Doctor Who Magazine - Issue 420

The cover and info on this month's edition of Doctor Who Magazine:

MEET THE NEW DOCTOR AND AMY POND - WITH TWO EXCLUSIVE COVERS FOR DWM #420!
Matt Smith and Karen Gillan reveal all about playing the Doctor and Amy in the new issue, on sale on Thursday 1st April.

In DWM’s in-depth interviews, Matt talks about how the Doctor’s costume may evolve, the nicknames that he and Karen have for each other and playing football with James Corden for a scene in Episode 11: “This has made my list of Top Five Shooting Days! Pushing Top Three! There were no aliens, no Daleks, nothing. We were just playing football. Then again, I suppose there was a big time loop...”

Karen, meanwhile, tells us about Amy’s complicated relationship with the Doctor and Amy’s boyfriend Rory, what she thinks about wearing surprisingly short skirts, and her approach to playing the role of the Doctor’s new best friend: “Amy should never take anything for granted - she doesn’t know she’s the companion and she’s not familiar with the set-up that the Doctor has a female companion. So this is all brand-new to her and I have to keep reminding myself of that. As far as she knows, she’s the first companion… ever!”

Also in DWM 420:

“What have you got for me this time?”
DWM proudly presents extensive previews the first five episodes of the new series - The Eleventh Hour, The Beast Below, Victory of the Daleks, The Time of Angels and Flesh and Stone - with never-before-seen photos and exclusive revelations from head writer Steven Moffat!

“I’m a celebrity, get me out of here!”
STEVEN MOFFAT talks candidly about the perils of being recognised in public as Doctor Who’s head writer - and finds time to answer your questions about the new series before you ask them! - in Production Notes.

“And it’s goodnight from me”
Neil Harris looks back fondly at 47 years of farewells in Doctor Who - and discovers how the series has always had its softer side - in You Are Not Alone.

“McNeice to see you, to see you, McNeice!”
Churchill himself, actor IAN McNEICE, talks exclusively to DWM about his role in the forthcoming story Victory of the Daleks - and reveals what it’s like to encounter the metal meanies in real life…

“Give her a big hand!”
It’s the final end! The Doctor and Majenta engage in the ultimate battle with the Crimson Hand in the very last comic strip to feature the Time Lord’s Tenth incarnation. Will anyone survive the apocalypse? Don’t miss the thrilling conclusion to The Crimson Hand, written by Dan McDaid, with art by Martin Geraghty.

“Is it cos I’s blue?”
It’s the most remarkable machine in the universe - and yet it looks like a blue twentieth-century police box! The Watcher uncovers the many and varied secrets of the Doctor’s time and space machine, the TARDIS!

“You’re hired!”
On the planet Vulcan, the colonists decide to employ the services of creatures that they have discovered buried in a mercury swap - the Daleks! Can a newly-regenerated Doctor, armed only with his recorder and a rather natty bow tie, save the day? Find out, as The Fact of Fiction digs up some amazing details about the classic Second Doctor story from 1966 The Power of the Daleks!

Plus!

All the latest official news, reviews, previews and competitions - including the chance to win an 32” HD-ready widescreen TV! - and much, much more!

Issue 420 of Doctor Who Magazine is available in two different covers and is on sale from Thursday 1st April priced £4.20 per copy.

Doctor Who in Latest Radio Times

This week's Radio Times magazine features a Doctor Who cover and an interview with Matt Smith and Karen Gillan, as well as pictures of the new TARTIS interior! Read the info below for more info:

Matt Smith is the 27-year-old actor to scoop the title role in the new series of Doctor Who. A graduate of the University of East Anglia, where he studied drama and creative writing, Smith has his own way of accessing this enigmatic character.

“I was thinking, ‘Who in the world has a brain and a silliness which is close to the Doctor?’ and then I saw that photograph of Albert Einstein poking his tongue out and it just clicked. I found this book of quotes by Einstein - which I recommend as a life choice, he was such an insightful man - and I started writing short stories about Einstein and the Doctor, where the Doctor was getting irritated with the great man’s buffoonery. He’d be saying, ‘Come on, Albert, keep up!’ and I think that, more than anything, was my way in to the part.”

