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There’s a lot of elements that make Doctor Who great – spectacular acting, set, costume and creature design, direction, etc. – but it’s hard to argue that a good script isn’t key for a show that’s known for its big imagination. And for those interested in the writing of the long-running sci-fi series, the BBC has now released a selection of scripts from the modern version of the show on its Script Library service for your reading pleasure.

There are currently 14 scripts available to read online, plucked from across the past 14 years of the revived series and from the pens of various writers. Season 3 opener “Smith and Jones” from former showrunner Russell T. Davies is the earliest script up for grabs, while the most recent is the premiere of season 11, “The Woman Who Fell To Earth,” Jodie Whittaker’s first adventure as the Thirteenth Doctor which was written by current showrunner Chris Chibnall.

Simon Brew May 13, 2017

Doctor Who series 10 episode 5 is Oxygen - and with lots of spoilers, here's our review...

This review contains spoilers. Our spoiler-free review is here.

See related Why I killed the Sega Dreamcast The top 25 Sega Dreamcast games The top 50 underappreciated Sega Mega Drive games 10 obscure Game Gear and PC Engine games we’d like to see on the Nintendo 3Ds

10.5 Oxygen

“Space. The Final Frontier. Final, because it wants to kill us”

It started with a Star Trek line. It ended with a hell of a cliffhanger. It left us hoping that Chris Chibnall has already signed up writer Jamie Mathieson – returning to Doctor Who writing following the likes of Flatline and Mummy On The Orient Express - for series 11. It would be fair to say that Oxygen was something of a triumph.

And I’m going to start at the end.

Notwithstanding the next time trailer,...

Pete Dillon-Trenchard May 13, 2017

So many spoilers, as we go looking for references in Doctor Who series 10, Oxygen...

This article contains spoilers for Doctor Who series 10, up to and including Oxygen.

See related Vib-Ribbon to return?

Space zombies, near-death experiences and what we can only hope is a temporary change for the Doctor… In Oxygen, writer Jamie Mathieson has quite literally played a blinder. And for the more observant among us, there were a handful of pop culture references and callbacks to earlier stories. Here’s our weekly round-up of the ones we noticed, along with the odd bit of wild speculation and things we just found interesting.

Oh, and look out for an extra article on Monday which takes a closer look at a few bits of graphic design this series - including the answer to a question which has been plaguing some of us for a couple of weeks now.

Simon Brew May 13, 2017

Doctor Who series 10 episode 5 is Oxygen - and with lots of spoilers, here's our review...

This review contains spoilers. Our spoiler-free review is here.

See related Doctor Who: Oxygen geeky spots and Easter eggs

10.5 Oxygen

“Space. The Final Frontier. Final, because it wants to kill us”

It started with a Star Trek line. It ended with a hell of a cliffhanger. It left us hoping that Chris Chibnall has already signed up writer Jamie Mathieson – returning to Doctor Who writing following the likes of Flatline and Mummy On The Orient Express - for series 11. It would be fair to say that Oxygen was something of a triumph.

And I’m going to start at the end.

Notwithstanding the next time trailer, that I won’t go through as I appreciate many chose to avoid it (and it certainly has things in it that spoiler-phobes would want...

Simon Brew May 11, 2017

Peter Capaldi, Pearl Mackie and Matt Lucas all head out into space in Doctor Who series 10's latest adventure. Here's our Oxygen review...

10.5 Oxygen

Ah, now here’s that episode of Doctor Who series 10 with scary monsters that you were waiting for.

Cooked up in the brain of Jamie Mathieson – back after Mummy On The Orient Express, Flatline and The Girl Who Died - it’s also the first story in the run that brings Matt Lucas’ Nardole properly along for the ride, and lets us spend a bit of quality time with him. Scary monsters? Nardole? That’s two things many fans were asking for in one 45 minute episode.

An episode that just happens to be terrific.

The set up on the surface seems your standard Doctor Who base under siege, but there’s a good deal more to it. This time, the Doctor, Bill and...

