March 2005

Note: I'm continuing to update this story as details come in on March 31... updates are at the bottom of the story.

Christopher Eccleston has made the decision not to return to "Doctor Who" for a second series, according to news reports confirmed today by the BBC.

While today's earlier story about the second series/Christmas special renewal included hints that Eccleston might be hedging hits bets on a return, the first reports circulated before midnight UK time as it was announced the Sun would lead Thursday with the phrase "Doctor Who Quits," joined by the Daily Mirror. The story was then picked up by the Scotsman and the Press Association news feed, fueling speculation that this was either a true story or possibly an interpretation by the broadsheets of Jane Tranter's comments (see story below) about how "People will have to wait and see what happens" regarding the other 12 episodes to be shown. Later in the evening, BBC News confirmed the news, first with a "breaking news" splash on their home page, then a short update and finally a full story regarding Eccleston's decision not to return for a second year. "Eccleston, whose first appearance as the ninth Time Lord attracted around 10 million viewers, feared being typecast," says the report, although this may simply be speculative about his reasons for deciding not to return. Press Association's report said, "Actor Christopher Eccleston has quit as Doctor Who after just one series, it was announced tonight. The star, who has appeared in television drama Cracker and hit film, Shallow Grave, is worried about being typecast. He is also planning new projects and found filming the series gruelling. In a statement issued through the BBC, Eccleston said: æThe audience's response for the new Doctor Who has been incredible and I am really proud to be part of it and I hope viewers continue to enjoy the series."

The reports mention that Billie Piper will return next year to the role of Rose Tyler.

Meanwhile, BBC News also confirmed today the rumors that it was in talks with actor David Tennant, the star of the new Davies-produced drama "Casanova," which is currently showing on BBC3, as a possible replacement for Eccleston... a suggestion originally reported by yesterday's Mirror when it noted that Eccleston had not indicated he was coming back to the role (see "Wednesday Series Coverage" below). Says BBC News: "A BBC spokesman said the corporation would issue a formal statement later on Thursday and that it had hoped, rather than expected, that Eccleston would continue in the role. He said that although talks to make David Tennant the 10th Doctor were taking place, other names may be put forward. Bill Nighy was also considered for the Eccleston role, while Richard E Grant starred in a BBC web drama version of Doctor Who. Casanova, which moves to BBC1 from BBC3 on Monday, added to Tennant's reputation after his success in the drama Blackpool." Obviously, Tennant's name being put forward as a possible successor indicates that the decision by Eccleston not to return has been some time in the making, prompting hedged comments from members of the production and the BBC and possible negotiations with Tennant (which he earlier denied were taking place, but that could also have been delaying until an announcement about Eccleston was made.) The reports also indicate that Tennant's name has been put forward and that they're in talks, but nothing's been confirmed yet and it's too early to call him the Tenth Doctor just yet... though today's Media Guardian suggests that Tennant "is the only name being looked at".

There is currently no final word as to whether or not Eccleston will return for the Christmas special announced earlier today -- some news reports suggest he will, but this may simply be choice of words. Meanwhile, despite the reported reason of typecast fearing, there may be budgetary concerns in the mix. Jane Tranter, BBC Head of Drama Commissioning, had said in a statement reported in the Times that new dramas will face 15 per cent budget cuts to pay for prestige hits such as Doctor Who. "Dr Who and current shows are protected but we have to find a way of making a certain number of dramas at a lower cost," the Times noted, as well as mentioning that "Producers will be told to squeeze out more minutes of drama a day during shoots and star actors face tough salary negotiations. Speaking before the new doctor announced his departure, Ms Tranter said ominously: 'Now weÆve got to start talking to Billie Piper and Chris about what they want to do. There is a mischievous element to it, in that you can keep regenerating the Doctor.'"

The story was likely to not be reported on for some time, but apparently got out to the tabloids, forcing the BBC to make comments about this as the Thursday morning sheets went to press. Other locations reporting this story this evening include the Independent, the Telegraph, Scotsman (a separate news item than the one above) and WaveGuide. Expect a lot more reporting on this in the press in the hours to come, as it's interesting to note that -- like the announcement of the new series itself and of Christopher Eccleston's casting -- the story broke after much of British fandom had gone to bed for the evening.

Update 31 March 0720 GMT: According to reports, this news has been mentioned today on GMTV's Breakfast show and has also made the BBC morning news headlines. Many reports are expected throughout the day; when they come in, we'll post links to them here.

Update 31 March 0840 GMT: Several sources are claiming that Tennant actually will be the Doctor for the second series, instead of just someone the BBC is talking to. No word as yet from official sources as to whether or not Tennant has been signed to the role. Meanwhile, more press sources are reporting this story this morning:

The Mirror, The Sun (claiming as always an "exclusive"), Daily Mail, This Is London, Ananova, Sky News, Digital Spy, Movie Hole, Variety, BoingBoing.

Update 31 March 1600 GMT: The BBC press office has issued a press release; meanwhile, there's more information including links to various news reporting agencies carrying the story coming later today.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe and Chuck Foster for hunting down news items despite not being very happy about it...)

Update 30 March 1625 GMT: The official Doctor Who website now confirms the second series/Christmas special story!

Today's MediaGuardian and The Stage reported that both a second year of the new Doctor Who series as well as a special episode to be aired this coming Christmas season have now been commissioned. "The BBC has wasted no time in commissioning a Christmas special and second series of its Doctor Who revival, less than a week after the time traveller returned to BBC1 after an absence of 16 years with nearly 10 million viewers," says the report. "However, the BBC head of drama commissioning, Jane Tranter, was unable to confirm whether Christopher Eccleston, the ninth doctor, or Billie Piper, who plays his sidekick, would be returning - opening up the possibility that the man with the sonic screwdriver might have to undergo yet another regeneration within a year. Ms Tranter said she had commissioned the Christmas special and a second series of Doctor Who yesterday - just three days after the sci-fi show began its new 13-part run on BBC1 with 9.9 million viewers, beating off stiff opposition from Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway. 'So now we've got to start talking to Billie and Chris about what they want to do. I want to make Doctor Who again, but there is a mischievous element to it, in that you can keep regenerating [the Doctor],' she added. 'I think Chris is fantastic as Doctor Who. But we've still got another 12 episodes to go. People will have to wait and see what happens." Tranter made her comments today at a Broadcasting Press Guild lunch, and added that Eccleston and Piper's contracts included options to do more series, which is standard practice in returning TV dramas, but that it was not yet certain that the pair would continue to be part of the show. Russell T Davies, it notes, will write the Christmas Special.

Russell T Davies told the official Doctor Who website that "It's fantastic news. It's been a tense and jittery time because the production team has been working on plans for Series Two - scripts are being written already! - without ever knowing if it would ever get made. We could all have ended up unemployed. But now we can put all those plans into action and get going. It's particularly good for BBC Wales. This is a major flagship show for the region, and their staff and crews are the best you could find. It's a tribute to them that Doctor Who is returning. Cymru am byth!"

Tranter said that Doctor Who was "probably the riskiest thing I've ever commissioned", because of the cost and the commitment to a 13-episode series, adding that she was shocked at how popular the first episode had proved on Saturday night. "In all honesty I had got myself into proverbial steel jacket as far as Doctor Who was concerned. I told myself I'd be completely and utterly thrilled if it got 6.5 million, but there was a little voice inside whispering '4.5 million'." She said that Barb's AI index, the audience research measure of how much viewers enjoyed a show, had scored 81 out of 100 for Doctor Who - above the average for the corporation's dramas, which is 78. Tranter added that the BBC had always envisaged that the Doctor Who revival would be scheduled early on Saturday evening, even though this put it head to head with Saturday Night Takeaway, one of ITV1's biggest entertainment hits. "We wanted it to be early Saturday evening, because that had been the slot before, and Russell [T Davies] had written it with that time in mind. There's something there for every adult to chew on, but also something for children. If you played it at a different time, it's just not going to work." (Thanks to Paul Hayes, David Baker, Scott Matthewman, Angus Moorat, Jonathan Slater, Paul Engelberg and Steve Tribe plus the official Doctor Who site editors!)

The official Doctor Who website has regenerated again... now bearing a teaser splash for episode 2, "The End of the World." Much of the content is the same, but there is an additional piece of infomation: producer Russell T Davies will be in a live chat at 7.45pm next Saturday, right after the episode. A few new sound downloads were added (including "the burp"), along with footage of Davies and Julie Gardner at the press launch.

The BBC Shop has now confirmed the release dates for the two Doctor Who new series DVD sets, the three-episode, no-extras versions due out May 16 and June 13, respectively. The pages are here and here. Of note, they now have DVD #'s attached; the serial for the first is BBCDVD1755 and the second, BBCDVD1756.

Has Christopher Eccleston's successor already been picked? The Mirror thinks so, bounding on the reports that Eccleston is waffling about coming back for a second series, and says that "Casanova heart-throb David Tennant is being lined up to play Doctor Who - just a week after Christopher Eccleston made his debut as the time lord." It notes that Eccleston has not committed to a second series, "and BBC insiders revealed last night that Paisley-born Tennant, 33, who played young Casanova on BBC3, is the man to replace him. Even if Eccleston does decide to stay on for another series, Tennant will have first refusal on the job after he goes. A Beeb source said: 'At the end of this season, you are led to believe that (spoiler, highlight for full details) the Doctor could be dead after he's saved his companion Rose - played by Billie Piper - and the Earth from the Daleks. But it turns out that there's a way for Rose to save him and that's how the second season starts. So she gets back to the TARDIS and is able to get the Doctor brought back to life. If Chris is still in the role, no problems. He's been brilliant and it will be good to have him back. If David is in the role, it will just be explained as the Doctor using up one of his regenerations, which has happened many times before. Lining up replacements isn't bad form - the BBC has a hit on its hands and is just doing what it can to keep it going.'" Tennant, obviously, is quoted as saying he's "flattered" but has not been offered the role. "I've never made any secret that I'm a big fan of Doctor Who and it's the reason I got into acting, but I haven't been asked to play the Doctor. I haven't been approached at all. ... It would be a great role to play, but as far as I know it's not up for grabs." But the Mirror says, that "Tennant WILL play the Doctor at some point - and will be asked to stay for the long haul. Even if Christopher returns for a second season and wants out after that, David will get the role. He is the hot favourite at the moment. He's a fan and incredibly talented as anyone who saw him on Casanova will testify. He'd be great for bringing in lady viewers in the same way that Billie Piper is bringing in the blokes." Obviously, this is almost completely speculative, but worth reporting... Meanwhile, it should be noted that David Tennant already has a connection to Doctor Who, having appeared in no less than seven plays for Big Finish, including "Colditz," "Medicinal Purposes," "Sympathy for the Devil" and the "Dalek Empire" series.

"No, I Don't Fancy A Tree-Some!" proclaims today's Daily Star, which says that "sexual tensions rise in the new Doctor Who series when the Timelord makes his sidekick Rose jealous. And to make matters worse, he starts getting cosy with a woman who looks like a tree! The Doctor... meets the alluring alien Jabe, who is half-woman and half-log. The time traveller is immediately smitten with the strange-looking lass (actress Yasmin Bannerman) and flirts with her, right in front of his assistant Rose ... As a gift of peace, Jabe offers the Doc a plant and says: 'This is a cutting from my grandfather!'" There's a bit more dialogue exchange, but mostly just innuendo before the episode continues.

Katy Manning, best known as Jo Grant from the 1970's era of Doctor Who, "has some advice for Billie Piper, the new young actor who plays Doctor Who's assistant" according to the Australian Associated Press General News. "She (Piper) is as good as anybody else, better than some and she will bring her own magic to it," Manning says. "The key word to this show is truth because you are dealing in totally unreal situations. Truth will get them every time because it should make you laugh, cry, feel afraid. That is what the show is all about." She also notes that she's heard good things about the series: "From what I hear, the show is frigging fantastic. Don't look for the wobbly sets anymore because they're not there. ... Miss Piper could become a millionaire out of this. I am lucky if I can pay for a couple of years in my maturity for a bath chair."

Today's Times has a note about Simon Callow, who will be in the third episode, "The Unquiet Dead." Callow, it says, "is not a fan of the Time Lord: 'I saw the first episode in 1963 with William Hartnell as the Doctor. It wasn't for me so I missed the entire procession of Doctors that followed.'"

As reported previously, Newsround Showbiz on the CBBC Channel ran a special Dr Who edition on March 26. It covered many of he same points made in earlier shows, such as Blue Peter and acted as a bridging tool for children new to the show. It included brief interviews with Chris Eccleston, Billie Piper and Russell T Davies. All were asked were they would like the TARDIS to take them, as in previous interviews, Chris Eccleston said Salford of the 1960Æs, Billie Piper said sheÆd like to see what happens to her in her 30Æs, while Russell T Davies said heÆd like to go two to three hundred years into the future. This is to be followed up with a behind the scenes look at episode two of the show, which as we reported yesterday is due to broadcast on the CBBC Channel April 2nd at 15:50.

The industry magazine Hollywood Reporter ran an article yesterday about the show. "The new treatment is very much Davies's baby. He is an executive producer and has written nine of the new 45-minute shows. With "Queer as Folk" to his credit, Davies was bound to bring a fresh imagination to what could easily have degenerated into a tired rehash. But his "Doctor Who" (Eccleston) should please died-in-the-wool fans and attract new audiences to a children's program that will please adults too. Davies deals delightfully with the background to the good doctor's character in a way that should satisfy cultists and also bring newcomers up to speed." It says that "One of the great appeals of the earlier shows was a sense of amateurishness, not only in the bookish approach of its scientist hero but also in the special effects. Here they've spent some money sprucing up the effects and the Tardis, the doctor's time-travel machine that looks like a police call box on the outside, is spectacular. But Davies keeps the stunts at a manageable level and it's all just cheesy enough to maintain the affection of the show's many fans."

Today's Daily Express runs a list, "Ten things you never knew about. . . doctors" with three Doctor Who references: "In the late 1970s, eight Doctor Who episodes were scripted by Douglas Adams (author of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), four under the name David Agnew. The first episode of Doctor Who was screened the day after John F Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. Doctor Who's time-travelling Tardis (Time And Relative Dimensions In Space) is powered by energy from an artificial black hole called the Eye of Harmony."

Other reports: a review/report on the ratings in the Evening Times, the Scotsman discusses the battle between Doctor Who and Star Wars for British toy store sales, and the News and Star says that Eccleston's performance as the Doctor is a "triumph" and notes that "Dr Who has much in common with James Bond. It is a huge challenge to be the next in line to play a part which is an institution where you will be compared mercilessly with all those who have gone before."

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, John Leivers, Alan Chadwick, Steven Penfold)

Note: There was a spoiler in the above text that I didn't notice until several people complained; it wasn't intended (it's easy to let these reports pass when you're amalgamating hundreds of emails.) I've now corrected this.

As previously reported Doctor Who was the big winner on Saturday night: the final numbers out for the top twelve Saturday night programs note that the show received 9.94411 million viewers, a 43.20% share of the audience, and at times peaked up to 10.5 million. The show's competition, ITV's "Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway" received a 31.38% share with 7.17512 million viewers to be the night's third highest rating program, after "Casualty" (with 7.45706 million viewers/33.21% share).

Also, Doctor Who: A New Dimension scored great ratings for its timeslot and genre; the 5.25pm documentary that aired on BBC1, produced by the same people as "Doctor Who Confidential," received a 26.08% share with 4.05670 million viewers, number eleven on the night's viewing charts.

Meanwhile, BBC3 scored a big night with their broadcast of Doctor Who Confidential, which according to ViewingFigures received 820,630 viewers (or 5.45% audience share). The numbers are said to be "huge" for a documentary on BBC3. BBC's Sunday night repeat of "Rose," the first episode of the new series, scored 484,020 viewers (or a 3.51% share).

With the imminent broadcast of the new series in Canada, the Canadian edition of TV Guide Magazine, the most widely-read magazine in North America, carries Doctor Who on its front cover. Click on the thumbnail at right for a larger version of the cover. Meanwhile, the Canada.com website has an article about the show; nothing really noteworthy beyond a vague description on how the Daleks have been updated in their look, and Phil Collinson stating that he thinks the series must be "adapted to the times."

Italy is the latest confirmation as a broadcaster of the new series, as a story in today's Media Guardian makes note that "the programme has been sold to CBC in Canada, Prime TV in New Zealand and Sky Italia's entertainment channel Jimmy." It also mentions Australia in the article: "Production sources said that the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, which is currently broadcasting every Doctor Who episode since the beginning, would shortly buy the series after it has viewed all 13 completed episodes."

The official Doctor Who website now has the trailer for episode 2, The End of the World, on their site; click here for the media player to watch it. They've also made some, er, changes to their "Who is Doctor Who" site... the page "formerly" run by Clive from the first episode. Go to the front page of the Doctor Who site, and look next to Billie Piper's hands for a secret entrance to Clive's site.

Doctor Who Uncovered is a radio program to be broadcast after the BBC3 repeat of "The Unquiet Dead" on Sunday, April 10 at 7.45pm. The program lasts 15 minutes (running to 8pm). There's currently no word on the content of the program.

More broadcasting updates: Christopher Eccleston is scheduled to be a guest on "The Heaven and Earth show" on BBC1 at 10.30am on Sunday, April 3. One day earlier, on Saturday April 2, the CBBC Channel will be doing a feature behind the scenes on "End of the World" at 15.50 on the programme "Newsround Showbiz".

The new edition of Radio Times (2û8 April) is published today and continues its heavy promotion of the new series. Once again, Doctor Who is at the head of the recommended viewing for the week (page 4), with a small picture of Jabe and a brief description: "Rose learns the hard way on her first time-travel trip with the Doctor in this fresh, funny romp. Bizarre aliens ahoy, including Jabe." On page 10, there is a letter from a viewer complaining that the Mastermind special was won by the contestant with the lowest score in the Doctor Who round ("I was horrified..."). This week's big "Doctor Who Watch" feature runs on pages 12 to 15 and goes behind the scenes on creating the various aliens for episode 2, with comments from Phil Collinson, Neill Gorton, Davy Jones and Lucinda Wright, as well as eight colour photographs. (There's also coverage of both Quatermass and Casanova, featuring Mark Gatiss and David Tennant.) Saturday's televison pick of the day is illustrated with the Face of Boe, and a write-up that mentions that no preview tape was available, "so we can't tell you whether the promise of the excellent thrilling opener is realised and sustained." The listing for the episode (which includes a credit for Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler) at 7pm has another alien's mugshot. The listing for Doctor Who Confidential says that "the focus is on the memorable monsters from the past 40 years of the show". UKTV Gold is listed as showing The Creature from the Pit and Nightmare of Eden in its weekend omnibus slots; BBC1's Heaven and Earth Show (Sunday, 10.30am) has an interview with Christopher Eccleston; BBC4 is reshowing its Fantasy 60s documentary, which deals briefly with Doctor Who, at 11.40pm on Saturday. Finally, on Monday 4, at 5pm, Blue Peter on BBC1 shows "how to make a Dalek out of a garden compost bin."

Heat magazine have more support for the new series in their new issue. In the Picks for Saturday night they have a joint pick for Doctor Who and Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway: "Doctor Who/Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, BBC1, 7pm/ITV1, 6.45pm. Now that you've seen the first episode of Doctor Who, or made your mind up sight-unseen on whether it's your particular cup of Saturday-evening tea, the nation can divide itself into Who people or Ant people - so to speak. We could all just use our videos or Sky+, but we don't all have time to press confusing buttons. On BBC1, it's the year five billion AD and someone's using spider-things to bump off the alien spectators who have gathered to watch the sun explode and destroy the earth. Will the Doctor and Rose sort it out in time? On ITV1 it's 2005 AD and Emma Bunton is stitched up like a blonde, musical kipper on Ant and Dec Undercover, Ainsley Harriott joins in the Grab the Ads fun in the studio and And and Dec go head-to-head in Kirsty Gallacher's Ant versus Dec challenge from last week. Not to mention the weekly treat that is Little Ant and Dec's celeb interview. Make your choice now! "

Fans on the air: Timothy Farr of TIMELESS (the DWAS local group South Wales) and Julia Raysight of the Guardian were on the BBC Radio Wales morning programme "Good Morning Wales" at 8:55am chatting about the success of the weekend. Also, on BBC Radio Five Live, Nicky Campbell and Shelagh Fogerty discussed the series on their "Breakfast" show with Boyd Hilton, edtitor of Heat Magazine, at 8:55am. Its around 02:51:00 in on Radio 5 Live's Listen Again Service (Monday). And the Preston Doctor Who group in England appeared on BBC Radio Lancashire today to review the first episode. The 20 minute segment formed part of the Ben Thompson show at 2.15pm. It was a follow-up appearance to a show in December 2004, again discussing Doctor Who.

Monday's issue of the Daily Express has yet more coverage of the new series. A quarter-page photo of a smiling Billie Piper on the front cover is captioned: ôBILLIE HELPS YOU KNOW WHO WIN THE RATINGS WARö, promoting a full-page feature on page three which covers the ratings victory. The page three headline is ôBillie the Whizz Kidö with ôDr Who wins Saturday night TV ratings warö. The article is accompanied by a large photo of Billie, a smaller inset photo of Chris and Billie from the second promo photo, and a picture of Ant and Dec. Amusingly itÆs a recent photo of the ITV pair (Dec has his arm in a sling from a recent injury) and is captioned ôLOSING OUT: Ant and Dec were TV warÆs casualtiesö. Perhaps a little unfairly though, the article compared Doctor WhoÆs peak figure with Ant and DecÆs average, saying: ôITV wheeled out a line-up of celebrities, including soccer star David Beckham, but the BBC pulled in an audience of 10.5 million compared with Ant and DecÆs Saturday Night Takeaway at 7.2 million.ö On page 13, the paperÆs TV reviewer Charlie Catchpole gives the episode a glowing review, his only complaint being the new arrangement of the theme tune. The review is headlined ôThis Doctor is the right prescriptionö, and his comments include: ôThe Tardis has landed. The Doctor is among us and allÆs well with the world. Or pretty much all. Christopher Eccleston makes a marvellous new Doctor Whoà The special effects are dazzling, the script by Russell T Davies is sharp and wittyà The opening episode was perfectly in tune with the showÆs traditions but it could just as easily have stood alone.ö Then on page 24, the newspaper has its top 10 ôOK Magazine Celebrity Chartö, with Christopher Eccleston equalling his No. 2 position from the week he was cast as the Doctor last year, and Billie going straight in at No. 3 (they must be so proud, eh?). The write up for Chris is ôThe Salford-born actor is showered with praise as he brings Doctor Who back to television screens as the ninth Timelord.ö And for Billie: ôThere is praise too for Billie, who plays Doctor WhoÆs companion Rose û with critics impressed by Chris EvansÆ estranged wifeÆs acting talent.ö They were both beaten out by David Beckham at No. 1. Interestingly, the Daily Expres also quoted from a review posted at Outpost Gallifrey by David Farmbrough (using the words 'Billie's performance is spot-on, and very easy on the eye' from it) to indicate that fan reaction to her has been positive.

Monday's Times had a bottom-page panel with a pic of Piper and Eccleston and the headline "Happy landing" and sub-heading "New Doctor Who wins acclaim - and an audience", directing readers to page nine where it was the page lead under the headline "Who's the daddy as 10m find time to see the Doctor". Readers were also invited to e-mail their comments on the subject "Is Dr Who the way forward for the BBC?" to debate@thetimes.co.uk - a section (separate to the Letters page) where readers' views are printed. In today's debate@thetimes.co.uk section, the invite is repeated, albeit worded slightly differently, saying "What do you think of the new Dr Who?" - the responses will appear in the next day or two. Page 20 of The Times also had a cartoon utilising a Dalek chanting "Exterminate" inside Conservative HQ while someone exclaims "Crisis? What crisis?"; it's a comment on the latest Conservative party turmoil and borrowing a phrase misattributed to former Labour premier Jim Callaghan - whose death was announced straight after Rose had aired on Saturday. By one of those strange Doctor Who-world coincidences, when Callaghan (who was born in Portsmouth - where I'm writing this) was ennobled in 1987, he became Lord Callaghan of Cardiff, which, of course, nobody needs reminding is where the new series was made! Reviewing the weekend's TV in The Times, Paul Hoggart gave the show a definite thumbs-up, calling it "a joyful, exuberant reinvention".

Monday's Daily Star made the show's ratings triumph against Ant and Dec its page one splash, with the full story on page six. It was the lead piece in a two-page feature that also had two other (non-DW) programme-related stories. The headline, stretching across pages six and seven, was "Who's The Daddy!" and the strap was "New look Doctor makes dummies out of Ant 'n Dec as the fans go wild for a trip in the Tardis and another monster showdown". There was a positive review by Peter Dyke and a negative one by Iain Burchell. There was also a preview pic story for episode two that mentioned Rose likening Cassandra to Michael Jackson because of the number of cosmetic ops she's had! (I don't think that counts as a spoiler, does it?) Charlie Catchpole's piece in the Express is repeated - with a slight edit - on page 15 in the Star (both newspapers are owned by the same organisation).

Many other new series episode reviews have been published the past two days, including at the following sites: The Great Link, icWales, the Mirror (a very negative review, sadly), Leeds Today, Logicvoice, Blogcritics, two articles in the Times here and here, and the MediaGuardian. Other papers such as the Leicester Mercury and Daily Express also carried printed reviews.

Several papers have run stories about the wide variety of merchandise marketing that will be done, including some quotes of up to 70 pieces of merchandise for the new Doctor Who series alone: Daily Record, MediaGuardian (also noted for its broadcast info, above), and Telegraph (with another story here).

Lots of additional coverage of the ratings for the first episode: Times Online ("Who's the Daddy?"), the Mirror ("Decterminate"), icWales, Sky News, IGN, RealityTVWorld (also here as well), Brand Republic, the New York Times, Express Newsline, This is London, Express and Star, MediaWeek, Yabedo, Leeds Today, Monsters and Critics, DeHavilland, Sydney Morning Herald, InTheNews and ContactMusic.

Some general articles germaine to the new series: The Western Mail ran an article about the various locations used in the shooting of the episode "Rose". Yorkshire Today ran some of Christopher Eccleston's comments from previous papers. The Sun ran a brief version of its paper story on a burnt up police box! And BBC News ran an article about a "Tardis builder [who] awaits new Daleks".

The April issue of the horror magazine Rue Morgue (the one with "The Amityville Horror" on the cover) is on newsstands now and contains an extensive article on Doctor Who examining the classic seriesÆ relationship to the horror genre, with particular attention to the Hinchcliffe-Holmes era, written by our correspondent Joe O'Brien. You can find out more at the website.

BBC Radio 4 still has "The Now Show" available on their 'listen again' feature. From 2 minutes to 3 minutes in they sing a nice acoustic ditty called 'Call me during Dr Who and I'll kill you...'

And finally... The Sun on Tuesday still reckons Doctor Who makes good copy, for it carries a woeful tale (apparently an exclusive) about Washington DC fan Richard Briggs, 47, who flew over to recover a plywood Tardis said to have been used by the BBC in 1983 and left behind after filming at Plas Brondanw, north Wales (presumably during the Five Doctors shoot) - only to discover that the gardener who had been keeping it in his shed had got fed up with it and dumped it on a bonfire two weeks beforehand. Story was accompanied by a pic of Briggs and a mock-up of, er, what a police box would look like if being consumed by flames. (Presumably readers' imaginations needed that bit of extra help.)

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes, Chuck Foster, John Bowman, Mike Doran, Graeme Burk, David Farmbrough, Joe OÆBrien, Robin Shannon, Michael Luchka, Paul Wheeler, Mick Snowden, Tim Harrison, Jonathan Massey, Macfadyan, Peter Nolan, Ken Moss, Robert Booth, Mustafa Hirji, David Brodie, Andy Davidson, and Liam Burch for the TV Guide scan)

March 28 Note: Taking a well-deserved break today; back tomorrow, Tuesday, March 29. Meanwhile, last evening's editorial note:

Over the past three weeks, Outpost Gallifrey has been updated every single day with news stories, sometimes three or four times per day. Needless to say, it's been tiring and sometimes very excruciating, doing the updating before work, during the day and in the evenings, knowing the next morning will bring more stories to sift through (sometimes on the order of a hundred or more!) It's been even more difficult when you realize that I'm not in the UK, and therefore rely upon the good will of our readers. I'd therefore like to thank everyone who's been credited the past few weeks for their diligence in reporting information up to and including the new series press launch, the various trailers, the live TV and radio appearances and this weekend's transmission of "Rose"... every person credited herein has been integral in gathering these news reports (hopefully I've managed to credit everyone!), and especially Steve Tribe and Paul Engelberg for gathering news stories, updating the calendar and forwarding every single report they could find. Also, special thanks to Chuck Foster of DWAS for all the links, John Molyneux, Paul Hayes, John Bowman, everyone who sent in screen caps and writeups, and our readers from all over the BBC in the TV, radio and Internet divisions (you know who you are!) who have kept us up to date. And, of course, thank you to everyone involved in the production of the new series (especially Russell, Julie, Phil, Chris and Billie) for such a marvelous debut. Now that the show's aired in the UK, I hope things settle down... just a little!

The past two days have seen a whirlwind of press, much of it regurgitating each other over and over. Here's a quick recap of what's transpired late Saturday, all day Sunday, and into Monday morning's press:

A large collection of papers (many of which do not have online versions) have printed reviews. Internet-accessible ones include BBC News with a review by Sylvester McCoy!; The Herald ("Cracking script makes this a welcome visit from the Doctor"), Scotstman (includes comments on ratings), also reviewed here; The Observer; The Independent; The Sunday Herald; Times Online; CBBC, a special page on children's first reactions to Doctor Who; Express Newsline, India; The Telegraph; the Sunday Mail (a review by the "McInnes Family");

Summing up what many of the papers said today:
• "I was hooked from the outset. The whole thing thing was stuffed with in-jokes I wasn't sure I was fully getting, but I laughed anyway" - Guardian.
• "After 16 years locked in the warp-shunt fantasies of the plasters-on-specs brigade, Russell T Davies has breathed new life into an old favourite. The doctor got his girl and BBC1 found itself reacquainted with an old pal.Quality. Brilliant." - News of the World.
• "The current incarnation of the Time Lord has barely moved on and the one thing the future can't afford to be is old-fashioned" - Sunday Times.
• "The new Who is poorly cast, badly written, pointlessly northern, relentlessly silly and, fairly crucially, the sci-fi is thoughtless and throwaway." - The People. (They also manage to insult Billie Piper; the writer obviously thinks he's quite clever, when he's not.)
• "The new Doctor Who succeeded in establishing its own reality: skewed, sprightly and assured, without ever taking its audience's attention, or goodwill, for granted." - Sunday Telegraph
• "The much-vaunted special effects with which the series has been retro- fitted struck me as being as clunky as ever, and Ecclestone's performance was a bit too reminiscent of a nerdy teenager, but it has a real heartbeat... or perhaps even two." - The Independent
• "After such a fanfare, Doctor Who could hardly fail to disappoint. But amazingly, it didn't. OK, the monster was feeble and the lack of a cliffhanger ending was a shame. But Christopher Eccleston portrayed a far more complicated Doctor character than we've become used to seeing, certainly since Jon Pertwee - and far more interesting as a result." - Independent on Sunday
• "Dr Who, with Christopher Eccleston in the title role and Billie Piper as his comely assistant, was ill received in the Highland home where I spent Easter. The much-hyped special effects were considered a prodigious waste of money by the BBC." - Daily Mail
• "If it's all the same to you BBC1, I think I'll stick with Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway. But thanks for trying." - Mirror (spoilsports!)
• "An alien form, called entertainment, has been discovered on Saturday nights. It's a thoroughly bizarre, glossy new concoction called Dr Who." - Sunday Express. (There's also a positive little review of "Project: Who" in the radio review column on page 63)

Lots of coverage of the ratings (which we reported on as early as we could this morning!) Many stories on this including BBC News, Media Guardian, The Sun, ITV, CBBC, Times (mentions Outpost Gallifrey!), Telegraph, Scotsman, with commentary about what it means for the BBC, Daily Record, Guardian, Pittsburgh Live, Washington Times, Channel 4, WaveGuide, Big News Network, Manchester Online (with fan review). The Daily Mail and other papers also covered this (articles not online).