Karen Gillan is the girl who grabbed the role every actress would die for: the companion to the eleventh Doctor. Fans camped outside the Doctor Who set are a reminder of the show’s unique place in British culture.

“I was never really into science fiction when I was growing up,” she says, “though my mum was a big Doctor Who fan. Now I’ve turned into a real sci-fi geek. Once you get sucked into that world, it has its own logic and laws, which is why I think people are so passionate about it.”

The magazine also confirms that episode seven of the next series of Doctor Who is titled Amy's Choice. The magazine is on sale now priced £1.10. For pictures of the new Tardis interior, click here. More to come!

Doctor Who Adventures - Issue 159

The cover and info on this week's edition of Doctor Who Adventures magazine:
READY FOR CHANGE?
This week Doctor Who Adventures checks out the amazing 3D trailer for the new series of Doctor Who. PLUS find out some sneaky secrets from the first six episodes!

We go behind the scenes with the Who crew to find out how they filmed David Tennant regenerating into new Doctor, Matt Smith.

Take a look back at the Tenth Doctor’s final battle in this week’s story guide. Rediscover the friends, the foes and the final moments before the regeneration began!

All this, and…

• Bumper gift pack with TWO great gifts.
• Top 10 amazing endings!
• Brilliant final comic strip for the Tenth Doctor!
• Three fantastic posters.
• Subscription offer - subscribe today and save over 40%.

Issue 159 of Doctor Who Adventures magazine is on sale now at all good newsagents priced £2.10 per copy.

New Extended Series 5 Trailer & Vampires in Venice Clip

When Matt Smith appeared on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross last night, an extended version of the Digital Spy Doctor Who series five trailer was shown. You can watch it below:

Also, a clip from episode six of the series, Vampires in Venice, was shown later on. You can watch it below:

Series five of Doctor Who starts next Saturday at 6:20pm on BBC One and BBC HD. Doctor Who Confidential follows straight after on BBC Three.

Doctor Who: The Beast Below - Synopsis

The BBC Press Office have released the synopsis for episode two of the fifth series of Doctor Who. You can read it below:

The Beast Below - by Steven Moffat

The Doctor takes Amy to the distant future, where she finds Britain in space. Starship UK houses the future of the British people, as they search the stars for a new home. But as Amy explores, she encounters the terrifying Smilers and learns a deadly truth inside the Voting Booth.

Doctor Who: The Beast Below will broadcast on Saturday 10th April at 6:15pm on BBC One and BBC HD. Doctor Who Confidential will then follow at 7:00pm on BBC Three and BBC HD.

New Look for the Official Doctor Who Website!

The official Doctor Who website has a brand-spanking new look in preparation for the new series of. It features a guide and clips to The Eleventh Hour, character and monster files, games and the latest news! The old version of the site, acting as the second Doctor Who online archive, is still available via a link in the navigation bar titled Past Series. The site also confirms that the new series of Doctor Who will officially start on Saturday 3rd April, that Doctor Who Confidential will return and that the pre-title scene from The Eleventh Hour will be available to watch THIS Saturday on the site! Click here to visit it. More to come!

Doctor Who DVD Files - Issue 32

The cover and info on this fortnight's edition of the Doctor Who DVD Files:

In Issue 32...

Earthshock
Clockwork Robots
Friends Reunited
Queen Victoria
The Other Doctors
Kandyman
Adric
Space Freighter
The Seventh Doctor

The Doctor Who DVD Files - Issue 32 is on sale from today at all good newsagents priced £6.99 per copy.

Doctor Who Adventures Relaunch

Next week's issue of Doctor Who Adventures magazine will feature a few, slight, boring old changes... AS IF! Read the press pack from the BBC Press Office below for more info on the brand-spanking new look of DWA:

Doctor Who Adventures magazine is set to re-launch on Thursday 1st April, and will feature new Doctor Who branding throughout the title, along with exclusive content.