Louisa Mellor Nov 10, 2016

Crazyhead reaches the halfway mark with an episode that reveals Raquel's significance to the demon world...

This review contains spoilers.

See related Class episode 5 review: Brave-ish Heart Doctor Who Christmas special: Moffat and Capaldi discuss superhero episode Doctor Who series 10: Jamie Mathieson set to return

1.4 Penguin Or Cow

That was more like it. Penguin Or Cow saw the return of Raquel and Amy’s developing friendship as the demon-seers had a sleepover, complete with animal onesies.

That sort of quirky combination—occult mythology meets novelty sleepwear—is this show’s preferred kind of gag. Mixing low-key British absurdities with high-concept fantasy worked for Misfits, and it works here. We saw it in the muffin talk before Raquel and Amy took on Mercy, in the inventive child’s bedroom fight employing a plush snake as a weapon, and in the yellow canoe now permanently strapped to the roof of Jake’s car.

Matthew Byrd Nov 10, 2016

A major Pokemon Go update may be just around the corner, with the addition of Generation Two pocket monsters...

Developer Niantic may be preparing to release the most significant Pokemon Go update yet. 

See related  Class episode 5 review: Brave-ish Heart Doctor Who Christmas special: Moffat and Capaldi discuss superhero episode Doctor Who series 10: Jamie Mathieson set to return

The tech detectives at The Silph Road have combed through the code of Pokemon Go's v.0.45.0 update and discovered references to 100 new Pokemon from the game's second generation. The data includes Pokemon ranging from #152 (Chikorita) to #251 (Celebi) and all the respective new Pokemon families within that range. Interestingly, there is no reference to any of these Pokemon's move sets as of yet. 

The transform ability, however, has been discovered in the game's code which has also led to speculation that Ditto is going to finally be added to the game.

Louisa Mellor Oct 26, 2016

The Missing continues to weave a gripping, packed story, though it wouldn’t hurt it to stop and take a breath…

This review contains spoilers.

See related Class episodes 1 & 2 review: For Tonight We May Die & The Coach With The Dragon Tattoo Class: episode 5 synopsis released Torchwood at 10: revisiting its origins Doctor Who series 10: Jamie Mathieson set to return

2.3 A Prison Without Walls

The ability to stand still every so often works wonders for a thriller. Quiet moments don’t just offer a slip road away from the roaring influx of revelation, they allow tension to build and realisations to gradually dawn. Characters are given a chance to breathe uninterrupted by the noise of plot.

The Missing, gripping as it is, could afford to stand still a little more often. With a cast this good, there’s plenty to keep our attention without erratically leaping from strand to strand,...

Ryan Lambie Oct 20, 2016

Mamoru Ishii's stone-cold classic Ghost In The Shell is returning to UK cinemas for one day only in January 2017...

Cyberpunk anime Ghost In The Shell is well over 20 years old now, but its story of hacking, post-humanism and memory are as present as they always were. Directed by Mamoru Oshii and based on Masamune Shirow's manga of the same name, Ghost In The Shell remains one of the best animated sci-fi films to hail from Japan. Next year sees the release of Rupert Sanders' live-action version of the movie, which stars Scarlett Johansson in the lead role as Major Kusanagi - here billed as simply The Major - and an international supporting cast including Juliette Binoche and Takeshio Kitano.

See related Den Of Geek’s top books of 2015 Doctor Who series 10: Jamie Mathieson set to return Doctor Who Christmas special: title revealed, superhero confirmed...

Sarah Dobbs Oct 20, 2016

Shudder is streaming service dedicated to horror - and we've been chatting to the people who pick the movies...

Exhausted Netflix’s horror section and need something creepy to watch this Halloween? Try Shudder. The all-horror streaming service launched last year in the Us and is now coming to the UK. Its hook is that it offers an ever-growing library of horror movies, shorts, and TV shows, all handpicked by people who know horror. Two of Shudder’s curators, Colin Geddes and Sam Zimmerman, chatted to us about what to expect…

See related Den Of Geek’s top books of 2015 Doctor Who series 10: Jamie Mathieson set to return Doctor Who Christmas special: title revealed, superhero confirmed Class: another episode synopsis arrives

How did you come to be involved with Shudder?

