Watching Doctor Who

Yesterday we looked at the first of the classic episodes. Today we’re back with the new series of Doctor Who. This week’s question is: Who is your favorite new series director? Just to help you out I’ve actually made a list off all of the directors so far, and all of their episodes. For the record, Graeme Harper has directed the most episodes with twelve to his name. There are a few folks who have only directed one episode so far. Who do you like the best?

The New Series Directors:
1. Joe Aherne - (Dalek 1.6, Father’s Day 1.8, Boom Town 1.11, Bad Wolf 1.12, The Parting of the Ways 1.13) - 5

2. Keith Boak - (Rose 1.1, Aliens of London 1.4, World War III 1.5) - 3

3. Richard Clark - (Gridlock 3.3, The Lazarus Experiment 3.6) - 2

4. Andy Goddard - (The Next Doctor) - 1

5. Brian Grant - (The Long Game 1.7) - 1

6. Graeme Harper - (Rise of the Cybermen 2.5, The Age of Steel 2.6, Army of Ghosts 2.12, Doomsday 2.13, 42 3.7, Utopia 3.11, Time Crash, Planet of the Ood 4.3, The Unicorn and the Wasp 4.7, Turn Left 4.11, The Stolen Earth 4.12, Journey’s End 4.13) - 12

7. James Hawes - (The Empty Child 1.9, The Doctor Dances 1.10, The Christmas Invasion, New Earth 2.1, School Reunion 2.3, Evolution of the Daleks 3.5) - 6

8. Euros Lyn - (The End of the World 1.2, The Unquiet Dead 1.3, Children in Need Special, Tooth and Claw 2.2, Girl in the Fireplace 2.4, The Idiot’s Lantern 2.7, Fear Her 2.11, The Runaway Bride, Silence in the Library 4.8, Forest of the Dead 4.9) - 10 (if you count the Children in Need Special as an episode, and I do.)

9. Hattie MacDonald - (Blink 3.10) - 1

10. Douglas MacKinnon - (The Sontaran Stratagem 4.4, The Poison Sky 4.5) - 2

11. Charles Palmer - (Smith and Jones 3.1, The Shakespeare Code 3.2, Human Nature 3.8, The Family of Blood 3.9) - 4

12. James Strong - (The Impossible Planet 2.8, The Satan Pit 2.9, Daleks in Manhattan 3.4, Voyage of the Damned, Partners in Crime 4.1) - 5

13. Colin Teague - (The Sound of Drums 3.12, Last of the Time Lords 3.13, The Fires of Pompeii 4.2) - 3

14. Alice Troughton - (The Doctor’s Daughter 4.6, Midnight 4.10) - 2

15. Ashley Way - (The Attack of the Graske Interactive Special) - 1

16. Dan Zeff - (Love and Monsters 2.10) - 1

Once again, I have to choose Euros Lyn, just as I did after the first two series. I was so glad to see him back this year. I have enjoyed every episode he’s directed. Perhaps it’s just that everything he directs seems to have a certain mood to it. A bit of extra depth. If I’m very lucky, perhaps he’ll direct a special or some of the episodes for series five.

Doctor Who, Joe Aherne, Keith Boak, Richard Clark, Andy Goddard, Brian Grant, Graeme Harper, James Hawes, Euros Lyn, Hattie MacDonald, Douglas MacKinnon, Charles Palmer, James Strong, Colin Teague, Alice Troughton, Ashley Way, Dan Zeff

Here we see the Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theater with another Doctor Who-related video. This time around they’re attempting to sing the names of all eleven Doctors while standing in front of one of their “Edinburgh TARDISes.” (As seen in a couple of their previous videos.) They even throw in the Doctors from the Curse of Fatal Death, a spoof written by a certain Steven Moffat you may recall. Clever hand puppets, aren’t they? I’m quite amused by their stated reasoning for liking Matt Smith. Yes, a Doctor with two single syllable names certainly makes it easier to work said name into a song. What could they possibly come up with next? An ode to K-9? A marathon of Companion names? Personally, I can’t wait to find out.

Enjoy!

The 11 Doctor Whos Name Song:

Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theater, Doctor Who, Matt Smith

(Image: Simon James/WireImage) Patrick Stewart

The next Doctor Who special is due on Easter 2009 (it’s called The Planet of the Dead. What is it with Doctor Who and episodes with “Planet” in the title?) Anyway, as we have a few specials coming up during the next year I thought I’d ask you: Who would you like to see as a guest star in one of the 2009 Doctor Who specials?

I mean…they’re “Specials,” right? Wouldn’t it follow that they’ll spend a bit of extra money on them? Yes? So, imagine that the sky’s the limit. Your only limitations being that the actor in question needs to be currently alive and hasn’t previously appeared in Doctor Who. No John Cleese as he was in “City of Death.” I’d love to include Phyllida Law, but she was over on The Sarah Jane Adventures. Perhaps that wouldn’t matter as much. My suggestions are below.

People I Would Like to See in the Doctor Who Specials:

• Patrick Stewart
• Michael Praed
• Eric Idle
• Diana Rigg
• Christopher Lee
• Ian McKellen
• Sean Bean
• Judi Dench

That’s the group that I came up with off of the top of my head. Who do you suggest?