Inside the revamped issue, which goes on sale two days before the new Doctor's first episode airs on BBC, is the first in a series of exclusive diary reports from actor Matt Smith. Issue 160 of the magazine sees Matt write about auditioning for the part of the Doctor and meeting the Doctor's new companion, Amy Pond, played by Karen Gillan. In addition there is a sneak peek at the Doctor's first episode, The Eleventh Hour, a star interview with Matt Smith, a free TARDIS clock and the chance to win your very own life-size Dalek.

Other new features include a brand new Fast Fact page, which allows readers to cut out and collect fact files on all their favourite Doctor Who characters and a fresh new Doctor Who Adventures comic strip. There is also the introduction of a secret code; this runs throughout the magazine and allows readers to decode hidden Doctor Who facts and information. Favourites, such as puzzles, quizzes and posters also feature.

Moray Laing, Editor of Doctor Who Adventures says: "The new look Doctor Who Adventures magazine will prepare all young Doctor Who fans for the arrival of the Eleventh Doctor and his companion. Our new and exclusive content will excite young customers and refresh the newsstand visually. It is in the interest of independent retailers to prominently display the redesigned magazine as awareness of the brand will grow with the launch of the new series."

The magazine will retain its weekly cover price of £2.10 and continue to give away Doctor Who free gifts, the first of which is a TARDIS clock.

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Issue 160 of DWA is on sale from next Thursday. Doctor Who returns on Saturday 3rd April at 6:25pm to BBC One and BBC HD.

New Doctor Who: Series 5 Trailer!

A new trailer advertising the upcoming fifth series of Doctor Who has been released, you can watch it above (please be aware of spoilers). The new series of Doctor Who begins on Saturday 3rd April at 6:25pm on BBC One and BBC HD.

Doctor Who Adventures - Issue 158

The cover and info on this week's edition of Doctor Who Adventures magazine:

MEET AMY POND!
This week Doctor Who Adventures meets the actress, Karen Gillan, who plays the new Doctor’s companion, Amy Pond. Find out if Karen is a Doctor Who fan, how she got the part and what Amy is like.

“She’s a force of nature and really keeps the Doctor on his toes” - Karen on Amy.

“She gets involved in this big adventure with the Doctor and it becomes very clear that she is an adventurer just like him” - Karen on Amy meeting the Doctor.

This week there’s a cool competition to celebrate David Tennant’s time on Doctor Who. You can win tonnes of Tenth Doctor goodies! Prizes include: life-size cut-out of David Tennant, books, DVDs, loads of figures, a David Tennant’s t-shirt and a Flight Control Tardis! 

All this, and…
· Ten free gifts - stationary, stickers and magnets
· Find out how well you know the Ood in this week’s quiz
· Three fantastic posters!
· Subscription offer - subscribe today and save over 40% 

Issue 158 of Doctor Who Adventures magazine is on sale now at all good newsagents until 24th March priced £2.10 per copy. In other news: A full Doctor Who series five press pack has been released by the BBC Press Office, you can read it here.

Doctor Who: The Eleventh Hour - Synopsis

The BBC Press Office has released the official synopsis of the first episode from the upcoming fifth series of Doctor Who:

THE ELEVENTH HOUR - by Steven Moffat

The Doctor has regenerated into a brand-new man, but danger strikes before he can even recover, as Doctor Who returns for a new series. With the Tardis wrecked and the sonic screwdriver destroyed, the new Doctor has just 20 minutes to save the whole world - and only Amy Pond to help him.

Doctor Who: The Eleventh Hour will broadcast on Saturday 3rd April at 6:25pm on BBC One and BBC HD. In other news: A festive Doctor Who episode has been commissioned for this Christmas as well as a sixth series due to broadcast next year, filming is due to begin this summer. Also, it has been announced that the first episode from the new Doctor Who spin-off K.9 is also to broadcast on 3rd April - on Disney XD at 4:00pm as a "teaser" of the series.

Doctor Who Adventures - Issue 157

The cover and info on this week's edition of Doctor Who Adventures magazine: 

RIVER RETURNS 
Remember River Song, the Tenth Doctor’s mysterious friend? She’s coming back! Alex Kingston, who plays her, tells Doctor Who Adventures all about it.