Colin Geddes: They reached out to me a couple of years ago, because they were...

Marc Buxton Oct 17, 2016

The systematic demise of humanity is coming in The Strain, unless our motley crew of heroes can prevent it…

This review contains spoilers.

See related Jamie Mathieson interview: writing Doctor Who Doctor Who Christmas special: title revealed, superhero confirmed Doctor Who series 10 and beyond: the questions Class: ginormous pile of promo pictures

3.8 White Light

Lately, we haven’t had much by way of mythology on The Strain. A few seasons back, we saw the origin of the Master, and of course this season we learned the secret history of the Born known as Quinlan, but we really have only had hints and clues about the Strigoi’s power structure. Every once in a while, Quinlan will visit the Ancients and provide some delicious hints and clues about the order of the Strigoi.

Well this week, that order came crashing down as The Strain fully reveals exactly what...

Stephen Harber Oct 17, 2016

Ash vs Evil Dead season 2 episode 3 is one of the best episodes of the entire series so far. Major spoilers ahead...

This review contains spoilers.

See related Jamie Mathieson interview: writing Doctor Who Doctor Who Christmas special: title revealed, superhero confirmed Doctor Who series 10 and beyond: the questions Class: ginormous pile of promo pictures

2.3 Last Call

During the past two episodes of Ash vs Evil Dead, there were moments in which I caught myself wondering when the show would go full-blown, all-out horror again like it did at the end of its first season. I thought to myself, "Be patient, me. They’re probably saving it up for the big finale again." Yeah... no. It looks like the third episode’s the charm here in the more tightly written second season. And this time around, we have Masters Of Sex scribe Noelle Valdivia to thank for it,...

Megan Crouse Oct 17, 2016

Sabine doesn't bring a unique sensibility to a repetitive Imperial escape on the latest instalment of Star Wars Rebels season 3...

This review contains spoilers.

See related Jamie Mathieson interview: writing Doctor Who Doctor Who Christmas special: title revealed, superhero confirmed Doctor Who series 10 and beyond: the questions Class: ginormous pile of promo pictures

3.4 The Antilles Extraction

Sabine has had a lot of potential since Star Wars Rebels began. The young Mandalorian has taken a backseat to Ezra for most of the show, so an episode featuring her looked like it might add some much-needed characterisation as well as tell a story that connected to the Original Trilogy. In The Antilles Extraction, Sabine infiltrates an Imperial training academy to rescue some teenage pilots who have grown dissatisfied with the regime. The episode is paced well and follows a classic structure, but doesn’t really allow Sabine to bring...

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Need a good laugh, but only got an hour and a half? Might we recommend this little lot...

I’m of the firm belief that films work most effectively when their runtime is 90 minutes or less. It forces an economy of story and dialogue which propels the film into its best self. No bloated middle, extended ending, or wasted stories here. This goes double for comedies. They should never outstay their welcome. But they seem to be getting longer, as we recently pointed out here.

So to refresh your movie comedy palette, here are 25 films that are 90 minutes or under. I’ve tried to avoid the more obvious ones, and shine a light on those comedies which might have gone a bit unappreciated over the years, but are well worth a hour and a half of your time. This lean runtime isn’t a guarantee of greatness of course,...

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Spoilers! It's our viewing notes and geeky spots for the Doctor Who Christmas special, The Husbands Of River Song....

It’s Christmas Day and that can only mean one thing - the Doctor Who return of Professor River Song, and the Den of Geek return of the geeky spots. So join us, won’t you, for a festive walk through the callbacks, allusions and generally interesting similarities featured in The Husbands Of River Song. If you spot anything we’ve missed out - we’ve been on the Christmas sherry since 9 o’clock this morning - let us know in the comments!

The References of River Song

As you might expect from the convoluted story of the Doctor and River Song, this episode contains a lot of references to their previous adventures together. Before reading this article, it might be useful to read our article on River Song’s timeline,...