Photos of a flying Dalek appeared in today's "News of the World" (actually, a photo of the Dalek as seen in the latest trailers, as well as a photo of the underside of a Dalek on a staircase). The tabloid mentioned the return of the Cybermen, too; however, we know that this is only a rumor that's been discounted already (they aren't in this season... well, not exactly.) A photo of the Gelth, the aliens from episode 3, "The Unquiet Dead," appeared in yesterday's The Sun.

Lots of places commenting on last night's gaffe with the Graham Norton voice in the BBC 1 broadcast. Says BBC News: "The Time Lord had Graham Norton breathing down his neck too, as a technical problem meant the sound from Strictly Dance Fever was briefly played over the opening scenes of Doctor Who. 'There was a technical problem which was resolved as quickly as possible,' a BBC spokesperson said. 'We apologise if it affected viewers' enjoyment of Doctor Who.'" Says the Sunday Express: "The BBC was last night probing an embarrassing technical blunder which allowed the voice of Graham Norton to drown out Dr Who's triumphant return to the small screen" they happily exaggerate. However, they do go on to point out that "...last night's technical problems echoed technical difficulties with the very first episode of Dr Who." A BBC spokesperson says that "It was a technical problem which meant the voice of Graham Norton - who had been presenting Strictly Dance Fever on BBC1 - continued faintly when his show transferred to BBC3 on digital. It only affected the first few minutes of Dr Who and we apologise to any viewers whose enjoyment was in any way impaired." BBC3 did run the show this evening without the voiceover... but of course, with the BBC THREE logo emblazoned on it for the entire broadcast!

Last night's Tommy Boyd Show on BBC Southern Counties radio apparently had a great response. The folks at the Tommy Boyd Shrine wrote us to say that "For those who missed Dalek mastermind among many other features, we have the show up on the site now," so click on the link.

The Independent says Doctor Who puts his sonic screwdriver to work to boost BBC funds: "The mysterious silver gadget has helped to keep the Daleks and assorted life forms at bay for hundreds of years - when it actually worked. Now Doctor Who's unreliable sonic screwdriver is expected to become one of the must-have toys this Christmas."

Today's Sunday Herald and This is London mention that "a Doctor Who fan prompted a security alert when he posed as a Dalek outside the Houses of Parliament. Ken Meikle, 46, from Barrhead, Renfrewshire, was filming a promotional video for a stage version of the sci-fi classic. But armed Metropolitan Police officers suddenly confronted the "alien invader" as he approached Parliament over London's Tower Bridge."

Oh, and the "Can Doctor Who Be Gay?" article reran in today's Sunday Independent...

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Paul Hayes, Andrew Hearne, John Paul Street, David Traynier)

Breaking news from a variety of sources, which note the following:

"Cult sci-fi hero Doctor Who won the battle of prime time as 10 million viewers tuned in to watch the series return after a 16-year absence, figures revealed today.

"The much-loved time traveller beat off competition from ITV's Ant and Dec - and their guest David Beckham - to claim an average audience of 9.9 million on Saturday night.

"Salford-born Christopher Eccleston became the ninth small screen Doctor in a special effects-packed comeback, with former pop star Billie Piper starring as his new sidekick.

"The series, which was screened at 7pm, had an average audience share of 43.2% and hit a peak of 10.6 million viewers.

"Ant and DecÆs Saturday Night Takeaway, which ran against Doctor Who, had an average of 7.2 million viewers, taking a 31.4% share.

The Geordie duo peaked with an 8.5 million audience, 37.5% of the viewing public."

It's been a very long day here at Outpost Gallifrey, and your editor is exhausted... so instead of the lengthy and time-consuming round-up of press clippings from the day, here instead is a list of links from today's press and newspapers, courtesy Chuck Foster of the DWAS and Paul Engelberg and Steve Tribe. There will be more coming tomorrow at some point.

March 27 - Early Reviews
The Observer
Sunday Mail
Sunday Herald
The Telegraph

March 26 (and prior)
CBBC, waiting ratings
CBBC, "What did you think of Dr Who?"
BBC News, Sylvester McCoy review
UK Gay News, commentary
DeHavilland, ratings war
Simon Harris weblog review of Rose
BBC News, fan gathering in Farringdon
Telegraph, preview
Guardian, preview
Globe and Mail, preview
Sun, who was in Who (brief online version)
Sun, Will Hadcroft (fan) interview on Aspergers Syndrome
Scotsman, series return and ratings battle (also here)
DigitalSpy, ratings
DigitalSpy, "Living in a Box"
Daily Record, ratings
ITV, ratings
Breaking News, ratings
Mirror, ratings
Times, Whys and Whats of Doctor Who
Times, Who vs Cyberkids
Times, The Mill
Times, Gadgets (sonic screwdriver)
This is North East, return of sereies
Belfast Telegraph, return
News and Star, return
Express and Star, return
This is Devon, Morning News
Sun, frightening moments
Useless Knowledge, commentary
Slugger O'Toole (Ireland), commentary
Belfast Telegraph, review
Ireland Online, ratings
Irish Examiner, ratings
The Age (Australia), commentary
Sunderland Echo, history of the show

The official site at the BBC has been altered; instead of the countdown there is a splash page with more items on it, as well as further downloads and a guide to the episode "Rose". Additional information is expected to come in the near future. In addition, the "Who Is Doctor Who?" site -- the BBC's "fake" site based on a plot point in the first episode, has been altered now (note: this contains some fairly massive spoilers, so don't visit that unless you are prepared!)

For those of you tuned into BBC1 today for the broadcast of the first episode, "Rose", your ears were not deceiving you... that was actually BBC3 sound-bleeding into the BBC1 broadcast, and not presenter Graham Norton actually being inserted into the broadcast. This Sunday's repeat is likely not to have that faux pas included in the broadcast.

Some of the press and updates from Saturday morning, today on Opening Day:

Last night, Mark Cossey, Executive Producer of Doctor Who Confidential on BBC Three was on BBC Midnight. He had little to say, beyond "Please watch it." We heartily agree - watch it!

Today's Financial Times says "the BBC's reincarnation of Doctor Who is likely to give some middle-aged viewers a rude awakening." "Is anyone better placed to illustrate just how fast time travels than Doctor Who? Tonight's Easter weekend resurrection of the Doctor is going to make some uncomfortable viewing for middle-aged fans," says Robert Shrimsley. "It may be he who is the alien, but the manner and style of his return makes it all too painfully clear that is we who now inhabit a different planet from our youth. Anyone looking to relive their childhood by dragging their puzzled and nonplussed spawn in front of the television to watch the 'show I loved when I was your age' is set for a rude awakening. For it is not only in the significantly enhanced special effects that the much-heralded return of the Doctor leaves those who knew him the first time around clearly aware of how time has passed us by. The revival is, above everything else, one of those Hornby train set moments where parents have to bite their tongues and remember that this is meant to be for their children. ... While we may still have the Daleks and the Tardis, the monsters and the (quite) glamorous assistant, this reincarnation is largely aimed - as it always was - at the young

Also in today's Financial Times, a discussion of Russell T Davies' influences. "No television drama has ever stoked the imaginations of its fans quite like Doctor Who. When the BBC decided to axe the time-travel fantasy because of falling ratings in 1989 after a run of 26 years, the Doctor's devotees fought back in a unique way: they started making up their own stories. It was reminiscent of Fahrenheit 451 where, in a future without culture, members of the resistance defiantly commit great works of literature to memory. The fans simply refused to accept the doctor's demise. They produced novels (there are now about 350), audio plays and animated stories on the internet to keep the character alive. ... The Doctor's appeal goes deeper than mere nostalgia. As a child, Davies dreamed of discovering the Tardis somewhere in his hometown of Swansea and running away with the Doctor to frolic in a world of limitless imagination and adventure. ... 'Doctor Who made me a writer,' says Davies. 'It really did. My earliest memory is of William Hartnell turning into Patrick Troughton. I was only three at the time. You forget how strong it is when you are a kid. I used to make up Doctor Who stories. I used to walk home from school burning with them!'" It goes on to mention that "One of the ironies of Doctor Who is that, for all the power of the Time Lords of Gallifrey, the show itself has proved pitifully vulnerable to the passing of a mere handful of decades. Most episodes from the 1960s, including a glorious story about monstrous yetis in the London Underground that gave me nightmares when I was nine, have been lost. They survive only as stills, scripts, sound recordings and memory. Russell T. Davies wouldn't have it any other way. 'I love the fact we are missing episodes. How romantic is that? All these programmes we'll just have to imagine forever!' He is adamant that the new series must concern itself with both the present and future. 'It has got to be for new viewers. Even for the old viewers it's got to be new, otherwise there is no point. Otherwise, you become a nostalgic pastiche.'"

Today's Daily Record says that "a fortune is being gambled on tonight's big telly clash - Doctor Who versus Ant and Dec. Viewers will be torn between Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper's new adventures in the Tardis and the Geordies' show featuring David Beckham. Bookies have been taking hundreds of bets on the winners, with Ant and Dec, who usually get eight million viewers, edging in front. Ladbrokes spokesman Warren Lush said: 'I can't remember the last time there was such expectations over a new drama series like Doctor Who. The bookmaking industry is taking a five-figure sum over this and many hundreds of pounds from individuals. Most of the money has been for Ant and Dec. You can't underestimate them, and it's typical that they have David Beckham on. He could clinch it for them.' But he added: 'The BBC could have a slow-burner on their hands, as Doctor Who's audience grows to win the war.'" Today's Scotsman also mentions the challenge with Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway. "Doctor Who fans are trembling with anticipation today û and itÆs not from behind their sofas through fear of the dreaded Daleks. They will be glued to their televisions tonight, having had to wait 16 years for the Time Lord to return to BBC1." They note that bookies Ladbrokes have cut the odds on Ant and DecÆs Saturday Night Takeaway winning the ratings battle with BBC1Æs Dr Who from 8/11 to 1/2, while the sci-fi classic has drifted from evens to 6/4. Ladbrokes spokesman Warren Lush said: "Money suggests Ant and Dec will take away the highest ratings but we havenÆt seen such an intense battle for viewers on Saturday night since the finals of Strictly Come Dancing and The X Factor went head-to-head at the end of last year."

Today's The Sun interviews a Doctor Who fan who says "his obsession saved him from mental illness. The show took over Will Hadcroft as a teenager, driving him to tape-record episodes, collect memorabilia and even build his own K9. Will, who first sought help for anxiety attacks, was told by experts his obsession had helped him cope with AspergerÆs syndrome, a form of autism. He said: 'I always felt like an alien, like IÆd fallen to Earth from somewhere else. I used to wish I had a Tardis I could get in. My psychiatrist said, æYou are not mentally ill, but if you had not used the show as an escape route you almost certainly would have beenÆ.' Will, a 34-year-old bank worker from Bolton, Lancs, has written a book about his condition which was endorsed by his favourite Dr Who, Colin Baker." (Will is also a reader and contributor to Outpost Gallifrey, and we salute him for the opportunity to give the interview!)

The Sun today had a picture today of ghosts haunting the Doctor and Rose in "The Unquiet Dead". "The spirit, called a Gelth, appears in the third episode, when the Time Lord and Rose travel back to Victorian Cardiff. They link up with novelist Charles Dickens to battle the ethereal creature. Talk about Grave Expectations." The Sun also calls Doctor Who Best New Series in its What to Watch This Weekend listings.

The Independent discusses feminism in an article "The Prognosis for Feminism is Not Good" in which there's an interesting paragraph of note: "How lovely, then, to see that one little corner of the debate remains relatively uncomplicated. Reams of wordage have been dedicated to considering the issue of whether Billie Piper will make a properly emancipated assistant to Doctor Who, or whether she will descend, as so many have before her, into damsel-on-the-train-track cliche. Less intellectual energy has been spent on considering how it is that while the good Doctor can travel through time and space with ease, the body that is so marvellously mutable never manages, even briefly, to adopt a new gender."

Director James Hawes, who helmed the two part 1940's serial by Steven Moffat for this first season, discusses his thoughts in today's Independent. "I am not a Dr Who geek. True, I strode off in 1978 from my rural comprehensive to Oxford in a Tom Baker outfit, but I quickly dumped the scarf, got a girlfriend and honestly never gave The Doctor a thought for 20 years. Then, when my son Owain was four and I 40, I happened on a second- hand video shop during one of those long, wet, quality-time Sunday afternoons that hung-over, part-time single parents so heartily dread. Among the piles of old Disney films on VHS, I saw a Dr Who from the black-and-white days. I hadn't even known they existed. The title set off little bells of memory. I bought it and we retired to the sofa. Owain loved it - he jumped and hid in delighted fear, just as I'd done - but it scared the existential hell out of me." The article notes that Hawes has a new book coming out, "Speak for England" (we assume this is the same person as the director, anyway!)

Today's Times says "Abandon hope, all you who press Enter here" as it discusses futuristic gadgets with a brief DW mention: "Doctor Who landed back on sublunary screens last night. His pet gizmo is a 'sonic screwdriver'. This is a state-of-the-art MerlinÆs wand. It unlocks the high-tech traps that encompass Doctor Who about the Tardis. His is the sort of magical multitasking tool that all do-it-yourself girls and boys dream of finding in their Christmas stockings."

The Telegraph today says that after a long absence, "smack, bang, up-to-date. It works. Thumbs up. Let them live. It is like watching a completely new programme but with enough references to the great tradition to make it authentic. It has the Tardis, the monsters, the female companion responsible for the sexual awakening of boy viewers everywhere, the sonic screwdriver and that crucial balance between scariness and comedy. But no scarves. Gone are the flamboyance and the air of theatricality. The theme tune is more edgily orchestrated, like the whole show. Christopher Eccleston's doctor, with his black leather jacket and northern accent, is modern, urban and of today, manically driven by his desire to save the world." It notes that its popularity "is not for an adult to say. My teenage son twice purred 'This is really cool,' which augurs well. But he worried that his friends would not watch it. 'It's sad watching programmes your parents liked.' Do these children have no sense of tradition?"

There is a mention of Doctor Who on the the Red Dwarf website today. It encourages people to watch the show because it's british sci-fi, has a good writing team, but mostly because it has two Red Dwarf Alum, Mike Tucker of Special effects fame, and actor Joseph Green seen on Red Dwarf VIII. You can visit the Red Dwarf official site here. (Hey, isn't it time for the boys from the Dwarf to come back too!?!?)

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Matt Landry, Chuck Foster)

Christopher Eccleston appeared on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross this evening, and below are some stills from the show as well as from the rather lengthy spoiler-iffic trailer they showed! Says our correspondent Mike Morris: "Christopher Eccleston appeared tonight (March 25th) as a guest of Jonathan Ross; a well known chat show host in the UK and probably elsewhere, who is also well known for having difficulting pronouncing his R's. After the initial chat about Christopher's memories of the original series, his costume, and about playing the Doctor with a Northern English, Manchester accent. A montage clip of the new and not so new monsters was shown. I can report with pride, that the effects are stunning and the monsters far scarier than in the original series. Also this time (if you don't know already) the action is mainly on film rather than studio based, which gives it a more realistic edgy effect. After the montage clip, it was also revealed for the first time that a new range of merchandise will be hitting UK shops this Christmas. A prototype doll in the image of Christopher Ecclestone's 9th Doctor and a replica of the updated Sonic Screwdriver, which Christopher said 'seemed better than the real thing'. (When one presses a button, a blue light flashes and pressing another button makes the light retract into the handle of the Sonic Screwdriver). Christopher also reveals that the script in Episode one makes reference to his large Ears! He explained to Jonathan and the audience, 'its that moment when each of the Doctors after a regeneration sees themselves or himself for the first time and comments on his appearance'." (Thanks to Mike Morris for the writeup and Gavin Worby, John Molyneux for the screen captures)

The Scotsman says that "People could be mistaken for thinking they have been transported to a different time dimension if they stumble across a Doctor Who Tardis. In fact, there are 237 blue police call boxes (PCBs), on which the BBC modelled the fictional time lord's transporter. Ordnance Survey has tracked down the locations of all former PCBs using a digital master map of Britain - technology which may well have delighted the creators of the sci-fi classic. The curious-looking cubes can now be found disguised as coffee kiosks since personal radios made them redundant in 1969. But just as the television show is being resurrected, police are experimenting with bringing the boxes back, although now they are more hi-tech." The Sun also picked up this story, as did icWales.

Leeds Today says it's "16 years on, and fans can't wait for return of the Doctor". "Sixteen years after being exterminated by Beeb bosses, look Who's back. Doctor Who fans in West Yorkshire are gearing up for the return of the nation's favourite timelord. ... Leeds teacher and Doctor Who fan Chris Hoyle admitted he was "giddy" with excitement . He said: 'It's a shame that a whole generation of kids haven't had a doctor to grow up with, but now that's going to change.'" Other fans are interviewed.

The London News Review says that "In short: episode one ("Rose") is wonderful, and we only have one and half niggles. The chief beef is Murray Gold's incidental music. Gold did a fine job of reworking the theme tune. And his trendy/derivative music was entirely right for Queer As Folk, which is presumably why he was recruited by the man behind that show and the new Who, Russell T. Davis. But his incidental music in 'Rose' sounds like bad library CDs from the 1990s. It's the only thing that makes the fantastic new episode already seem dated." (Outpost Gallifrey begs to differ...)

The Birmingham Evening Mail says that "Doctor Who fans can't wait for the future to come in the shape of Saturday night. Suky Singh, a member of the Dr Who fan club the Wolves of Fenric, based in Wolverhampton, said: 'People just want to spend Saturday evening in front of their television and not be distracted.' ... The return of Dr Who has rekindled some affectionate and frightening memories. The Evening Mail took to the streets of Brum to gauge public reaction. Graham Taylor, aged 54, ajournalist from Droitwich, said: 'The new Dr Who looks quite exciting and more up-to-date. I certainly won't miss the old effects.' Angela Bowyer, 63, from Stoke-on-Trent, said: 'I have lots of memories of children being frightened but it was also good fun.' Her husband Peter Bowyer, 69, added: 'It will be interesting to compare the old and new programmes.' David Dai, 23, a graphic design student who lives in Harborne, said: 'I don't know Dr Who. I will be watching it, but I usually watch Channel 4 and Five.' Rashila Lad, a 33-yearold window dresser from Kings Heath, said: 'When I was a kid I was scared of the Daleks.' Lucy Stacey, 23, a window dresser from Great Barr, said: 'My older brother Danny used to make me watch it with him because he was scared.'"

The Spectator jokingly reviews the series: "I'm not sure which aspect of his latest incarnation, as written by Russell T. ('Queer As Folk') Davies, I find most objectionable: his new pink headquarters on the planet Stifado One, his mincing young assistant Julian or that his foppish, vaguely Edwardian kit has now been replaced by a pair of leather chaps, a studded belt and an enormous black codpiece with a little holster on the side for his sonic screwdriver." Later he changes tune a bit: "Davies is such a dedicated Doctor Who fan that he even carried on watching in that difficult period after Peter Davison had gone, when it apparently went down and down. If anyone on this planet was ever likely to breathe new life into an aging Time Lord, then Russell T.was surely the man. And, sure enough, he has, with extremely unlikely support from the actor playing Dr Who ù Christopher Eccleston. Eccleston, I get the impression from all those non-interviews he gives, is an actor who takes himself very seriously. You just know if you sat next to him at a dinner party he'd bang on about the Kyoto Agreement, or some such, and never once vouchsafe any juicy asides like fun actors do about which thesp has the biggest penis, which has the best coital one-liners ('Tom's in now, ' is popular with one, I gather), which is secretly gay and so on. The idea of him summoning up the lightness of touch required to play the Doctor seemed about as remote as the Daleks of conquering the universe when they can't even walk up staircases." He ends with a positive note: "Why ever didn't they think of it earlier?"

Scotland's Evening Times says that "Scotland fans stuck at home could miss the start of the vital World Cup clash with Italy because of Doctor Who. BBC bosses have scheduled coverage of tomorrow's game to begin at 7.45pm - the same time as kickoff. And if earlier programmes run late, the Milan match could have started before the closing credits in the new series of Dr Who. Ironically, the game was brought forward weeks ago to suit Italian TV chiefs. But despite the alteration, BBC are sticking to their original schedules. The move has angered fans who can't make the journey." Priorities!

Curiously, the Daily Star says the Cybermen won't be back. "One of Doctor Who's greatest enemies, the Cybermen, have been killed off because TV bosses think they are out of date. And in their bid to give the SF series a fresh look, they claim the Time Lord is more likely to go up against iPod-man. Fans had been hoping that the silver-suited aliens who enjoyed many a battle with the Doctor would return now the show is back on our screens tomorrow. But writer Russell T Davies claims that although he's happy to bring back foes like The Daleks, the Cybermen are to be banished into cyberspace. He said: 'I am afraid aliens like the Cybermen would be somewhat dated. I think you're more likely to see the Doctor fighting iPod-man.'" Though Davies has, of course, gone on record several times saying that if the show goes on long enough, he might want to bring back the Cybermen. The Daily Star also ran a Doctor Who quiz: "Are you a Timelord or a Sci-Fi Dunce from the Dull Dimension? Dare you try..."

The Coventry Evening Telegraph says "Two, four, six, eight, Who do we appreciate?" and it's Doctor Who, of course. "Doctor Who fans across Coventry are eagerly awaiting the return of the cult science-fiction show this weekend after a 16-year absence from our screens. ... And computer programmer Wes Campbell, of Beausale Croft, Mount Nod, is looking forward to seeing Dr Who updated for the 21st century. Mr Campbell, 39, a member of a Dr Who fan group called The Warwickshire Who Group, said: 'It's good to see that the writers haven"t just slavishly tried to recreate the old Dr Who. They are trying to create something new and exciting, not just an extension of the old series.' In particular the show's famously ropey special effects have been ditched in favour of impressive new graphics."

In today's Times, in the People section: "After all the fuss about the new Doctor Who, you would think that Christopher Eccleston would be glad to associate himself with the role. But asked in The Stage about a second series, he replied: 'I'll have to think long and hard about it ... It could be a poisoned chalice.'" That is, of course, a quote from Eccleston in the recent past, also regurgitated today by the Daily Express: "I'll have to think long and hard before I make a final decision."

Newsquest Digital Media says that "Unless you've been hiding behind a sofa for the past month (and be honest, has anyone ever done that?) you'll be aware that a new series of Doctor Who is upon us from Saturday. I'm looking forward to it, not least because one of my relatives is getting exterminated in a later episode. Of course, one of the main concerns that people (the sort who inhabit TV list programmes and just pop up as "experts on popular culture" as if that's a proper job) put forward is that it won't be like it was in the good old days - to which I say, good. I was very fond of the Doctor's adventures when I was a kid, and some of it was very good indeed, especially given the production values of the day. But a lot of it was shambolic tosh, with wobbly sets, school play special effects, and pantomime acting. It shows you what a slower, gentler world we lived in, when simple plots could be stretched out over four half-hour episodes (episode three = everyone runs up and down suspiciously-similar corridors a lot). I doubt the new version will be as complete a regeneration as the excellent new "reimagined" Battlestar Galactica series. But as long as Doctor Who can be watched without the aid of nostalgia-tinted glasses, it should be a step in the right direction. (OK, I've mentioned wobbly sets and hiding behind the sofa... now if I can only step into something and have it disappear to the sound of the Tardis and a bad dematerialisation special effect, I can get a job as a regional news presenter... )"

Today's The Forester (Forest of Dean) says "Doctor Who has returned to the Forest to rediscover his roots. Ninth Who Christopher Eccleston and his side-kick Billie Piper shot scenes for the new BBC1 series, which starts at 7pm on Saturday, on the western flanks of the Dean in Monmouth. Billie, who stars as the Doctor's companion Rose, told the secret to Radio 1 listeners. Last week, The Forester revealed the Doctor first visited the Forest in 1974 to film on the River Severn at Broadoak."

The Express and Echo (Exeter) says that "Exeter youngsters with an appetite for time travel are appealing to new Doctor Who Christopher Eccleston to help them put the finishing touches to a school play based on the famous TV time lord. On the eve of the return of the classic BBC series this weekend, children at John Stocker Middle School in St Thomas are rehearsing their own version of the much-loved sci-fi show. The musical, Where's Who?!, was written by head teacher John Palmer and his wife Ann in the early 1980s when Doctor Who, - with its police-box-cum-time-travel-machine the Tardis and robotic aliens, the Daleks - was still being regularly screened. First staged by pupils at Willand primary near Cullompton where Mr Palmer used to be deputy head, the play featured an opening speech delivered by former Doctor Who actor Colin Baker, recorded especially for the production. Now John Stocker children - who weren't even born before the TV show was last aired in 1989 - have written to the latest actor to portray the Doctor to ask whether he would make a similar recording. Mr Palmer, an amateur actor himself, explained: "When we originally did the play the opening speech needed to be done by Doctor Who. We just wrote to the BBC and sent the script off and Colin Baker recorded the speech which was only about a minute long. We're trying to get Christopher Eccleston to do the same thing but so far we have not had a reply. "The play is about the children having just come out of school for their summer holidays and going up to their den which is a cave. It turns out that the cave is a Tardis and as they approach they hear a crackly radio message which is Doctor Who saying: 'Help me! The Zeldons have captured me and my Tardis and banished me to the rubbish heap at the end of the universe'. This is what was recorded by Colin Baker. The children then have to punch some co-ordinates into a computer to try and get to the Planet of the Zeldons but get the numbers wrong so end up travelling into the future and then the Pyramids in Egypt. Their mission is to find the Tardis and rescue Doctor Who."

The Evening Times (Glasgow) says "If we can accept Worzel Gummidge as a timelord we can easily accept Shallow Grave star Christopher Eccleston. Where the new series differs is the investment in character developments. Writer Russell T Davies has created a timelord with a Salford accent, an enigmatic smile and a short temper. Overall he's a very human alien, whose two hearts seem to be in the right place. His assistant, Rose - played by former teen popette Billie Piper - is also real. She is bored with her life as a shop girl, fed up with her childish boyfriend and her man-mad single-parent mother. We can readily believe why Rose would run off around the universe with a bloke who looks like a social worker and is old enough to be her dad. What's difficult to grasp is that Dr Who has gone outdoors. The storyline takes us around London, to shopping centres and cafes. And without that sense of studio-based claustrophobia of old, it all looks worryingly much less malevolent than the 1960s efforts." A downer at the end: "Doctor Who has enough character base to be a success with Buffy-loving teenagers but perhaps it simply can't appeal to grown-ups who grew up with the original. Back then, the strong storylines and weak special effects prompted the imagination to work overtime. Or perhaps we recall too fondly the time of our lives when we could be so easily terrified. And to overcome that nostalgia is asking a little too much of television."

Today's Sunderland Echo has a two-page centrespread on DW, under the title 'Time, gentlemen, please!'. It features your usual brief-history-of-the-Doctor alongside a photo montage of the nine TV incarnations and a couple of small photos from the new series. There's also a box-out about the novels and audios alongside a montage of a Dalek, Cyberman and an Ice Warrior. Another box-out features an interview with Wearsider William Russell, talking about his time on the show, his reading of 'The Daleks' CD, and his delight at the return of the TV series.

The Bolton Evening News has four pages dedicated to the show, thanks to the deputy editor Ian Savage being a long-time fan. Large cover photo on the weekend supplement (the familiar Doctor/Rose publicity shot) Two page preview with photos from Rose and End of the World. Then a one page episode guide with some more photos familiar from other newspapers this week.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, who needs sleep as much as I do, plus Steve Tribe, Mick Gair, Chuck Foster, Paul Hayes, "gazhack")

BBC Radio Wales' flagship breakfast show, Good Morning Wales will feature a short item previewing the new series and interviewing a local fan sometime between 7.15 and 8.30am UK time on Saturday, 26th March 2005.

The Evening Gazette has an interview with new series writer Mark Gatiss. "I didn't sleep for a week after the announcement it was coming back," Gatiss is quoted. "I thought if they don't ask me to write an episode, I'll have to shoot myself. Then Russell called and asked if I would like to do it. The 'it' was the big challenge. Because I'd talked to so many people over so many years about how would you tell a story about the Doctor. I wanted to avoid my story becoming an exercise in nostalgia for the show. But then Russell gave all of the writers vague storylines to work on. I was hoping I'd get the historical storyline and I did." The article also features a brief history of Doctor Who.

BBC South East Wales contacted us to let us know about their special Doctor Who section. "Our site has pictures and background information about the locations in South East Wales where the new series was filmed. We'll be adding detailed location guides and photogalleries as the series progresses."

BBC News today features an article that states that "thanks to Doctor Who, blue police boxes topped with flashing police lights became a national icon during the 1960s." The article goes into the history of the police box and its use in the show, including the new series.

Our correspondent went to the recording of tonight's Friday Night with Jonathan Ross show that featured Christopher Eccleston. There are going to be several spoilers in terms of clips on this show this evening, we're warned, as such: "The aliens running around number 10 - hitting people - the space ship crashing into the Thames - the infamous 'can you stop farting whilst I am trying to save the world' line - the captured Dalek shouting to exterminate the Doctor - the dragon creatures from Father's Day, a shot of Victorian characters being taken over, Gas masked zombies and The Doctor with Charles Dickens - asking who he was 'just a traveller - passing through' - etc." As he tells us, "Also, they get out the prototype toys on sale for next Christmas - they play with the sonic screwdriver and a Chris action figure (could be a talking Doc) it looked that size etc. He had the new gold remote Dalek from the series too (but sadly that never came out and stayed at the side of the desk). The interview was really good - Chris was extremely relaxed and having a nice time. JR took the general mickey about a scally manc Doctor and the size of Chris's ears - all of which was taken in very good humour by Chris. Jonathan did hassle him about how long he was planning on staying in the role and he did not let him off lightly - despite Chris's insistence about only being signed for a year."

The "Video clips" section of the official Doctor Who website now has interviews with script editor and former BBC1 controller (and our hero) Lorraine Heggessey. They're in the Video Diaries section of the Media Player, as "Script Editor" and "The Exec". The player also contains The 60s, the first of three musical tours through the show's history (formerly known, when they've been shown at UK conventions as "The Doctor Who Years").

Today's Guardian "enters the time-warped world of Doctor Who's assistants," with an article discussing the role of the companions. "Few appointments carry the gravitas of the role of Doctor Who's sidekick. Its social and cultural significance is perhaps on a par only with discovering which blue-blooded virgin the heir to the throne will choose to be his bride. With Doctor Who returning to our screens tomorrow after a 14-year absence, the nation will be forced to acquaint itself not only with a new incarnation of the Doctor, in the shape of Christopher Eccleston, but also a new accomplice, Rose Tyler, played by fledgling actor and former teen popstrel Billie Piper. But what can we expect? A continuing of the fine tradition of short skirts and screaming? Or could Piper change the role for ever?" The article quotes Clayton Hickman of DWM, David Howe of Telos Publishing, and Elisabeth Sladen. As Hickman notes: "Russell T Davies is into strong women. If you look at his earlier work, such as Bob and Rose and Queer as Folk, there's always a woman chaperoning the guys. So I don't think Billie will be hobbling down the corridor in high heels. ... Strong women is what you do now. You can't get away with a bit of totty on Doctor Who's arm anymore."

TV Zone Special #62 is out now, and features some nice Doctor Who content. The issue has interviews with Noel Clarke and Camille Coduri, and Lance Parkin talks about wrapping up the Eighth Doctor's fictional life in a special preview of The Gallifrey Chronicles. UK readers can visit the website here, while US readers have their own site here.

The Highbury and Islington Express discusses a party at the Printworks pub that states that "former doctors and stars of the cult series have been invited, along with hundreds of fans."

Yorkshire Today features an article with quotes from Christopher Eccleston. The Scotsman also features Eccleston comments, some re-run from articles in the recent past.

The Harveys furniture retail outlet has run a poll of the "Top 5 Most Frightening Moments" on British TV. Doctor Who weighs in at numbers two and five, with the Daleks and the Cybermen being on the list. The story is run in today's Scotsman, UTV,

Today's The Sun has tonight's "Friday Night with Jonathan Ross" on its "What to Watch Tonight" list today; Christopher Eccleston is on the show tonight. The Sun also notes today how stunning Billie is 'out of this world' while a second report has Billie as "Babe Of The Week". Also in today's Sun, a bit in their TV Biz about the mole being 'exterminated' from his job after leaking Rose on the Internet, and "Dr Whoo" on page 19 featuring a couple of stills from Unquiet Dead. There are several reports on the leak being stopped today, like other days, at the Register and Contact Music as well as a lengthy article at CNet News.

