Matt Smith-related stories
Posted Oct 23rd 2009 8:03AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, Doctor Who, Reality-Free
Prepare for some spoilers. Don't say I didn't warn you. By the way, Matt Smith is the 11th Doctor (or the 12th, depending on how they spin David Tennant's extraneous regeneration) in case you didn't know.
Actually, it's not that bad. From an article posted on
The Doctor Who News Page, it is learned that his new companion, Amy, is a police officer. In a few photos, he also seems to be wearing the remnants of Tennant's outfit. From the description, the Doctor is probably going through some post-regenerative trauma. When has the Doctor ever regenerated without trauma? Never, I think.
I know they film out of order, but it feels odd to know already what his outfit is going to look like. Here is one other possible minor spoiler: in the scenes filmed, the Sonic Screwdriver gets destroyed (and Matt Smith was slightly injured in the process). Between Matt Smith's age and that plot device, it's like Steven Moffat is trying to copy the Peter Davison era.
Posted Oct 7th 2009 11:41AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, Doctor Who, Reality-Free
Every once in a while, the British television show
Doctor Who is revamped. This is usually done by replacing the lead actor and his supporting crew. However, it is also done by changing the logo of the series. As a result, certain logos are associated with certain eras. Yesterday, the BBC
has revealed on their website the logo to be associated with the Matt Smith era of the show. They also have a video of the historical logos of the show.
I don't have a particular favorite logo, although I liked both the "diamond" logo of the 70's, most closely associated with Tom Baker's era, and the "neon" logo of the 80's, which spanned three Doctors (Tom Baker, Peter Davison and Colin Baker). The current one isn't bad either with the cylinder thing with pointy ends (what is that shape called?).
A video preview of thenew logo is available on certain sites such as
Topless Robot. What do you think of it? Which logo has been your favorite?
Posted Aug 29th 2009 9:29AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, Doctor Who, Reality-Free
Filming is underway for season five (called series five in the U.K.) of the adventures of everyone's favorite Time Lord,
Doctor Who, and naturally, a few secrets of the next season have already been leaked.
For the benefit of those who don't wish to be spoiled, the goodies will be revealed after the jump. The rest of you can go about your business.
Continue reading Doctor Who next season spoilers
Posted Aug 12th 2009 9:03AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Programming, OpEd, Doctor Who, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
In a victory for nerdy Brit-philes everywhere, BBC America
has announced the acquisition of U.S. broadcast rights for the fifth season of
Doctor Who starring the 11th Doctor, Matt Smith. This is on the tail of announcing record ratings for the American broadcast of the
Doctor Who episode Planet of the Dead and the mini-series
Torchwood: Children of Earth.
This is all the more reason to curse my cable company for not actually carrying BBC America and having to resort to other means to watch one of my favorite programs of all time. You know when a network tells you to call your cable company to carry your favorite stations? I will personally testify in a court of law that it accomplishes jack squat.
There are no other television stations that could correctly carry
Doctor Who in the states. SyFy? Oh please. Their first run with the series was lukewarm at best. The Doctor is home, and I look forward to catching his new adventures however I can.
Posted Jul 22nd 2009 2:02PM by Mike Moody
Filed under: Video, Doctor Who, Reality-Free
The new
Doctor Who, Matt Smith, and gal pal Anna Pond (Karen Gillan) seem to be stranded on a beach in more new set photos and a video of the series' first day of shooting. (Fans will notice the Doctor is holding a brand new sonic screwdriver.)
I'm really looking forward to the Doctor's return (or the new Doctor's arrival, however you wish to look at it) in 2010. The first two brilliant hours of
Torchwood: Children of Earth have me wanting to dive back into the rich sci-fi world created by Russell T. Davies.
Continue reading Matt Smith shows off his sonic screwdriver in new Doctor Who set pics, video
Posted Jul 21st 2009 9:03AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Industry, Doctor Who, Celebrities, Reality-Free
The new actor to play the lead role on
Doctor Who, Matt Smith, has begun filming his first episodes. Thus, the paparazzi were able
to snap some photos of his outfit. Despite being the youngest actor to play the role, he's dressed like the oldest. It's something of a full-color version of Patrick Troughton's outfit from the 1960's. Perhaps it's a hipster thing.
It's been suggested online that he's going for a science teacher look, and that would actually be pretty retro of the show (which was originally intended to teach children about science and history, although I'm not sure how meeting cavemen followed by Daleks teaches either).
Mr. Smith has pretty big shoes to fill, particularly considering that by the time he was considered of age to watch the show, it was off the air. Still, Steven Moffat is now the showrunner, so I'm confident that despite the loss of David Tennant and however the Doctor looks, it will still be among the best shows on television.