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E4 presents Tripped, a new sci-fi comedy starring Blake Harrison, aka Neil from The Inbetweeners. Here's the first trailer...

Here's one that has our attention. Tripped sees Blake Harrison (Neil from The Inbetweeners, soon to star in the Dad's Army reboot) and George Webster (City Of Dreamers, My Name Is Emily) embroiled in a fantasy quest involving umpteen parallel universes. 

E4's new sci-fi comedy series started life as Alt, a pilot by Mr Jamie Mathieson - the writer of two of the best Doctor Who episodes from series 8 (Flatline and Mummy On The Orient Express), as well as feature film Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel. It starred Craig Roberts and Gethin Anthony in that incarnation. 

Now The Missing's Harry and Jack Williams are the ones behind the scripts, with Jamie Magnus Stone directing.

Here's the first trailer...

We don't know the premiere date for Tripped yet,...

Doctor Who fans mourning Clara's impending exit will have the chance to say goodbye to Jenna Coleman's companion in person.

Coleman has been confirmed to attend this month's Doctor Who Festival at the Excel Exhibition Centre in London.

The actress will appear on both the Saturday and Sunday (November 14-15) and will join Peter Capaldi, Michelle Gomez and Ingrid Oliver for a special Meet The Cast panel.

Photo opportunities with Coleman are now on sale - though if you haven't purchased a photo opp with her co-star Capaldi yet, the bad news is those are all sold out.

The official Doctor Who Festival will also feature a Writer's Panel - with Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss, Sarah Dollard, Toby Whithouse, Catherine Tregenna, Peter Harness and Jamie Mathieson all in attendance.

Further attractions at the fan event include real sets on display from series nine, a Cosplay Showcase and a special effects live show.

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The Woman Who Lived is a welcome surprise of a Doctor Who episode that takes a considerable swerve away from The Girl Who Died...

Now this one's an interesting turn to the side.

Ostensibly the concluding part of the story that kicked off with The Girl Who Died last week, The Woman Who Lived could, in large part, exist as a standalone story in its own right. It has people in common, obviously, but it didn't go in the direction I was expecting. I liked that.

It's certainly tonally quite different from the broad comedy romp we got last week, as writer Catherine Tregenna takes over from Steven Moffat and Jamie Mathieson. She takes things off in a slightly different direction, too. Her story is a lot quieter at times, putting quality dialogue into the mouths of people who are very good at delivering it.

The Girl...

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A big stack of shiny new pictures has been released for Doctor Who's series 9 follow-up to The Girl Who Died, The Woman Who Lived...

Hot on the heels of Maisie Williams' first appearance in Doctor Who, in last weekend's The Girl Who Died, comes her second, The Woman Who Lived. And here are the pictures, courtesy of the BBC, to prove it. Thirty-six of them in fact, which, by our calculations, seems just shy of releasing the entire episode in flip-book form.

Torchwood's Catherine Tregenna has written this one, with Ed Bazalgette repeating his directing duties from The Girl Who Died. Williams stars alongside Rufus Hound, Ariyon Bakare and more.

Here's the official BBC synopsis:

"England, 1651. The deadly Highwayman ‘The Nightmare’ and his sidekick stalk the dark streets of London. But when they find loot that’s not of this world, they come face to face with the Doctor.

BBC

Warning! Spoilers: This post contains spoilers and speculation for the Doctor Who series nine episode “The Girl Who Died”.

“The Girl Who Died” is a wild roller coaster ride as we soar into silly and plummet into serious. The Vikings are goofy fun while the villains stand around and don’t do much. Yet none of that matters because this is Ashildr’s story and Maisie Williams’ portrayal of the fey girl is so captivating that everything else falls away. Writer Jamie Mathieson’s script has an unfortunate tendency to jarring leaps of tone but Ashildr’s character is so finely crafted it is easy to forgive any missteps. She is a fully realized human being, both complicated and fascinating to watch as she trips over her foolish pride and frustration and radiates fierce loyalty for her tribe.