The Media Guardian is running a news report on this Saturday's ratings war between Doctor Who on BBC One and Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway on ITV. Says Timms: "Oxford will clashing oars with Cambridge this weekend and Ireland will be hoping to defeat Israel in the World Cup qualifier, but the struggle of truly galactic proportions will take place in living rooms across the UK on Saturday night." He goes on to outline the bookmakers' odds on which show will triumph, reporting: " 'Rather than wasting bets on sports events like the Boat Race, the smart money is going on whether Chris and Billie can pull in more viewers than Ant and Dec on ITV1, in a clash perhaps not seen since Jeremy Paxman took on Michael Howard and er... won. "What we are trying to weigh up is the BBC's endless plugging of Doctor Who against Ant and Dec's spoiler tactics of bringing in David Beckham," said bookmakers Paddy Power. "The BBC have been stuck in a time machine with their heavy promoting of the Time Lord's return while Ant and Dec are hitting back with an appearance from David Beckham." The result? Doctor Who is 1/2 while the ITV duo languish on 6/4. Despite all the free plugging and a significant marketing push, the Doctor and Rose face an uphill slog if they are going to overturn the sultans of Saturday night TV, who pulled in 8.2 million viewers last Saturday and 8.4 million the week before. And that's almost what Sporting Index, the darlings of high-rolling city punters, predict is going to happen. "The last price we had was that Doctor Who would attract 8.25 million," said Sporting Index's Bill Esdaile, before trading was suspended, perhaps because of the appearance of Beckham and Mariah Carey on Ant and Dec. But Blue Square is less bullish about Doctor Who, even given the added support of Graham Norton's new show Strictly Dance Fever, which will immediately precede the sci-fi series opener. "Even with all the press Doctor Who has generated, I still think Ant and Dec will win," said Blue Square, which makes Ant and Dec odds-on favourites at 1/3 and Doctor Who at 9/4. Those looking for a little more guidance before rushing out with their life savings may want to look at how the two shows are faring in terms of internet searches. According to web measurement specialist Hitwise, the pint-sized Geordies' share of online searches has fallen in the face of an intergalactic onslaught. Currently there are 50% more people looking for the phrase 'new Doctor Who' than searching for 'Ant and Dec.' "

DWAS's Antony Wainer was on BBC Radio Essex this morning on the Dave Monk show to talk about the series' return, and there were a few bits including a Russell T Davies interview on BBC Radio Wales's Nicola Heywood Thomas show.

The 25 March edition of the Yorkshire Post newspaper includes interviews with Christopher Eccleston and DWAS Coordinator Ian Wheeler. Wheeler also appeared on Radio York on the 25 March to promote the new series and will appear again on Monday 28th March to review the first episode.

The Winston Salem Journal in America features a mention of the new series in their TV Tidbits column. "Doctor Who will be making its return to television in Britain this weekend. But the enduring British science-fiction saga still hasn't found an American distributor," along with other comments about the program.

Today's Guardian covers the appointment of Peter Fincham as Controller of BBC One, and includes "advice" to him from various pundits, including John Whittingdale MP (the Conservative Party's spokesman on Culture): "It's a terribly important job - there's no shortage of programmes made by BBC1 which do not meet that public service remit. Less Fame Academy, certainly. And EastEnders is a whole different debate. I do, however, applaud the return of Doctor Who."

Tonight's Now Show (Friday March 25) features a number of Doctor Who gags as well as a new Doctor Who based song by comedy writer Mitch Benn. It goes out on BBC Radio 4 at 18.30 GMT and is repeated tomorrow at 12.30, and will be available on BBC radio player after the Saturday repeat.

On Radio 2 this morning, DJ Richard Allinson was asking listeners to nominate their "scariest Doctor Who monster". Allinson's approach was somewhat jokey - some listeners took it seriously, others less so! Allinson excluded the Daleks because he wasn't convinced by them (and is surely one of the few people in the country still doing the "stairs" comment!) Among the nominees were Sutekh, the Sea Devils, Aggedor ("a hairy pig thing who lived in the dungeons of a castle"), Scaroth ("who was Julian Glover until he took his mask off, and then he was a wet privet hedge with one eye"), K-9, Bonnie Langford, and "Billie Piper's eyebrows."

In an editorial in this weeks New Musical Express, NME writer Dan Martin gets enthusiastic about the new series, explaining why Dr. Who is a "classic rock'n'roll star." Some highlights: "... British folklore feeds off our history of exploration, mad scientists, freaks and (yes) libertines ... in other words, the history of rock'n'roll. And so, therefore, does our sci-fi. Which makes our greatest, soon to be revived export the ultimate libertine and the most rock'n'roll TV character ever."; "He's a renegade timelord on a vigilante mission with a series of scantily-clad chicks"; "Whether it's John and Yoko's bed-in, Rickey Manic cutting 4-Real into his arm to prove a point to a journalist or Bono using his superfame to shame the G8 leaders, rock'n'roll history is a succession of colourful eccentrics, all on their own ridiculous missions to help good triumph over evil."; and "For the first time ever, Doctor Who is about to become cool. And there's nothing any of you f**kers can do about it! (evil laughter, to fade."

Frazer Hines was on BBC Look North for East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire last night at 6.30 talking about the new Doctor Who series, though we don't have any details.

The BBC's weekly Science and Nature e-mail newsletter, which describes recent articles on BBC Web sites relating to science and nature, also has a section listing highlights of science and nature programming on the BBC in the coming week. This week they've included Doctor Who as one of the "TV and Radio Choices" in among the documentary and factual programs.

Morning Ireland, the Irish version of Today, broadcast an item on the return of Doctor Who to the BBC on March 23. It didn't feature clips from the new show but did use clips from older episodes. The spot was mostly Irish fans memories of Dr Who plus some comments about hope for the new series. The show's website is here.

Finally, Choices Direct now has blurbs for the first two DVD set releases in the UK for the new series, as in the box below.

(Thanks to Steve Tribe, Paul Engelberg, Chuck Foster, Paul Hayes, Timothy Farr, Ian Wheeler, Neal Douglas, Bob Fischer, Dan McGrath, Daniel Blythe, Darren Kramble, David Shepherdson, Michael Blumenthal, Stephen Graves, Steve Freestone, Jamie Austin, Nathan "Obstreperous" and the BBC South East Wales team)

The BBC's press office has issued a release on programs starting the week of April 9 including the third episode of Doctor Who, The Unquiet Dead. You can see it here (note: PDF file requiring Adobe Acrobat); meanwhile, click on the spoiler tag below to see the "Unquiet Dead" information.

There's been a massive amount of media coverage and news today, so let's get to it...

BBC Worldwide and BBC Audiocall have released a new polyphonic ringtone of the new series theme tune in the UK. The ringtone is the only one officially licensed by the BBC, and details will appear on www.audiocall.co.uk/doctorwho (which is hosted by BBC Worldwide). However, the ringtone ordering information will not be available until the minute the first episode finishes on Saturday - 7.46pm in the UK.

The BBC has named Peter Fincham, outgoing chief executive officer of Talkback Thames, as the new controller of BBC1, replacing Lorraine Heggessey (the woman who commissioned the new "Doctor Who" series) who is leaving the BBC for Fincham's former job. "The BBC is going through big changes, but BBC1 remains its flagship channel and reinterpreting and reinvigorating it for new audiences is about as exciting a challenge as it gets," Fincham said. "I grew up watching BBC1 and the first programmes I made as an independent producer were for BBC1, so it's enormously flattering to be asked to take over as channel controller from Lorraine Heggessey. I am used to being responsible for a wide range of programmes and BBC1 stands for range, quality and integrity. It also has a unique breadth of appeal." Talkback Thames is responsible for shows such as Da Ali G Show, I'm Alan Partridge, The Bill and Pop Idol and has made various programmes for the BBC including They Think It's All Over, Never Mind The Buzzcocks and the Bafta-award winning drama The Lost Prince. Some of the reports quote him on the topic of Doctor Who as well: "I'm of that generation that is old enough to remember a world when there was only the BBC to watch and in our house BBC was the default setting. I grew up with BBC1 and cowered behind the sofa when Dr Who was on." It was great that his name was being announced just a few days before the Time Lord returns to the small screen, he added. The story's also been picked up in the Edinburgh Evening News, Evening Standard, the Independent and other locales.

Today's Xchange on the CBBC channel showed two clips from "The End of the World" including a CGI space station shot and the Doctor and Rose together. The Mill's Will Cohen also talked about special effects on the new series and some incidental music was heard.

Choices Direct have now listed the first two DVDs for the new series. They state that the first three episodes will be out on May 16, and episodes 4-6 on June 13; you can see the listings here and here. This is the first retailer listing of the new series with dates, which have been rumored by various websites over the past few days.

Various press agencies commented on the BBC's official statement about the leak of "Rose" (which Outpost Gallifrey printed in its entirety yesterday), including the Mirror (no link), The Register, The Guardian, The Inquirer and BBC News.

Several papers ran stories about Shona McLaren, a mother who said "her life has been ruined because she is terrified of Daleks. McLaren... is sent into a blind panic if she even hears the words 'exterminate.' The mum-of-two claims her life has been wrecked by her bizarre phobia." Um.... indeed. The articles were run in the Daily Record, as well as the Daily Star and the Daily Express as well as other locations.

A short item about the new series was included yesterday on The Richard And Judy Show on Channel 4. This short item featured an interview with Clayton Hickman and the well known impressionist and Doctor Who fan Jon Culshaw. Host Richard Madely was "rather mocking in his tone" says our correspondent, making jokes about Daleks going upstairs and asking Hickman what he'd filled the magazine with for so many years without a new series (Clayton, however, remained calm and
positive about the effect that Doctor Who has upon people.) At the end of the item viewers were treated to Jon Culshaw's first public impersonation of the ninth doctor, something that will probably become a regular feature on his show Dead Ringers.

Today's Leicester Mercury profiles Paul Kasey, an actor who's been in the sci-fi blockbusters Blade II and 28 Days Later... "and the chances are, you've never heard of him. That could be about to change, though, for former Bagworth boy turned movie bit-parter Paul Kasey. ... 31-year-old Paul is set to enter the annals of cult TV history by playing a Doctor Who monster. In fact, he plays four of the Timelord's enemies - plus a goodie robot too - in the spanking new series starring Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper. It says he plays a Slitheen ("Aliens of London"), an alien whose name he can't remember, and one of the, shall we say, bad guys from the first episode (you probably know which ones but we'll still protect the spoilers here!) "A Slitheen is a very large green alien, about 8ft tall. It's also quite cute and quite sweet to look at. It's like ET. He was quite ugly, but quite cute at the same time. I also play an android robot. That was totally different again. It was also a she. That was fantastic, but really hard to play. The costume was so hard; we were basically built into it. It was a full body costume in lilac and cream. As soon as you were in, you were in for good, although you could take the head off while the crew wasn't working. Each character was totally different, and I like the challenge of bringing all these characters and creatures to life. They chose me for my movement. Because inside you can't see very well, it tends to make most people freeze or clam up. In Blade, they chose me for my look. Out of all of them, I did enjoy playing the female robot - it was good in a typically Doctor Who way."

Newsquest Digital Media toady profiles York pastor Mark Troughton, son of Patrick Troughton, the second Doctor. "Mark was six when his dad landed the role, taking over from William Hartnell. And unwittingly, he was responsible for what became one of the great icons of early children's TV. Troughton senior was looking for a gimmick to make the part his own. 'And I was learning to play the recorder,' Mark says. 'So I taught him to play.'" He discusses the classic series: "What carried the whole programme was the fact that the scripts were very strong, and the acting was strong. It was really frightening. And what made it even more exciting was that you were kept in suspense for seven days, waiting to find out what happened. That was awful. ... We used to sit down waiting for dad to come on the telly. And then at about 10.30pm dad would walk in after a hard day's work being beaten up by Cybermen or Daleks." So what kind of person was his dad - and did he enjoy playing the Doctor? "He was generous hearted, with a great sense of humour. He loved playing the Doctor and had great fun doing it. He was a great corpser, and was giggling all the time. He thought if you're going to act the fool - and he did in one sense, he had that sort of clownish character - then you had got to play it for laughs." It mentions that Mark Troughton will be watching this weekend as the new show starts: "You bet. And I'm sure my kids will too," he says, commenting that his six children have gotten to know their grandfather, who they never met, by watching videos of his old episodes. "It will be interesting to see it!"

Today's Guardian carries an article written by Sylvester McCoy about the new series. Some excerpts: "Everybody says now that when Doctor Who was on, they were so frightened they would hide behind the sofa. I did, too, back in my day as the Doctor, but only because I couldn't face watching myself. Now I'm a mere mortal, it's nice to relax on the couch, instead of behind it, and let it wash over me. I was a bit worried that the new series might not work. Paul McGann played the doctor in the big-budget American film version of 1996 and although I enjoyed it, something about it did not quite gel. But this new version with Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor and Billie Piper as his assistant, Rose, is just wonderful. Part of its charm is the way in which it makes a sly wink to earlier series. ... But if there is one thing that is going to get the Whovians going crazy on the web forums, it is the new tardis. They have changed it! For one thing, it is brand, spanking new, as if it has come straight from the shop. My tardis, the original one, was so battered and bruised it would have been condemned as unsafe, but this one doesn't have a scratch on it. ... You can tell that the writers love Doctor Who, because of all the references to the old days, and the writing is crisper than ever. It is sharp and often very witty, but not overblown. ... There are clever, subtle nods to current affairs too - the mannequins coming to life and massacring people on the streets touches on the modern fear of going shopping and being gunned down by terrorists. And there is a scary Jabba the Hut-type creature, a sort of jelly monster intent on destroying humanity by turning everything into plastic, because it needs all the plastic in the world to survive, which touches on ecological issues. ... It is very scary, just like in the old days, but now children will be frightened of mannequins. And dustbins - there's a wonderful bit where a wheelie bin attacks someone and sucks them in before eating them up. ... Eccleston makes a fabulous Doctor. Within minutes you truly believe that he has been around for 950 years. ... And Billie Piper as Rose is awesome, just wonderful to watch.... All I know is that she is so right for the part. Russell T Davies says she is going to be our next great Hollywood export and on the basis of this performance, I can well believe it."

Fan reactions to the new series are noted at BBC News: "The show has attracted a huge number of followers since William Hartnell first stepped out of his Tardis in 1963 - many of them members of fan clubs and attending gatherings around the globe. Yet it seems most will be staying home to watch Christopher Eccleston's debut as the time-travelling Doctor." The story says that "International Doctor Who website Outpost Gallifrey lists a very full calendar to keep even the most dedicated of fans, known as Whovians, busy all year... No sooner have you emerged from the Doctor Who weekend in Somerset's Wookey Hole than it is time for a swift Sci-Fi Sea Cruise around Europe, a Whovention convention in Sydney and Chicago Tardis 2005. When not doing that, groups such as the Sisterhood of Khan [sic] dress up as their favourite villains and heroes from the series, including the sinister Cybermen." "It is time to sit down on your sofa, aim your remote control and enjoy it," says Antony Wainer, spokesman for the Doctor Who Appreciation Society. "If this was a movie we would hire a cinema and if it was made for the internet we would gather around a computer screen. But we want to see the show in the way it is intended - in our homes up and down the country." Ian Chandos of the Sisterhood of Karn (it misquotes as "Khan"), "an Earth-based group of gay people united by their interest in Doctor Who and cult TV" says that "We all want a chance to watch the first episode in its entirety then meet up the following week to discuss it. Having said that, we'll probably all be on the phone to each other as soon as it's over."

There are many teasers in the papers today, mostly promoting the series for Saturday night. The South Wales Echo asks "Who's going to scare you the most?" today: "Get ready to dive behind the sofa again! Doctor Who will once again battle against a host of weird and wonderful monsters in the new series..." BBC1 Radio Entertainment also has a mention.

Sky News ran with a piece called "A Look Into Billie's World", which has various facts about Billie Piper. "She sang for Bill Clinton, had a No.1 hit by the time she was 15 - and a failed marriage to one of Britain's biggest media moguls by the age of 22. Now Billie Piper stars alongside Christopher Eccleston as Rose Tyler, in the long-awaited return of Doctor Who. It opens the latest chapter in her remarkable life... check out our Billie fact file." There are a variety of facts and figures about the actress/singer. Today's "This is Wiltshire" also has some of the quotes.

The Sun yesterday wants to know if you're terrified yet with the return of the evil Doctor Who monsters? "We have a large Epsom sofa from MFI worth Pounds 595 for you to win -and hide behind! To enter just call 09063 612237. Leave your contact details and answer this question: Who is the new Dr Who?" Calls apparently cost 60p a minute "and last no longer than two minutes. Lines close at 8pm tonight. Winner chosen at random."

Today's The Northern Echo biographies Christopher Eccleston. It starts with his film and television roles, then: "None of which would have suggested asking him to play the Time Lord in the BBC1's hotly-anticipated revival, especially as Eccleston has always been a very private actor who shied away from publicity and parties. You couldn't imagine him welcoming the barrage of press and public recognition that playing the doctor would bring." It says that Eccleston had a taste of media interest after being romantically linked by the press with Billie Piper: "Maybe I felt I was able to handle it now, " he says of becoming public property. "Only time will tell. There are still ways to remain private. I've always felt that there were some people in the industry who will use their personal life to further their career, rather than their actual performances and I don't think that's right. What my dad taught me was, basically, do your job properly. I hope my privacy remains and that my performance will get me another job and that will be enough. I do think, actually, that readers and viewers really aren't that interested. If you give them a performance, they'll invest in you, whether you're sleeping with a goat or whatever." It says that "As a child, he preferred Star Trek to Doctor Who. Now, he's a fan of the Time Lord. 'I finally allowed myself to watch Tom Baker in a DVD of The Talons Of Weng-Chiang. I drank two bottles of red wine and thought, 'right, I'll watch it'. I knew then what the role entailed and how difficult it is to play. It's great, all the profile you get, but it's a difficult thing to do. You're the motor for every scene, and you have to deliver a lot of pseudo and scientific jargon and give it some charisma and wit.'" It does mention next year: "Whether he would play the Doctor again if the BBC commits to another series has yet to be decided."

A preview of this weekend's "The Spectator" dated March 26 profiles Russell T Davies: "Davies is such a dedicated Doctor Who fan that he even carried on watching in that difficult period after Peter Davison had gone, when it apparently went down and down. If anyone on this planet was ever likely to breathe new life into an aging Time Lord, then Russell T.was surely the man. And, sure enough, he has, with extremely unlikely support from the actor playing Dr Who ù Christopher Eccleston. ... For me, though, the true star is Russell T. Davies. It was he who got Eccleston on board, and it's his reverence for tradition (e. g. , ensuring that the Tardis still looks like a Fifties police phone box) combined with his understanding of what it will take to win over a blas? new audience (fart jokes, breast-implant jokes, a breathless pace) which is going to make this revival such a massive triumph. He has even, you might have heard, solved the Dalek problem. The evil buggers have now developed the ability to fly, which means they can conquer earth after all. Why ever didn't they think of it earlier?" (Well, of course, they did, but no one seems to remember...)

Today's Daily Star profiles many of the former assistants and guest stars -- all of the female gender. "[Billie Piper's] not the first sexy side-kick to act as the time traveller's gorgeous right-hand woman. Since the show first began back in 1963, there's been plenty of ballsy babes who have taken on awful aliens and scary monsters." Profiled are mostly companion actresses with a few guest stars (such as Honor Blackman and Rula Lenska) thrown in.

The Daily Express also profiles Billie Piper today: "As she makes her debut as Doctor Who's new sidekick this Saturday, former teenie pop favourite Billie Piper admits she has been nursing a few bruises after struggling to perform stunts on the show. 'I've had a bit of a nightmare with the stunts. I'm clumsy but I want things to go well. I overcompensate and it ends in tears.' That's what you get for taking on Daleks, Billie"

"Doctor Boo!: Why the Timelord should stay in his Tardis" says an article in the Sun today, which does a "who's who" of new monsters and also runs a piece of fluff about the theme tune ("Dun da dun da dun da dun da dun da dun da di di di di... Ohh-wee-ohh. Weeeee-ohh...") It basically regurgitates reports from the past several days. The Daily Star also discusses the new monsters today in an A to Z of them, mentioning the usuals like Daleks, Cybermen and Autons, but also Borad, the Haemovores, the Kandyman, the Nimon and the Vervoids.

"Doctor Who: funny he never married" says today's Telegraph, which wonders that cliched question "To put it more bluntly, is Doctor Who gay?" "Before considering the case for the prosecution (or defence, depending on your point of view), let us make one thing clear: we are not questioning the sexual orientation of the actors who played the role... But the Doctor himself is apparently not the marrying kind of Time Lord. ... The obvious answer is that the Doctor, not being human (he has two hearts, for example), is not turned on by homo sapiens of either sex, any more than we are by Cybermen. A more intriguing possibility is that, just as he has no idea what he will look like when he regenerates - Pertwee's Doctor shrieked when he looked in the mirror - so he does not know in advance for which team he will be playing, as it were. In which case, perhaps he ought to keep two photographs next to his bed in the Tardis: one of Scarlett Johansson, say, and one of Justin Timberlake. When he regenerates, all he has to do is look at both of them and discover which one makes his hearts beat faster." Riiight.

There's a report on BBC News that says that "Finally, the Sun reports that Dr Who's faithful robot dog K9 has been tracked down to a dogs' home in Devon. Apparently he was bought at a BBC auction four years ago." It quotes Derek Hambly of the Tenth Planet story, who says: "I'm amazed he's in Devon. He was last seen on the planet Gallifrey."

This week, Manchester's listings and lifestyle magazine City Life has given its cover over to the new series. Inside, there's a two page interview with (Manchester resident) Russell T Davies on 'who and Casanova, and a one page interview with (Salford born) Christopher Eccleston: "It was my idea to bring a bit of Northern realism to the whole thing".

Net4Nowt analyses the scheduling of the new series: "By scheduling Doctor Who in the prime timeslot of 7:00PM Saturday night, BBC One is evidently hoping to capture market share from Ant and Dec's popular 'Saturday Night Takeaway' series. An analysis of Internet searches for both 'ant and dec saturday night take away' and 'new doctor who' suggests that BBC One has a fighting chance: despite Ant and Dec's solid audience base, share of searches for their show online have decreased in the lead-up to the resurrection of Doctor Who. The share of Internet searches for the phrase 'new doctor who' overtook 'ant and dec saturday night take away' two weeks ago, and the phrase is currently receiving 50% more searches than its rival. This spike in interest can't be explained away by the online leak a couple of weeks ago of the first episode, titled 'Rose'. Following the leak, fans rushed online to search for 'doctor who rose download'. Since the week of the leak, interest in the download has plummeted while interest in Doctor Who remains strong." WebUser also runs the story.

Sheffield Today says that "there is one place where residents would probably shocked to hear of the notorious reputation of Daleks - and that is the streets around Anchorage Crescent, Sprotbrough. Every Halloween, a procession of youngsters follows one of the monsters around the village as part of a trick or treat tour. It has even taken detours past children's Halloween parties as a special favour to entertain them. For most of the year, it lives in Doctor Who fan Grant Belshaw's shed." The article discusses that this man's Dalek prop was originally used at the Longleat exhibition.

Doctor Who is featured on the cover of long-running Welsh-language weekly Golwg this week (published this past Wednesday). The cover is a publicity shot overlaid on a photo of Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. The translated byline is "Dr Who - Cardiff's big project" and ties in with a larger feature on celebrating the centenary of Cardiff's city status. Inside, the series is covered in their centre colour section with a short article, a description of a set visit by the press, along with some quotes from designer Ed Thomas and photos.

The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, the principal biographical reference work for the British past will be marking the start of the new series of Doctor Who on Saturday by having Jon Pertwee as the 'Life of the Day'. The article, first published in print and online in September 2004, is written by David J. Howe. Most of the online edition is subscription only, but the Life of the Day is free to non-subscribers for that day and for a few subsequent days. It has normally appeared by 0100GMT on the day in question. A link will appear on the front page at www.oxforddnb.com.

Today's East Anglian Daily Times has a half page article on Billie Piper and the new series. It includes comments from Billie about her career to date and Doctor Who. The article finishes with promise of an interview with The Doctor in tomorrow's edition.

The Croydon Guardian is looking for "any Doctor Who fans planning anything special to mark the Timelord's return to our screens this Saturday (March 26). Perhaps you and your assistant will be throwing on Cybermen costumes or building your very own cardboard Tardis? If you are crazy about the guy from Gallifrey, dotty about Daleks or mad about the Master then we want to hear from you" and suggests you send email here.

The Chicago Tribune discusses the "Rose" leak: "Building online buzz by putting full episodes online has become such a hot marketing tool that there's speculation the BBC was behind the recent 'unauthorized' online release of an episode of its new 'Dr. Who' series. But the BBC denied to Wired News that an in-house 'viral marketing' plan was responsible for the show's premature online debut." Of course, the BBC's also denied this speculation to everyone...

Some other press notes: Today's Sun includes a monster comparison, eg. Anne Robinson vs Lady Cassandra and Jade Goody vs Moxx of Balhoon here; Megastar comments on Sylvester McCoy's review of the series; the Daily Record comments on Billie Piper accidentally swearing on yesterday's Chris Moyles show (two articles, here and here); the Mirror has more comments on the various assistants over the years; and a brief Who comparison to Joe Cole in the Times Football section here.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes, Ceri Laing, Chuck Foster, Matthew Kilburn, Rajiv Awasti, Craig Hinton, Nick Smale, Stephen Woollen, Guy Lambert, Barry Bridges, Alex Wilcock, Gareth Humphreys, Matthew Kilburn, and Andrew Jackson)

Correspondent Paul Hayes has sent us two lengthy reports on appearances today by Christopher Eccleston on two BBC radio programs: Jo Whiley and Simon Mayo. Click on the spoiler tag to read them (there are a couple of minor spoilers, but to keep the length of the news page down they're included this way.) (Thanks to Paul Hayes)

Outpost Gallifrey received the following statement from Vicky Thomas, Head of Press, Consumer Publishing at BBC Worldwide: "After a thorough investigation by BBC Worldwide's Canadian broadcast partner, the source of the leak of episode one of the new Doctor Who series has been traced to a third party company in Canada which had an early preview copy for legitimate purposes. The individual responsible for the leak has had their employment terminated by that company as a result. BBC Worldwide is considering further legal remedies and takes extremely seriously any unlawful copying or misuse of its copyright material."

BBC Radio Wales have some further details on their website about their Dr Who documentary, Back In Time. "This weekend Doctor Who returns to BBC One Wales. BBC Radio Wales has been granted exclusive access behind the scenes for a two part special called Dr Who: Back in Time. This Saturday at 13:05 we look at the links between the Time Lord and Wales, including Dalek road signs in Llangollen." The two parts air on consecutive Saturdays, March 26 and April 2 at 1:05pm, with repeats on Sundays, March 27 and April 3, at 5:30pm.

ITV's This Morning program that aired, er, this morning, featured by far one of the best, and funniest, interviews with Russell T Davies to date. It showed clips from "Rose" including the Doctor peering through Rose's cat-flap and the "That's who I am" clip betwen Eccleston and Piper shown widely. It may also have included one of the first released shots from "The End of The World" showing The Doctor and Rose in front of a large window filled with flames and asteroids. The Doctor says "come with me" and takes Rose's hand. Shots were included of Chris and Billie on set, and interviews with them took place in front of TARDIS and Dalek. The presenters Phillip Schofield and Fern Briton interviewed RTD on the sofa, and showed shots of "Who's who in Who" from today's papers. The main picture was of Simon Day as "The Steward" who has 10 minutes of screen time (and then meets with an interesting fate which we won't spoil here...) Schofield claimed that Eccleston was the eighth ever actor to play the Doctor, obviously unaware of Paul McGann. And Davies mentioned that he made up alien's names by sitting at home with a glass of whiskey!

BBC 2 today ran an episode of The Daily Politics which featured a 10 minute segment on Doctor Who with three guests: political correspondent Andrew Marr, who appears in "Aliens of London"; Tim Collins MP, Shadow Spokesperson for Health and Education and well-known Doctor Who supporter; and Barry Letts, former series producer during the 1970's. The crux of the feature, although a thinly veiled excuse to talk about Doctor Who (of which Andrew Marr and Tim Collins are huge fans), was about how Doctor Who, especially in the 70's provided much political comment as the basis for many stories. Issues of environment, tax and Government bureaucracy were illustrated by using parts of 'The Green Death', 'The Sun Makers' and Pertwee at odds with a government Minister. They had a clip of Helen A (they were comparing her to Thatcher) from "The Happiness Patrol" as well. Marr confirmed aliens would be taking over MP's in an episode to be transmitted between now and the general election (May 5th).

Ratings war on the horizon? As of April 2, Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, Doctor Who's timeslot rival on ITV, moves forward to 6.45pm in the schedule,
giving it a 15 minute jump on our show. The gauntlet's being lowered now...

The official site has been updated today with a new "Media Player" that now features the latest Doctor Who trailer (narrated by Christopher Eccleston), the "Project Who" radio broadcast and other goodies, as well as clips from the 'classic' series. Also, on the front page of the official site is a link simply called "Lies", which goes to another site that has a certain tie-in appeal to the first episode, "Rose" (if you see the episode, you'll know what it's about!)

The Project: Who? CD, due out later this spring, is at number 3 in the BBC Shop bestsellers list (up from number 8 a week ago!). Meanwhile, the banner advertising it and other Doctor Who productions is on the front page of the BBC Shop site with an interesting catchphrase: "Saving the Earth, every week on BBC One. If you think TV is missing a hero, then you haven't met the Doctor. He saves planets for a living - more of a hobby actually, as he's very, very good at it. He's saved us from alien menaces and evil from before time began - but just who is he? Well, Rose Tyler is about to find out. She's 19 and she's not travelled much. But all that's going to change..." Also noted in that BBC Shop area is a listing for the new Doctor Who series DVDs, although without any information as yet.

Today's New Statesman features a story about the new series and its lack of a regeneration sequence: "To deprive us of a scene in which the doctor regenerates into Christopher Eccleston must have been one of the first decisions Russell T Davies made while writing his comeback episode. His reasons are sound enough. Most of the target audience of children will never have even heard of Doctor Who, let alone know that eight actors have played the role since 1966. It would have made a puzzling and slow start. Instead we plunge into young Rose Tyler's worst day ever in her menial job in a trendy West End department store." The review portion is a bit heavy-handed (noting that Doctor Who may now be "a bigger proposition than it looks").

Update on our report yesterday about Doctor Who in the Netherlands: according to the Spits newspaper, the show will indeed be broadcast on the Nederland 3 network "next year".

Creative Match analyses the new series and its visual effects. "The Mill have been working on the special effects. After their Academy Award for the effects on Gladiator there is no doubt that this will be a more sophisticated treat than the original. Chief Executive of The Mill Robin Shenfield has commented on the work, 'Visual effects can be the tail that wags the dog, but with Doctor Who the storytelling was so good we knew it was something we really wanted to do. It's soul-destroying to do great effects work on a project lacking in other areas because when it gets panned, it feels like your work is being panned, too. Whether we take something on really depends on the quality of the scripts and the team that's working on it.'"

An article called "Well, he took his time" appeared in today's Herald, which actually plays up the whole notion of being a Doctor Who fan, including discussions with Mark Gatiss, Phil Collinson and the Edinburgh Doctor Who group.

Some other news clippings today include a briefer version of yesterday's Sun article on the Sun website, a two page article in the Western Mail, a "Guide to the new series monsters" in today's Mirror (which mentions some new aliens in "End of the World" beyond the ones we already know about, including "Spark Plug," "Hop Pyleen" and "The Steward," which we now know is Simon Day's character), and an interesting article at BlogCritics called "What BattleStar Galactica Can Teach Doctor Who About Television In The Digital Age."

