New Year’s Day Special. Chibnall says

You want it to feel like a treat: a big, thrilling, explosive, moving, cheeky, surprising treat. Basically, you want the Special to be epic. And I promise, it’s going to be epic.

Also in this issue...

• SHARON D CLARKE
An exclusive interview with the actress who played Grace O’Brien in the 2018 series.
• FRAZER HINES
Frazer pulls some crackers from DWM’s TARDIS tin.
• DERRICK SHERWIN
A tribute to the writer, story editor and producer who oversaw the series’ transition from black and white into colour.
• CYBER CONTROLLER
Highlights from a previously unpublished interview with Derrick Sherwin.
• PUBLIC IMAGE
The latest in-depth report on Series 11’s ratings.
• THE FACT OF FICTION
1981’s spin-off K9 and Company, starring Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith.
• CHRISTMAS QUIZ
Put your Doctor Who knowledge to the test with the DWM Christmas Quiz.
• THE TIME TEAM
The Team comments on Doctor Who’s very first Christmas Day episode, 1965’s The Feast of Steven.
• THE WARMONGER
Part three of a new comic strip adventure featuring the Thirteenth Doctor and her friends.
• SEASON SURVEY
Share your views on the latest series of Doctor Who.
• EPISODE REVIEWS
The verdict on Series 11 episodes Demons of the Punjab, Kerblam! and The Witchfinders.

PLUS... A FREE double-sided poster, The Blogs of Doom, reviews, news, prize-winning competitions and more.

Doctor Who Magazine 533 is on sale now, price £5.99.

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Silva Screen Records have announced they will be releasing the Doctor Who Series 11 Soundtrack in January 2019

The music from the series, composed by Segun Akinola, will be available on CD and on streaming services from 11 January.

The recently completed Series 11 marked the arrival of the Thirteenth Doctor, award-winning actress Jodie Whittaker.

Segun Akinola is a multi-talented composer whose work includes scoring BBC Two’s landmark four-part series Black and British: A Forgotten History, written and presented by Historian David Olusoga. He also scored Shola Amoo’s debut feature film A Moving Image, which had its world premiere at the 2016 LA Film Festival.

Where do I even begin?! Working on series 11 has been nothing short of the experience of a lifetime. I have loved every single minute of it. From working closely with the production team, to writing the character themes to recording the New Year Special, it’s truly been so much fun.

The soundtrack is available for pre-order on Amazon.

Volume One

1. Series 11 Opening Titles
2. Getting That Bike
3. Long Story
4. This New Nose Is So Unreliable
5. The Warrior
6. Sonic Screwdriver
7. The Doctor
8. You Really Need To Get Out Of Those Clothes
9. Three Suns
10. Make It Through Those Ruins
11. My Beautiful Ghost Monument
12. Missing You
13. Insurance Policy
14. My Fam
15. Tsuranga
16. Resus One
17. Kerblam
18. Help In Dispatch
19. Ranskoor Av Kolos
20. The Shrine
21. Keep Your Faith

Volume Two

1. Thirteen
2. Get Out That Door
3. Parks, Rosa Parks
4. Artron Energy
5. This Is Very Bad News
6. Fishing Take Down
7. Stand Up Now
8. A Living Icon For Freedom
9. Umbreen
10. Thijarian Hive
11. I Love You Nani
12. Yaz And Nani End Credits
13. King James
14. Tendril
15. Morax
16. Reverse The Polarity
17. Made A New Friend
18. Rebuilt
19. Me And My Mates
20. Series 11 End Credits

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Doctor Who picked up two awards in the 2018 I Talk Telly Awards, an annual Twitter poll which this year saw some 266,400 votes registered. The series won the Best Returning Drama category, whilst Mandip Gill was voted Best Newcomer.

The actress said of her award:

I want to say a massive thank you to everyone that has voted for me as best newcomer at I Talk Telly awards. I've never won anything before - apart from some peapods in French, which is really random - so I just to say a massive thank you to everyone who actually took the time out to vote for me, I really really appreciate it.

The full list of winners can be found on their website.

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Doctor Who: It Takes You Away had an official rating of 6.42 million viewers, according to figures released by the Broadcasting Research Audience Board, BARB.

6.24 million watched the episode on a conventional TV set. However the BARB 4-Screen Dashboard shows that an additional 77,000 watched on their PC, 55,000 watched on a Tablet device and 47,000 watched on a smartphone These figures make Doctor Who the 22nd most watched programme of the week ending 2nd December.