This week’s story guide is about the animated episode of Doctor Who: Dreamland.

Find you what happens and who’s who, in the adventure that sees the Doctor discover aliens at a secret military base.

All this, and…
· Free Doctor Who stickers
· Sontaran quiz
· The new series countdown begins!
· Subscription offer - subscribe today and save over 40%.

Issue 157 of Doctor Who Adventures magazine is on sale from today at all good newsagents until 17th March priced £2.10 per copy. In other news: Nikki Wilson, producer on The Sarah Jane Adventures has confirmed one of fourth series' story titles as (highlight to reveal) The Nightmare Man and that half of series five is to be filmed along with series four.

Doctor Who DVD Files - Issue 31

The cover and info on this fortnight's edition of Doctor Who DVD Files magazine:

IN ISSUE 31...

Genesis of the Daleks
Old Sonic Screwdriver
Racnoss Empress
Friends and Foes
Kamelion
Big Top Terror
Reinette
The Black Guardian
Reimagining the Daleks - interview with writer Rob Shearman

Issue 31 of Doctor Who DVD Files magazine is on sale from today at all good newsagents until 23rd March priced £6.99 per copy.

Matt Smith & Karen Gillan to Tour the UK!

The BBC Press Office has confirmed that Matt Smith and Karen Gillan, stars of the new upcoming series of Doctor Who, are set to tour the UK to help promote the new 13-episode-long series, read on for further details:

Belfast, Inverness, Sunderland, Salford, Northampton
Doctor Who will begin an exciting national tour across the UK in March, introducing the new Doctor to fans of the series in five different locations spanning the length and breadth of the British Isles.

The tour will introduce the 11th Doctor, Matt Smith, and his Companion, Karen Gillan, to fans of the BBC One show and offer them a unique chance to meet the stars.

Each location will also host a regional premiere of episode one, The Eleventh Hour, for local children, working alongside BBC Outreach to enable kids to get a first look at the new Doctor in action.

Matt and Karen will travel around the UK on a specially themed Doctor Who tour bus, featuring the new Tardis logo and iconic imagery.

BBC Outreach proactively takes the BBC into specific communities and sections of society, and has been integral in organising and supporting the tour.

The focus of the tour is to reach relatively under-served communities by the BBC.

The Doctor's maiden voyage will commence on 29th March in Belfast, and then travel to Karen Gillan's home town, Inverness, for a screening on 30th March.

The bus will then move on to Sunderland that afternoon and Salford on Wednesday 31st March before finishing later that day in Northampton - Matt Smith's hometown.

Following the tour, from 1st to 3rd April, the BBC will also hold events for three days at selected BBC Big Screens across the UK giving Doctor Who fans in London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Plymouth and Swansea the chance to interact directly with the show in their home towns.

The events will feature exclusive footage - including the chance to see the Doctor Who trailer in 3D - and giveaways, and fans can also get their photo taken tumbling through the giant vortex.

Visitors will be able to meet some of the scariest monsters that have had viewers watching from behind their sofa for generations as well.

Piers Wenger, executive producer and head of drama, BBC Wales, said: "This is a great opportunity for the new Doctor and his Companion to interface directly with the people who matter most to Doctor Who: the fans!".

"The chance to visit them in their hometowns will ensure that the 11th Doctor's maiden voyage is an utterly magical one."

Alec McGivan, Head of BBC Outreach, added: "Outreach is all about getting face to face with people so they can get involved and experience the BBC in a different and exciting way - we're delighted to be able to take one of the BBC's best loved brands out to its audience."

The tour begins on 29th March in Belfast. Doctor Who returns this Easter to BBC One and BBC HD.