(Thanks to Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Paul Engelberg, Sergio Ferr?, Wayne Barry, Ceri Laing, Mark Wright, Paul Blakemore, Karen Bryan, Michael Spence, Graham Kibble-White and Bas Pierik)

Note: This column originally started by covering press clips, but has now become a daily update on any and all developments in the world of the new series of Doctor Who, so read on. Updated 23 March 0320 GMT with more information...

Part one of the two part Project Who radio documentary aired on BBC2 today, featuring interviews and clips and lots of spoiler stuff. "This opening programme considers how the creator of 'Queer as Folk' and 'The Second Coming' approached the task of re-creating one of the most popular and enduring formats on television," says the official notice at the Project Who Website. Interviewed in the first chapter of the two-part documentary: actors Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper; executive producers Russell T Davies, Julie Gardner and Mal Young; producer Phil Collinson; BBC1 controller Lorraine Heggessey; BBC Head of Drama Jane Tranter; director Joe Ahearne; writers Paul Cornell and Mark Gatiss; visual creative consultant Bryan Hitch; Doctor Who Magazine editor Clayton Hickman; Dalek actor/writer Nicholas Briggs; SFX editor Dave Golder; Heat magazine editor Boyd Hilton; Outpost Gallifrey editor Shaun Lyon; and Barry Letts, original series producer (1970-1975). Among the comments made: that Heggessey's claim of looking at Doctor Who and wondering why it wasn't on was met with a rousing "Get it sorted! We've been waiting for this movie that hasn't appeared... the viewing public should have it as its own" as rumored; that Russell T Davies loved the sonic screwdriver and the TARDIS blue police box and never once had any intention of changing them; and according to Julie Gardner, everyone knew Russell would be the "anchor" for this show, and was the only person anyone wanted to do it. You can listen to the broadcast now using RealPlayer from the site, as well as yesterday's Steve Wright Show interview with Christopher Eccleston and other audio streams.

The BBC Press Office today revealed their second Press Pack which includes discussions of several topics related to the new series. The press pack includes discussion of The Mill, the visual effects house providing computer generated effects, including some facts and figures about their experiences on the first season: 800 special effects, a team of 21 people working 10 months, and some detail about the character Cassandra (voiced by Zoe Wanamaker) in "The End of the World": "...one computer-generated character needed four minutes of lip-synching, which is a huge undertaking in a TV project." Edward Thomas is profiled; he's the production designer on the new series: "I just waded in there because it's Doctor Who and it's a legend, and it was the thought that I might get the chance to help recreate and refresh what had gone before. Reality dawns on you when you realise there's a fanbase that's kept this series alive for 15 years, which is pressure enough, let alone making it visually-exciting and stimulating for a younger audience with little idea what Doctor Who is about." It notes some facts about Thomas and the production team, such as the fact that there have been approximately 650 sets created during the series from location builds to studio builds. Mike Tucker of the BBC Miniature Effects unit -- who also worked on the original series and has written several Doctor Who books since: "What [Davies has] brought back is Doctor Who, but Doctor Who re-invented for the mindset and viewing tastes of the 21st century viewing public. The kind of things we're doing now couldn't have been done 15 years ago when the show was last on. Computer technology in visual effects was in its infancy." And Neill Gorton of Millennium FX, the prosthetics and special make-up designer, is profiled: "I was delighted when I saw episode one because it's new, it's fresh but it's still recognisably Doctor Who. I grew up with the old series, and it's part of the reason I do this job. When it came back, I just had to be involved." There are several photos and spoiler notes about aliens in the first season, too.

According to the Radio Times website, Simon Day of "The Fast Show," and currently appearing on BBC3 in the Russell T Davies miniseries "Casanova," is appearing in episode two, "The End of the World". This is the only piece of casting so far announced other than the three guest players confirmed to date: Zoe Wanamaker (as the voice of Cassandra), Yasmin Bannerman (as Jabe) and Jimmy Vee (as the Moxx of Balhoon).

BBC Radio 1's Jo Whiley confirmed on her show today that Christopher Eccleston will be appearing with her on her show on Thursday. The Jo Whiley show airs on BBC Radio 1 on at 10am; you can visit the website here.

The new series of Doctor Who will be aired on television in the Netherlands on public channel Nederland 3 at some point later this year or early next year, according to the Dutch CEEFAX teletext service today. The message noted the day of the launch on the BBC this weekend. No word as yet on an official broadcast date.

The official site now has two new features: the Mastermind questions and answers from this weekend's "Doctor Who Night" extravaganza, and also an online "Launch the TARDIS" item that puts a Flash-based animation on your browser of the TARDIS moving around the screen.

icLiverpool "meets the two Merseysiders responsible for the new-look Doctor Who," interviewing Davy Jones and Linda Davie, "the award-winning make-up and design team who looked after the latest Doctor Who." The interviewer chats with the two, a husband and wife team who are integral parts of the first season. "Davy and Lin are still sworn to secrecy on what happens but are confident that the new Doctor will be a triumph. 'Chris and Billy [sic] have a great chemistry on screen,' says Davy. 'There's great strength with the pair of them and she makes for a good female assistant. By the end of the series she's shown to have changed and matured. She's not portrayed as a bimbo at all - she's a feisty streetwise girl from a local housing estate.' Lin agrees: 'This new series has got appeal for all from a teenage audience upwards. It's not really for young children which the old Dr Who was sometimes aimed at. It's very hip. Both characters are the type of people you'd want to hang out with.'"

News from Australia: in last Saturday's Sydney's Daily Telegraph, ABC head of programming Marena Manzoufas has said the network has now seen the first episode and they "hoped to buy" the new series. They were apparently concerned about whether it would work for a non-fan audience, but now having seen it, they think its "fabulous" and you can "come in cold and be engrossed." "It will be in the schedule this year, and we expect it will be in a prime-time timeslot," said Manzoufas. The article also mentions Channel 9's interest, and the first-refusal agreement between the ABC and BBC; there are also pics of three alien races from new series plus details of others.

Tomorrow morning's Telegraph features a recap of Andrew Marr's experience being part of the new series. "After a career whose high points include stumbling over my words outside Downing Street, being sacked, having my picture painted by Hockney because he was amazed by the shape of my head and cavorting on national television in fishnet tights, a fixed smile and little else, I have at last reached the acme, the summit, the final glistening pimple of worldly success. In short, I have a vanishingly small part in the new run of Doctor Who. Thanks to a small miracle of lateral thinking, I play a bat-eared political reporter. Filming this took a long time and a frightening quantity of technology, including a man with a tape measure interposing himself between a lens and my nose. But, hey, Doctor Who? I would have happily played a cactus on a windowsill or Billie Piper's missing sock. This obsession goes back, as most do, to childhood, much of which was spent behind the reassuringly bulky family sofa when the theme music started. I don't suppose I saw very much of Jon Pertwee and friends, but I heard a lot. (Social history is full of false memory. But the suggestion that most children spent the 1960s hiding behind sofas from silver teapots in kilts is true.) Many bad things have happened to me since. Indeed, I've done quite a lot of bad things since. But nothing was half as awful as being invited to my best friend's house across the road just after Christmas and having the door opened byà a Dalek! Other small boys might have asked themselves whether it was entirely likely that the Daleks would begin their assault on Earth in a small village outside Dundee. But I've never been entirely solid under fire. And anyway, it wasn't even a silver one. It was one of the really horrible black onesà Uughh."

Today's Variety mentions Doctor Who... "àbut can cult sci-fi classic save BBC again?" "BBC execs hope 'Doctor Who' will play a key role in combating ITV's 'Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway' in the Saturday evening ratings battle," says the article, "as well as highlighting the quality public service fare that will help the Beeb keep its license fee." The article goes through all the Doctor Who basics, including quotes reprinted from elsewhere.

Louth Today today said that "the lid has been lifted on Doctor Who's latest frightening enemy, man-eating wheelie bins," referring to a plot point in the first episode. "But while they note the irony, objectors to the introduction of wheelie bins in Louth say the subject is no laughing matter," it continues, with a few minor notes about current Louth area affairs!

"Everyone's talking about...The Return of Dr Who" according to icCoventry, which says that "Saturday telly will take a nostalgic turn this coming weekend." The writer talks about the 'classic' days of the series and ends with a bright note: "So clear behind the sofa, get in some crumpets, and pile in front of the telly this Saturday for a chance to relive your childhood, and, of course, to see if the Daleks have finally worked out how to negotiate stairs."

New program listing: the Peter Cushing film "Dr. Who and the Daleks" will be broadcast in Wales on S4C (Welsh version of Channel 4) on Saturday 26 March at 12.15pm. (It's not technically new series-related but it is because of the new show, no doubt...)

Today's South Wales Evening Post notes the original success of the series: "The BBC's head of drama told Doctor Who's original production team that he wanted no 'bug-eyed monsters' in the show, but they ignored him and created the Daleks, whose design was based on a canteen cruet set." It then discusses the new series: "Now Christopher Eccleston has taken control of the Tardis. Will another series follow? We'll have to wait and see."

"Who's That Girl?" asks today's Daily Star: "Sexy Billie Piper bursts back into the spotlight this weekend when the BBC finally unveils its revamped version of the cult series Dr Who. ... It also heralds a whole new beginning for former pop babe Billie." It quotes several recent interviews, but also makes a few statements not previously seen: "She says: 'In the past, the girls have been fairly weak characters, screaming and running away. And I always thought The Doctor was chauvinistic and patronising to women. But this has all changed. Rose is on a par with him. She even saves his life in episode one. As the series progresses, people will see how the two educate each other. They show each other new things - they're perfect for one another.'"

"Who is this Doctor?" asks today's Evening Standard, written by Matthew Sweet (the host of last week's Culture Show story on BBC2.) "When Christopher Eccleston grins at you, it is hard to know whether to smile back at him, or to jump on a chair and scream," says Sweet. "It is the eyes. Hypnotic, glittery things that make you ponder two questions: is this a nice man - or is he about to go for my neck? You may feel the same when you tune into the new series of Doctor Who on BBC1 on Saturday and watch the scene in which he first meets his new companion..." The installment biographies Eccleston and makes several positive comments about the future of the series.

Eccleston's praises are also sung today on Manchester Online, today, which mentions a second series is already in the planning stages. "But can Doctor Who defeat his greatest enemy - ITV1 rivals Ant and Dec? Even in an age where we can all time travel via video, DVD and hard disc drive recorders, that remains to be seen. Davies believes viewers are simply being offered a very good alternative. 'Those lovely boys will outlast me,' he concedes." Also, today's AOL's UK news coverage says that "Christopher is modern day Time Lord". The article basically repeats many comments made in previous press articles.

Some of today's other articles include an interview in the Manchester Evening News, the Mirror, the Sun and Alien Online.

Some of the other mentions in the press today including "Total TV Guide" 26th March-1st April 2005 (front cover and one and a half page article); "TV and Satellite Week" 26th March-1st April 2005 (front cover and two page article); "Heat" 26th March-1st April 2005 (half page article, picture and review on Saturday TV page); "What's On TV" 26th March-1st April 2005 (small photo on cover plus half-page article); "TV Choice" 26th March-1st April 2005 (small picture on front cover and half page article); "Closer" 26th March-1st April 2005 (picture on TV page and Saturday picks); "TV Quick" 26th March-1st April 2005 (two page article, plus picture in this week TV "quick loves" and on Saturday TV page).

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Jeroen Nieuwenhuis, Rajiv Awasti, Benjamin Elliott, Mark Murphy, Daniel O'Malley, Lorna Mitchellk, Jamie Finlayson)

A new book will soon be out from the British Film Institute. Entitled "BFI TV Classics: Doctor Who", it will be a critical analysis of the series by film critic and author Kim Newman -- best known to Who fans as the author of the first Telos novella "Time and Relative". This book is part of a new "BFI TV Classics" series which will also include Buffy, The Office and Our Friends In The North (which starred none other than... Christoper Eccleston!) More details are available at the BFI website. (Thanks to Daniel O'Malley at Timelash)

Coming soon: the release of a BBC licensed TARDIS CD/DVD Box collectible; the provisional artwork for the box packaging is at right (click on the thumbnail for a larger version.) Says the press information: "This is the most accurate model Tardis ever produced commercially, and is based upon the prop used throughout the 1980s. The scale is 1:5 (same as the remote-control Daleks), so it is 55cm / 22 inches tall. The box includes an A2 wall-chart, with images of the various Tardi used through the years, and a history of the TV props. It can store either 28 DVDs, 60 CDs, 20 novels, 36 audio cassettes, or 14 videos, or be used as a bread-bin, medicine cabinet, bedsit larder, etc. Each box has a unique numbered plaque. Doors can open inwards and outwards. There are two adjustable shelves. The lamp can be lit - details of flashing unit to be confirmed (available seperately). Made in Britain, by Cod Steaks Ltd - a large model-making company in Bristol, currently producing the miniature sets and props for the forthcoming Wallace and Gromit animated feature film 'The Great Vegetable Plot.'" This TARDIS box was featured in the newest issue of Radio Times and will be available in May. (Thanks to Anthony Sibley and Matt Sanders)

Update: Outpost Gallifrey has received the full cover illustration and blurb for Doctor Who Magazine issue #355; click on the cover for a larger version. (Thanks to Tom Spilsbury/DWM)

Below is a collection of screen grabs from today's Blue Peter which featured a live appearance by Christopher Eccleston and an interview with Billie Piper. (Of note, the photo of Eccleston scratching his ear is actually him noting the Ninth Doctor doll "has his ears!") (Thanks to Gavin Worby, Richard Bignell)

Updated 21 March 2335 GMT: Here also is a summary of the events of the day on "Blue Peter" courtesy our reporter John Bowman:

Children's magazine programme Blue Peter featured Doctor Who extensively today (Mon 21 Mar, BBC1, 4.55pm GMT) - and not surprisingly, as the editor, Richard Marson, is a major fan and the show has always had a close relationship with it. Possibly the most interesting thing about it was the announcement by co-presenter Matt Baker that there would be a full behind-the-scenes report on Doctor Who "later this summer".

Billie Piper was supposed to be on the show with Christopher Eccleston but was unable to make it as she was unwell, the programme's presenters said. The show was preceded by the Rose "I've got a choice" trailer and then it launched into the Blue Peter titles but with the Doctor Who theme playing over it instead of the usual hornpipe signature tune, plus clips from the new series. Eccleston then appeared in the TARDIS, which was followed by the "trip of a lifetime" trailer, then it was back to the studio and Eccleston giving a description about the Doctor and the TARDIS - no doubt for the benefit of the majority of viewers for whom Doctor Who is a new phenomenon.

Instead of having Piper interviewed in the Blue Peter studio, a pre-filmed insert was shown, with Matt Baker talking to her during filming on set. It was difficult to make out which episode they were working on - possibly episode 4, as Matt later said he had a part in that episode. The clapperboard said it was a Joe Ahearne-directed episode and indicated that filming was taking place on 3 November last year. The clapperboard also had a crudely drawn Blue Peter ship logo on it. In the insert, Piper described the character of Rose and how she and the Doctor educated each other. Clips were shown from Rose, including her entering the TARDIS for the first time.

Back in the studio, which had the Face of Boe, a clip from Spearhead from Space was then shown, and Eccleston defended the production values of the old shows. Talking about taking over the role, he said he was very excited about it and that he "felt ready to do something which had that kind of responsibility", having been an actor for about 18 years. He also praised the scripts, which he said were "so strong". Eccleston then talked about the reasons for the Doctor having a battered leather jacket, saying that it was scripted by Russell T Davies, who thought it would be good because it was quite practical as the Doctor was a traveller, and the jacket is tough and it is a very physical role.

Mention was also made of Davies writing in to Blue Peter some 25 years ago suggesting they organise a competition to create an alien for the series. Asked what the hardest thing about filming Doctor Who was, Eccleston said it was "the fact you don't have any life". He said that not only were there the 12-to-14-hour days of filming but he then had to learn his lines at night because of his lead role. He said it was an honour and privilege but it took over your life.

Also featured on the show were Doctor Who models made by a viewer, including one of Eccleston and one of Piper, plus a compost bin in the shape of a Dalek, which was made by two other viewers. Details of how to make one of these compost bins would be shown in a future programme, the presenters said.

Radio updates: Billie Piper will be on The Chris Moyles Show on BBC Radio 1 show this Wednesday morning, March 23, at 7.00am. And BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Simon Mayo announced this afternoon that Christopher Eccleston will be the guest on his show on Thursday 24th March, just after 2:00pm GMT. The show can be heard at the Five Live site.

BBC Birmingham, in association with local fans, have organised a small display in the public area of their new studios in The Mailbox, Birmingham City Centre, to publicise the return of "Doctor Who". The display comprises replicas of the TARDIS, a Dalek and an Auton, and it commenced today (March 21).

BBC Ouch (yes, you read that right) has a Doctor Who feature today celebrating the new series and a serious topic: "As Doctor Who returns to BBC ONE on Saturday nights, disabled comedian Laurence Clark takes a humorous look at how the series has portrayed disability over the years."

The latest issue of Radio Times has the TARDIS on the cover - which, opened, reveals the Doctor and Rose standing inside. The 16-page collectors special features interviews with Russell T Davies, Christopher Eccleston, Billie Piper and Ed Thomas (production designer) and a look at the effects and make-up of the series. There are also really nice photos of various creatures from "Rose" and "The End of the World" - including Lady Cassandra, the Tree people from The Forest of Cheem and the Moxx himself. Also noted on the back of the special it says that the title for episode 8 is Father's Day (though this wasn't the actual title a few weeks ago, but could have recently changed...)

In today's issue of The Sun, Christopher Eccleston is interviewed... and it says that he is "not completely sure" he wants to do a second series, citing the fear of typecasting. "I need to think about it," he tells the paper. "It's more than a huge responsibility to shoulder. And no, I don't want to be thought of as The Doctor to the exclusion of everything else I've done or may do in the future. So I'll have to think long and hard about it before I make the final decision to say yes or no. I am keenly aware that the whole thing could be a poisoned chalice." He says that Davies will write six episodes of the second series and he calls the new show "amazing". It also says he did watch some old episodes when he was offered the role, contradicting what he told DWM. This story is also reported by ContactMusic and icWales. Meanwhile, the internet version of the Sun quotes Eccleston: "The first scene had me as the Doctor chasing this very brilliant, very famous actor down a street while he was dressed as an alien pig. I thought, æIt doesnÆt get much bonkers than this!Æ It was such fun to do.ö

Eccleston told the Manchester Evening News, however, that is is "proud" to be the latest Doctor. "I didn't even think about it," says Christopher of his surprise move. "I approached writer and executive producer Russell T Davies. I read that he was going to do it and emailed him and said, 'When you draw up an audition list put my name on it'. It was just because I'm a fan of his writing and worked with him on The Second Coming. I loved his other stuff as well, Queer As Folk most of all I think, because it changed television in a way. So it was easy. Which is a great in a way because it is a big deal. I now realise," he laughs. The article says the experience was "a gruelling and often surreal shoot for the actor who had to deal with new experiences such as paparazzi hounding the set for snaps of his co-star Billie. 'We just looked after Billie and ignored it,' says
Christopher. But what was more galling for the actor was the first episode of their work being leaked onto the internet. 'It's kind of sick,' he says. 'It saddens me because we've all worked really hard on it and we want it to be seen as it's intended to be seen.'" On a second series, he does hedge a bit: "I won't allow myself to be absorbed completely. . . . I've been in the game 18 years so there's a certain amount of knowledge of how this business works and how you should conduct yourself with the public and things. But I've met a number of Whovians, real serious Doctor Who fans, and they've been so kind and generous to me and excited about the series. They're not interested in gossip about me or the set, but interested in the myth of the Doctor. I think I can handle that."

Lots of Billie Piper coverage today. The Daily Star says that Billie "will NOT be tuning in to see the re-launch of the classic sci-fi series - because she'll be out getting blitzed. The former pop singer ... confessed: 'I won't be watching on Saturday. I'll do what I always do on transmission dates . . . I'll go to the pub and get lashed! ... I'm too close to Dr Who at the moment because we only recently stopped filming. If I watch when it starts I'll be too critical and I'll be looking for all the things I could have done better. I'll wish I could have changed things. It's better for me to see the show in a few months' time when I know there is absolutely nothing I can do about it all.'" The Mirror also reported this online. Also, according to the Newsquest Media Group, Piper "has admitted she didn't enjoy her singing career." She also discusses her foreknowledge of the show: "I am too young to be a Doctor Who fan but I knew the music, it's like a track at a wedding reception. You know what the song is but can't place it." And today's Times says that "Doctor Who's assistant is by tradition a bit of a bimbo, so the role might do Billie Piper no favours." The article discusses some of her personal life issues over the past several years in the music industry before it turns to Doctor Who: "I worry about the Who gig. Everyone presumes that the role will finally airlift her out of her previous life and on to the A-list, but I think it's quite a long shot. First, the career track record for former assistants of the Doctor is poor. It was, after all, the only thing strong enough to kill off Bonnie Langford's television career. And secondly, in the first episode of the new Who at least, Billie underwhelms." (Ironically, most of the comments made about her is that her performance in the first episode is one of the best things about it...)

BBC Norwich has posted a feature interview with Karen Davies, winner of this weekend's Doctor Who Mastermind, aired during BBC2's "Doctor Who Night" special. The EDP24 website has also reported this.

BBC Radio Leicester are running a series of interviews to find Leicestershire's biggest Doctor Who fan this week; they are interviewing fans from the county about the programme including pitting fans against one of their presenters in a light hearted quiz (which our correspondent, Del Shorley, was the first one, and won!) You can listen to the rest of the week's interviews at the site.

More coverage of the story we reported yesterday on Welsh minister Rhodri Morgan can be found at the BBC News Ireland site, icWales, the Sun, Ananova, and a new version in the Scotsman; it was also mentioned in the Metro newspaper.

(Thanks to Martin Barber, Chuck Foster, Steve Tribe, Huw Turberville, Steve Hatcher, Paul Engelberg, "NellyM", Lee Thacker, Del Shorley, Mark Murphy, and Laurence Clark)

Galaxy 4 have sent us the cover for Panini/DWM's forthcoming third graphic novel reprint of classic Doctor Who comics, this installment called The Tides of Time. Click on the thumbnail for a larger version. (Thanks to Galaxy 4)

Update: According to editor Clayton Hickman at DWM, this is only a mock-up version and not the final cover.

SciFiCollector has been granted a licence for the new series and are producing one of their First Day Cover stamp releases, being launched on March 26 to coincide with the first tranmission. The cover is a limited edition of just 5,000 and it is number 1 in the series, and they have announced they will be producing a cover to go with each new episode. Details are available at their website. Click on the thumbnail at right for a larger version. Meanwhile, SciFiCollector have confirmed that Tom Baker and Louise Jameson will be their guests at the forthcoming NEC Memorabilia fair in early April (see the events page!)

According to Planet Who, "BBC2's Doctor Who Night pulled in a high of 10.73% of the audience share last night, dropping to 7.56% during the special Doctor Who Mastermind edition at 8.40pm. Approximately 2.4m tuned in to watch The Story of Doctor Who between 7.30-8.30pm."

The repeat of "The Story of Doctor Who" was an edited repeat, featuring absolutely no new material but removing a few segments. Lost was the original pre title intro from Jon Culshaw (aka Tom Baker) also lost was a small section towards the beginning of the programme about Hartnell and a longer section of Terrance Dicks and Barry Letts discussing their era.

Welsh assembly first minister Rhodri Morgan faced a rather interesting moment recently, according to several press accounts. Says BBC News: "First Minister Rhodri Morgan almost became a tree-like monster in an episode of Dr Who after being mistaken for an actor, it has been confirmed. Mr Morgan arrived at BBC Wales' Cardiff studios to appear on the political show Dragon's Eye at the same time as a group of extras on the sci-fi series. The mix-up was noticed as he was ushered into a make-up room to become a tree-like sidekick of new monster Jabe. An employee from London has been blamed for the case of mistaken identity. A spokesman for the First Minister confirmed the accident and said: 'They were filming Doctor Who at the time and there were loads of extras at the BBC Wales studios. A meet-and-greet guy from London obviously did not recognise him. A young make-up artist then came in and said to Rhodri: 'Oh are you one of the trees?'. Rhodri then twigged and had a good chuckle about it. He thought it was really funny. Viewers will have to watch Doctor Who to see if Rhodri is in it.'" The story has been reported by BBC News, in the Guardian, This is London, the Scotsman, Wales on Sunday, the Express, UTV Internet.

Most of the UK's Sunday press had some coverage, largely in the form of previews in their weekly TV listings. Amongst others, the cover of the Sunday Telegraph's TV and radio listings magazine section features the Doctor and Rose, and previews Project: Who?, Confidential and the first episode ("a winner"). The Observer has a full-page interview with Christopher Eccleston in its review section and also previews next week's programmes and episode (although it's not very complimentary about the episode). And the Independent on Sunday has a fairly lengthy interview with Billie Piper in its reviews magazine, as well as the usual (this time positive) previews in its listings.

The Mail on Sunday featured an extensive two page spread on Delia Derbyshire, the lade that put the "wooo ooo" into one of television's greatest signature tunes, illustrated with images of the TARDIS, Delia in the Radiophonic Worskhop as she composed the theme, how she appeares shortly before her death and the billboard poster image of the Doctor and Rose. Doctor Who was also on the opening page of the television guide section of the "Night and Day" magazine, and was their "SWITCH ON!" choice for Saturday 26 March, illustrated by the picture of the Doctor performing his card trick.

Also in the Sunday Mail today: a list of the Doctor's "special friends," reviewing many years of assistants and their take on romance in the TARDIS. "I haven't the foggiest who Billie Piper is but I'd tell her to be careful of turning her role into a romantic one. It may not work out," says Lalla Ward. "I think actors can get muddled up in their heads, until they don't know the difference between themselves and their characters. You spend two years prancing around with somebody on TV and you end up thinking it's really you. It would be hard to go back once you crossed that line." Says Louise Jameson: "Everything has to change, obviously, but part of Doctor Who's charm is its innocence. It's very important the girl has sex appeal to keep the male viewers interested but it would be a shame to make the story itself sexy. It brings a whole other connotation." Jameson also notes the danger of being typecast: "Doctor Who is for life - not just for the short duration you're acting in it. If Billie plays her cards right and keeps the fans happy, that's what she will face. When she leaves the series, she should try to do a lot of work in the theatre until people have forgotten her role." Debbie Watling has some different ideas: "To me, the relationship was always more fatherly. It kept the children interested and made the fathers think they were in with a chance. It's got to have an innocence or you're lost. ... The fact there were little men inside the Daleks made them hard to appear menacing. I'd tell Billie to get all of her giggles out in the rehearsals. When the cameras come on, no matter how ridiculous the monsters are, you've got to keep a straight face."

The Sunday Express featured a two page spread as well, this time on the female companions of Doctor Who. Listed were Susan (with an interview with Carole Ann Ford), Vicki (with an interview with Maureen O' Brien), Polly, Zoe, Liz (with an interview with Caroline John), Sarah (with an interview with Elisabeth Sladen), Leela, Romana I, Nyssa, Tegan, Peri (illustrated with a photo of Janet Fielding), Mel and Ace.

Many articles this weekend also featured reviews. Today's Guardian says that "The rule in adapting much-loved properties - whether an old TV show or a Jane Austen novel - is that you're in trouble if aficionados of the original story absolutely hate it but equally doomed if they completely love it. Like a political party, a television series needs to reach beyond the obvious fan-base. ... The first story suggests that Davies has found the right balance between respect and renovation. The internet and the London Eye play significant roles but the Tardis retains its 50s exterior and an interior representing a 60s idea of the future. And - despite the possibilities of computer generation available to this revival - the opening episode rather encouragingly uses monsters who look as if they could have been knocked up by BBC props 40 years ago. ... The risk was always that this: 'Who' would lead to the question: 'Why?' but there's a strong chance that another generation of children will, each Saturday, be asking: 'When?'"

Today's Independent on Sunday ABC magazine - the Arts Books Culture section of the quality broadsheet - had Billie Piper as its cover feature. Also flagged up on the front page of the main paper as part of the promo strap underneath the masthead, the three-page piece - including a full-page BBC portrait photo of Piper - looked at her life and career to date and asked if she could handle the superstardom that seemed certain to be hers. Craig McLean, who met her five days before the press launch in Cardiff, reported favourably on Piper and the series, incorporating the opinions of Canterbury Tales co-star James Nesbitt, Tales update writer Pete Bowker, Brian Hill, who directed her in last year's BBC2 drama Bella and the Boys, Russell T Davies, former Smash Hits pop magazine editor Gavin Reeve (she was chosen to star in a promotional campaign for the magazine at the age of 14, which started her pop career rolling), and Innocent Records label boss Hugh Goldsmith (Piper was signed to Innocent). The piece, which also carried a photo of Piper with Chris Evans, a BBC promo photo of Piper as Rose with Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor, and one of her while she was a singer, finished with Piper saying she wouldnÆt be watching Doctor Who this coming Saturday - instead, she'd be down the pub! McLean's conclusion? Piper is someone "we underestimate . . . at our peril". The magazine's front-page illustration of Piper was a caricature by Andr? Carrilho. In addition, the show was TV choice of the week in the preview section, while Doctor Who Confidential was also marked as one of the TV choices for next Saturday (26 Mar).

Several reports covered the Doctor Who: Mastermind event from last evening that aired on BBC2's Doctor Who Night. "A Norwich woman has helped break the sci-fi buff stereotype after beating thousands to win a Dr Who Mastermind special," says Norwich Evening News's report. "Karen Davies, of Nelson Street, said she was astounded at winning the TV contest after going on it for a bet to prove a woman 'with a life' could win. Ms Davies was picked along with three others from 7000 applicants to go on Saturday's show. 'I wanted to show Dr Who fans are not all nerdy boys and some of us do have a life,' she said. She put on her application form that she wanted to dispel the anorak image, something which Mastermind quiz master John Humphrys asked her about. But the 39-year-old health club manager said: 'It's no different to going to Carrow Road every weekend.'"

The Daily Record asks, "Who's Sexiest in a TARDIS?" "Billie Piper has already lost her first battle as Doctor Who's new assistant," it says. "The 22-year-old former pop star has been beaten in a poll to find the sexiest Doctor Who assistant by former EastEnders actress Louise Jameson. Jameson proved a hit with fans, who remembered her as the scantily clad Leela, who was companion to Tom Baker as the Doctor in the late 70s. ... In fact Piper, who will be seen as new Doctor Christopher Eccleston's sidekick Tyler Rose for the first time on Saturday, was beaten into fourth place in the poll by two more actresses old enough to be her mum. Wendy Padbury, 57, who was assistant Zoe in the late 60s, proved a hit with her leather catsuits to claim third place. And little--known Nicola Bryant, 43, who played American college student Peri 'Perpugilliam' Brown opposite Tom Baker, took third place. She caused outrage during the mid-80s with several scenes in just a bikini." The report quotes an "internet poll" but we haven't found it...

The Sunday Herald (Scotland) has a new series preview with some spoilers, but there's a nice comment about Christopher Eccleston. "Ah, yes, the Doctor. He's Christopher Eccleston, of course, casting as inspired as making Vincent D'Onofrio a cop. We first encounter him planting a bomb, like a distracted terrorist. Except this guerrilla is fighting to keep us safe. Dressing down for a Doctor - where the dandy of old plumped for crushed velvet and scarves, he sports a battered black leather jacket - Eccleston nevertheless has other trademarks in place. He's feeling his way into the role, just as the Doctor is feeling his way into his new body. But there's already an odd, intense, Tom Bakerish charm, grins flashing at inopportune moments. Then he's irritable, unknowable, cold, with the sudden snappy bitterness the best Doctors always had. More than once, he refers to humans as "apes". There's melancholy, too. The episode ends with Rose agreeing to accompany him on his adventures; but the important thing is the half-hidden yearning with which Eccleston asks her along, more for himself than for her. He's patient, but cosmically lonely."

Today's Sunday Independent (Ireland) says "we should all be grateful for Billie's involvement. Among those tipped for a starring role alongside the Doc during the 15-year gap since the last series was Pamela Anderson. But kick-ass Pam wouldn't have been right as one of the Doc's sidekicks." And how! "There are those who'll want to compare and contrast Christopher Eccleston's performance as the ninth doctor with all those who've gone before; but for many, it's enough to know that the Daleks are on their way back."