It is easy to see how the Doctor’s gift of...

Philip Bates is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

The Doctor wasn’t too pleased to see Vikings – but were you? After much media attention, The Girl Who Died finally debuted last night, clearing up why Maisie Williams’ Ashildr is important, and why the Doctor chose that face. Co-written by Jamie Mathieson (Mummy on the Orient Express; Flatline) and showrunner Steven Moffat, we got...

The post Tell Us What You Thought of The Girl Who Died appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Doctor Who, Series 9, Episode 5, “The Girl Who Died”

Written by Jamie Mathieson and Steven Moffat

Directed by Ed Bazalgette

Airs Saturdays at 9pm (Et) on BBC America

Doctor Who has had a solid run since Peter Capaldi stepped in as the Twelfth Doctor, with some creative ideas from the writers, a bigger emphasis on visual style from the directors, and strong performances from Capaldi and Jenna Coleman in the lead roles. However, for this Whovian (and as I discussed recently on Debating Doctor Who), no episode has fully come together, with each element of the show working at its peak to make a whole greater than its parts, as happens in the very best of each Doctor’s stories. With “The Girl Who Died”, that finally changes; the Twelfth Doctor at last has an indicative episode, a story that highlights the very best of this Doctor and the current version of the series.

Thirty-five minutes into a Doctor Who episode and you'd expect to have a fair grasp of what it's all about. Not so with 'The Girl Who Died', an episode that veers wildly in tone, before pulling the rug out from under its audience in the final act.

It takes us on a merry dance from the start. Opening with a skin-crawling horror sequence, co-writers Steven Moffat and Jamie Mathieson then segue into a frothy adventure romp - something comparable to last year's 'Robot of Sherwood'.

It's fast-paced, with sharp, funny dialogue and some great clowning from Peter Capaldi, who seems far more comfortable with this sort of material than he was 12 months ago. Scenes in which hapless Vikings are spooked by false Gods are almost Monty Python-esque - "I'm not good with heights," laments one, spooked by the idea of ascending to Valhalla.

But gradually, 'The Girl Who Died' raises...

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Spoilers! The Doctor and Clara meet Maisie Williams in The Girl Who Died. Here's our review of Doctor Who series 9 episode 5.

This review contains spoilers. Our spoiler-free review is here.

9.5 The Girl Who Died

To badly paraphrase the show itself, a good episode of Doctor Who lives or dies on its story. Fortunately, The Girl Who Died has a very good one. And lordy, that ending should have started some serious commenting by the time you read these words.

After all, The Girl Who Died - the first half of the third two-parter in Doctor Who series 9 - actually seemed all but done 35 minutes in. That's when the Mire - this week's baddies - were sent scurrying to their doom with the aid of electric eels and Benny Hill.

You've just got to love this show. Next week, can we have tin openers and the hits of Black Lace?...

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Eye-patches, a yo-yo, Game Of Thrones and Benny Hill. Here are the geeky bits and pieces we noticed in Doctor Who's The Girl Who Died...

While Ashildr watches the centuries pass waiting until her paths cross with the Doctor again, here’s something she might want to read to the pass the time - it’s the fifth of our geekly, weekly viewing guides to the ninth series of Doctor Who, pulling together all of the references and callbacks, recurring themes and motifs, and tenuous connections that we thought were interesting enough to write about anyway.

As always, if you spot something that we haven’t, please do share it with us in the comments below - so far, you’ve proved that we have some impressively eagle-eyed readers out there! And remember - it’s just a bit of fun...

Norse Mythology

This isn’t...

This Saturday, “Doctor Who” fans finally get to see who Maisie Williams is playing in the episode “The Girl Who Died.” Back at San Diego Comic-Con, Williams was revealed wearing the classic orange spacesuit and speculation quickly began as to how her character knew the Doctor. Now that the first clip is out, do we have any answers? Nope. Just more questions. According to eh BBC, Williams is playing a Viking girl named Ashildre who is swept up in an adventure as Twelve and Clara train her people to defend themselves against the galaxy’s most deadly army. But that doesn’t explain why she’s in a spacesuit in the clip while the rest of the Vikings are in stereotypical gear. Or how she ends up in a “Beauty and the Beast” type situation later in the season (based on the trailer). The two-part episode is written by Jamie Mathieson and Steven Moffat,...