Doctor Who: First Doctor Figure - FB Exclusive

Character Options have revealed yet another classic Doctor Who figure - exclusive to Forbidden Planet:

First Doctor Figure with Cane 
School teachers Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton become intrigued by one of their pupils, Susan Foreman, and visit her home address - a junkyard at 76 Totter’s Lane - where they meet her grandfather, the Doctor. The Doctor and Susan are aliens who travel through time and space in their ship, the Tardis, which looks like an ordinary police box but actually houses a huge gleaming control room. The Tardis takes them all to a Palaeolithic landscape where they encounter a tribe that has lost the secret of fire.

This exclusive 1st Doctor from Underground Toys presents the 1st Doctor William Hartnell in the costume he wore in the pilot episode of the series An Unearthly Child with hat, cape and longer jacket.

The figure is on sale from 10th May exclusively at Forbidden Planet stores priced £14.99 per purchase.

Doctor Who Adventures - Issue 156

The cover and info on this week's edition of Doctor Who Adventures magazine:

This week we look at the best-ever battles in Doctor Who! They all involve the scariest monsters we’ve seen in the the series. We’ve got a top 10 Judoon moments and you’d better watch out, because there’s a Graske on the loose in this week’s photo adventure! 

We also go behind the scenes to watch an amazing stunt involving the Doctor falling through the sky! All this, plus posters, puzzles and things to win. Enjoy! See you soon...

Issue 156 of Doctor Who Adventures magazine is on sale now at all good newsagents until 10th March priced £2.10 per copy.

Doctor Who Magazine - Issue 419

The cover and info on this month's edition of Doctor Who magazine:

Doctor Who’s new producers reveal more about the new series in Doctor Who Magazine issue 419!
Beth Willis and Piers Wenger, along with head writer Steven Moffat, are the new executive producers of Doctor Who. But just who are Piers and Beth? And what new challenges do they have in store for the Eleventh Doctor and Amy? DWM finds out in an exclusive interview, featuring brand new pics from the Eleventh Doctor’s first episode…

“We wanted to give the look of the series a slightly more storybook, fairy-tale feel,” reveals Piers. “It wasn’t about suddenly becoming Tim Burton, but it was a pinch of that, a pinch of Twilight, a pinch of Harry Potter - but it’s still absolutely, slapbang, mainstream Doctor Who…”

ALSO IN DWM 419…
 
FREAKS!
FREE with DWM! A brand new audio adventure to download for all readers, featuring the Fifth Doctor, Turlough and Tegan - Freakshow by Mark Morris. Mark Strickson and Toby Longworth star in this full-length story in which the Tardis crew encounter a caged menagerie of the most unusual aliens… 

THE TERROR! 
Weeping Angels! 3D trailers! And the unspeakable horror of Matt Smith wielding a burning torch! Steven Moffat reveals at least three, frankly terrifying, facts about the forthcoming series of Doctor Who in his latest unmissable Production Notes!

THE HAND!
The Doctor is dead, killed by Majenta Pryce! And the universe itself is at her mercy… Don’t miss the penultimate instalment of our latest comic strip The Crimson Hand, written by Dan McDaid with art by Martin Geraghty.

THE HOUND!
Every dog has his day - and, at long last, it’s K9’s turn! DWM goes behind the scenes of the brand new series starring the Doctor’s erstwhile companion, with exclusive interviews with the cast & crew and never-before-published pics!

THE NIGHTMARE MAN!
He was the man who thinks that Doctor Who should be “every child’s favourite nightmare!” DWM tracks down writer Donald Tosh and discovers how he helped shape the destiny of Doctor Who back in the 1960s… 

THE CURSE OF THE MUMMY’S TOMB! 
Murders! Mummies! And a mysterious message from Mars… The Fact of Fiction goes on an archaeological expedition to unearth the secrets of the ancient Egyptian Gods as it puts the fantastic Fourth Doctor story Pyramids of Mars under the spotlight!

BEYOND BELIEF! 
Just how important are Special Effects in Doctor Who - and is it possible to make a great story without them? Neil Harris investigates and comes to some controversial conclusions in You Are Not Alone!

THE BEAST!
At last! One of earliest stars of Doctor Who Magazine breaks his silence about what it was really like to meet the Doctor… Yes, the cute, furry, homicidal legend that is Beep the Meep speaks exclusively to the mag for the first (and very possibly the last) time!