What makes Doctor Who special? The Scotsman asks that today. "Last year, the BBC ran a competition to select the best on-screen boffin. More than 40,000 people voted but it was still a fix. The winners were Honeydew and Beaker from The Muppets. Doctor Who came a poor third (after Mr Spock) with only 13 per cent of the vote. That can't be right. ... Forget American puppets who need wires to make themselves animated. And definitely forget Spock, whose character is actually the epitome of an eastern seaboard, Ivy League intellectual of the Kennedy era, busy getting the Federation into some galactic Vietnam War. Give me British sci-fi heroes every time - Dan Dare, Jeff Hawke, Jet Morgan, with the eponymous Doctor high on the list. Why? The answer gets to the heart of the enduring appeal of the Doctor (and of Quatermass, who is also about to be reincarnated, on BBC4)." The article goes into the heroic aspects of Doctor Who: "Like the ancient Greek heroes, Doctor Who was always at the mercy of the Gods and a wayward navigation device in the TARDIS. That's the whole point of heroes - they show you how to deal with an indifferent, even perverse, universe with wit, courage and a stiff upper lip. There was indeed a definite alien quality about the Doctor: he was still archetypally British in an era when being British was an embarrassment. Pretending to be from Gallifrey and having two hearts was an elegant ruse. Audiences could indulge in following a great British hero without feeling the cringe factor. The fascinating thing about British heroes is that they are quintessentially anti-establishment, like Doctor Who. They draw their courage from their own individuality. Nelson gleefully put the telescope to his blind eye. In similar circumstances Captain Kirk might defy Star Fleet Command, but he'd have a moral fit doing so." But the author, George Kerevan, also waxes on the future: "In this era of I'm a Celebrity and Pop Idol, the temptation will be to dumb down the Doctor or eviscerate his character. The Americans did it in 1996, when the impostor Paul McGann pretended to be Doctor Who in the one-off TV movie. McGann used violence and fell in love with an Earth girl. This was Captain Kirk, not the true hero from Gallifrey. ... But if all else fails, there's still the cerebral Professor Quatermass to save us from ourselves."

Today's Observer discusses Doctor Who collectibles. Writer Guy Clapperton interviews David Howe and Jeremy Bentham to discuss collectibility: "[Howe] says: 'Standard collecting terms apply - anything that's in the box is going to be worth more than any thing that isn't.' Anything complete with instructions and factory sealed is probably going to be in demand, 'but if all you've got is one Louis Marx Dalek out of the box, that's still probably worth ú50 or so: anything from the 1960s is rare.' ... [Bentham] points to the first Dalek playsuit as particularly desirable. Made by Scorpion Automotives in 1964, it was well made for a kids' toy. The factory shipped a few out and then burnt down, with the rest of the stock inside. 'You can pay anything from ú1,000 to ú2,000.' It was replaced by others from other manufacturers, but if yours says Scorpion Automotives on it, it's worth as much as a second-hand car."

The Wanadoo portal site has some coverage of the new series, including photos and a list of the eight former Doctors rated.

Finally, a word from Russell T Davies himself in today's Sunday Telegraph. "I remember shop-window dummies coming to life. I remember maggots. I remember devils coming out of the sea, an evil plant bigger than a house and a Frankenstein's monster with a goldfish bowl for a head. And if you're somewhere over 35, you might remember the same things. That's Doctor Who, the show that burned its way into children's heads and stayed there for ever, as beautiful and vivid as a folk tale. Now the good and constant Doctor is coming back, and I'm one of those in charge of it. This week, I'm trapped in the tornado of the BBC publicity machine as the launch, on Easter Saturday, approaches. I'll do anything to sell this lovely show." Davies tells the reader what he thinks is so special: "I think the gaps in production made the viewing experience interactive long before digital television was invented. The gaps in the finished product allowed your mind inside, whereas Star Trek, so glossy and perfect and shining, seemed closed: it made you watch, not participate. With Doctor Who, we watched what was, and imagined what could be. ... Meanwhile, back in the real world, the years passed and Doctor Who's reputation declined, and sometimes it felt as though I was the only one still watching. Those lovely gaps in the production became the only thing that we remembered." Davies obviously writes with a lot of passion for what the show means tto him: "As for me, I had one perfect opportunity to close the circle, to link my childhood fantasies with the modern image. The shop-window dummies are back, by virtue of the fact that they are, as The Simpsons' Comic Book Guy would say, the Best Idea Ever. And this time, they jerk to life. They step forward. They raise their hands; they chop down. And after 35 years of waiting, finally, the glass shatters. And the screaming starts

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Chuck Foster, Martyn Hunn, Paul Hayes, Paul Gordon, Kenneth Smith, Steve Chapman, Scott Wortley, Daniel Hirsch, Alan Darlington, Hugh J. Cregan)

Saturday's Parkinson (19 Mar, ITV1, 10.15pm GMT) had Billie Piper as its second guest (yes, a major commercial channel was happily plugging a show that'll be on its main terrestrial rival!), following celebrity chef Jamie Oliver and preceding Ewan McGregor. For the benefit of Outpost Gallifrey readers who don't know the one-hour chat show's format, each interviewee stays on from arriving, which allows for a bit of interchange with one another as well as having their "exclusive" slot. Piper's main segment lasted 12 minutes, with just under five minutes of that specifically about the new series of Doctor Who, the rest focusing on her pop career and relationship/failed marriage to Chris Evans. As ever, she came across as bubbly, sparky and thoughtful. A clip (presumably from Rose) was shown - which actually revealed more of Christopher Eccleston's talents than Piper's; it's the one (also shown on Friday's Newsnight Review) in which the Doctor replies to Rose's question "Who are you?" - before Piper appeared on the Parkinson set.

She began by saying that she never used to watch Doctor Who, adding: "It's like one of those songs you hear at wedding receptions - you donÆt know how you know the words but you do and you sing along." She described the character of Rose as "contemporary", saying: "She's gutsy, she's ballsy and she goes with her instinct. She hardly ever applies logic and she's just a great girl." Asked by Parkinson what Rose was like with aliens, she said: "She's actually quite good in confrontation, because she'd rather kind of talk her way out of it as opposed to pulling any kind of crazy kick-boxing stunts - she's not too hot on those." Talking about the relationship between Rose and the Doctor, Piper said: "When they first set eyes on one another they fall in love with each other . . . She lives this very ordinary life. She gets up, she goes to work, she comes home. There's nobody really in her life that's challenging her ideas or broadening her horizons and then suddenly this 900-year-old bloke rocks up in a blue box and he's like 'Come with us' and she's like 'Yeah!' and she takes off! She's quite ruthless. She just ditches life as she knows it and hops in the old TARDIS."

Parkinson used the age-difference angle to move the interview on to talking about Piper's relationship with Chris Evans, noting "it's not the first time you've run away with a man older than yourself", which Piper took in good humour. She referred to how tough the 11-day-fortnight shooting schedule in Cardiff, which lasted almost a year, had been, keeping her and Evans apart when previously they had basically been living in each other's pockets, but reasoned that the split would have happened eventually anyway as they both wanted different things. Parkinson commented that Russell T Davies had said the next step for Piper would be Hollywood, and Piper, to her credit, gave a level-headed response of "Who knows what could happen?" She said she had no plans for the future right now and was just happy being in the moment. Describing herself as "a hopeless romantic", she said she hoped she would get married again sometime in the future, and that it might be in two months' time, maybe in five years. (Form an orderly queue, guys . . . ) (Thanks to John Bowman)

A new edit has been made to the 'Trip of a Lifetime' trailer, which was shown during late night BBC1 programming on Friday night. They have removed all but the specially recorded Doctor scenes in the Console room and him running from the fireball and have inserted his opening sentence, "Do you want to come with me?" at the very end. It's around 10-15 seconds long. The show was also trailed in a DVE squeezed box during the end credits of the first film's showing on BBC2 this afternoon, though this was just a couple of clips from the beginning of Rose with a voice over from the continuity announcer spoken over the top, who went on to announce the evening's DW night and then following the credits trailed the first part of Project: Who over a Radio 2 slide.

The BBC has moved the Tommy Boyd hour on March 26 to an earlier time slot, 9:00pm, in anticipation of their coverage of the new Doctor Who series debut earlier in the evening.

There's an article about the new series in the Times Educational Supplement this week (published March 18); you can have a look at the cover at their website website, and follow the link bottom left that says "TES Teacher" although the article apparently cannot be read on the site.

BBC Radio 7 will play their radio comedy show, Dead Ringers, at 8:30AM, 10PM and 3AM on Friday 25th March: "The team with queries for You and Yours and who is the next Dr Who. From October 2003". This is a best-of repeat broadcast from October 2003. Dead Ringers is the show that spawned Jon Culshaw and his well-known impersonation of Tom Baker's Doctor.

Today Radio 2 comedy programme "The Day the Music Died" included a "Vision On" Gallery sequence with descriptions of pictures of new Doctor Who aliens supposedly sent in by musicians. It's about 18 and a half minutes in, but the programme as a whole is well worth a listen here.

The Saturday 19 March edition of the Daily Telegraph carries two Doctor Who articles, one an A to Z of the show by Matthew Sweet (who presented the Culture Show piece on Thursday evening), the second an interview with Mark Gatiss. The A to Z includes a few choice morsels - Q is for Quillam (from Vengeance on Varos), F is for Fanboys ("approach with caution") and O is for Outing Doctor Who fans. Read the A to Z here and the Gatiss interview here.

Today's The Express wonders "Why Billie has Fallen For A Dalek." "You'd never guess it in a million light years. But new Doctor Who star Billie Piper has admitted to a growing attachment with a Dalek. Talking about her role in the BBC1 revival of the classic series, she revealed: 'I had this quite emotional scene with a Dalek. "I'm sat there the night before the take thinking, how am I going to tap into my emotions? This is a hunk of junk! And then, I think because it is so beautifully written with human emotion, I am stood there and I am actually feeling for this thing.'" It also mentions her appearance on tonight's Parkinson.

An article in today's Telegraph, primarily about Quatermass, mentions Doctor Who serveral times. "The low-budget but endlessly inventive Doctor Who owes its existence to an even more pioneering television creation, Quatermass. ... That charisma and anti-Establishment mind-set were transferred in 1963 to Doctor Who, his spiritual successor. Though pitched at children, this series bore many of the same characteristics, infusing sci-fi with a gothic aspect. Both these shows were often less Isaac Asimov and more Mary Shelley. In Quatermass, the fate of Victor Caroon - Quatermass's astronaut, brought back to Earth with an alien infection, who soon becomes a haunted wasteland-dwelling fugitive - has very strong echoes of Frankenstein. At the climax of Quatermass and the Pit, a vast flickering image of a horned demon hovers in the night sky over London. In the second serial of Doctor Who, the doctor's companion, Barbara, is pursued through a weird, deserted alien citadel by something unseen by us but clearly so appalling that her scream echoes over the closing music. It is, of course, a Dalek. ... The notion that sci-fi could be low-key and unsettling ensured the doctor's longevity. But the rebellious spirit of Quatermass reached out further. In 1978, the crew of Blake's Seven took off into space, taking a stand against proto-fascist aliens across the galaxy, in what sounded like a spaceship with wooden floors. This was the golden age of the quarry location, when actors in spangled costumes ran around pretending to fire space weapons at each other just outside of Reigate. But the anti-Establishment theme prevailed. In those days, when you could get a convincing laser beam for neither love nor money, the only alternative was robust and gaudy scripting."

Today's Scotsman features a commentary called "Who says I'm a geek?" about a viewer who remembers back when he was 12 and still feels the excitement of the new series. "I am abuzz with anticipation, fizzing with excitement. All my adult worries and responsibilities have receded, replaced by an obsessive childish concentration on just one thing: next week, after nine years in televisual limbo, Dr Who is returning to our screens. Yes, it's true, Dr Who, my childhood hero, my two-hearted intergalactic friend, will be dematerialising in the corner of my living room in just a few days' time. ... "Of course, Doctor Who has never really been cool. The Who-niverse is the province of the geek, a socially shunned sub-culture which sees sweaty men in wash-shrunk jumpers weeping in quarries at the discovery of some discarded Cyberman hosing from 1974. Critics still harp tiresomely about wobbly sets (they were never that wobbly) and shoddy special effects (errrm ...), as if the show was some sort of slapdash pantomime rather than the incredibly imaginative and original slice of televisual manna which, at its best, it actually was. Doctor Who fans always get enormously defensive when discussing their beloved obsession, usually shooting themselves in the foot with arguments like, 'Pah! If it's rubbish TV sci-fi you're talking about, just look at Blake's 7!" which just make you look twice as insane. But I don't care. I'm not ashamed to admit my allegiance. It's geeky and silly and about as likely to impress women as a trip to an oil refinery, but I'm so irrefutably fond of the series, it would be an act of pitiful self-denial to claim otherwise."

Today's Times Online has an article called "Billie the kid" which biographies Billie Piper, including comments about her marriage and her other performances in preparation for the new series. She also makes note of some of her favorite moments from filming the new series.

(Thanks to Will Hadcroft, James Armstrong, "C Kent", Tom Boon, Steve Tribe, Faiz Rehman, Paul Engelberg, Dan Harris, Steve Chapman)

Following Thursday's (17 Mar) edition of The Culture Show on BBC2, the same channel gave even more intellectual credence to Doctor Who when Friday's (18 Mar) Newsnight Review (11pm GMT) devoted eight minutes to a discussion about the return of the programme. Host Mark Lawson was joined by best-selling novelist Ian Rankin, critic and writer Bonnie Greer plus Professor John Carey, the chief book reviewer for The Sunday Times, for a lively - and at times heated - analysis of the show. All three men were obviously fond of Doctor Who, whereas Greer, admitting she had "no idea what this is all about", came across as quite hostile towards it. It could even be argued that she was unwilling to suspend her disbelief and use her imagination. A lengthy clip from (I guess) Rose was shown, in which Billie Piper's character asks the Doctor "Who are you?" and he gives an evasive, yet spine-tinglingly revealing response. The reviewers, perhaps forgetting most of us haven't seen the show yet, gave spoilers galore, none of which shall be repeated here, but Rankin was very enthusiastic about the new-look show, saying: "It's got something for everyone. They've updated it very well." Greer, however, wailed: "The thing looks really cheap . . . The stories are all over the place. Who is this for? Is it for my generation? Is it for fortysomethings? Is it for babies? . . . They haven't made up their mind who they're talking to. That's the big problem for me." She added: "The acting is wonderful, the writing is wonderful, but it looks thin, it just looks cheap." Carey leapt to the show's defence, saying: "The cheapness is part of the point. It's very British. The fact that it's done on a shoestring is very important. It's self-mocking. It's not to be taken too seriously. In my opinion, the cheap things were the best things." Rankin was quick to point out, however, that "compared to the early Doctor Whos the effects are not cheap in this. It's a series that's been waiting for digital, the age, to come along. It's been waiting for CGT so they can actually do some of the effects that would have been impossible." He added that the teaser they had been shown for the second episode "looks absolutely fantastic - it looks like Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Very camp. Full of fantastic aliens. I think it will be a big hit." Greer, however, said it resembled a movie storyboard, and said there was nobody in it, nobody on the street. But Carey countered this by saying that the show failed when it went the other way - "The further they get away from trying to explain where all the mystery is, the better it is. The empty streets and the cheapness don't matter," he said. Lawson revealed that the show was a hit when put to a "sofa test" of children, saying that they reacted exactly as they were supposed to, were fascinated by who Doctor Who was, and wanted to see the rest of the episodes. One thing that Greer, Lawson and Rankin were in agreement on was that Eccleston was an excellent choice to play the Doctor, with Lawson saying that he had "a sense of danger", Greer commenting on his "incredible face" and Rankin saying that Eccleston was the best Doctor since Patrick Troughton, whom he referred to as the last "really good edge-of-craziness Doctor". Carey, however, said that he found Eccleston "too ordinary". A transcript of the Newsnight Review panel's opinions of new Who will be available here, although probably not for about a week. (Thanks to John Bowman)

BBC3 began showing trailers for Doctor Who Confidential, the new 13-week documentary program about the new series, this evening. The normal 30-second Doctor Who trailer was shown followed by a 10-second Confidential trailer, which starts with the TARDIS appearing in the centre of an "eye" and then a few brief clips played over the blue of the "iris", showing the Doctor running down a corridor in front of a group of troops, close-up of CE's head, Rose running and turning back, clapperboard (from a Joe Ahearne episode) pulling back out of shot revealing CE, and some spooky old woman from Gatiss' episode walking up to the camera. Screen captures are below. (Thanks to Richard Bignell)

The BBC Press Office has today posted details of program highlights for April 2-8, which includes a short piece on Episode 2 of the new series, "The End of the World." It's in spoiler tags below. The piece is illustrated with the portrait of Billie Piper used on the cover of the latest SFX, captioned: "Rose (Billie Piper) goes on her first journey through time."

BBC Kids in Canada is adding the Jon Pertwee Doctor Who episodes to their late night lineup starting April 16. "Spearhead From Space" airs late Saturday April 16, while the first 4 episodes of "Doctor Who and the Silurians" air late Sunday April 17. This is the first time that Pertwee episodes have aired on the digital Canadian cable network - previously they have aired the Tom Baker and Peter Davison stories. BBC Kids airs Doctor Who 7 days a week at 2AM Eastern (11PM Pacific). 2 episodes air weeknights, 4 episodes air Saturdays and Sundays. (Thanks to Benjamin Elliott and This Week in Doctor Who)

Destination Three, BBC3's "new topical entertainment program" filmed in Manchester, will be broadcasting a Doctor Who Special on Friday, March 25, from 11.30pm - 1.30am. The program will tape next Tuesday.

BBC Radio Derby this morning (story here) featured an interview with several members of the Derby Whoovers regarding the new series; they had with them a life size Dalek in the studio, which then headed off to nearby Pickford's House Museum where it will be on display over the next week and Easter weekend until Monday 28th March.

Russell T Davies' latest production, "Casanova," is making waves. BBC Radio 4 on their Saturday Review program on March 12 said they didn't like it, but noted that they'd be paying attention to Davies' other production, Doctor Who, on March 19. But Alison Graham, TV column editor of Radio Times, praised Casanova in the newest edition: "Life seems to be going swimmingly as we rejoin Casanova in the second part of Russell T Davies's funny sumptuous romp ... Davies's script is littered with jokes and cheeky asides ... The look of the whole thing is absolutely gorgeous, with beautiful colours and costumes and some heady, lovely ballroom sequences."

BBC Wales has been running trailers on BBC Wales TV networks over the past few weeks advertising its programmes. In the most recent, the trail has ended with two people standing outside and open-doored TARDIS, inviting the viewers in, while the TARDIS materialisation noise can be heard.

This morning's GMTV aired a preview of the new show. There was apparently nothing new during the interviews with Chris Eccleston or Billie Piper other than - after filmed interviews - the programme returned to the studio and presenter Jenni Falconer said that a second series would begin filming in June or July, though clearly this may just be conjecture.

Newsround's website says that "Newsround will have more behind-the-scenes features and exclusive interviews when the new series starts on 26 March". As our correspondent says, since the new series is being aimed at children, expect such stories to appear on Newsround's sister show 'Newsround Showbiz'. This usually airs on the CBBC channel Saturday and Sunday at 15:50. Newsround earlier had a report from the launch party, shown last week.

Christopher Eccleston is interviewed in next week's print edition of The Stage, the newspaper for performing arts professionals; the issue will be available from Wednesday in some parts of Central London, and from Thursday UK-wide, and you may also be able to read the interview on their website.

Today's Weekend Australian says that the "Time Lord's allure proves tough to exterminate," as it sums up the comments made across the newspapers over the past week. It quotes many newspapers as well as online websites that discussed the leak of the new series like Wired and Dark Horizons.

Yesterday's Daily Post in Liverpool discusses the Daleks. "Since my item last week about the return of Dr Who, several people have informed me that the new-look Daleks are much deadlier than their predecessors," writes columnist Valerie Hill. "They now fly around on jet-powered platforms. You can no longer outwit these ruthless, inter-galactic, metal tyrants by simply running up a flight of stairs. Yet will children's happy cries of 'exterminate, exterminate, exterminate' be replaced by 'Elevate, elevate, elevate'? It doesn't really have quite the same threat."

In Yesterday's "Broadcast" online edition: "Quick! Get behind the sofa! Why, is the TV licence detector van outside again? It's much scarier than that - the return of Doctor Who. Doctor Who? I thought he died out long ago. That's where you're wrong. Doctors are never killed off - they regenerate. A bit like Angus Deayton. And this time he's come back in the shape of Christopher Eccleston." It also mentions that, this time, the Doctor is "up against his most fearsome opponents yet. The Master? The Cybermen? Blokes in outsized green rubber outfits waving coathangers? Even worse than that, Ant and Dec!" referring to the time slot competition on ITV, Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway. So who's going to win? "It won't be easy for the Doctor - younger viewers won't have heard of him, and those that have might recall his not entirely successful eighth [sic] incarnation, Sylvester McCoy." But he's got a secret weapon, says the article: Billie Piper.

Today's Daily Telegraph from Australia warns viewers that Daleks can now climb stairs! "It's the eyes. There's only one thing scarier than evil eyes -- and that's no eyes. That made Daleks the scariest of the Doctor Who villains by far. It meant there was no way of engaging with them. No way of seeing a glimpse of humanity. ... Of course like everybody else I had worked out a plan for what I would do if any daleks tried to kill me -- I'd run upstairs. But that won't work any longer. In the new series, apparently, Daleks can fly. So that's my last hope, gone." In a separate column in the same paper, a columnist notes that "Doctor Who has become Dr When -- with a dash of Dr Where and Why," noting there is still no announcement of a broadaster there. "The ABC, which has screened BBC shows since January 1965, is yet to buy the new series despite being offered the rights last year. At that stage they hadn't shown it to us and I wanted to see an episode before we bought it," says ABC's head of programming Marena Manzoufas. Says the article: "The delay in a decision -- though an agreement gives the ABC first right of refusal to BBC output -- led to industry speculation that a commercial network would move in for the new 13-part series. It is believed Channel 9 was keen on the show. 'We will be going into negotiations very shortly,' she said. 'Before we saw it a week-and-a-half ago we were concerned about whether it would work for a non-Who audience. But it's fabulous -- even if you're not a Doctor Who fan, you can come to it cold and be engrossed in it. If you are a Doctor Who fan there are all sorts of references to the past to enjoy." The article also mentions a few SPOILERS about the aliens the Doctor meets in the first several episodes (click on the spoiler tag.)

(Thanks to Steve Tribe, Paul Engelberg, Andy Thompson, Dean Braithwaite, Scott Wortley, John Leivers, Scott Matthewman, David Rafer)

Russell T Davies and Mark Gatiss were interviewed on this evening's The Culture Show on BBC2 by fan/commentator Matthew Sweet, who attended the Cardiff premiere of the new series, and was even pursued by a makeshift Auton. Check out the thumbnails of the clip below.

UPDATED 18 Mar 1920 GMT: Now available as well is a summary of the broadcast, courtesy John Bowman; click on the spoiler tag below for details (there aren't spoilers per se but just to be on the safe side...)

Another transcript, this time of the "Rose" trailer that has been aired on CBBC. This 20 second trailer aired on 15th March before Newsround, and on the 16th March after Grange Hill. Click on the SPOILER tag to read it. Also below are screen captures from the trailer. (Thanks to Pete Gurr, Matt Evenden)

A lot of developments today on both the broadcasting and press coverage fronts, so I've combined everything into one column:

The BBC's Radio Times listings magazine website has been updated with details for Saturday 26th. It's now got some Doctor Who details up, but also details of another programme that may pull viewers over to BBC1. Doctor Who is to follow the new series 'Strictly Dance Fever'; it's the first major BBC vehicle for popular entertainer (and expensive BBC signing) Graham Norton, and the context is that last year's new big BBC hit was 'Strictly Come Dancing', to which this is the follow-up. Like Doctor Who, it's being very heavily trailed, i.e. is designed to be a big ratings-puller too; in its tone, it's a similar sort of programme to 'The Generation Game', which used to follow Doctor Who as part of the BBC's 1970s 'unbeatable' Saturday line-up.

Also, according to Radio Times, the new Doctor Who series will be repeated every Sunday (the day after the Saturday broadcast) on BBC3 at 7.00pm.

GMTV will be carrying a report from the recent Cardiff launch, featuring interviews with Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper, on their Entertainment Today strand on Friday 18th March 2005 at 8.35-9.30am. This was mentioned by GMTV last week after a similar feature.

Today's issue of The Stage features an interview with actress Penelope Wilton (who will be in the two-part "Aliens of London" story.) "In the revival she plays an MP called Harriet Jones," the article says, "but won't be drawn into giving too much else away. 'I really have been sworn to secrecy on that project,' she says, 'and the director would kill me if I gave away any of the plotlines. But let's just say that I will be using that famous black door at No 10 Downing Street. I've just finished some post-production work and I can tell you that the special effects are just brilliant.' It also says that she has a 'reoccuring role'."

Design Week, a UK design industry magazine covering all forms of 2D and 3D work, has a feature on the new series on the back page under their 'The Week Ahead' strand. Titled 'The Doctor goes space age', reporter Yolanda Zappaterra focuses on the 'look' of the series and features production designer Edward Thomas talking about the various design challenges on the new series, including the use of colour and shape. He also comments on the redesign of the TARDIS interior and the Daleks and also highlights his keeness to use digital effects to bolster, rather than dominate, the overall look of the series. Finally, The Mill effects house is also mentioned at the end of the article where Thomas comments: 'From an art and design point of view, I think we achieved a huge amount...and lots of scary animatronic monsters too!' The article is illustrated with the new logo, a still of the Moxx of Balhoon, a BBC publicity shot of Billie and Chris used on the billboards and a shot of the exterior of the TARDIS. However, only subscribers can access the website.

Today's The Journal calls Doctor Who its "Programme of the Week". "We need to cover this one because very shortly it will no longer be TV nostalgia but TV current affairs," it says. "It's no wonder the show was so popular. It was the science fiction equivalent of a soap opera, airing every week for 42 weeks in its first season and hovering around that number until season seven in 1970 when it dropped to 25 or more usually 26. ... The BBC, in a moment of madness, gave the show up for dead in 1989. After 16 years of hard campaigning from true fans, it"s about to get a new lease of life. Things may have moved on, but you can bet the Daleks will be there. But will they be able to go upstairs?"

The BBC Bradford and West Yorkshire site has posted a nice Doctor Who mini-site in celebration of the launch of the new series by returning to its past; check it out!

In Today's Metro, in "The Green Room" section: "Graham Norton hankered after a role in the new Doctor Who series. 'I did train as an actor so why don't you want me?' he flounced."

An article at Scarborough Today notes that a Sixth Form College student "will be comparing Dalek notes when the old TV favourite Dr Who returns to our screens next weekend." The Dalek she built was on show at the recent Doctor Who Experience at The Green Man Hotel in Malton.

The April 2005 edition of Starburst, on sale now, includes a five-page interview with Mark Cossey, the executive producer of Doctor Who Confidential. There's also a feature on the new Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy movie, a review of the DVD of The Mind Robber and the announcement of an imminent Starburst "Time Travel Special", with Hartnell and Eccleston on the cover.

The Daily Telegraph today features an interview with Mark Gatiss on his contribution to the new series, his views on Gothic Who and his forthcoming role in BBC3's Quatermass on Saturday 19th March (in the Art and Books supplement). There's also an A-Z of Doctor Who and feature on the links between Quatermass and Doctor Who.

"Doctor Who - In; American Sci-Fi - Out" will be the subject of a report on the Tommy Boyd show on BBC Southern Counties Radio on Saturday, March 26 from 10pm GMT. "In the wake of the predictable death of Star Trek, and the decline of original and compelling American science fiction, Mr Boyd will be celebrating the resurrection of mainstream British sci-fi series Doctor Who," says the report. "Mr. Boyd will argue that now American science fiction is as good as buried, the British have perfected the formula, and will definitely take over the mantel with the new Doctor Who show." You can listen live on the internet via BBC website here.

Today's Newsquest Digital Media feed says that "Little Hulton born actor Christopher Eccleston was always going to be a good Dr Who. The Time Lord's latest reincarnation has former pop songstress Billie Piper as his pretty companion, Rose. And, as a preview of the first episode apparently reveals, has managed to maintain that fun blend of imagination-stretching science fiction perfectly. There are even some genuinely scary villainous types - no mean feat in today's climate of computer-generated horror. Eccleston's acting consistently impresses, but he has one other vital attribute to play the good Doctor: wild eyes and a slightly dangerous air."

Today's Carmarthen Journal discusses a local TARDIS prop in Wales. "Fans of Dr Who are flocking to Carmarthen to have their picture taken with the time lord's Tardis. The world-famous time machine has found its way into the garden of a home in Idole. Some motorists driving through Upland Arms have been so struck by the site of the Tardis they have stopped by Stephen Edwards' home to have their picture taken with it. Mr Edwards, aged 47, has already had more than a dozen visitors, from as far afield as America. ... It is one of only two time machines in Wales; the other is believed to be based in Welshpool. He said: 'I found the Tardis on the internet. There is a site that can make them for you. ... There is a big fan base in America. It takes their breath away. Quite a few people have asked to take photos of it.' The security guard said he decided to buy the Tardis because of his interest in street furniture. 'Our neighbour down the road at the petrol station could not believe his eyes. He thought Dr Who had landed here.'"

The new series is featured on the 'welcome' page of AOL (in the UK), which features the billboard shot of the Doctor and Rose, and the caption "Doctor Who. Time Lord Returns: Meet the baddies!". Clicking on the link takes you to a short photo gallery - the 'blue' publicity photo of the Doctor and Rose released some time ago, the second is a great close-up shot of enemies in action during 'Rose', and the other four are the familiar publicity photos of creatures from the second episode, 'The End of The World'. The article seems to be aimed very much at the young audience.

The Express today notes that several MP's have already had a sneak preview of the new series. "Some were granted a private screening of the new show, starring Christopher Eccleston, in Westminster this week. 'It's another good example of the perks on offer,' says one parliamentary colleague. 'The Doctor has quite a few fans here.' Well, at least he knows he'll get a warm welcome if he ever chooses to park his Tardis on the House of Commons terrace."

(Thanks to John Ryan, Mark Campbell, Stuart Flanagan, Frank Collins, Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Alex Wilcock, Chuck Foster, Matthew Carr, and Roger and Jason at the Tommy Boyd Shrine site)

Some new updates on broadcasting over the next two weeks (see the Calendar section at right for more details):

Several Outpost Gallifrey correspondents were present for the taping of the Mastermind Doctor Who special that airs this Saturday as part of the "Doctor Who Night" on BBC2. While we won't tell you who won, the prize, a glass trophy, was presented by Christopher Eccleston himself. Eccleston commented that he has taken the role very seriously, that there will be plenty of humour, but not the nostalgia/self referential type of thing that sends the show up. "Mastermind" airs at 8.40pm on BBC2 on Saturday, March 19, as part of the "Doctor Who Night" hosted by Jon Culshaw, which includes "The Story of Doctor Who" at 7.30pm and a new documentary, "Some Things You Need to Know about Dr Who" at 8.30pm.

UK Gold are showing "The Story Of Doctor Who" all day on Saturday the 26th finishing at 7pm. This will feature 5 original series stories -- "The Time Meddler," "The Daemons," "Pyramids of Mars," "Attack of the Cybermen" and "Dragonfire" -- as well as interstitials featuring interviews with cast members. In essence these will be a re-edit of those produced for the Doctor Who@40 weekend shown in 2003, however, some new footage has been added to reflect the changes since the anniversary, according to a source at UKTV.

BBC Radio Wales will be airing "Back in Time", a documentary series which according to Radio Times is as follows: "Julian Carey looks at the links between the Time Lord and Wales, including giant maggots in Brynmawr and Dalek road signs in Llangollen." The first broadcast is scheduled for thirty minutes, although the duration of the repeat is listed as only 27 minutes, which is likely to be more accurate. Parts two and three will presumably air in the same slots on 2/3 April and 9/10 April.