She’s got armor and a shield, but where’s Needle?

Game of Thrones‘ Maisie Williams has traded Winterfell for Old Norse times — but as the accompanying trailer and first-look photos show, she’s still playing a tough cookie on this Saturday’s installment of Doctor Who (9/8c on BBC America).

RelatedFX Orders Legion Adaptation From Marvel, Fargo Ep Noah Hawley

In the first of a two-part story, “the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) and Clara (Jenna Coleman) must train a useless band of Vikings” — including Williams’ plucky Ashildre — to “defend themselves against the galaxy’s most deadly army,” according to the network.

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The Girl Who Died raises more questions than it answers, not least of which is the story behind Maisie Williams' mysterious character...

Well, crikey.

The Girl Who Died is the first story in this run of Doctor Who to have a co-writer credit, and that, in my mind, usually (but not always) hints at something else going on besides the front and centre story. After all, on the one hand, you've got Jamie Mathieson - back after last year's triumphant Flatline and Mummy On The Orient Express - and on the other, there's Steven Moffat.

Turns out it's quite a combination. For in The Girl Who Died, there might just be quite a lot going on.

Once again, it's the opening episode of a two parter, and this one - giving absolutely nothing away - has the kind of cliffhanger that's  going to open up no shortage of speculation.

Maisie Williams plays Viking girl Ashildr in this week's Doctor Who - but just what is it about her that fascinates the Doctor?

'The Girl Who Died' sees the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) and Clara (Jenna Coleman) forced to train an inept band of Vikings to battle advanced alien mercenaries.

"Odin has come to visit his loyal followers, the Vikings, and reward their bravest warriors with a place in Valhalla," revealed co-writer Jamie Mathieson, who penned last year's popular Doctor Who episodes, 'Flatline' and 'Mummy on the Orient Express'.

"There's only one problem - the Doctor and Clara, who are having none of this and smell a rat. They are soon caught up in the middle of a war between an advanced race of mercenary aliens and a village full of angry Vikings, who don't take kindly to having their Gods insulted.

"There is another big mystery to solve in the form of Maisie Williams,...

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Lots of new pictures from Doctor Who series 9's The Girl Who Died, feat. Game Of Thrones' Maisie Williams, Vikings and more...

Next up for Doctor Who series nine: an adventure with Vikings in The Girl Who Died.

Ed Bazalgette is behind the camera on the episode, which features guest stars Maisie Williams and Rufus Hound, with Jamie Mathieson (Mummy On The Orient Express, Flatline) on writing duties.

Here's a synopsis of the story, freshly peeled from the episode's IMDb page:

In a Viking village, a girl named Ashildr is about to make a desperate mistake. The Mire are the deadliest mercenaries in the galaxy, famed for showing no mercy and Ashildr has just declared war on them. The Doctor and Clara have 12 hours to turn a peaceful village into strong fighters, ready for the deadly Mire.

Williams will also be back in the role of...

The next seven days are just bursting with quality television, with almost too many of our telly favourites making a triumphant return.

The Apprentice, The Walking Dead, Tfi Friday and The Returned are all back - and that's just the start. Make sure to tune in, or set your DVR, for this little lot.

1. The Apprentice - Wednesday / Thursday, 9pm on BBC One

Lord Sugar's search for his next business partner... begins. A new roster of budding entrepreneurs are looking to impress Shugs, Karren Brady and - replacing Nick Hewer - the formidable Claude Littner. And as ever, there's some prize berks among them.

One candidate even compares himself - without a hint of irony - to Martin Luther King Jr. We predict his dream of business success might not come true.

2. The Walking Dead - Monday, 9pm on Fox UK

One of Us TV's best drama series, and certainly one of its goriest,...