Doctor Who

This is the Reaction Post for the Doctor Who 2008 Christmas Special - The Next Doctor. Well, I certainly liked it better than last year’s Christmas Special, even if they didn’t have a Christmas song this year. Happier tone, and all of that.

For the reaction of a certain Dr. Geek to this episode, go here. For my rather disjointed reactions to The Next Doctor, click past the spoiler barrier.

(more…)

Doctor Who, The Next Doctor

Day 24: A Greeting from Rosita:

That was a bit short, so here is the video from Day 25…Donna’s Story in 90 seconds.

Donna’s Story (series 4 in fast forward):

Here we go with the next group of Doctor Who Advent Calendar goodies! What do you think of their offerings this year?

Day 11. - Number 1, Gallows Gate Road part 2 (story)

Day 12. - CyberQuiz!

Day 13. - Cybershade Face Mask

Day 14. - WhoSpy peeks at The Next Doctor

Day 15. - The Next Doctor Trailer:

Day 16. - Music from Murray Gold

Day 17. - The ComicMaker is Relaunched.

Day 18. - Doctor Who Prom Trailer

Day 19. - Jobsworth Judoon (game)

Day 20. - An Episode Guide for The Next Doctor.

Day 21. - New Teaser Clip

Day 22. - Podcast Teaser

Day 23. - A Video Jigsaw puzzle.

Day 24. - A Christmas Message from Velile Tshabalala. (Sorry, it’s not on YouTube yet.)

Doctor Who Advent Calendar

(Photo: Jules Annan/WireImage - David Morrissey in The Next Doctor)

We’ve been counting down the days to The Next Doctor and the time is almost here! (No word yet on when it will arrive in the U.S., but I can tell you that it will arrive in Australia on Sunday January 25 at 7.30pm, on ABC 1. Thanks for the heads-up Gillian!) Here a recap of the first ten days worth of things you can find on the Official BBC Advent Calendar.

Waiting for Who:
Day 1. - A short video greeting from David Tennant.

Day 2. - An Interview With Graeme Harper

Day 3. - A Day Off With Who? (A video with David’s double, Colum.)

Day 4. - Number 1, Gallows Gate Road - Part 1 (story)

Day 5. - Black Hole, the game.

Day 6. - Christmas Cards to download.

Day 7. - The Next Doctor desktop wallpapers.

Day 8. - Cosmic Collider, the game (play to see pictures and a script excerpt.)

Day 9. - a Christmas Monster File.

Day 10. - a Cyberman Screensaver.

The Next Doctor

Catherine Tate at the Woman’s Own Children of Courage Awards
Photo: Samir Hussein/WireImage

I have the worst cold! I just wanted to complain to folks I couldn’t cough on, sorry. Now, on to the news.

The BBC is reporting that David Tennant is having surgery on Thursday for a slipped disc. He will not be back on stage as Hamlet until after Christmas, apparently. Get well soon, David!

For those of you in the U.S. who missed series one of The Sarah Jane Adventures the last time around, you can catch a marathon of the show on 16 December on the SciFi Channel. If you don’t get the SciFi Channel, don’t despair. Series one of The Sarah Jane Adventures is out on DVD.

Speaking of DVDs, have you finished your Chrismahanukwanzikah shopping yet? Currently you can purchase Torchwood series two, Doctor Who series four, and The Infinite Quest. I need to invest in some new bookcases for my DVDs.

Have you been keeping an eye on the Official Doctor Who Website? They’re up to their usual Advent Calendar shenanigans again this year. So far there have been videos, desktop backgrounds, a game, and a story. They’ve also been in the process of adding the information from series 1-3 and the specials to the site. If you haven’t been by in a while, it’s worth a look.

And at least we’ll have a full series of The Sarah Jane Adventures to look forward to next year to go along with the truncated series three of Torchwood and the Doctor Who specials. That’s right, series three will appear in the UK in Autumn of 2009. I still have no official start date for series two in the U.S., but now that it is over in the UK it shouldn’t bee too long hence.

David Tennant, The Sarah Jane Adventures, Torchwood, Doctor Who

I hope that those of you who are in the U.S. had a great Thanksgiving. I certainly did. Actually, Doctor Who is one of the things that I’m thankful for. To keep you entertained while I’m busy cleaning up after the big dinner we just had, I offer you two videos.

This first video is the two minute preview of this year’s Doctor Who Christmas Special “The Next Doctor” that appeared during this year’s Children in Need show. I’ll be curious to know what you think of it.

Children in Need: The Next Doctor Clip -

This second video is a bit of silliness from the Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theater. This time the socks bring you a song that includes all ten Doctors. Mind you…there is at least one glaring error in the song. Can you spot it?

Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppets Sing a Doctor Who Children in Need Song -

Doctor Who, The Next Doctor, Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theater

Well, I suppose that this should actually be called “A Music Video and One Alternate Ending” but the other way sounds better, don’t you think? The first thing I have for you today is the infamous “other ending” to the Doctor Who episode: Journey’s End. The one involving a certain bit of TARDIS coral. Have you heard about it? It’s part of the reason for the online speculation as to whether or not Doctor 10.5 can grow a new TARDIS in his new Universe.