Wired Magazine wonders if the first episode of the new series was leaked intentionally. (It wasn't, but that sort of ruins the point of Wired's article, doesn't it?) "The pilot episode of the BBC's highly anticipated new Doctor Who series may have been intentionally leaked onto file-sharing networks to generate buzz, a source who instructed the network on viral advertising told Wired News. ... In any case, buzz about the Doctor Who episode has certainly paid off, whether the BBC takes credit for it or not. Word about it has reached countless sites, and, more importantly, the episode seems largely well-received." Of course, Wired has its, er, wires crossed. (It was not leaked intentionally, and we know that from the production office.)

While it's not new series specific, there's a BBC interview with Terry Molloy up on the BBC website in which he is very complimentary about the new series, and features a small gallery of images of him as Davros. He also explodes the myth surrounding that famous photo of him with a cup in his hand!

Nicholas Pegg, whose previous works includes writing "The Spectre of Lanyon Moor" and directing that, "Storm Warning," "The Holy Terror," "Bang Bang a Boom" and the webcast version of "Shada" for Big Finish (in addition to several audio roles with the company), was interviewed yesterday in the Nottingham Evening Post, as he "has been picked to play a Dalek in the remake of TV classic Doctor Who." Pegg notes that "It can get hot in the studio but the staff are great and help take your top off so you can have a drink of water," and that moving the Dalek is like "pushing a very heavy shopping trolly." "I've been working with Christopher Eccleston and Billie quite closely for the last month," he says. "They are both very nice people. Chris is very unpretentious and friendly. We share a lot of similar tastes in pop music - at one stage we were discussing the Boomtown Rats. Billie is a very, very nice person and a smashing actress and I think she's going to make a huge impression as the Doctor's assistant." It notes that he will be in episodes 12 and 13.

Yesterday's South Wales Echo discusses "special effects shock in store for fans," as "Scary new monsters and Cardiff's Howells department store exploding [are] just some of the treats due for fans of Dr Who in the much-anticipated new series." The article then discusses the "Doctor Who Confidential" series narrated by Simon Pegg and their special, "A New Dimension" airing on March 26.

The Bath Chronicle on March 15 says that "Dr who's return could be big business for firm" as it discusses BBC Audiobooks, including noting the William Russell reading of the novelisation of "The Daleks" and how it could lead to new successes in Doctor Who audio for the group. "We have got a number of soundtrack Dr Who releases, but this is the first time we have released a complete and unabridged reading of one of the novels," says Michael Stevens of BBC Audiobooks. "This is the first and most-loved book and its causing some excitement. Fans are getting really excited about the fact we have got William Russell, who played one of the original characters, reading it. He has done some work for us before and was happy to come in." Stevens said the company intended to release a further two readings of classic Dr Who stories in time for Christmas (as we reported on the main news page, with the tin of the three coming out in November.)

The BBC series 20th Century Roadshow did a Doctor Who special on March 15 down at Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station in Cornwall; photos covering the day's recording are now on the Doctor Who Appreciation Society's website

The latest issue of 'The List' (a Scottish culture magazine) has a three page feature on the new series. The reporter was at the Cardiff launch and interviewed Russell T Davies, Chris and Lorraine Heggessey and got quotes from members of the Edinburgh DW group.

Yesterday's The Sun featured an article about "Why Wales is so hip it hurts," which mentions one of the major reasons why: "The most anticipated TV series this year will be the new Dr Who - filmed entirely in Wales."

This is Gloucester discusses the return of the new series, including this gem of wisdom: "Doctor Who had humour, imagination, flair and even a certain style, despite the wobbly sets and tinfoil monsters. What it did not have was graphic sex or bad language. Even the violence was fairly innocuous. I hope the Doctor's latest incarnation adheres to those principles. I know children are more worldly-wise these days, but there are certain standards which must be observed. I would also beware of political correctness. Kids hate being preached at, and will switch off if they think that's happening. 'Diddly-bom BOM' will then go the way of the dodo."

(Thanks to Chuck Foster, Ben Morris, Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Wil Cantrell, Graham Kibble-White, Will Hadcroft, Assad Khaishgi, Martin Barber, Daniel Hughes, Stuart Ian Burns, John Bowman, Rod Mammitzch, Andrew Harvey, Anthony Pratt)

For our readers who haven't seen it (since we obviously can't upload it and it hasn't been put onto the official site yet), here's a complete transcript courtesy Outpost Gallifrey reader Glenn Harrison of the actual new series trailer that hit BBC Television yesterday. Click on the spoiler tags to read it (so it doesn't fill up the entire news page column!) (Thanks to Glenn Harrison)

Dreamwatch UK #128 is due out March 24. Says the press info, "Inside we have 14 pages of Doctor Who coverage, including a news report on the Cardiff launch, spoiler-laden previews from the first five episodes (including dialogue!), interviews with Ed Thomas, Noel Clarke and Simon Callow, how The Mill took down Big Ben and some great photos! There's also interviews with Martin Freeman from the Hitchhiker's Guide movie, Mary McDonnell from Battlestar Galactica, Rachel Luttrell from Stargate: Atlantis and Blake's 7's Paul Darrow! There's also features on Fantastic 4, Smallville, the live Quatermass on BBC4, Ring 2 and a whole lot more..." The cover is at right. (Thanks to Brian Robb)

A press release today from the BBC Press Office gives a little more detail of upcoming releases to tie in with the new series. As well as a few extended blurbs, the press release clarifies what is planned for the first batch of publications from Penguin/BBC Children's Books in July: the Funfax title, the Sticker Book and the Activity Book (with pull-out board game) - although we must note that, per our earlier news story, the people at Penguin Books have not confirmed their plans and indeed, everything should be considered tentative. The press release from the BBC, edited to remove items that we've already reported, is as follows.

The long-continuing Soldiers of Love audio series from MJTV, which began in the early 1990'sk from producer Mark Thompson, is about to publish its 14th and final installment. "Blood Ties" will bring the series to a close, with appearances by Nicholas Courtney and "Blake's 7" stars Gareth Thomas and Jacqueline Pearce. More information is available at their website. (Thanks to Mark J Thompson)

The official Doctor Who website has announced that City of Death "is likely be released in November 2005" and that for one of the DVD's special features, "Tom Baker has provisionally agreed to shoot an exclusive interview on location in Paris as part of the disc's main documentary feature." Outpost Gallifrey has learned, however, that Tom's agreement is provisional, according to our sources, and that it's subject to availability and the usual production logistics, which are much more complicated when shooting abroad; if it does happen, it will be the first authored documentary in the DVD series, to be produced by Ed Stradling. Also, our sources say that the November date isn't fixed and it could move earlier or later in the year.

Televisual magazine this week has a feature on the new series along with photographs. In the article, writer Steven Moffat says, "I don't think the fact that we're in a post Star Wars era is an issue, but matching Buffy is. Doctor Who was never a space drama anyway, it was about horror: dark shadows and creepy monsters lurking just around the corner." Russell T Davies says his blueprint is Buffy and today's audience needs emotional content. He also mentions the planet Zog example as seen elsewhere. The article suggests the budget per episode is ú600K (UK Pounds) "He (Ecclestone) is not like Tom Baker, but what the have in common is that they can go around being as funny and daft and gormless as they like, but you still take them seriously because they're fundamentally both scary, impressive men," says Davies. Edward Thomas, designer of the new TARDIS interior says that he and Russell thought the original console room from 63 was the most impressive so kept it in mind but "went back to nature" with the design. Will Cohen of The Mill claims this is the largest number of effects shots ever for a UK TV drama. The Geith ("The Unquiet Dead") is described as a trail of ectoplasm while Cassandra ("The End of the World") is "a piece of stretched skin supported by two poles that needs constant moisturising in order to survive" and is translucent. In fact, the End Of The World has one fifth of all the fx shots in the series! Also noted, the Slitheen ("Aliens of London") are prosthetics for close ups, and computer generated images for wide shots. Finally, it notes that sales to the US may have been hampered by the decision not to shoot in high definition, though the special effects burden has been considerably reduced as a result.

Ever noticed how the new series logo looks rather like a taxicab sign? The Guardian on March 16 thinks so. "Far be it from us to cast aspersions on the hype-tastic new Doctor Who, powered by a thousand tabloid Billie Piper stories and the slavering of sci-fi fans everywhere, but isn't there something a little familiar - a little earthbound - about its logo?" the Guardian asks. Are they "the only one to notice the uncanny similarity between the new Who signage and the little orange lights that twinkle on taxis? What can it mean? That taxi drivers are like Time Lords in that they both take ages to get anywhere? That their average age is 900 years old? That they won't go south of the river? Or has the new logo been inspired by some BBC execs' favourite mode of transport? There are, as the good Doctor might say himself, no such things as coincidences."

The Guardian also confirms Billie Piper will be taking to Shakespeare, as we previously reported. "Billie Piper, who also appeared in one of the Canterbury Tales adaptations and later this month will star as Doctor Who's sidekick, Rose, said last week that she had landed the role of Hero in A Midsummer Night's Dream. The play, adapted by the screenwriter Peter Bowker, will be set in a holiday park," says media correspondent Owen Gibson.

According to a Northern Ireland TV website, "a day-long event celebrating the classic science fiction series, Doctor Who, which is returning to British TV screens over the Easter period, will be held at Queen's University this weekend. Organised by the University's Science Fiction and Fantasy Society, the event comes just one week before the meddlesome Time Lord makes a come back, this time in the guise of Christopher Eccleston." The event, in aid of the Northern Ireland Chest, Heart and Stroke Association, will begin at 11am in room G06, Peter Froggatt Centre and admission is free.

We've gotten word of a new 20 second teaser, in addition to the major trailers shown today; the teaser aired this afternoon at approximately 5.25pm immediately preceeding children's show "Newsround" as part of the "Children's BBC" strand of programming. The trailer is set in the TARDIS (which is in flight) with a silent Doctor standing next to Rose throughout. Rose addresses the viewer direct: "I've got a choice: Stay at home with my Mum...my boyfriend...my job... Or chuck it all in for danger...and monsters...and life or death. What do you think?"

Lorraine Heggessey, BBC1 controller, "signed off her valedictory season launch today - defiantly summing up her reign by saying, 'I did it my way,'" says the Guardian's Tara Conlan. "Revealing she will leave the channel by the first week in May, Ms Heggessey said she will take a few weeks' holiday to 'have a rest, read books and go to the gym' before joining Talkback Thames as its chief executive." The article doesn't mention Doctor Who, but it does bode well for the woman who announced a new Doctor Who series to the world.

(Thanks to Stuart Ian Burns, Jamie Austin, Paul Shields, Faiz Rehman, Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Michael Blumenthal)

Mad Norwegian Press has announced that Kelly Hale (author of the Eighth Doctor novel "Grimm Reality") will write the fifth Faction Paradox novel, entitled "Erasing Sherlock." The book is a Sherlock Holmes-style story, but narrated by a female time traveller, and set in the universe of Lawrence Miles' Faction Paradox creations. Additionally, Mad Norwegian has announced that About Time 5 by Lawrence Miles and Tat Wood (their ongoing Doctor Who reference series) and the next Faction Paradox novel, Faction Paradox: Warring States by Mags L. Halliday, have been delayed until May, chiefly due to a boosted word count for About Time 5 and the company's recent relocation to Iowa. (Thanks to Lars Pearson)

The following information was part of the BBC Books "New Books and Backlist" catalogue available at the London Book Fair this week, and discusses the BBC "classic" Doctor Who novels due for the second half of the year. Note that this is just preliminary information and obviously may be subject to change. (Thanks to Steve Tribe)

The BBC showed an actual trailer (instead of a mere teaser) this evening. As our correspondents note, "The Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) directly addresses the viewer standing inside the TARDIS doors - they're closed, so you basically see the white doors behind his back. Shots in the clip include a chained-up Dalek and a CG spacecraft flying over London and damaging Big Ben. Intercut with this are shots of Eccleston running down the tunnel, with fire behind him. There's a shot of him near the console from the earlier short trailers, and some very nice closeups of the console. The trailer ended with the BBC's current generic programme details cards - basically, solid red moving up from the bottom of the screen to the 3/4 mark, the show's title in white lettering directly below this point, and then red moving down from the top to the same mark, with the time directly above (in this case, "Coming Soon")." Click on the screen grabs below for larger versions.

Update: Apparently there are several versions of this trailer; in addition to the main showing during "Eastenders" today, it's also been shown after "Holby City" and immediately before "Mastermind" on BBC2. There are apparently both a 30 second and a 50 second version. The 30 second trailer is made up from shortened segments from the 50 second trailer, however the shot of the space ship over London is totally different between the two trailers. In the 50 second version it's flying over St Paul's Cathedral and it's over the Tower Bridge in the 30 second version. (Thanks to Glenn Harrison, Jeff Album, Robert Franks, John Molyneux, Steve Chapman)

Today's edition of Radio Times (19-25 March) has several items on the new series, including the second of three consecutive cover mentions. This week's cover features the Chris/Billie billboard poster photo as an inset and announces, "Doctor Who - The countdown to the new series has begun!" Inside the magazine, BBC2's Doctor Who Night is one of the recommended television highlights for this Saturday (page 4), illustrated with a shot of Davison in the TARDIS, and Eccleston's appearance on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross is one of Friday's picks, again with a photo, while Project: Who? also features in the week's radio choices (page 5). The second of the series of "Doctor Who Watch" articles (page 19) has a montage of all nine Doctors accompanying a quick run-down of each Doctor's first words in the series and comments given by the leading actors to Radio Times as they started out in the role; according to the same article, the 16-page supplement covering "the characters, monsters and special effects of the new series" will appear in next week's Radio Times.

Television listings: The 19 March showing of Dr Who and the Daleks is confirmed (review p.57, listing p.71) from 3.50 to 5.10pm (i.e. 80 not 70 minutes as previously listed), while an outing for Daleks - Invasion Earth 2150AD on Channel 4 is confirmed for Friday 25 March at 12.40-2.15pm (review p.64, listing p.119). Doctor Who Night is also highlighted with a short piece in Saturday's choices (page 70) and the regular listing is illustrated with a shot of Tom Baker (page 72). [Of peripheral interest: while ITV1 is now halfway through the Ant and Dec series that will be Who's main competition, Five has scheduled Charmed Season 4 repeats followed by Buffy Season 1 repeats in its early evening Saturday slots. Meanwhile, UKGold's weekend morning omnibus editions are confirmed as The Pirate Planet and City of Death.] Blue Peter's Monday 21 edition has guest appearances by Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper confirmed at 4.55pm. The "On This Day" piece for Tuesday 22 March recalls Colin Baker's first story in 1984, noting that, until Paul McGann, his tenure was the shortest in the show's history, and Jonathan Ross's interview with Eccleston is listed on page 120.

Radio listings: page 129 features "Pick of the Week" Project: Who?, with a three-quarter-page article on why we love Who and one of the Chris/Billie publicity pictures, and the lengthy programme listing for 22 March on page 136 also promotes the CD release on 2 May, "which includes unbroadcast material", as well as the recent Daleks MP3 and a reader offer for the Cybermen tin.

Finally, on page 154, "Next week in RT... It's the return of Doctor Who! Don't miss our exclusive 16-page special and collector's cover... On sale Tuesday 22 March." Once again, there's a small Chris/Billie publicity shot. (Thanks to Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes)

SFX has a collection of five high-quality photos from the second episode, "The End of the World" including one that features the Doctor and Rose overlooking the Earth, a photo that hasn't been circulated widely. Note that there are SPOILERS in these photos so read at your own risk!

An article in today's Daily Telegraph says that "Dr Who is homeless in Australia" referring to the lack of a disclosed buyer for the series in that country. "The BBC hasn't as yet sold the new series of the oldtime cult favourite here yet. ... It has already been sold to Prime in New Zealand as well as to Canada. There has been a rumour that the Nine Network is interested in the series although in the past it has been shown on the ABC. So poor old Who can travel back to any time he wants, but travelling to
a timeslot on an Australian network seems to be a much trickier feat."

A discussion of politicians and Doctor Who in the Newcastle Chronicle and Journal today by Karen Bartlett discusses the series and its impact. "In fact, the new series of Doctor Who, due on our screens later this month, includes a sinister episode where all members of the cabinet are taken over by aliens. Does the Doctor triumph, or is it possible that the aliens leave of their own accord after encountering John Prescott and deciding to look for a more intelligent life form? Whatever the conclusion, it isn"t the first time that science fiction has affected our political consciousness." It also mentions "The Sun Makers" ("Too many economists in the government," the Doctor says) and the history of the show.

TV Quick's listings reports that BBC2's Doctor Who night is this saturday 19th March commencing with the Peter Cushing movie Doctor Who and the Daleks at 3.50pm. The magazine also carries a picture, on page 5, of Little Britian star, Matt Lucas exiting, or entering, the TARDIS.

The TV listings site mydigiguide.com has details of a day of Who repeats by UK digital and satellite channel UKTV Gold on the day of the new series launch. "Doctor Who Day - UKTV Gold, Saturday 26th March 2005, 08:00 - 19:00. A special day to celebrate the cult sci-fi time traveller in his various different guises beginning with the very first Doctor of all - William Hartnell. The day will include more episodes featuring some of the other actors that have portrayed the Doctor over the years. Interspersed between the stories will be some short pieces on various aspects of this hugely popular series." The listings are as follows: 8:00am, The Doctor Who Story; 8:10am, The Time Meddler; 10:20am, The Daemons; 1:05pm, Pyramids of Mars; 3:10pm, Attack of the Cybermen; 5:25pm, Dragonfire.

The 60-second News on BBC Three at 10pm on Sunday (just before Casanova) included a mention of Tom Baker's win in the SFX poll, complete with the clips sequence used in the various new series news reports last week. A good example of the 'any excuse to mention it' at the moment in press and broadcast media.

The latest issue of 'New' magazine (a tabloid celeb led mag) has a four page Doctor Who special covering (quite a lot really) an interview with Billie Piper and why she would never say that Doctor Who caused her divorce. An interview with Chris and an interview with Bruno Langley on his two part adventure and his possible return in series two (the first confirmation in the press of something Outpost Gallifrey has been reporting all along, that Langley is in two episodes, not just one!) There are some shots of the launch and a list of four of the Doctor's 'latest terrifying monsters'.

Billie Piper is currently on the cover of the UK 'lads magazine' ARENA. Meanwhile, according to a BBC report, Piper is also in talks to star in a new BBC adaptation of 'Much Ado About Nothing'. "It's part of a new season of updated Shakespeare plays, which include 'Macbeth' set in a restaurant," says the report.

Today's Guardian discusses the new series and how it will impact Britain. "Your reason for hiding behind the sofa is clear," says the article, which goes into a review of comments made in various papers such as the Telegarph, the Sun, the Daily Express, the Western Mail, and so forth. (Hmm... wonder who else might be doing that these days...)

To tie in with the presence of the Daleks in the new series, This is Bath makes note of the impending release of William Russell's reading of "Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure With the Daleks."

And finally... Doctor Who has, at last, made the front page of the BBC website! bbc.co.uk features a simple banner with Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper saying "Who's Back: 26 March 7pm, BBC One." Very cool.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes, Terry Doyle, Dan O'Malley, Graham Kibble-White, Mark Irwin, Paul Wright, Chuck Foster)

BBC Video has finally announced The Claws of Axos, which will be released about two weeks early, on April 25, 2005, in the UK, according to the listing at the BBC Shop which now features a press relaese and cover illustration, reprinted below. Click on the thumbnail for a larger version.

The Play.com website confirms the release of The Ice Warriors narrated by Frazer Hines from the BBC Radio Collection. "Frazer Hines narrates the remastered original soundtrack of this classic six-episode television adventure, starring Patrick Troughton as the Doctor. ... This CD also features an exclusive interview with Frazer Hines, who talks about his memories of making the 1967 BBC1 serial." Also announced at Play.com is the September 5 release of Doctor Who at the BBC: Volume 3: "This third edition of archive extracts follows the highly successful first two volumes. Once again all manner of programmes from the BBC radio and television archives yield Doctor Who-themed features, from drama and comedy to interviews and behind-the-scenes items. This time round radio interviews and features on the new series will be included." (Thanks to Gary Reed)

Amazon is currently listing two additional books that tie into Doctor Who. Out July 7 is "Dr Who Funfax," part of the "Funfax" series for kids, containing a diary, puzzles, stickers, bookmarks, factfiles and more. Previous Funfax titles include Shrek 2, The Incredibles and The Magic Roundabout. Also due out, on August 25, is "Pocket Essentials," presumably a new edition of the "Pocket Essentials" mini-reference guide, updated to take account of the new series. (Thanks to Daniel O'Malley at Timelash)

Some title updates courtesy the new SFX Special magazine release. According to the issue, the fifth episode is now called World War Three and the sixth episode may bear the single word title, Dalek. There is still no word on final titles for episodes 8 or 12.

More on forthcoming plans from BBC Books on their "New books and backlist" catalogue released at the London Book Fair. Besides the release of "The Legend Continues" by Justin Richards (see separate news item today), there will be three further Ninth Doctor and Rose hardback novels published in September 2005. According to the new BBC Books "New books and backlist" catalogue, "the contents [...] are a closely guarded secret [...] excitement, danger and excitement await". October sees the release of "The Legend Continues," updated to include the new series, while Gary Russell's August Past Doctor novel has been renamed Spiral Scratch and Terrance Dicks's October 2005 novel is confirmed as World Game. (Thanks to Steve Tribe)

Further to our story on March 10 regarding the upcoming issue of Digit Magazine, the magazine has issued several photos online from its story, "Exclusive: Doctor Who Effects Secrets Revealed," a six-page article in the April issue revealing "the digital special effects techniques behind the much-hyped Doctor Who series. It also features exclusive images from the series." "In a word, the new Doctor Who is amazing. The result has been the creation of over 1,000 effects shots for the 13 episodes - with episode two accounting for a staggering 200 effects shots in just 45 minutes," says Matthew Bath, editor in chief. Says series visual effects producer Will Cohen, "[The Oscar-winning] Gladiator had 100 effects shots which we did in six-months. We've had nine months to do 10 times that number. It's like nothing that has been seen before on British television." The magazine has printed several spoiler images, including a wireframe drawing of a CGI monster from "The End of the World," episode 2, as well as completed versions. You can pick up the latest issue of Digit in bookshops this week. (Thanks to Matthew Bath)

Play.com is listing Travels in Time and Space as the 2005 BBC Radio Collection tin, due on November 7, 2005. Included in the package, according to the site, is the already-announced "Doctor Who In An Exciting Adventure With the Daleks" novelization reading by William Russell, along with two others, "Doctor Who and the Zarbi" (aka The Web Planet) and "Doctor Who and the Crusaders" (aka The Crusade). No word as yet if this is a confirmed release. (Thanks to Justin Thomas)

Last Friday, BBC1 began showing a new Doctor Who series teaser trailer in which the TARDIS was shown dematerialising in some kind of underground pedestrian walkway slowly filling with a fire ball. It was first shown mid-day during afternoon programs, and then again before the news that evening prior to the Comic Relief telethon (before which they also showed one of the existing teasers of Billie in the control room.) The trailer has been added to the official site, on this page.

The official site has an online RealMedia interview with Christopher Eccleston, taken at last week's press launch of the new series.

This morning (14 March)'s Media Guardian has a report on bbc.co.uk's plans for the official Doctor Who site and its importance for the success of the new series. The relaunched site is described as "one of the BBC's most ambitious online projects to date [...] the series will depend on its official online companion to hook a new generation of viewers." As well as noting plans to include the various elements of online viewing already reported here and in DWM, the piece notes that "['Rose'] features a conspiracy theorist who has been following the Doctor's exploits through time [...] the lines between fantasy and reality are blurred further by making his site available to fans on the BBC website." The print version is illustrated with a photograph of the Moxx of Balhoon, and the story is available online here.

The Culture programme on BBC2 on March 17 at 7:00pm will be running a feature on the return of Doctor Who (advertised with the standard promo shot of Eccleston lounging against the TARDIS in this week's Radio Times). The program will be repeated at 11:20pm. Details available at the Culture website.

BBC7 has some audio teasers going out this week, a taster for the new series, though there will also be a full-length radio trailer with Christopher Eccleston himself next week. The current run of the teasers begin today, Monady March 14, and run through next Sunday, March 20; non-listeners may be able to catch them at the BBC7 website.

Today's Times ran a piece about Cardiff Millennium Stadium, including a few side mentions of its use in a future new Doctor Who series episode.

(Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, John Bowman, Andrew Harvey, Dave Tanner, John Leivers, Alistair Moore, Matthew Godley, Martin Montague)

BBC Books will be issuing The Legend Continues by Justin Richards in October 2005, a new and fully updated paperback version of his "Doctor Who: The Legend" hardcover released in 2003. "Fully revised and updated to include the new Doctor, Christopher Eccleston, this epic publication takes the reader on a journey through four decades of TV history, covering every one of the TV stories," says the information printed on BBC Books materials distributed this weekend at the London Book Fair. (Thanks to Graham Kibble-White, David Howe)

BBC Radio Wales will be broadcasting a three-part documentary on Doctor Who, and in particular it's connections with Wales, beginning on March 26. The documentary will feature interviews with Katy Manning (Jo), Philip Madoc ("The Brain of Morbius") and Richard Bignell ("Doctor Who on Location") and will discuss the success of the Daleks and much more. Here's the press information: "The program looks at the various Welsh connections with Dr. Who over the past 40 or so years, tying in with the new series which has been built almost entirely in Wales (Welsh writers, production team, directors and made by BBC Wales.)... We'll look at the story of Terry Nation, the Cardiff born writer who invented the Daleks and we'll also revisit all the old Welsh locations - the parts of Snowden that doubled for Tibet and was populated (briefly) with Yetis, the holiday camp that turned up in another series and the coal mine filled with giant maggots for the Green Death. Also we want to speak to the creative Welsh talents that played their part in making the series a success. As well as this we will be speaking to the key people in the new production (writer Russell T Davies and new Doctor, Christopher Eccleston for example) and going behind the scenes and visiting the set to give a tantalising glimpse of the new series. We talk to people about getting a sense of what it was like working on those series, particularly the Troughton years, the demands of the series, the esteem it was held in and the fun of making this ground breaking but bizarre sci-fi series. We have some fantastic anecdotes from other actors who have worked on Who and even some lost interview footage with Jon Pertwee! It will compare the new computer generated, effect-heavy show, with a million pound an episode budget to earlier productions, and to get a sense of how it was made back in the 70s. We will look at what made it special and what the new one has to do to capture the spirit and magic of the original. Also the hard work that goes into keeping the fantasy "real" to an audience." Fans will be able to listen to the Radio Wales documentary via the Radio Wales website. (Thanks to Richard Bignell)

Tom Baker has been named BritainÆs favorite Doctor, in a poll honoring the new series sponsored by SFX. The poll put Peter Davison in second place, followed by Jon Pertwee, Sylvester McCoy, Patrick Troughton, William Hartnell, Colin Baker and, in last place, Paul McGann. SFX editor Dave Golder said Christopher Eccleston, the time traveller in the new BBC1 series, would have a hard act to follow. "The ninth doctor will have to be pretty amazing to topple Tom Baker from his perch as the quintessential Dr Who. There arenÆt many children from the Seventies who canÆt clearly remember peering out from behind the sofa to see Dr Who with his hat, scarf, jelly babies and that wild curly hair." The story has been picked up in such periodicals as the Sun and the Guardian as of March 14.

Over the past few days, billboards for the new series have begun showing up all over Britain. Below are the two best images we have of both the standard-sized billboard as well as the extended "wide" billboard, both featuring the same illustration.

At the end of Friday night's "Newsnight Review" show on BBC Two, presenter Kirsty Wark said that on next week's show they'd be looking at "the new Doctor Who." "Newsnight Review" is the arts review show that occupies the second half of the "Newsnight" broadcast each Friday.

Various articles this week have been reviewing Russell T Davies' latest television odyssey, "Casanova," the production he filmed concurrent to "Doctor Who."

According to this weekend's Media Guardian, Jane Tranter, the BBC's Head of Drama and one of the major driving forces behind the return of the show, has decided not to apply for the job of Controller of BBC One, which she had been widely fancied for. In one way this is disappointing news as having her take the job might have reassured a lot of Who fans about the show's future longevity, but on the other hand it means we keep a supporter of the show as Head of Drama, which has to be a good thing.

Russell T Davies was in exuberant form on BBC1's Breakfast today (Fri 11 March), talking about his new production of Casanova as well as Doctor Who. During his eight-minute slot, which started at 9.11am (GMT), he said that when the chance to do Doctor Who came up "I had no choice but to work on it because I love it." And now that it was finished, he said: "I love it. I'm so proud of it." A slip of the tongue earlier in the show saw co-presenter Bill Turnbull refer to him as "Russell TV Davies" and much fun was made of that when Davies appeared. Quizzed by Turnbull as to what the "T" stood for, Davies joked "Tardis" but then said it didnÆt stand for anything, it was to distinguish him from another Russell Davies in the industry. Davies then said it could stand for "Tustle", while co-presenter Sian Williams cheekily suggested "Tawdry". Davies also talked briefly about how much he had learned while working as a storyliner on top ITV soap Coronation Street. He then told of his hope that there would be a second series of Doctor Who, and the interview finished with Turnbull saying he expected to see Davies at next year's BAFTA awards, to which Davies, joking as ever, self-deprecatingly replied: "Serving, probably!" An extended clip from episode one of the new series of Doctor Who was shown during the interview.

Monday morning's Independent features an article with comments from production designer Edward Thomas, writer Mark Gatiss and Christopher Eccleston. "Towards the end of the last series, I don't know if he was faring well. He had become something of a cartoon character," Thomas said about the original series. "No doubt that article about why we shouldn't bother to bring him back will be written, but great stories never have a set time. Like Tarzan or Sherlock Holmes, they can stand constant reinterpretation. It pisses me off when purists say: 'Why have Disney done The Little Mermaid and changed the ending?' Well, they've reinvented it so that many more millions of children than have ever read the original Oscar Wilde story can come to know and love The Little Mermaid. A good story is a good story. The very worst thing you can do is let it gather dust on the shelf." Says Gatiss, "Chris endows the role with this extraordinary energy. He plays the Doctor with this full-tilt brio that actually frightens me. He also possesses this great credibility. When Christopher Eccleston tells you a Dalek is lethal, you instantly believe it." Says Eccleston about the best parts of the role: "The Doctor is... completely non-judgemental. He accepts everything and everyone, whether they're black or blue, gay or straight. If he meets an alien, his first reaction is not revulsion, but joy. He celebrates life in all its forms, shades, colours and creeds. Without being didactic, that's a very strong message."

In addition to a, fairly anodyne, regular review, in it's weekly "Wednesday Whinge" spot, the Manchester Evening News made the following comment: "It's a shame that an episode of the new Dr Who series - the first since 1989 - has been leaked onto the internet in advance of its Easter screening, but surely there is some poetic justice in the sci-fi hero who travels through time and space arriving three weeks ahead of himself."

Today's icWales has an article called "Chris is just what the Doctor ordered" in which Russell T Davies "has hit back at critics who slammed new Time Lord Christopher Eccleston as Doctor Who." Davies notes that the Doctor "has [his] own identity. After all he has two hearts and is 900 years old. He does not need to wear a silly coat!"
With many scenes filmed in Cardiff, he defends his decision to pass the city off as London in various scenes. "We had to base it around London as we are selling the series to America and Australia," referring to current goals to sell to the two countries that have not been announced yet for any broadcast of the new series. "We had to set it somewhere which will be recognised by a global audience. However, Cardiff does feature as itself in two episodes and we filmed an earthquake in Cardiff Bay." He also notes that he hopes the BBC commissions a second series, and in the meanwhile he says of his popular drama "Queer as Folk": "There won't be another Channel 4 series although I would like to do another one in time to tell how the characters have moved on. However, we are looking at a musical."

An article in today's Sunday Mirror says that Christopher Eccleston has been linked to actress Siwan Morris. Eccleston "swept beautiful Siwan Morris off her feet at a party in Cardiff last year and they have enjoyed a string of romantic dates in the Welsh capital while he's been filming the new series of the cult TV show," says the article. "Siwan ... is an award-winning actress who is tipped to be a big star of the future. A pal said: 'She's the prettiest thing on Welsh television and an extremely talented actress - Chris is smitten.'" Morris played Griff Rhys Jones's daughter in the ITV1 comedy-drama "Mine All Mine" produced by Russell T Davies, and Liv Jones in the Welsh soap "Bryncoe."