Top for the week was Monday's edition of I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here getting 12.66 million watching.

It Takes You Away had an Appreciation Index score of 80

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Doctor Who: The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos was watched by 5.32 million viewers, a share of 26.4% of the total TV audience, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The rating makes Doctor Who the fourth highest rated programme for Sunday and the 21st for the week ending 9th December.

Highest for the day and the week was the final of ITV’s celebrity show, I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here which had 11.06 million watching. All 7 editions of the programme were in the top ten for the week. Strictly Come Dancing - Results Show had 8.98 million viewers, while Dynasties, the David Attenborough series had 6.33 million. The BBC Drama Care had 2.57 million.

Coronation Street and Emmerdale pushed The Doctor down in the weekly chart, although a top twenty place is likley when final figures are releaed next week.

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The BBC confirmed this evening that Doctor Who will not return for a full series next year, but will instead be back on air in early 2020.

Charlotte Moore, Director of BBC Content said:

We’re delighted that the Doctor and her friends will be returning to thrill audiences in 2020. I know Chris and the whole team are already working on a whole new set of exciting adventures. In the meantime we’ve got a very special episode on New Year’s Day for everyone to enjoy.

Current Showrunner for the series Chris Chibnall said:

We’re off again! Well we never actually stopped - as Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor and friends have been winning the hearts of families across the nation this autumn, we’ve been busy with a whole new set of action packed adventures for the Thirteenth Doctor. We adore making this show and have been blown away by the response from audiences, so we can’t wait to bring more scares, more monsters and more Bradley Walsh, Mandip Gill and Tosin Cole to BBC One. Brilliant!

The New Year's Day special, Resolution will be shown in 2019, of course, and is due to air on BBC One at 7:00pm.

New Year's Day trailer (YouTube)

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Out now, the second in the series of Titan Comic Adventures for the Thirteenth Doctor

Thirteenth Doctor #3

Writer: Jody Houser
Artist: Rachael Stott
Colourist: Enrica Angiolini

Eisner-nominated writer Jody Houser (Faith, Mother Panic, Stranger Things) leaps in with mind-blowing adventures for the Thirteenth Doctor and her brand new friends! A mysterious new time traveller appears - but can he be trusted when he says he's human?

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This week's edition of the Radio Times (8-14 Dec) is the latest in this year's issues to showcase Doctor Who, making it the fourth time in six months that Jodie Whittaker has graced the front cover! Unlike in previous years, however, it isn't the Doctor's Christmas adventure being previewed this time around but her New Year's outing instead.

Inside the magazine is a four page interview with Bradley Walsh, who discusses his career to date and also explains why he wouldn't want to play the Doctor himself:

My style can be as manic as the next person's, but the Doctor has a certain style and, despite regeneration, I think they ostensibly remain the same type of person. And if you don't know the back catalogue and all the jargon, you're up against it. Whereas I ducked out in 1969 (during Patrick Troughton's time as the Doctor) and for me this is brand spanking new. Besides, Jodie is absolutely fantastic.

Another page focusses on Bradley's co-stars, Mandip Gill and Tosin Cole, both of whom still enjoy their anonymity, and on the forthcoming New Year's Day special. The issue also, of course, covers the final episode in the current run of the series, The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos, on this Sunday at 6:25pm.

The Radio Times is available to purchase now from retail outlets in the UK, and the magazine's "legendary Christmas edition", covering New Years Day, is also out now.

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The name for Doctor Who's New Years Day outing has been revealed in the festive special of Radio Times as being named Resolution. The hour-long special will be broadcast at 7:00pm on BBC One, nestling between the news and Eastenders, and will be on against Emmerdale on ITV.

As the New Year begins, a terrifying evil is stirring, from across the centuries of Earth’s history. As the Doctor, Ryan, Graham and Yaz return home, will they be able to overcome the threat to planet Earth?

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Candy Jar have announced an online advent calendar for this year's festive period.

Every day until the 25th, Candy Jar will be giving away standalone short stories, book samplers, wallpapers and more, completely free. Items so far include the Lethbridge-Stewart short story collection The Xmas Files, a Cardiff ComicCon chapter from the children’s book The Book Spy, and The Lucy Wilson Mysteries wallpaper.