Want to catch up with post-2005 Doctor Who but don’t have 85 spare hours to watch the whole thing? We’ve some tips for you…

Maps To TV Shows: Is there a popular show you’d really like to watch but you just don’t have time to wade through years of it all at once? Do you just want to know why that one character keeps turning up on Tumblr? Do the fans all tell you ‘season one is a bit iffy but stick with it, it gets great!’, leaving you with absolutely zero desire ever to watch the boring/silly/just plain weird season one? Then Maps To TV Shows is for you!

In these articles, we’ll outline routes through popular TV shows focusing on particular characters, story arcs or episode types. Are you really into the Klingon episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation? Do...

Last Updated: August 6, 2015

Doctor Who is the persistent subject of rumours - from the credible to the outright absurd - and it can be difficult to separate what's fact from what's fiction.

Lucky for you, dear reader, that Digital Spy is on hand to cut a swathe through the nonsense - these are the facts, 100% confirmed, about series 9 of the world's greatest science-fiction series.

Filming began on the 9th series of Doctor Who - its 35th run overall - on January 5, 2015 for a planned transmission in the autumn. Steven Moffat will serve as lead writer and executive producer for the fifth time.

Peter Capaldi will return for his second full series as the Doctor, while Jenna Coleman will be back for her third run of episodes as Clara Oswald.

Coleman was widely expected to be leaving the series in the 2014 Christmas special - and indeed had planned to exit -...

Doctor Who series 9 with Peter Capaldi arrives in September, which gives us plenty of time to speculate over this first trailer...

"I'm the Doctor, and I save people"

So. The trailer.

In the dead of night (and the slightly more alive of day over the Atlantic at this year's Sdcc), the BBC released a ninety-second trailer for Doctor Who series 9.

It showed Missy, Clara, a Zygon, Maisie Williams, a creature with two faces, and Peter Capaldi's Doctor headlining space Glastonbury or some such and wanting to kiss things to death.

See for yourself, here:

Obviously we knew Clara, Missy and the Zygons were back, and we knew Maisie Williams was in the show but we didn’t know she was apparently ‘back’ as well. What this actually means, we can only speculate.

The trailer for the new series of Doctor Who tantalised us with a feast of monsters and new Peter Capaldi memes.

Rob Leane Simon Brew Nov 10, 2016

Luc Besson wades into summer blockbuster combat next summer with Valerian - and here's the first trailer.

We're very excited about this one. Luc Besson hasn't really stepped into summer blockbuster territory since The Fifth Element, but he's wading in next year with Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets. 

See related  Class episode 5 review: Brave-ish Heart Doctor Who Christmas special: Moffat and Capaldi discuss superhero episode Doctor Who series 10: Jamie Mathieson set to return

Cara Delevigne, Ethan Hawke, John Goodman, Clive Owen, Dane DeHaan, Rutger Hauer and Rihanna lead the cast of this one, and apparently, it already has a locked running time of 129 minutes. That may yet change of course, but Besson is deep in post-production on the movie.

The film lands on 21st July 2017 in the UK, and here's the first full trailer...

Here's an image from the film too.

Georgina Campbell, recently nominated for a BAFTA for her role in BBC Three's Murdered By My Boyfriend, stars alongside the Inbetweeners' Blake Harrison in a new comedy drama for E4 called Tripped.

Blake Harrison leads the cast as Danny, an average 24-year-old who has decided it’s time to grow up, settle down and marry long-term girlfriend Kate, played by Georgina Campbell, but his childhood friend Milo has other ideas and continues to focus on getting high.

23 year old George Webster (represented by Curtis Brown), who recently starred alongside Evanna Lynch in Irish romantic drama, My Name is Emily, plays Danny's stoner best friend Milo.

One night Milo takes a particularly strong batch of hallucinogens, and Danny appears in his living room - except the real Danny’s at his engagement party, and the real Danny doesn’t normally carry a sword! This Danny claims to come from another dimension,...