A lengthy new series clip appeared on "Test the Nation," an entertainment quiz series on BBC1. The clip was from the first episode, the scene where the Doctor told Rose to "run for her life" after helping her escape. The clip was shown in response to the question "In which show connects these 3 characters..." with pictures of Billie Piper, Bonnie Langford, Peter Purves. A clip from a Hartnell story and "Trial of a Time Lord" were also shown.

Previews are airing for the new series in Canada -- on the big screen! A trailer produced by CBC has been shown in movie theatres during the forthcoming film previews, including the new Bruce Willis movie "Hostage" and other films.

The Independent talks about the new series' challenge sending kids behind the sofas. The article examines the series' history, some of its challenges, and also its potential future.

March 12's The Independent featured a brief question/answer with Russell T Davies in which he gave some off-the-cuff answers. "You wouldn't know it but I'm very good at ... Drawing. One of my very first jobs was as a cartoonist for BBC Wales." "When I was a child I wanted to be ... A teacher, because my mother and father, and then both my sisters, were teachers." "My favourite building ... Granada Television in Manchester. So solid and Sixties with a neon Granada sign beaming out over the city. Just what a TV station should be like." "All my money goes on ... My bank account. I'm a good saver. It's a funny old job, writing; you're only as good as your next idea." "My favourite work of art ... I've got an autographed print of Charlie Brown and the Kite-Eating Tree, signed by Charles M Schulz. One of the greatest artists ever." "The best invention ever is ... The word processor and all its descendants. Allows infinite rewriting, 'cos that's where the real work is done."

The Sunday Herald also discusses Doctor Who. "Having dropped hints with the BBC throughout his career, as his knack for writing superior popular television became ever more reliable û Queer As Folk, Bob And Rose, Mine All Mine û Davies has finally been given the keys to Doctor WhoÆs Tardis, the iconic inter-dimensional phone box that has gone unused for far too long," says the article. The lengthy piece features comments from Davies as well as DWM deputy editor Tom Spilsbury, and even quotes author Lawrence Miles and Nicholas Courtney (although for the latter, it appears that quotes he's made in the past have been used.)

Sunday's Observer ran an article called "Why aliens still beguile us" that notes that "Doctor Who is carrying a lot of hopes. The BBC is banking on the rejuvenated time lord's ability to vanquish all opponents (not least Ant and Dec on ITV) and revive family viewing. It seems unlikely that a post-Dalek generation would get excited by an army of croaking jelly moulds, but the doctor will, no doubt, be tackling more blood-curdling foes this time round. .. Of the three-quarters of Scots who told lottery researchers that they are believers, half say extraterrestrials will soon be in touch with us." The article then goes into a discussion of extra terrestrial intelligence.

Finally, according to an Outpost Gallifrey source, the new series DVD boxed set released in either October or November will be a boxed set in "TARDIS packaging."

(Thanks to the following for updates today: Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes, Derek Hall, Kenyon Wallace, Craig Hinton, Andrew Eaton, Darrell Paterson, John Walker, Nick Smale, Anthony Forth, David Rafer, John Bowman)

Latest Update: 12 March 0930 GMT (I've left today's items on the list temporarily...)

Chris Eccleston will be on GMTV on March 11 on the Lorraine Kelly section at approximately 8.35am. (Roy Barton, Doug Inman)

BBC Radio Leeds will be re-running a six minute report on "one Yorkshire fan's reaction to the new series hype, and details of his own Doctor Who influenced amateur films" which will run at 0210 GMT (or thereabouts) in the early hours of Friday 11 March. BBC Radio Leeds can be heard live online at bbc.co.uk/radioleeds.

BBC Breakfast News stated that Russell T Davies will be on the program being interviewed on Friday morning 11th March.

Doctor Who will once again be the subject on "Newsnight" on BBC2, March 17 at 11pm.

Chris and Billie will be on "Blue Peter" on March 21 from 4:55pm to 5:20pm on BBC1; the episode will probably be repeated the same evening at 18:00 on the CBBC channel. The Radio Times confirms the listing.

On the electronic Radio Times it states that Billie Piper will be a guest on Parkinson (ITV1, 10.10-11.15 on 19 March) where she will discuss her new role in Dr Who.

According to Radio Times, Saturday, March 19 will feature showings of "Doctor Who and the Daleks" (1965 film) at 3:50pm, "The Story of Doctor Who" (2003 documentary) at 7:30pm, Some Things You Need to Know about Dr Who" (a new documentary short) at 8:30pm, "Dr Who Mastermind" at 8:40pm, and "Parkinson" featuring an interview with Billie Piper at 10:15pm.

On the "On Show" program on BBC1 Wales on March 20, Sian Williams talks to Russell T Davies about his past work and his reinvention of Doctor Who. There's also a listing for BBC2W (the Welsh BBC digital service opt-out), of this "On Show" on Thursday 17th March 9-9:30pm with Russell Davies. (Not having this available to me, I can't get more detailed, sorry! -editor)

The Radio 2 Doctor Who site has just added an unconfirmed interview with Billie Piper on his show on Thursday 24 March. As usual, that's 2pm.

Christopher Eccleston will be on "Friday Night with Jonathan Ross" on 25 March, alongside Julian Clary and Sally Lindsay (Coronation Street actress).

According to the web page for the Doctor Who Confidential series on the official site, the producers of the BBC3 series are also producing a half hour special, Doctor Who - A New Dimension which will air on BBC 1 at 5.00pm on Saturday 26th March, before the first episode of the new series.

While the UK, Canada and New Zealand count down until their broadcasts of the new Doctor Who series, there's still no final confirmation from an Australian broadcaster but that is expected to be announced soon. Meanwhile, the BBC Prime satellite network, carried in Europe, Asia and Africa, has announced on its FAQ page that it will not be carrying the show, nor any reruns of classic episodes. And while there's no confirmation of this whatsoever, Outpost Gallifrey has been told by a source to be on the lookout for some sort of possible announcement about an American broadcaster in early April -- could there be hope on the horizon for the US? Stay tuned! (Thanks to John Wilkins for the BBC Prime info)

Today's edition of the trade periodical "The Bookseller" carries an advert for this year's annuals from Panini, which includes an illustration that may likely be the cover for the Doctor Who annual, buried under a few other items for sale. At right is a small version of a scan of the item; we'll post the actual cover itself when we get it. (Thanks to Steve Tribe)

As expected, a news organization has disproven the Sun's claims that Billie Piper was about to resurrect her singing career. According to the Mirror, Piper "laughed at the suggestion that she'll be releasing any more music. She told 3am this week: 'I don't want to sing again. I'm happy acting - it's something I have always wanted to do. I didn't want to do both, I felt that one would suffer as a result, I'd be trying to do too much.'" The comments were also picked up in the Western Daily Press and other periodicals.

BBC Wales South East has posted photos from both Tuesday's press launch and from yesterday's "Have your photo taken with the TARDIS" event, including shots of producers Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner and members of the audience. Check it out!

The BBC Cult website for BBC Four's eagerly-awaited forthcoming live re-make of "The Quatermass Experiment" says that "Doctor Who" writer (and "League of Gentlemen" writer/star) Mark Gatiss is playing one of the Professor's associates, Paterson.

The just-published March edition of Televisual, 'The business magazine for the broadcast and production industry', has an extensive report on the new series, speaking to several people working on the show. On creating a show for the 21st Century, Steve Moffat says: "I don't think the fact that we're in the post-Star Wars era is an issue, but matching Buffy is. Doctor Who was never a space drama anyway, it was about horror: dark shadows and creepy monsters lurking just around the corner." Admitting his blueprint for the series was Buffy, RTD says: "In the 60s we could watch programmes like Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) because we were happy with the spectacle, but now we're more adult and we expect that emotional content." Davies and Julie Gardner has a 'tone meeting' out of which came the rule that in every episode the Tardis must come back to Earth. Says Davies: "We need to return to Earth to get an emotional focus on what's going on. If we're on Planet Zog and Zog people are being affected by a monster, we couldn't really give a toss. But if there's a human colony on Planet Zog, then that's more interesting." On Christopher Eccleston, Davies says: "He's not like Tom Baker, but what they have in common is that they can go around being as funny and daft and as gormless as they like, but you still take them seriously because they're fundamentally both scary, impressive men." The new Tardis interior (6.5m tall and 20m wide), it says, is raised off the ground to get away from the studio floor feel that's plagued past outings. Designer Edward Thomas: "Russell and I thought the most powerful Tardis was the first one, so we kept this in mind but then went back to nature, basing designs on organic materials, the main structure being coral, with glass walls and lots of wood." Will Cohen of The Mill is quoted saying it's the largest number of effects shots ever for a UK TV drama, and talks briefly about animating the character of Cassandra. On episode two, Cohen says: "We refer to it as the 'space opera' episode because there are two exterior space-station shots, views from outer space, a lot of green-screen set replacements, animated spiders and loads of particle work with suns expanding." For the Slitheen (creatures reported to be in "Aliens of London," Cohen says it's still difficult and time-consuming to create moving characters in human form so, for the close-up shots they used prosthetics specialist Neill Gorton's prosthetics while for the wider shots they used CG. Miniature effects superviser Mike Tucker says The Mill animated a retro-looking UFO smashing into Big Ben based on designs by conept artist Bryan Hitch, but the moment of impact was best achieved using a miniature. "You could sit there and hand-animate every single particle of dust, but sometimes it's easier to create miniatures and then just smash them up," says Tucker. Brand manager Ian Grutchfield on reaching a new generation of children: "The challenge is to get younger children to watch the show. Adults know Doctor Who exists but kids won't have heard of it and they're not traditionally the most prolific consumers of drama."

In a separate news story, the Televisual magazine reports: 'BBC canned HD deal for Doctor Who'. According to the report, the BBC turned down a Sony sponsorship deal to use HDCam kit for its high-profile return of Doctor Who, it has emerged. Instead, the decision was made to shoot the series on DigiBeta. A BBC spokeswoman explains that negotiations had started "too late in the day. We'd gone a long way down the DigiBeta path, although we had talked about HD." It said that "HD advocates fear the decision could hinder long-term international sales. 'It makes sense for such a big-budget production to future-proof the product,' says VMI managing director Barry Bassett."

The Scottish Daily Record has a humorous article about the new Doctor Who aliens today: "If the sneak preview we had yesterday of the Blue Moxx is anything to go by, the villains in the new version of Dr Who look like they're going to be a bit more menacing than the overgrown pepperpots and extras wearing upturned buckets wrapped in tinfoil that the Time Lord used to battle in the Sixties and Seventies. ... Let's just say the following list of forthcoming evil baddies is just informed speculation." It includes such items as the "Teekay Moxx," like the Moxx of Balhoon, only wearing last year's fashions; "The Dohleks," similar to the Daleks, but not as intelligent... they have a fatal weakness for doughnuts and duff beer; the "Cydermen," crazed monsters from the English West Country; and the "Eltonjonians," manic, vertically-challenge beings that regard all authority figures as vile pigs and go around chanting "Exfoliate, exfoliate"!

(Thanks to Joe Cannon, Paul Hayes, David Brunt, Russ Meresman, and as always, Paul Engelberg and Steve Tribe for today's listings)

The BBC Press Office has issued an extensive press release with several sections on the new series, including a feature on the show, one on Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner, one on Christopher Eccleston and one on Billie Piper. It mentions the stars and producers (including quotes), the writers, plus the "Doctor Who Confidential" series presented by Simon Pegg, the BBC Radio 2 "Project Who?" series and the official Doctor Who website. The release notes that the site will carry "over two hours of specially shot on-set videos (even the Daleks have sent in a video diary)"; the entirety of "Doctor Who Confidential" on-demand; "The Doctor Who Years," three 30 minute specially edited video compilations, mixing classic tunes and Doctor Who clips in a nostalgia tour of the Sixties, Seventies and Eighties; "Conquer!" the BBC's first multiplayer online role-playing game; "hidden sites" where one can "enter the world of the programme through a series of hidden sites referenced in the TV show. Can you find the Doctor?"; classic series clips, MP3 downloads and mobile wallpaper, exclusive trailers and photos and more. Finally, it mentions the March 19 Doctor Who night on BBC TWO: "In a one-off Mastermind Doctor Who Special, four Doctor Who aficionados will be put through their paces by Mastermind host, John Humphrys to find out who will be crowned the UK's top Doctor Who fan. The prize will be presented by the new Doctor, Christopher Eccleston. So Some Things You Need To Know About Doctor Who will be packed full of Doctor Who trivia, plus there is another chance to see The Story of Doctor Who - a nostalgic archive documentary about the longest running TV drama series." Check out the press release for the full four-page document. (And ignore the big typo in it, which says that the show starts on Sunday March 26 instead of Saturday... thanks to John Bowman for noticing that!)

According to RRP, a UK DVD trade magazine, the group currently responsible for the production of the DVD's, 2Entertain, is finalising the plans for a staggered DVD release of the new 13-episode series, due to air from the end of this month. According to the report, there are four single vanilla DVD releases planned, in May, June, August and September. A lavish box set, complete with scores of extras, is due in November. "The new series promises to be one of the biggest TV events of the year and we are confident of being able to sell half a million units in 2005," said 2 entertain's Matthew Parkes. (Thanks to Anthony Townsend)

Interestingly, the Guardian has posted a second and far more upbeat review of the new series, perhaps suddenly realizing theirs was the only negative review... and including quotes from some of the people who attended the press launch. "They've kept the feeling of the show. It's still Doctor Who and I think Christopher Eccleston is very good," former script editor Terrance Dicks is quoted as saying. "I'm so pleased. The last Who, I hated it. It was aimed at the mid-Atlantic; I've always said it should be made in England. They've kept the feeling of the show. I think Christopher Eccleston is very good. There's a gap in the market for something both good and popular. There's stuff that's critically acclaimed and stuff that's popular, like reality TV. But this does both." Says Barry Letts, the producer of the series during the Jon Pertwee era, "I was desperate for it to work and it has. Russell T Davies said what he was doing was carrying on the torch from our time. He's a big fan. It's a relay race, you stagger on for so many years, then pass the baton on when you're exhausted. They've managed to give a few nods to the past, which the old Doctor Who fans will appreciate, without making it confusing for anybody coming to it fresh. They've done a brilliant job of updating it." And Tom Spilsbury, deputy editor of DWM, notes that he "really enjoyed it. Chris and Billie were great. It was great to see everyone else enjoying it. They laughed at the funny bits and were scared by the scary bits. It bodes very well for the series. I think kids will love it. It's exactly the sort of thing I fell in love with as a child. Christopher Eccleston still feels like a Doctor Who. He'll be looked back on by kids in 20 years' time as their doctor."

The Guardian's Media Monkey column posted some quips regarding the press launch, including the following. "BBC1 controller Lorraine Heggessey was very much the regal Time Lady at the launch of Doctor Who - and deservedly so. Monkey is sure the series will be a huge smash for a Saturday teatime audience, and probably be the crowning glory of Heggessey's reign at BBC1 - she certainly had to battle for years to get it on air. Heggessey showed she could mix it with rabid Whovians in an impeccably pitched speech to the audience gathered in a Cardiff hotel last night. After a little bit of Welsh, she won over fans by quoting from no less than the good Doctor in an episode from way back in 1964 after he had defeated the dalek invasion of London. ... As many know, Lorraine Heggessey is shortly to give up her BBC1 post and regenerate into the chief executive of Talkback Thames. But will one of her last BBC1 acts be to recommission Doctor Who for a second series? Many in the commercial arm of the BBC certainly hope so and executive producer Russell T Davies attested last night that he had already worked out the storylines. When Monkey put the question, all the great lady could offer was a enigmatic, Gallifreyan-style smile." Regarding any possible unflattering articles or reviews: "it may well be due to the fact that many hacks were exhausted after returning to London via an uncomfortable coach that took three hours to reach London from Cardiff. One reporter was overheard asking if it had really been worth it as he hunted for a cab in the vicinity of Baker Street station at 2am." Also noted were some of the guests that turned up: "Matt Lucas, from Little Britain, Charlotte Church and Robson Green. But one unexpected attendee was Beryl Vertue, the stately executive producer of the sitcom Men Behaving Badly. Vertue told Monkey that her son in law, Steven Moffat, had written two episodes of the new Doctor Who series and was currently in Australia and desperate for a report about the launch and first episode. Vertue then revealed that in the 1960s she has been the agent of Who legend and daleks' creator Terry Nation when he had negotiated his copyright agreement with the BBC, the one that caused the BBC all that trouble last year when Nation's estate refused to allow the metallic monsters into the new series. Everyone was all smiles last night, but there must have been times over the last year when the BBC wished it had driven a harder bargain back in 1963."

BBC News today collected several of the various news stories seen in today's papers in an article entitled "Papers feature Dr Who's monsters". (We spend all this time collecting and collating a couple of hundred stories in a couple of days, and then BBC News goes and does the job for us!)

Richard Wilson, who plays the role of Dr. Constantine in the two-parter written by Steven Moffat, was interviewed by Manchester Online regarding the upcoming Red Nose Day charity event. Says the article: "During the launch, he spent a morning chatting with a group of teenagers there who suffer from a variety of stress and anxiety disorders, and gave them an insight into his imminent appearance on our screens again - this time in Dr Who. 'I play a doctor in an episode set in the Second World War and am in two episodes. I was excited when I was approached to play a part and as soon as I read the script for the episodes they wanted me to feature in I made my mind up that I wanted the role. As well as the kudos of starring in Dr Who, it was also good to play alongside Christopher Eccleston, because although I know him socially I'd never had the opportunity to work with him until now. He's made a very good Dr Who and has brought a fresh touch to the role.'"

Also in today's Manchester Online: a feature with several new comments. "I'd like to see an episode set in Salford in the sixties," Christopher Eccleston says, referring to his home town, and noting his northern accent. "It's good that we say to kids: `Actually people who sound like this can also be heroic and very intelligent.' It's a good message to send." On whether he's prepared for the role and to be identified with it: "The death scene in Cracker has been that for me. But I intend to keep busy and keep doing very different things. If people remember me just for this - I'd be happy to be remembered." Bruno Langley, who plays Adam in at least one episode (the reprot notes he's in two, as Outpost Gallifrey has always maintained), notes that he had nightmares about being chased by Daleks. But he says it was a price worth paying: "It's probably one of the biggest gags in the series. I was very privileged to be given that line," referring to the term "Elevate!" when the Daleks fly. The report also suggests that "a second series is already in development, although Eccleston is undecided about whether he'll return to the role."

Sky Showbiz today quotes Billie Piper, in terms of how co-star Christopher Eccleston helped her "get over her broken marriage." "Christopher and I have shared a lot during the past eight months. We had heavy schedules and personal lives and we're joined at the hip. ... We get on famously. It was instant - it just worked straight away. ... Me and Chris had a great time while we were together and that's all that concerns me. We're best buddies and always will be." The story was also picked up on Ananova

Today's Steve Wright show on Radio 2 at 3:25pm featured a radio trailer for the series, which starts "Coming soon..." and uses the "I'm the Doctor, by the way" exchange; Wright reckons Eccleston looks like a really cool Doctor - "he might go to gigs"; and a Dalek voice (Nicholas Briggs, perhaps?) proclaiming "Doc-tor Who-oo on BBC Radio 2!"

The Independent noted that the BBC invited several MPs to the press launch, and it was a "hot ticket - until, that is, the Government decided to hold yet another debate on its draconian anti-terror Bill." "Several guests are reported to be gutted, not least the Tory education spokesman, Tim Collins, a lifelong fan who has appeared on TV documentaries about the Time Lord. 'Terror debate or not, I'll be very surprised if Tim misses the screening,' reckons a colleague. 'As for the rest of us, we'll have to decide which is more important: the invasion of the Daleks, or the invasion of al-Qa'ida.' Best leave it to your consciences, chaps."

The latest edition of the BBC's in-house magazine / paper Ariel ( Week 9, dated 8.3.05 ) has a two page feature spread on the return of Doctor Who by Clare Bolt. There's precious little material that's new, although there's a little bit about the filming of "The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances," as well as mentions of 'a sub-aquatic monster' and 'a multi-tentacled Victorian submarine'. There are also a handful of behind-the-scenes photos, including the TARDIS prop being erected at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium and a rooftop being blasted with fake snow.

There were various inconsequential reports (but still fascinating due to the number) popping up all over the internet about the impending return of Doctor Who, including the New York Times, Waveguide and a variety of papers such as the Aberdeen Press and Journal, Fort McMurray Today (Alberta) and the Liverpool Daily Echo. There's also a two page interview with Billie Piper in "Now magazine", the March 16 issue. Lots of press coverage today!

Finally, the photos below are all press release photos, some from the second episode, including a larger version of one of the Tree People (Yasmin Bannerman), a group of alien monks, the Moxx of Balhoon (Jimmy Vee), the Face of Poe, an attack by Autons, and Eccleston's card trick.

(Thanks for submissions today to Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Andrew Harvey, Chuck Foster, Paul Hayes, Daniel Northover, Andrew Farmer, Lorna Mitchell, Tom Beck, Andrew Foxley, John Bowman)

The new issue of SFX, (in the shops from Thursday 17 March) features Billie Piper on the cover, and includes another 8-page feature on the new series. As well as more of in-depth chat with Russell T Davies, the feature also includes interviews with the following: writers Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat; production designer Edward Thomas; the team from The Mill (CGI effects), and Neill Gorton (monster prosthetics). One little teaser for you: prepare to learn about Dalek graffiti... The feature is illustrated with stills from "Rose" and "The End Of The World," including a close-up of the TARDIS console, spread over two pages. The issue also comes up with a free A1 poster of the new Doctor Who art by Chris Achilleos that was used in the previous issue.

The Times ran a front page story on Thursday morning on Doctor Who, mostly the same information as in our previous report quoting Christopher Eccleston about his Doctor's accent. Eccleston said of the original series that he "found the character of the Doctor 'too authoritarian' and tried to avoid watching it." On the cover of the Times is an image marked in our spoilers tag below.

BBC Breakfast featured a very lengthy series of installments on the show, including some footage from the press launch (in which DWM editor Clayton Hickman was quoted as saying, "If the kids don't like that, then the kids don't deserve to have any television ever shown to them again!") and extended interviews with Eccleston and Billie Piper. BBC News' Newsnight program this evening (Wednesday 9 March) featured a report on the return of the series. Host Stephen Smith arrived in a TARDIS, sat behind the sofa and introduced a montage of clips, including scenes from the show, interview clips with news media people and children who haven't a clue what "Doctor Who" actually is. The new series also appeared on an edition of Newsround with several clips from the first episode of the new series and brief interview clips with Eccleston and Piper.

SFX Magazine now has a review of the first episode to go along with the spoilers we mentioned to you that were on their site in the last press clips report. Check out the review, and read that article about their coverage of the press launch. Meanwhile, you can find those spoilers under our spoilers tag below.

Today's The Sun has an article with huge SPOILERS from what we believe is the second episode (called "The End of the World") about several new aliens. We've listed them in the spoilers tag below; note that this is pretty extensive and the article features photos (which we haven't reproduced but you can see them on the Sun site.)

BellaOnline today ran an article "Doctor Who 101ùA Newbie Viewing Guide to the Classic Series" which takes a lighthearted look at the original series in preparation for the new. A very amusing line in its Trivia section: "The special effects were bad even in their own day, thanks to a virtually non-existent budget. Imagine, if you will, creating a green lumpy monster by wrapping someone with green-painted bubble wrap. They did that. Yes, this show was famous for its cheesy effects."

The Guardian features a story, "Why can't Daleks go up stairs?" which discusses the peril of the classic monsters and how they've been updated for the new series. "As terrifying as Dr Who's arch enemies might have seemed, the fact that they could be outwitted by a simple staircase made them a shade less menacing. It's a design fault that has been rectified in the new BBC television series, due to begin at Easter."

The leak of the first episode was mentioned on American public radio network NPR's show Talk of the Nation hosted by Neal Conan, during a story called "Movies, Technology and the Future of Viewing". Conan mentioned the first episode and that downloaders "must feel that it's pretty cool to see the new Doctor Who three weeks before the BBC airs it," although the story itself was about the transformation of media and the new digital age. Also, a Reuters story on the Rose leak was on the front page of Yahoo (USA Yahoo, not UK Yahoo) for a while today... obviously, though America doesn't yet have a broadcast deal, it's still in the American consciousness.

The CBC Television network in Canada now has its own website for its broadcast of the new series. Meanwhile, on Thursday March 10th at 9:15am (EST) CBC Newsworld will be airing a feature on the leaking of the first episode of the new Doctor Who series. CBC's Allison Smith will be interviewing Canadian fan and DWIN member Rod Mammitzsch about the new series of Doctor Who, and the recent leak of the first episode onto the internet.

Today's Daily Record features an interview with Jimmy Vee, the 3'8" actor who plays a role in the new series. We've fully protected this information with our spoilers tag; read it below.

AND FINALLY... Over the past several days it's been a whirlwind keeping up with all the press clips, so I'd like to thank and credit the following people who have been providing updates, news and information: the incomparable Paul Engelberg and Steve Tribe, without whom this couldn't possibly happen; plus Paul Hayes, Malcolm Prince, John Ryan, John Molyneux, Steve Roberts, Paul Vanezis, Chuck Foster, Graeme Burk, Mike Doran, Rowan Bridge, Matt Chayt, David Baker, Darin Patea, Andrew Harvey, Richard Dinnick, Matthew Godley, Nick Johnson, Shannon Patrick Sullivan, Assad Khaishgi, Ian Beard, Richard Carletta, Michael S. Lucart, Kevin Elhart, James Crout, Simon Howe, Kenny Davidson, Ryan Piekenbrock, and Benjamin Elliott.

We've removed the covers posted today regarding new Doctor Who children's books as seen on Amazon. BBC Worldwide have contacted us to let us know that these were simply potential concepts that were accidentally sent to Amazon, and do not represent Penguin Books' actual schedule or cover illustrations for any potential book items, so we've removed them. As soon as we have more concrete information, we'll give you an update.

The newest issue of Digit Magazine, a 3D Design magazine, has a Doctor Who front cover; emblazoned on the front is the Tardis from the new series. Inside is an in depth review of the special effects for the new series by The Mill. There are several stills from the teaser trailer and a photograph of a spider like CGI creature. There are also descriptions of several other creature designs from the new series including the character played by Zoe Wanamaker in episode 2. They quote that there are 1000 effects in the new series, 200 alone in episode two. (Thanks to Martin Asquith)

The official Doctor Who website now confirms that the first episode of the new Doctor Who series will air Saturday, March 26 at 7:00pm; they've got a countdown clock on the front page counting down until the time it's on.

SFX Magazine today posted a report on the press launch of the new series, including spoilers about the clips that were shown from upcoming episodes. You can read about it at their website.

There are many newspaper stories out there regarding the press launch and screening of the first episode last night at the St David's Hotel and Spa in Cardiff Bay, with selections from interviews with Christopher Eccleston, Billie Piper, Russell T Davies, Julie Gardner and others. Here's a recap:

Eccleston admitted he was not a fan of the "old" series but it may have been the previous Time Lords' posh accents that put him off. "I'm different from the other Doctors," he said. "All the others spoke with this RP accent - maybe it was that that put me off. I think that it's good that we teach kids that people who speak like that can be heroic too." About Davies, he said, "I am a huge fan of his. IÆve tried to capture his speed of thought and the pace of his words, and of course they are his words."

Eccleston "revealed" that he and assistant Rose will "fall in love" but not the way you think. "It will be the first time the doctor has had a romance in the show's 40-year history," says one clip. However, Eccleston himself says, "They love each other. It's very much love at first sight. It's not a conventional love affair. It's far more mysterious than that." Billie Piper noted, "At the end of the first show when the doctor invites Rose to come with him in the Tardis I suppose it's very much like asking her out on a date. They have a very interesting dynamic and there are times when you can't put your finger on their relationship. But there's lots of holding hands throughout the series." Viewers will apparently see them saying things like: "I could save the world, but I'd lose you" and "I'm so glad I met you". About his companion, Eccleston says "There has been no heroine for 12-year-old girls before and Billie pulled that off just like that. She saves the Doctor in the first episode, she is a heroine."

Piper likes being a new role model. "When I was singing I was a role model then and when you are in that position you can do some good." Billie says she doesn't want to go back to her singing career and described herself as being "in a great place right now" with new acting projects on the horizon. She admitted that she didn`t watch the series as a child. "It was in our house and I remember freaky music and a man running around in a long scarf, but I could never make head nor tail of it." When she took the role she said she made the decision not to watch previous series for fear of confusing her own performance, but she said Mr Eccleston took on a far more difficult role than she had. "I don`t know how Chris does it but he did it. It`s like playing James Bond the Doctor he`s established there`s nothing he doesn`t know and there`s nothing he can`t do, as an actor that must be most frustrating."

However, an article in today's The Sun swears that Billie Piper is planning to relaunch her pop career after the airing of the new Doctor Who series, but she will only agree to a deal if she is happy with the style of music. A Sun "insider" is quoted as saying, "Billie would love to make a return to the music scene but she has to be happy with whatÆs being offered. She has been having talks with a number of labels, including Sony BMG, but hasnÆt put pen to paper yet. She wants a lot of input in and outside of the studio." All of which Billie Piper has flatly denied.

One or two articles mention "fifteen episodes" being broadcast (instead of the actual 13) and that each episode is a self-contained story (some of them are actually two parters.)

Davies said he wrote it with a family audience in mind: "If you chase a cult you just become a smaller cult. If a cult fan hates this series it means they will only watch it 20 times instead of 30 times. When they brought Crossroads back and made it a bit camp it was a turkey of disasterous proportions."

Gardner said about the show's future, "We just donÆt know what to expect, there is no real yardstick. Of course IÆm nervous." She also denied that the leak of the first episode had anything to do with the BBC. "We were devastated."

Musician Charlotte Church, who we reported yesterday showed up with a Dalek from The Sun, said "It was brilliant. I have never seen Doctor Who before. I would have been two when it was last on but this was like a mini-movie."

BBC Radio 4 has a link to an interview conducted this morning with Davies and DWM editor Clayton Hickman; you can listen to it for the next day or so by clicking here.

GMTV had a feature on its programme this morning before 8:30 with Ben Sheppard who attended the press launch yesterday; the clips shown were longer than those on BBC news.

Some links to various reports: BBC Radio 1, Times Online, Scotsman, Channel 4, Megastar, ITV, icNews, Edinburgh News

Here's a recap of some of the reviews in the newspapers of the first episode (with no spoilers):

The Times: "It's a funny feeling. When the dum-de-dum, dum-de-dum starts, and the new-look title sequence begins, the hairs on your arms stand up, and a smile fixes itself, rictus-like, to your face. This warm feeling alone is enough to transport you blithely through the first five minutes of the new Doctor Who before any critical faculties kick in. And when they do, you realise that you're enjoying yourself."

Manchester Online: "This is a bold restating of what Doctor Who was always about - scaring the kids and entertaining families on a Saturday night. Old series monsters the Autons - recreating the famous shop window breakout of their 1970 debut - keep the show in touch with its past, while the energentic direction and decent special effects show off its new coat of paint cheerfully. To coin a phrase - he's back, and it's about time."

The Daily Express: "So much of the BBC's shiny new Doctor Who has been lovingly assembled according to a clear philosophy of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'. ... But it comes at a souped-up pace and delights in showing off the results of the huge resources of budget and talent that have been thrown at a programme whose sets were once only out-wobbled by those of Crossroads. Between [Eccleston and Piper] they are a revelation. ... To be successful Doctor Who needs to look brilliant, crack along with never a dull moment, and excite and amuse in equal measure. By the look of the first episode it will do that in spades."

The Sun: "The new Who doesn't wear a scarf or fancy coat - but from the start Eccleston is outstanding. And the script from Queer as Folk writer Russell T Davies is sparky, witty and will please even the most ardent fans."

This Is London: "As a fan I really hope this new series succeeds. It's lively, wellfilmed and the special effects are up to scratch. There is humour, a vital ingredient if the new series is to be a success. ... We can only hope that Christopher Eccleston really does represent a return to form as the best Doctor since the golden days of Pertwee and Tom Baker. A children's programme it might be, but played for laughs, never."

Daily Telegraph: "The first Doctor Who series for 16 years could give the BBC a much-needed hit for its ailing Saturday night schedules if the verdict of critics, fans and children is correct."