Well…see for yourself…

Journey’s End - Alternate Ending Clip:

This second YouTube offering is a music video using Snow Patrol’s song What if This Storm Ends? (from their new album A Hundred Million Suns.) It’s fairly Doctor/Rose-centric, but I really like the way it’s been put together. …And I adore the song. I admit it.

What if This Storm Ends?

Doctor Who, Journey’s End, Snow Patrol

John Barrowman at Birmingham Christmas Lights 2008
(From WireImage.com, Photo by Jules Annan)

Have I told you folks about Torchwood Babiez? It’s like a combination of Muppet Babies and the Whoniverse in comic format. You can find it over at tw_babiez on Livejournal. The reason I mention it now in particular is that part 3 (of 4) has just been posted. I’m loving it, and I hope that part four isn’t that many months away.

Speaking of comics, it looks like Sheldon is a Doctor Who fan, or perhaps it’s artist Dave Kellett who’s the fan. Either way, this is the second time I’ve seen the show mentioned in his comic strip.

The Children in Need TV event is on tonight, 14 November 2008, at 7pm. And what can we expect to see with relation to the Whoniverse? Well, apparently we will be treated to a clip from the Doctor Who Christmas special. In addition, there are rumours floating around that the next Doctor will be named during the show. I wonder if they’re actually talking about the name of the Christmas special, which is “The Next Doctor.” Who knows? I guess we’ll find out tonight.

Doctor Who series four is currently playing on BBCAmerica if you want to catch it again. It’s playing on Saturdays at 9(8c).

How did you first encounter Doctor Who? One of the things I haven’t done on this blog for a while is My First Doctor. Who was your first Doctor? Where did you see your first episode? Tell me your story and I’ll post it here. (You can see the previous ones here.) You can either comment with your story, or send me an e-mail using the Contact Me link near the top right of the blog.

Torchwood Babiez, Sheldon, Doctor Who

David Tennant was on BBC Breakfast on 3 November to talk about his decision to leave Doctor Who. This is what he had to say…

David Tennant on BBC Breakfast:

David Tennant, Doctor Who

I just found this video tribute to the Doctor, and I had to share it with you all. It’s especially timely, what with David making his announcement last week. It’s also really well done. Enjoy!

His Name is ‘The Doctor’ by seduff:

So…Doctor Who won in the Most Popular Drama category and David Tennant won the National Television Award for Outstanding Drama Performance (yay!) and then…

He said this:

That’s right. For those of you who haven’t yet heard, David Tennant is leaving Doctor Who after the 2009 specials.

(These two videos don’t quite sync up, sorry. But they’re the only version I found that was the whole thing.)
David talks about why he’s leaving (1):

David talks about why he’s leaving (2):

I’m quite sad about this, and I’m sure that you folks are, too. I’d so hoped that the Tenth Doctor would stick around for the first year of Moffat’s reign. I can see how the new team might like to start off fresh with a clean slate, and I understand David’s desire to move on before Doctor Who became just another job. But…losing the Doctor to another regeneration is going to be quite traumatic for me. I’m sure they’ll get some new bloke in who will do a great job, but I will always remember the fellow with the brainy specs and the manic disposition. Oh, and really great hair.

Luckily we still have those specials to look forward to, yeah? Russell T Davies had better come up with some fabulous storylines. And congratulations to the show, and David, for winning the National Television Awards this year.

Doctor Who, David Tennant

(image source: Amazon.co.uk as linked below)

Christopher Eccleston recently did a voiceover for an Amnesty International video about the proposed UK laws that would enable them to detain terrorism suspects for 42 days without a trial. You can watch “Sleepwalking” here.

In this years’ National Television Awards the male and female talent are competing against one another in every category. What does this mean for us? Well…it means that David Tennant and Catherine Tate are competing against each other for the Outstanding Drama Performance Award. (Doctor Who is also up for Most Popular Drama, by the way.) You still have a couple of days left to vote, if you’re of a mind to do so. Slightly more than seven days left until the show.

Digital Spy is reporting that the score for Doctor Who series four will be out on 17 November in the UK. No sign of it in the US as yet. Some of the tracks include: Season Four Opening Credits, Songs of Captivity and Freedom, and Silence In The Library. Yay for Oodsong!

Some other items that are out right now (and coming soon), for those of you preparing your Christmas/Chanukah/etc. lists:
* The Torchwood Soundtrack (US)
* The Sarah Jane Adventures - The Complete First Season (US)
* Doctor Who: The Complete Fourth Series (US) (18 November)
* Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest (US) (18 November)
* “Torchwood”: Lost Souls (BBC Audio) (UK)

And finally, just a note to remind you all that next month is the Two Year Anniversary of this blog. Wow! I don’t believe it! Stand by for a contest announcement at some point soon.

Christopher Eccleston, National Television Awards, David Tennant, Catherine Tate, Doctor Who, Torchwood