Children’s Digital Assistant, Keren Williams, explained the thinking behind the advent calendar:

It’s a Christmas tradition that we give away some short stories to our loyal readers, and this year I thought, why don’t we go the whole hog and really spoil everybody? We have enough unseen material, as well as some hidden gems in our back catalogue, to fill Santa’s sack several times over. Whatever your tastes, and whether you’ve been naughty or nice, we have something just for you.

Head of Publishing, Shaun Russell, added:

In our series, the Brig has gone from a beloved, but somewhat forgotten part of Doctor Who history, to an alive and kicking, vital part of the ever-expanding canon. Here at Candy Jar, we’re fans first and foremost, and we’re forever grateful to our readers for embarking on this journey with us. We wanted to give a little something back to everyone who has helped make the series possible. We hope that it will make this a Candy Jar Christmas to remember!

Subscribers to Candy Jar’s newsletter will receive daily updates containing the latest additions, but the calendar is available to everyone at from their website.

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To the surprise of many shoppers, Cybermen were spotted in two major cities in the UK today, to mark tickets going on sale for Worlds Collide, the first official Doctor Who live escape game.

One of the Time Lord’s oldest enemies, which feature in the new game, commandeered a barge on the canal at Gas Street Basin in Birmingham. Next, they were seen threatening to ‘upgrade’ unsuspecting Christmas shoppers outside the iconic Birmingham Bullring shopping centre, before travelling up through the UK, heading straight for Leeds City Centre, frightening local commuters in the process.

Fans have been eagerly awaiting details of the BBC Studios and Escape Hunt Doctor Who-themed live escape game, which will be playable at Escape Hunt venues across the country from early 2019.

Teams of up to six become the Doctor’s new friends and are transported into the future, to the offices of ChronosCorp HQ, where eccentric billionaire Alastair Montague’s efforts to develop commercial time travel have caused a tear in the fabric of space and time, a tear which the Cyberman will use to attack Earth!

The players are then given 60 minutes to work out how to close the tear before the Cybermen break through, using only what remains of Montague, his prototype time engine and the extensive collection of time-related artefacts acquired over the course of his experiments. The fate of the universe rests in their hands – if they take too long the human race will be ‘upgraded’.

From today, fans can book tickets for the immersive adventure, which will be arriving at Escape Hunt locations on the following dates:

• Bristol – 16/01/2019
• Leeds – 25/01/2019
• Oxford – 08/02/2019
• Manchester – 22/02/2019
• Reading – 08/03/2019
• Birmingham – 22/03/2019

Richard Harpham, CEO Escape Hunt plc, says

We are thrilled that tickets are now on sale and fans can start booking to be the first to play the game in January. We are extremely proud of Worlds Collide and look forward to giving fans a unique Doctor Who escape game experience.

Mat Way, Global Director, Live Entertainment at BBC Studios, says

We’re very excited to be revealing details of the very first official Doctor Who escape game in collaboration with Escape Hunt. We used to hide behind the sofa when the Cybermen appeared on TV, it’s amazing that fans will soon be able to encounter them face to face.

Tickets for Doctor Who: The Live Escape Game, Worlds Collide are now on sale and are bookable via Escapehunt.com

 

Cybermen in Birmingham

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A charity in Liverpool is auctioning off 30 pieces of original comic art, including Doctor Who releated items.

2018 marks People First Merseyside's 30th anniversary and to mark the occasion they are auctioning off 30 pieces of original comic art! 100% of all the winning bids will go direct to People First Merseyside to help them continue their work.

The charity is a regional self-advocacy charity which is run by and for adults with learning disabilities. They are all about supporting adults with learning disabilities to speak out, be respected and live active, healthy and happy lives. Their work helps improve confidence and self-esteem, reduce social isolation, improve psychological well-being and gives people more choice and control over their lives.

Paul Dawson, who has put this auction together, hopes there will be something for everybody in the mix.

I have loved comic books for as long as I can remember and I decided to try to use some blank comic book sketch covers from my collection to try and give something back to People First Merseyside. When the first artist said yes I was blown away and that feeling never went away as more and more artists said yes.

I never expected to get as positive a response as we ended up with and I cannot thank the artists who's work I love enough for taking time out of their schedule to help People First Merseyside.