Posted May 30th 2009 9:05AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: TV on the Bigscreen, OpEd, Doctor Who, Reality-Free, British TV
The rumors flow like wine. Once again, "news" has surfaced that
a Doctor Who movie is in the works. Supposedly this one has a bit more merit because the BBC has confirmed that one is in development, yet they don't link to a press release of any kind. Forgive me if I have some doubts.
If true, which Doctor is it? Will it be David Tennant or Matt Smith? And which showrunner is it? Russell T. Davies or Steven Moffat? Or is the answer none of the above?
There has been
a lot of recent developments in the
Doctor Who world. A movie is the next logical step.
If I had my druthers, the movie would be about the Time War (the Daleks being the obvious choice for the alien enemy of the movie). It would star Paul McGann and fill the gap between the 1996 television movie and the 2005 relaunch. The odds are so astronomically against as to be incalculable, but I can dream.
Posted May 29th 2009 2:02PM by John Scott Lewinski
Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Doctor Who, Reality-Free, British TV
The new cast of 2010's next full season of the world's longest running sci-fi show is looking a lot like "Jim Henson's
Doctor Who Babies" with the announcement of the new companion for Matt Smith's 11th Doctor.
Twenty-one-year-old Karen Gillan will become the show's first "ginger" companion when the red-head steps into the Tardis for executive producer Steven Moffat next year. When standing alongside 26-year-old Smith, the pair could look disturbingly like a
Twilight book cover.
While it's not fair to say she got the part because she's Scottish, it couldn't hurt that her boss (Moffat) hails from the same part of the world. She studied acting at Telford College in Edinburgh and already has a short list of credits, including
Outcast (a film with
Jekyll star, James Nesbitt).
Continue reading Doctor Who gets younger, redder with new companion
Posted Apr 23rd 2009 8:31PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Celebrities, Casting, Reality-Free
Back in the good old days of Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor, one of the enemies of our intrepid hero came in the form of a Time Lady known as the Rani. Unlike the Doctor's other nemesis from his own race, the Master, the Rani didn't have a personal grudge against our hero and simply preferred to perform immoral experiments on those she deemed as lesser species in her quest for knowledge.
Who might be playing the Rani in the new series? That's after the jump.
Continue reading The most surprising Doctor Who news I've heard (today)
Posted Feb 3rd 2009 9:23AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, Video, Doctor Who, Celebrities, Reality-Free
The BBC is keeping a video diary of the filming of the next
Doctor Who special "Planet of the Dead". The video is on YouTube, so the BBC might yank it at any time. The video on the BBC itself might not be available outside of the U.K. You have been warned.
The interesting thing about watching the video is that you can tell that Tennant really loves playing the Doctor. When roll call is taken, he gives in jest the name "Matt Smith", the next actor to play the part. He seems sad that his run is coming to an end.
While Mr. Tennant will move on to bigger and better things, I have no doubt that he will continue to play the role in his own fashion. He loves it so much that I'm sure he'll show up at a convention at some point and participate in a
Big Finish audio drama or two.
Video is after the jump.
Continue reading David Tennant doesn't really want to leave - VIDEO
Posted Jan 21st 2009 3:02PM by Mike Moody
Filed under: Doctor Who, Celebrities, Casting, Reality-Free
I wasn't a big fan of NBC's
Bionic Woman remake. The best thing about it – besides Katee Sackhoff's guest turn – was star Michelle Ryan. The English actress not only looked the part, but her performance sometimes managed to make the show feel richer and more complex than it actually was. So I was happy to hear that she might play
the new Doctor's companion on Doctor Who.
"Michelle's been in secret talks with BBC bosses," a source told the UK's Sunday Mirror. "They are likely to announce her as
Doctor Who's new assistant very soon. She is perfect for the role. She is good looking and the right age to star alongside Matt (Smith). Everyone agrees they look great together and reckon fans will think they're the perfect team, too."
Continue reading Michelle Ryan might be Doctor Who's next companion
Posted Jan 5th 2009 3:14PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, Doctor Who, Reality-Free
So now that we know
the identity of the actor to play the next Doctor on
Doctor Who, the
Telegraph newspaper in the U.K.
is now beginning speculation on the identity of the Doctor's next traveling companion. Since this is speculation, I would take it with a grain of salt. At least it's not from the other British "newspaper" the
Sun.
They seem to think that the BBC and the producers will go with the semi-famous pop star route that proved successful with Billie Piper (The article throws out names like Lily Allen). It's a safe bet that whomever the Doctor's next companion is will be young and female.
Given the complete history of the show, companions have run the gamut. Since the reboot, I liked Rose and Martha and adored Donna (up until the end, which I fell flat a bit). For his remaining specials, David Tennant's Doctor will be pretty much companion-less. Who would you like to see join the next Doctor for a romp in the TARDIS?
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