The Guardian: "It is unfair to review a restaurant on opening night, but an event as important as the return of Doctor Who after a hiatus of 15 years (not counting the ill-fated 1996 US TV movie co-production, to which BBC executives have the same regard Stalin had for Trotsky) is of such importance to millions of fans around the world that instant judgments are required. The good Doctor is most definitely back... and many traditionalists are going to greet this radical new version with utter dismay. ... As a diehard Who fan, I will watch all the remaining episodes wishing, hopefully not totally in vain, that they had laid off the Ritalin."

Updated 9 March, 0635 GMT

Tonight's press call has already made headlines on BBC television, including behind-the-scenes moments and clips from the trailer. The official site now has several of today's new trailers online; check them out! (You need RealPlayer installed on your machine.)

BBC News features an article today about the press launch. They quote Christopher Eccleston as saying it was an "easy" decision to become the ninth Doctor Who. "I just wanted to work with Russell T Davies. It's a fantastic series and I am proud to be a part of it." Also covered in the press this evening: articles in The Sun and the Telegraph (which calls its article "Ailing BBC pins revival on Doctor Who").

The date for Christopher Eccleston's interview with Steve Wright was announced today on the Radio 2 website - it takes place on Monday, 21 March. The show runs from 2:00pm GMT and you can catch it at the Radio 2 website.

According to today's The Sun, the newspaper sent a Dalek along with singer Charlotte Church to the press launch this evening. "Our baddie ù who led a successful campaign to reinstate the Daleks after problems with their contracts ù rolled up to the bash in Cardiff. But security guards refused to let him in to the screening with stars Christopher Eccleston, Billie Piper and Charlotte, 19. A BBC spokesman said: 'I'm sorry, but there is no room for your Dalek.'" It also notes that Eccleston has warned fans against watching the downloaded episode: "It's a rough cut without special effects. Wait to see it in all its glory." The article was accompanied by a photo of Church with the Sun's Dalek, as the newspaper once again boasts that it somehow affected the Daleks' return to the program.

Christopher Eccleston is not very pleased with the early online reactions to the leaked episode, likely brought on by the largely negative reviews posted on AICN which have been widely publicized in news reports covering the leak of the episode. (Outpost Gallifrey invites members of the production team reading to go into our Forum, where the reviews in the "Rose" spoiler section have been overwhelmingly positive!)

More coverage today in UK and international press of the leak of the first episode, "Rose," onto the Internet, including articles in the Herald Sun (Australia), New Kerala (India), Sydney Morning Herald, The Mercury (Australia), BigNewsNetwork, ContactMusic, CNet News, Washington Times, CBBC Newsround, Morons.org, Silicon.com, AfterDawn, TV NZ, Daily Record, RTE, Australian IT, Media Life Magazine, Stuff.co.nz, CJAD (Canada) and Canoe (Canada), as well as an article in the Times Online today which mentions a couple of very minor spoilers, as noted in the spoilers tag at the bottom of this news report. Meanwhile, today's Daily Record had this subtle quip: "THE BBC are rightly furious that their new episode of Dr Who was prematurely leaked on the internet. Especially since it featured a new monster, the Not-Yeti."

Finally, a screen image news coverage tonight (thanks to "Bazzerbill"):

An article in today's Malaysia Star features an interview with Mark Strickson, the actor who played companion Turlough to the Fifth Doctor. It says that Strickson "was an actor who had appeared in numerous BBC TV productions, including the famous Dr Who series, before he abandoned acting to study zoology when he was 30. The 47-year-old director also has bragging rights about one Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter. Recounted Strickson: 'What happened was: I and three other people in an office in London got together a project called The 10 Deadliest Snakes in the World. And it was all in Australia. We went to Australian zoos and universities to find someone who would be able to present this. We wanted somebody who is a good snake-handler and who can talk to the camera. Steve's was one of the tapes that came back, and we thought we would take a risk with this guy. He was either going to be a disaster or he would become something phenomenal. In the end he turned out to be something phenomenal. I think filmmaking has moved on from those first films with Steve. At that time, it was revolutionary. They took the camera off the tripod and it was action. It was what was happening in drama, in NYPD Blue. When I look back at those first films with Steve, they look dated to me. But at the time, they were absolute reality and they changed things. And I think Steve's films have brought a larger audience into natural history. Natural history films were previously very serious and they weren't very popular. In global terms, not many people watched them. A David Attenborough programme got maybe three or four million people on UK TV. But the first Steve Irwin programme got 11 million people! I think what David does is exactly what Steve does. David is really enthusiastic about animals and you can see that when you watch him. Steve is also very enthusiastic. They're basically doing the same things in different ways. But the time was right for Steve. The time was right to go for a bigger audience for natural history."

The BBC Radio 2 Doctor Who minisite has launched today; visit it by clicking here. It includes an audio page which will carry the Project Who programmes and Steve Wright's forthcoming interview of Russell T Davies, and currently features a five-minute documentary by Stuart Maconie on the theme tune. It also reveals that the title of part 2 of Project Who is "Reverse the Polarity"; has a competition for a Doctor Who "goody bag"; and there's an opportunity to share your favourite Classic Who moments with the world... by writing about them and sending them in. You can vote for when you think the Doctor and Rose should visit, and the site will carry details of broadcast times etc. for forthcoming programmes including Confidential. Finally, "Guest Questions" is the chance to send in a question for forthcoming Steve Wright guest Christopher Eccleston.

According to Steve Roberts of the Doctor Who Restoration Team: "We've just been given the OK to tell you that the first trail for the new series will be tonight at 7.29pm, just before Eastenders. There will be four peak time trails tonight on BBC1 including this one and two on BBC2." The following is a list of the actual times expected for each trailer (with thanks to Steve Roberts and "peterawl")

CBC Television in Canada has issued their official press release for the forthcoming new Doctor Who series, due out on April 5, below. (Thanks to Rod Mammitzsch and DWIN)

Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper will appear alongside a Dalek on BBC Breakfast tomorrow morning, Wednesday March 9 at 9:00am, according to a promo mentioned at the end of today's show. Check it out!

Doctor Who will be a topic on BBC2's Newsnight tonight (Wednesday) at 10:30pm. "And just when you thought it was safe to come out from behind the sofa, Doctor Who returns to Saturday nights. Is going back in time the only way to guarantee ratings success?"

The BBC Radio Collection has released the cover and details for the CD release of Project: Who, the two-part radio drama narrated by Anthony Stewart Head. "Project: Who? discovers how the exciting new BBC1 series has been made, with award-winning writer and producer Russell T. Davies at the helm. Featuring new and exclusive interviews with the cast and creative team, the programme examines why the BBC decided to launch a new television series, nearly a decade after the Doctor's last small screen adventure. It also explores how the format of the show has been developed for a new audience, how the character of the Doctor was cast, and how his adventures will be launched and marketed around the globe. Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper, a.k.a. the Doctor and Rose, are amongst those talking about the new series, along with executive producers Julie Gardner and Mal Young, writer and executive producer Russell T. Davies, writer Mark Gatiss, director Joe Ahearne, producer Phil Collinson and many others." The cover illustration is at right; click for a larger version.

Big Finish announced today that Nicola Bryant, best known to fans as Peri Brown, companion to the sixth Doctor, is stepping into the recording box to direct the fourth and final UNIT series audio, "The Wasting". The episode concludes the four-part series which sees the return of Nicholas Courtney (who reprised his role of the Brigadier in the first episode, "Time Heals").

Big Finish has announced the continued exploits of Bernice Summerfield, the character originally created by Paul Cornell for Virgin Publishing's "Doctor Who: The New Adventures" series, spun off into its own line of audios and publications by Big Finish. Among the new items for 2005 are five new audio CD's following the delayed Masquerade of Death this spring; they include The Heart's Desire by David Bailey and Neil Corry, The Kingdom of the Blind by Jacqueline Rayner, The Lost Museum by Simon Guerrier, The Crystal of Cantus by Joseph Lidster and The Goddess Quandary by Andy Russell... which finds Benny Summerfield "confronting some familiar foes from the Doctor Who universe. This time it's... errr... the Monoids in 'The Kingdom of the Blind' and the Cybermen in 'The Crystal of Cantus.'" Monoids! Also, the Benny audio range will be supplemented by three hardcover books, following the same pattern of releases as 2004. The first will be The Tree of Life, a full-length novel by Mark Michalowski. That will be followed by an as yet untitled trilogy of novellas, written by Rebecca Levene, Paul Sutton and Dave Stone with linking material by Gary Russell. Then the last book of 2005 will be a short-story collection entitled Something Changed, edited by Simon Guerrier. Amongst the contributors to this will be Benny's creator Paul Cornell, alongside Joseph Lidster, Dave Stone, Jonathan Clements and making his Big Finish debut, Ben Aaronovitch. Additional authors will be announced later. Looking ahead to 2006, two of the five audios have been confirmed: The Tartarus Gate by Stewart Sheargold and The Dyson Ring by Jim Mortimore. Big Finish has also confirmed that artist Adrian Salmon will continue to provide the cover illustrations for both the books and the audio dramas.

The Doctor Who website at BBC Online has officially changed format today, with a splash page about the new series from which information on trailers and photos is linked, along with a link to the "classic series" pages which retain previous information. One of the new photos features a white background with the TARDIS in the foreground and Christopher Eccleston holding his sonic screwdriver. Check it out!

So far, today's (March 8) press clips, with more to be added as the day progresses:

This morning's (March 8) Radio Times features a one-page colour feature called "Doctor Who watch" with brief comments from RTD and Julie Gardner and small summaries of the Doctor, Rose, the TARDIS and 'the monsters'. As well as one of the standard publicity shots of Eccleston and Piper, there is a large photo of the 'blue meanie' from the cover of the latest DWM, which is caption and therefore confirmed as "the Moxx of Balhoon". The article also trails: "Next week: Doctor Who, the first words..." Also in the Radio Times, the listing for Thursday 17 March confirms that The Culture Show (BBC Two, 7pm and 11.25pm) will preview "the imminent return of Doctor Who". "Will it stay true to the spirit of the past series?" This is illustrated with one of the shots of Eccleston standing outside the TARDIS.

An article in the Belfast Telegraph "looks back at some memorable moments and opponents from the past 40 years" of Doctor Who, including the Daleks (featuring an interview with Cy Town), the Zygons, the Cybermen, the Yeti, the Daemons, the Zarbi, the Kandyman, and even the giant maggots of "The Green Death".

The Dark Horizons website, another movie industry gossip site, also features a brief review of "Rose," largely positive.

icWales has a mention of the leak, and also features quotes with Russell T Davies (lifted from elsewhere).

The Mirror features an article today called "EXTER BINATE," asking "The first episode of new Dr Who ..and can Billie save the world from Wheelie Bin aliens?" referring to a very minor plot point about the first episode, mentioning the episode leak and also a few plot points. (Don't read the article if you don't want to see a few spoilers for the first story.)

The downloading of Doctor Who made the front page of today's Guardian newspaper (link is to the story itself). The story mentions the "Ain't It Cool" online website which posted some scathing reviews of the episode (to which there are complaints that positive reviews were ignored; however, one eventual positive review by Warren Ellis was eventually posted in their "Coaxial" section). Ironically, the Guardian site focuses on the negative reviews, while reactions to the leaked episode have been overwhelmingly positive elsewhere.

A ton of reports on the leak of "Rose" to the Internet, so here's a quick guide to all of the links so far we've been able to compile (with thanks to Steve Tribe, Paul Engelberg, Paul Hayes): Evening Times, Digital Lifestyles, BBC News Technology, Disinfo.com, CBBC Newsround, Brisbane Courier Mail, The Australian, Melbourne Herald Sun, News.com.au, Advertiser Adelaide, Daily Telegraph, Manchester Evening News, This Is London, Financial Express India, Channel 4, U TV, Reuters, Times of Oman, ZDNet, Scotsman, Manchester Online, Times Online, ITV, The Register, Ananova

The BBC will be sponsoring a press launch for the new series today, March 8, which will likely include morning, afternoon and evening (UK time) news coverage. Outpost Gallifrey will keep you posted on any breaking developments as we get them throughout the day.

Listeners to BBC Radio Five Live before 9am UK time this morning were treated to the new Doctor Who series theme tune by Murray Gold; reports are also in that a snippet of the tune was played on Chris Moyles' show on Radio 1 this morning. The broadcast of the Breakfast show will likely be on Radio Five Live's website very shortly; select the listening button and then "Listen Again" for Tuesday morning and you should be able to catch it. Update 8 March 1500 GMT: It's now on the FiveLive website; it's at about the 2:39:30 mark in the show. The show also discusses the downloading of "Rose".

Outpost Gallifrey has received reliable information that suggests that a Doctor Who trailer will indeed air on Tuesday night, March 8 at 8:00pm on BBC1, repeating later in the evening. This information could, however, change at any time. A heads-up for our UK readers!

Outpost Gallifrey has learned that Anthony Stewart Head has taken over as the narrator for the forthcoming two-part radio documentary "Project: Who," airing on Radio 2 on March 22 and 29, after original narrator Patrick Stewart (Star Trek: The Next Generation) had to pull out due to schedule difficulties. Head, best known to science fiction fans as Rupert Giles on "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer," previously starred in Big Finish's "Excelis" audio series, and is familiar to (and with) fans of the Doctor Who genre.

BBC Wales Today will feature a detailed report on the new series on March 8 at 6:30pm; the broadcast will include an episode with Christopher Eccleston. The broadcast can be found on Sky Digital, channel 942, and it's also very likely you'll be able to watch it via the internet at the BBC Wales today website.

Tonight's edition of BBC Radio 4's "Front Row" announced that the date of transmission is Saturday, March 26 at 7:00pm in the UK, this after an interview with Russell T Davies about the new series. At the moment, there is still no official word from BBC1, but their radio announcers certainly are being kept up to date, and it was explained fairly matter of factly at the end of the interview that the show would be airing at that time and on that date. This should be as good an indicator that March 26 is the date to expect the new series, despite 'official' word from the broadcaster.

The CBC network in Canada this evening aired a teaser trailer for the new series during a broadcast of "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," which displayed the previously announced (but not then fully confirmed) broadcast date of April 5, 2005, at 8:00pm. So it's true, Canada will indeed get the series about 10 days after the UK broadcast.

The rumor mills have been working overtime this weekend on news that the first episode of the series, Rose, has been leaked on the internet, courtesy an unidentified employee of a foreign broadcaster of the show. We weren't going to mention it originally, in order to help keep this from becoming even more widely known, but BBC News and other news services made that a moot point. Obviously, Outpost Gallifrey isn't going to tell you how or where to download it, but don't be surprised if you find reviews all over the web.

BBC News itself addresses the leak of "Rose" in a story that also reveals that Christopher Eccleston emailed Russell T Davies about the role. "He e-mailed me and said if we were looking for a Doctor Who, he'd be interested," Davies told Radio Times according to the news article. "It was gobsmacking because you think he's going to be doing Hamlet all the time. Which, come to think of it, he was." It says that episodes 1 and 2 were written before he was cast. "So I'd established a template for what I wanted, which fitted Chris perfectly. That was a happy accident - we both wanted to strip it down, make it more down-to-earth."

In an interview with today's Media Guardian, new series producer Russell T Davies explains how producing the new series of Doctor Who is a lifelong dream come true. When they approached him, "I worried they meant a cheap pastiche version, or an ironic version, but it was the real deal - Saturday night, proper budgets. All those things you think you'd have to fight for. Astonishing." The interview discusses his work on previous shows such as Children's Ward, Queer as Folk and Mine All Mine, as well as his thoughts on being a child transfixed by Doctor Who. "When I was eight, walking home from school down Hendrefoilan Avenue, I always used to think 'I could turn round the corner and the Tardis would be there - and I would run inside and I would fight alongside the Doctor.' It was the one programme that encouraged you to make up stories. The Tardis could land in the everyday world and no other science-fiction programme would do that. You were never going to be a member of the crew on the Enterprise when you were eight years old: it was in the future and they were the navy. Even if we don't get an audience, I hope there will be some eight-year-olds sitting there thinking the same thing. That's when I fell in love with it. I was transfixed." Read the full interview at the website.

A report in today's Observer discusses the obsession of fans with Doctor Who, framed in the context of the return of the series. It includes comments from Russell T Davies ("If we had tried to be ironic we would have died a death") and notes that there are only a few thousand fans of Doctor Who that are considered active or interested. (Strange, Outpost Gallifrey's front page got over 17,000 unique visitors last Thursday!) The report talks about websites and fandom and Doctor Who Magazine (in fact, noting DWM's circulation is "around 30,000") and how the new show, based on a preview is "not, and never will be - how shall I put this? - Doctor Who." You can read the whole article at that site.

The Ain't It Cool website, a major source of online film gossip, has published several negative reviews of the first episode of the new series along with a positive one, based upon the recent leak of an episode on the Internet.

An article in today's Times discusses the Daleks who apparently are upgraded: "In previous series of Doctor Who, the Daleks were warlike metal aliens engineered by the evil Davros on the planet Skaro. They were beings of ruthless logic with one small but significant flaw: you could evade them by running up a flight of stairs. The upgraded versions take to the air using rocket-boosters, enhancing their ability to exterminate, exterminate. The new Daleks are also bigger than the ones last seen in 1989 and have more lethal weaponry than the old guns that resembled sink plungers. But fans will have to wait: the evil forces do not appear in the first episode, to be shown on BBC1 on Easter Saturday." It also contains ver minor spoilers about the first episode.

Another Times article, much more in depth, discusses the upgrading of the Doctor Who series itself. "For 25 years, Doctor WhoÆs creaky charm captivated a nation," the article says. "Now Russell T Davies has polished it up, with slick effects and an even slicker script." It notes that the scripts themselves are "slick, witty and, most important of all, fresh. They also have Davies the MouthÆs fingerprints all over them. The DoctorÆs slightly deranged monologue sounds suspiciously like Russell T himself." The article notes that the new series has "about 800" special effects. Says The Mill's Robin Shenfield, "I'm pretty sure nothing of this scale has ever been attempted ù certainly nothing British." Mike Tucker, who's doing miniature-effects on the series, says the original show "was always pushing against the boundaries of its budget, trying to do stuff it couldnÆt possibly achieve. They would try to make the Loch Ness monster attack a village, or theyÆd have an attack with a horde of Daleks when they had only three Dalek props. It was one of its great charms. But then Star Wars came along and raised the game. These days, kids are so effects-literate." The article discusses how CGI effects have been implemented, and gives some spoilers about the new show (protected by our Spoiler tag, below), as well as noting that "Doctor Who is a huge gamble for the BBC. It will probably go out in its old slot, early on Saturday evening," noting that it will happen at the end of March.

The British Board of Film Classification has released details on the extras for the forthcoming UK DVD release of The Claws of Axos, due in May, as follows:

The latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine reports that "the exact date of transmission can't yet be confirmed - schedules can change up to a fortnight in advance - [but] it is still likely that the new series will begin transmission on Saturday 26 March." Both the BBC and BBC Worldwide are said to be "gearing up for a major launch of the show this Spring." This includes UK press screenings in early March, probably Tuesday 8 March, "which will coincide with the start of major television advertising campaign", with photographs and interviews following in UK newspapers and magazines. There may be a specially written television trailer, as well as radio trailers and a nationwide poster campaign. ChildrenÆs BBC will run "special behind-the-scenes reports" on both Newsround and Blue Peter.

Joe Ahearne has been confirmed as the director of episode 11, which bears the confirmed title "Boom Town" according to DWM, confirming Outpost Gallifrey's report last month that Ahearne had signed on to the additional episode. Episode 11 is therefore no longer a separate block from 12 and 13, as "it made sense for Joe to cover the whole thing", according to producer Phil Collinson. The magazine also confirms "The Doctor Dances" as the title of episode 10, again confirming the reports made online some time ago.

Regarding casting, some new updates: Episode 10 has Vilma Hollingberry as Mrs Harcourt. Episode 11 includes Aled Pedick as Idris and Will Thomas (previously seen on television in Belonging) as Mr Cleaver. Episodes 12 and 13 star Paterson Joseph as Rodrick, who apparently "shares some very unusual scenes with Rose Tylerà but will he live to tell the tale?" The same story includes Jamie Bradley as Strood and Abi Eniola as Crosbie, with Sebastian Armesto, Kate Loustau, Dominic Burgess and Karren Winchester in unconfirmed roles. Episode 13, The Parting of the Ways, also sees the return of Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler and Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith.

The issue gives details for Episodes 4 to 7 of Doctor Who Confidential, which match the information given on the SFX site and reported here last week. One small additional detail is that Episode 5, Life on Earth, as well as looking at the DoctorÆs links to Earth, also "examines the new seriesÆ first cliffhangerà" See also the BBC website news below. There's also a foretaste from James Goss of the changes coming to the official website, a "teaser version" of which will launch in early March, with the full site beginning "with the first episode". The site will include "an astonishing amount of video û including 30 short films about the making of the showà WeÆre looking at clearing Doctor Who Confidential as well." There will also be broadband clips from the original run, desktop wallpapers, screensavers, sound files, hundreds of behind-the-scenes pictures, including "design sketches and photostories showingà how the TARDIS was built" and "some great games û including one where you get to drive a Dalek and anotherà how Monopoly would be if it were set in space, had tentacles, big weapons and a sense of humour. Some of itÆs written by Gareth Roberts". Also promised: "Some surprises".

There is a competition open to readers of DWM to see one of three exclusive preview screenings of the first episode on Monday 21 March in London. Entrants need to fill in a form on page 7 of the magazine and send it in; subscribers can e-mail their entries, giving their subscription numbers. The closing date and draw is on Wednesday 16 March. And the next issue, DWM 355à will include previews of The End of the World, The Unquiet Dead and Aliens of London, a set report on Rose, an interview with Simon Callow and behind-the-scenes on the creation of the TARDIS. ItÆs published on Thursday 31 March.

For further information on all of this, plus several exclusive interviews and all the regular features, pick up DWM 354 now on sale!

Interviewed in the latest issue of DWM, executive producer Julie Gardner says that both she and Russell T Davies want to do a second series of Doctor Who with Christopher Eccleston, should it be commissioned, and that they were having a meeting at the start of February to talk about what they'd do if they got the go-ahead. "We're already behind [because] to go again with the same number of episodes [...] we'd need to start filming at the same time as we did last year. On the first series, we were having those conversations in December [... but] I think there are lessons from the first series that we could implement to speed things up." Davies also mentions in his Production Notes that he and Gardner discussed his outline for 13 episodes for Series 2 during a train journey to London. "If Series Two ever exists, then these scripts will happen." Importantly, Russell prefaces this with "Of course, Series Two isn't commissioned yet - I suspect we won't know until a good few weeks into transmission of Series One - but we've got to plan ahead regardless." It's also noted that the BBC Four documentary on Davies shot footage of Russell and the production team watching "our very first viewing of The Long Game". So there is a chance that clips from that episode might be shown several weeks ahead of its actual broadcast (the documentary being scheduled for mid-March). For more on this, pick up Issue 354 of DWM, now on sale.

According to the official Doctor Who site today, to mark the launch of the new series, BBC Two will celebrate Doctor Who with a special television night. "In a one-off Mastermind Doctor Who Special, four Doctor Who aficionados will be put through their paces by Mastermind host, John Humphrys, to find out who will be crowned the UK's top Doctor Who fan. The prize will be presented by the new Doctor, Christopher Eccleston. Some Things You Need To Know About Doctor Who will be packed full of Doctor Who trivia, plus there is another chance to see The Story of Doctor Who - a nostalgic archive documentary about the longest running TV drama series."

A BBC Press Office document now in circulation states that the forthcoming Project Who? two-part radio show airing on March 22 and 29 on BBC Radio 2 will "feature newly recorded interviews with the cast and creative team behind Doctor Who. With exclusive excerpts from the new series, starring Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper, the programmes examine how the format of the show has been developed and shaped for a new audience, how the character of the Doctor was cast, and how the series will be launched and marketed around the globe." The opening installment, "Bigger On The Inside," takes listeners back (without the aid of a Tardis) to September 2003, when Lorraine Heggessey, Controller of BBC One, announced that a new series of Doctor Who was being planned with Russell T Davies at the helm. The programme considers how the creator of Queer As Folk and The Second Coming approached the task of recreating one of the most popular and enduring formats on television." The document also notes that the new series will be complemented by BBC ThreeÆs "Doctor Who Confidential" documentary and the BBC Two Doctor Who night special. The BBC Radio 2 broadcast will happen on those days ôat approximately 8.33 pmö, with an extended double-CD release on May 2. DWM reports that Russell T Davies, Julie Gardner, Mal Young, Jane Tranter, Mark Gatiss, Nicholas Briggs, Clayton Hickman and Dave Golder (of SFX magazine) are among those interviewed. (Thanks to Tim Harrison, David Whittam)

BBC Four will be broadcasting a documentary on new series producer Russell T Davies in mid-March, around the same time as Davies' series Casanova begins on BBC Three; according to DWM and other sources; it will include interviews with Christopher Eccleston. Davies will also be interviewed by Sian Williams BBC2 Wales Digital on Thursday 17 March at 9pm. The program he appears on is an irregular interview series regarding Welsh celebrities discussing their life and works. (This doesn't appear to be the same as the program airing on BBC4 as this format is usually studio based chat with a few 'career' clips, though it's possible it is the same one getting a BBC Wales-first transmission.) The BBC2 digital regional variation is available on satellite only. (Thanks to David Brunt, Steve Tribe)

Out on March 9 is SFX's Doctor Who Special,, reprinting most of SFX's Doctor Who interviews and articles throughout the years including interviews with
Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Sylvester McCoy, Paul McGann, Elisabeth Sladen, Nicholas Courtney, Deborah Watling, Frazer Hines, Carole Ann Ford, Katy Manning, Michael Craze, Anneke Wills, Sarah Sutton, Terrance Dicks, plus Couch Potatos with Sylvester McCoy and Mark Strickson, aticles including "Doctor Who û The Inbetween Years," the making of the TV movie, a new Russell T Davies interview, "at a glance" guide to the new series with new photos, Paul Cornell writing about his episode, a rare photo archive, Doctor Who on vinyl, every DVD reviewed and rated and much, much more! Below is the cover illustration. (Thanks to Steve O'Brien, Ian Berriman)

Meanwhile, TV Zone issue 187 will also contain Doctor Who content. "We go behind-the-scenes on the BBC's revival of Doctor Who, talking to Russell T Davies and the key players behind the new series, including Mark Gatiss, Steven Moffatt and Julie Gardner! Plus! - All the latest developments on Doctor Who in our News section. And! - Who author Lance Parkin shares his Deep Thoughts on the end of Star Trek - and what lessons the franchise can learn from Who's return..." It's out on March 8.

Already on sale is Dreamwatch issue #127. "He's back -- and it really is about time! As the new series' debut rapidly approaches, dreamwatch takes an episode-by-episode look at the return of Doctor Who." The news and reviews columns are extra-long this month, too, covering the latest developments in the SF and fantasy genre. The cover illustration is below.

A general roundup of some of the press coverage from the past two weeks (courtesy Paul Engelberg, Paul Hayes, Mark Irwin, Steve Stratford and Roger Anderson):

Billie Piper is in this week's Arena magazine in a photo shoot, where she also discusses the new series and her husband, Chris Evans, from whom she is separated. "Chris is a genius and anyone who spends time with him is lucky," she told Arena. "I always thought it was weird, exes that hung out. But now I'm doing it myself I understand it. We've been through a lot. There's been no pressure. It's almost nicer now because there are no harboured feelings, no resentment. We're still best buds. More pictures and the full feature appear in the April issue.

Over budget and behind schedule? That's what March 2's issue of The Sun says. "The show ... will struggle to meet its scheduled March 26 debut date. A source said: 'There were ten extra days of shooting with special effects and that cost a fortune.'"

It's apparently all about the Daleks, according to the Liverpool Daily Post on March 2, in preparation for the new series. "EXTERMINATE! Exterminate! Dalekmania threatened to take over the universe. After giving Dr Who a lot of bother and forcing Britain's under-10s to quiver behind the sofa, these weird alien invaders became the thing to have, whether in toys, comics, books or on television. They even had their own comic strip series which ran in TV Century 21 for 104 issues - not bad for what were essentially dustbins on wheels."

Drama is to play a greater role in BBC daytime television, according to The Stage. The BBC's new drama unit in Birmingham is producing a series of ten short stories from up-and-coming writers due to broadcast later this year called Brief Encounters, which "aims to give new talent an opportunity to develop their scripts with the help of experienced mentors" including EastEnders writer Tony Jordan, Andrew Davies, who adapted Pride and Prejudice, and... new series producer Russell T Davies. The report also notes that Head of Daytime, Alison Sharman, is "tipped as favourite to become controller of BBC1, after Lorraine Heggessey resigned from the position to take over as chief executive of independent production company TalkBack Thames". Heggessey, of course, is the BBC1 Controller whose comments to the media in September 2003 were the first official word that Doctor Who was returning.

John Barrowman ("Captain Jack Harkness") will be appearing in the Royal National Theatre's revival of Anything Goes, which is scheduled to play Los Angeles' Ahmanson Theatre later this year, with John Barrowman repeating his London role of Billy Crocker. "And it's not hard to imagine the production moving on from there to New York," says Broadway.com.

Attitude Magazine, magazine for "gay professionals," recently featured a large article on Doctor Who, headlined with Who's the Daddy. It covered the age old topic of why Doctor Who is a 'gay pastime' and it also covered the programmes appeal in general.

Product Enterprises and Scificollector have joined forces to bring the long awaited Talking Davros toy to light, after repeated delays and production cancellations, as an exclusive at the Scificollector website. "There will only ever be one limited edition production run and there will be no more than 10,000 units produced," says the press information, which also notes it will be out in September 2005. See the website for further details. (Thanks to Steven Scott)

While there's nothing confirmed, a report on the usually very reliable DVD Times website notes that the new series may be getting a DVD release in October. "It seems the BBC want to get the first series on to the shelves in time for Christmas," says the report. Again, there's no word on anything official, but this does match the rumors that Outpost Gallifrey has been hearing the past few weeks. (Thanks to Greg Deeter)

Peter Hamilton, a long-time film cameraman with the BBC who worked on a variety of Doctor Who serials, died on March 1, due to unspecified reasons. Hamilton worked on many stories including "The Reign of Terror," "The Dalek Invasion of Earth," "The Web Planet," "The Crusade," "The Myth Makers," "The Daleks' Master Plan," "The Moonbase," "The Macra Terror," "The Tomb of the Cybermen," "The Dominators," "The Time Monster" and "Carnival of Monsters." Funeral services are planned for March 9 in Brixham. Also, Leonard Trolley, who played Superintendent Reynolds in the Patrick Troughton story "The Faceless Ones," died at the end of February; he was 87. (Thanks to Kevin Lyons, Neil Marsh)

DWM confirms the release of "The Crusade" on Monday 2 May from the BBC Radio Collection. It's narrated by William Russell, who is also interviewed as a 20-minute bonus feature on the second disc.

Sylvester McCoy is currently appearing in the play "Arsenic and Old Lace," touring the UK as Doctor Einstein, and BBC Wiltshire recently did an interview with him which can be listened to in RealAudio format; click on the website for details. (Thanks to Dan Garrett)

According to a report today on IGN, "Sources close to the US cable network Sci Fi Channel have told IGNFF's Doctor Who Report that the network is not in negotiations for the new series." The report speculates on other avenues, but suggests that according to their own sources, the channel is not interested in showing the series. There is now no word on a US broadcaster.

The new Doctor Who series will air beginning Tuesday, April 5 in Canada, according to a solid airdate confirmation from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and from several sources including Benjamin Elliott's "This Week in Doctor Who." According to the report, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) has scheduled Doctor Who for Tuesday nights at 8PM starting April 5, 2005. So far only the April 5th broadcast (without episode title) is showing. They have put up a temporary webpage up for their Doctor Who broadcast, though there's nothing there.

If you live in Canada or are in a border section of the US with access to the CBC, the Doctor has a home on April 5. And this should put to rest any worries that the show will broadcast earlier in the UK...

Issue #354 of Doctor Who Magazine is out this week. Attached is the press release and cover illustration; click on the image for a larger version.