The auctions are on eBay from until Saturday 8th December -

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The BBC has revealed that an animated version of the 1967 story The Macra Terror will be released in March 2019

The four part Patrick Troughton story has been missing from the BBC Archives for many years, although a copy of the soundtrack exists.

Rumours of an animated version of the story were confirmed by the BBC today releasing a trailer for the story on their YouTube channel.

As well as the Second Doctor, the story features Ben, played by Michael Craze, Polly played by Anneke Wills and Jamie played by Frazer Hines

 

Coming Soon: The Macra Terror | Doctor Who

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Doctor Who: The Witchfinders had an official rating of 7.21 million viewers, according to figures released by the Broadcasting Research Audience Board, BARB.

7.03 million watched the episode on a conventional TV set. However the BARB 4-Screen Dashboard shows that an additional 78,000 watched on their PC, 57,000 watched on a Tablet device and 48,000 watched on a smartphone These figures make Doctor Who the 17th most watched programme of the week ending 18th November.

Top for the week was Monday's edition of I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here getting 13.14 million watching.

The Witchfinders had an Appreciation Index score of 81.

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BBC Studios and Escape Hunt have announced the on-sale date of tickets for the upcoming Doctor Who live escape game, Worlds Collide.

From 6th December, fans can buy tickets to be one of the first to try out the hotly-anticipated game which will be arriving in cities across the UK at Escape Hunt locations from early 2019.

Escape Hunt is a global provider of live ‘escape the room’ experiences. Since opening in 2013, Escape Hunt has expanded rapidly, opening nearly 50 locations across 27 countries around the world. Escape Hunting involves 60 minutes of excitement, during which groups of teammates lose themselves in immersive experiences, created by the Escape Hunt Studios team. Groups must work together to follow a series of clever clues and escape a locked room before their time is up.

The Doctor Who game, Worlds Collide will be opening in Escape Hunt locations in early 2019:

• Bristol – ‪16/01/2019‬
• Leeds – ‪25/01/2019‬
• Oxford – ‪08/02/2019‬
• Manchester – ‪22/02/2019‬
• Reading – ‪08/03/2019‬
• Birmingham – ‪22/03/2019‬

Richard Harpham, CEO Escape Hunt PLC, says

It’s the day that the Doctor Who community have been counting down to and we’re incredibly excited to be one step closer to the opening of Worlds Collide. We’re incredibly proud of the game and can’t wait to welcome fans in to try and crack it!

Doctor Who – Worlds Collide will be on-sale from Thursday, 6th December at midday Please visit the website for more information.

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Doctor Who: It Takes You Away was watched by 5.07 million viewers, a share of 25.1% of the total TV audience, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The rating makes Doctor Who the fifth highest rated programme for Sunday and the 27th for the week ending 2nd December.

Highest for the day was ITV’s celebrity show, I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here which had 10.0 million watching. The X Factor Final had 5.53 million viewers. Strictly Come Dancing - Results Show had 9.10 million viewers, while Dynasties, the David Attenborough series had 5.94 million. The BBC Drama The Little Drummer Girl had 2.57 million.

The week was again dominated by I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here, which took seven out of the top ten places for the week, each episode getting over 8 million watching. Strictly Come Dancing still took top position for the Saturday show getting 10.0 million viewers.

Coronation Street and Emmerdale pushed The Doctor down in the overnight figures, although a top twenty place is possible when final figures are releaed next week.

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Readers in the United Kingdom have a chance to win of a copy of the latest DVD release from the Reeltime Pictures archive, The Doctors: Villains, courtesy of Koch Media UK:

Reeltime Pictures: The Doctors Villains [order from Amazon UK] 

This is the definitive set of interviews with a group of actors who brought the villains in DOCTOR WHO to life and sent you "behind the sofa"! This special release contains five in-depth interviews with IAN COLLIER (Omega - Arc of Infinity), BERNARD ARCHARD (Marcus Scarman - Pyramids of Mars), DAVID GOODERSON (Davros - Destiny of the Daleks), PETER MILES (Nyder - Genesis of the Daleks), JULIAN GLOVER (Scaroth - City of Death), plus a fascinating tribute to ROGER DELGADO (The Master) by the cast and production staff he worked with. For all Doctor Who fans, this 2 disc special collector's edition is 5 hours of pure nostalgia, which will give you a whole new insight into the making of your favourite science fiction series! SPECIAL FEATURE: Introduction by NICHOLAS BRIGGS & Producer KEITH BARNFATHER

To be in with a chance to win a copy of the set, simply answer the following question:

Which of the interviewed actors is the only one to have appeared in Doctor Who alongside Roger Delgado?