PLUS!
All the latest official news, previews of the latest DVD and audio releases, merchandise reviews, prize-winning competitions and much, much more!

Issue 419 of Doctor Who magazine is on sale from today at all good newsagents until 31st March priced £4.20 per copy.

The Sarah Jane Adventures: Series 4 & 5 Confirmed!

The BBC have today officially confirmed that The Sarah Jane Adventures will return for a fourth series later this year, and that a further fifth series is soon to be put into production for broadcast in late 2011. Read the press pack below for more info:

CBBC Controller Damian Kavanagh has commissioned two new series (24 x 30-minutes) of hugely successful Doctor Who spin-off The Sarah Jane Adventures, which will see the intrepid investigative journalist and her gang of young sidekicks continue to enthral children for the foreseeable future.

Created by Russell T Davies, and featuring one of Doctor Who's most famous companions, Sarah Jane Smith, The Sarah Jane Adventures is made by BBC Cymru Wales and has been a huge hit on CBBC since its debut in 2007, with viewing figures continuing to grow year on year.

The fourth series, set to air this autumn, will again star Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane. Young actors Tommy Knight, Daniel Anthony and Anjli Mohindra return as popular regulars Luke, Clyde and Rani.

The new adventures will feature the usual mixture of thrills, scares and fun with enemies old and new, including the terrors of the Nightmare Man, the sinister Shansheeth, the series' first visit to an alien world, and even a dangerous journey back into history.

The series will go into production in Cardiff later this month with series three producer Nikki Wilson stepping up alongside Russell T Davies as executive producer and new producer Brian Minchin joining the team.

Damian Kavanagh says: "We are thrilled to be making many more episodes of The Sarah Jane Adventures!"

"It is been a huge ratings and critical success on CBBC and we hope our viewers are going to be hooked on Sarah Jane's action-packed adventures for some time to come."

BBC Wales Head of English Language Programmes, Clare Hudson, says: "The idea for The Sarah Jane Adventures sprang from the success of Doctor Who and it has since rocketed in popularity in its own right, thanks to the vision, talent and hard work of the show's brilliant cast and crew."

The fifth series will go into production in 2011 for transmission later that year.

Writers on the fourth series include Phil Ford (also co-producer), Joseph Lidster, Rupert Laight, Gareth Roberts and Clayton Hickman.

The Sarah Jane Adventures is a BBC Cymru Wales/ Children's BBC production.

The Sarah Jane Adventures returns to CBBC this Autumn.

Doctor Who: More Series 5 Episode Titles Revealed!

Issue 419 of Doctor Who magazine, out later this month, reveals the episode titles for episodes four-six from the new upcoming series of Doctor Who (higlight gap below to reveal):

5.04: The Time of Angels - by Steven Moffat
5.05: Flesh and Stone - by Steven Moffat
5.06: The Vampires of Venice - by Toby Whitehouse

More episode titles are likely to be confirmed in the next issue of Doctor Who magazine. Doctor Who returns this Spring to BBC One and BBC HD.

Doctor Who: 7th Doctor & Tardis Figure Set - FB Exclusive

Character Options have released info on a new exclusive classic Doctor Who figure set - exclusive to Forbidden Planet:

7th Doctor & Tardis
Mercurial and highly moral, this Doctor would often despair at the cruelty and wastefulness he encountered across the galaxies. On a trip to America in 1999, he was accidentally gunned down by a street gang and taken to hospital, where the procedures taken to try and save him did the reverse and he seemingly died, only to regenerate within the hospital’s morgue…

In this exclusive Seventh Doctor Set from Underground Toys we present the Seventh Doctor action figure with Electronic Classic TARDIS as they appear in the Curse of Fenric. The Doctor comes with brown jacket, umbrella accessory and an Electronic TARDIS. The Classic TARDIS features opening left door with telephone cubby hole, a spring activated right hand door and features takeoff and landing light and sound effects.

The set is on sale from 10th May exclusively at Forbidden Planet stores priced £34.99 per purchase.