Please send your answer along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-villains@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "You see, Doctor, you're my intellectual equal. Almost.". Open to readers within the United Kingdom. Only one entry per household will be accepted. Closing date: Saturday 15th December 2018.

Related Articles: The Doctors: Villains (9 Nov 2018)

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Jodie Whittaker is the latest Doctor Who star to present an episode of the popular childrens' Bedtime Stories, shown on CBeebies every evening at 6:50pm.

Jodie will be reading Ada Twist, Scientist on Friday 7th December, the third in a series of books by Andrea Beaty and David Roberts. She said:

It is such an honour to know that families and friends will be sharing this experience with me. I hope that everyone enjoys it as much as I did.

(This episode replaces the orginally scheduled Whatever Next! read by Adil Ray)


For those wanting to continue their Jodie fix before the Doctor Who finale on Sunday, Friday evening also sees the actress appearing in the new series of Channel 4's Jamie and Jimmy's Friday Night Feast, broadcast at 8:00pm, where she'll be preparing dishes including roast pork, complete with a double helping of crispy crackling, and an authentic Thai beef massaman curry (something she has been dreaming about since she was 18!).


You can follow notifications of these and other related broadcasts via This Week in Doctor Who, with discussions on Facebook.

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A number of new publicity images to promote this week's episode of Doctor Who, It Takes You Away

It Takes You Away

Writer: Ed Hime
Director: Jamie Childs

On the edge of a Norwegian fjord, in the present day, The Doctor, Ryan, Graham and Yaz discover a boarded-up cottage and a girl named Hanne in need of their help.

What has happened here?

What monster lurks in the woods around the cottage – and beyond?

Images 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

 

Episode 9 Trailer | It Takes You Away | Doctor Who

This episode will debut on BBC One at 6.30pm.

Main Broadcast Details
United Kingdom	BBC One	Sunday 2nd December	6.30pm GMT
United States of America	BBC America	Sunday 2nd December	8.00pm EST
Canada	SPACE	Sunday 2nd December	8.00pm EST
Australia	ABC	Monday 3rd December	6.00pm AEDT

Full listings here

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The BBC have released details on iPlayer requests for October, indicating that the service achieved its highest usage ever. The new series of Doctor Who made a huge contribution to the total, with the opening episode to feature new Doctor Jodie Whittaker achieving 2.962 million!

Dan McGolpin, controller of programming for the BBC, said:

It’s been a fantastic autumn for BBC iPlayer. Bodyguard and Killing Eve are the two strongest performing series ever and in October we set a new record for daily requests, which gave us our highest ever monthly total. Together with the return of Doctor Who, The Apprentice and Strictly BBC iPlayer offers a unique mix of brand new programmes alongside some of the nation’s best-loved shows.

The "boxed set" of Killing Eve dominated the top ten requested episodes, with six of its eight episodes in the top ten; the other places included two episodes of The Cry, the opening episode of The Apprentice and of course Doctor Who's premiere.

The top ten charts for October 2018:
Top Ten Episodes for October: Killing Eve: 1. Nice Face (3.555m) Doctor Who: 1. The Woman Who Fell To Earth (2.962m) The Cry: Episode 1 (2.924m) Killing Eve: 7. I Don't Want To Be Free (2.430m) Killing Eve: 6. Take Me To The Hotel (2.332m) Killing Eve: 8. God, I'm Tired (2.286m) The Apprentice: 1. Malta (2.263m) Killing Eve: 5. I Have A Thing About Bathrooms (2.237m) Killing Eve: 4. Sorry Baby (2.194m) The Cry: Episode 2 (2.087m)	Top Ten Programme Episodes for October: Killing Eve: 1. Nice Face (3.555m) Doctor Who: 1. The Woman Who Fell To Earth (2.962m) The Cry: Episode 1 (2.924m) The Apprentice: 1. Malta (2.263m) Informer: No Sleep Till Brooklyn (1.793m) Strictly Come Dancing: Week 5 (1.395m) Bodyguard: Episode 6 (1.360m) Eastenders: 9 Oct 2018 (1.071m) This Country: The Aftermath (0.859m) Match of the Day: 20 Oct 2018 (0.753m)

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