E4 prepares to welcome Aliens and Tripped to its schedules, two newly commissioned sci-fi comedy dramas…

As we expanded upon here, there’s plenty for fans of UK sci-fi and fantasy TV to get excited about over the next year or so.

Freshly commissioned to join the likes of Jonathan Strange And Mr Norrell, Humans and more, are Tripped and Aliens, original sci-fi comedy dramas coming to E4.

Tripped began life as Alt, a parallel world comedy pilot written by Doctor Who and Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel’s Jamie Mathieson. In its first incarnation, Alt starred Craig Roberts and Gethin Anthony as the stoner and his mate who find themselves tripping between multiple parallel universe versions of their own lives and running from an assassin in the process. Now, the newly named Tripped features The Inbetweeners’ Blake Harrison and newcomer George Webster as Danny and Milo. Writing duties...

E4 has ordered two new comedy dramas, both with a sci-fi twist.

The Inbetweeners actor Blake Harrison will play lead character Danny in parallel universe series Tripped.

The four-part series will follow Danny and stoner friend Milo (George Webster) as they trip through alternate worlds, meeting different versions of themselves.

Tripped has been adapted from an E4 pilot titled Alt, written by Doctor Who's Jamie Mathieson.

Mathieson remains as co-creator and co-writer of episode one, while The Missing writing duo Harry and Jack Williams take over scripting duties for the remainder of the series.

Blake Harrison said: "I'm really excited to be working on Tripped. It's always frustrating when good actors make me look bad but on this show I get to have a lot of scenes with myself so I should look alright!

"Also they've let me have a sword so if anyone brings me a cold steak,...

Connor Farley is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

Earlier this week, Jamie Mathieson and Steven Moffat were confirmed to be returning to write Episode 5 of series 9 titled The Girl Who Died. Catherine Tregenna, the first female writer on Doctor Who since 2008 was also confirmed to write Episode 6, The Woman Who Lived. So, here’s a round-up of the known writing team...

The post Doctor Who Series 9 Writers Roundup appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams was announced as one of the guest stars on the new series of Doctor Who, filming now in Wales.

While her exact role has not been revealed, Steven Moffat, lead writer and Executive Producer, added:

“We’re thrilled to have Maisie Williams joining us on Doctor Who. It’s not possible to say too much about who or what she’s playing, but she is going to challenge the Doctor in very unexpected ways. This time he might just be out of his depth, and we know Maisie is going to give him exactly the right sort of hell.”

The announcement also revealed two more episode titles for the new series, ‘The Girl Who Died’ written by Jamie Mathieson and Steven Moffat, and ‘The Woman Who Lived’ by Catherine Tregenna. Tregenna has written several episodes of Torchwood, including “Captain Jack Harkness”, for which she received a Hugo nomination.

Maisie Williams aka Game of Thrones‘ Arya Stark will pay a visit to the Tardis with a guest-starring turn on BBC America’s Doctor Who.

RelatedDoctor Who Season 9: Who’s Back to ‘Plague’ the Time Lord?

“We’re thrilled to have Maisie Williams joining us,” Doctor Who executive producer Steven Moffat said in a statement. “It’s not possible to say too much about who or what she’s playing, but she is going to challenge the Doctor in very unexpected ways. This time he might just be out of his depth, and we know Maisie is going...

Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman return to Sherlock for the 2015 Special. Here's a round-up of the Special news and rumours so far...

Latest news

Filming on the 2015 Sherlock Special kicked off in Bristol on Monday the 5th of January. The Victorian vaulted cellars of music venue Colstan Hall are reported to be providing one backdrop for the episode.

Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman were both snapped by trusty #setlock fans wearing the same period costume as in the preview image released by the BBC in November (see above).

Underneath that handsome top hat, Cumberbatch is sporting a shiny slicked-back hair do that, as does his costume, bears a strong resemblance to that worn by Jeremy Brett in the 80s-90s Granada Television Holmes series. Martin Freeman was also photographed in his David Burke-as-Watson-style brown suit and ‘tache (which, seeing how much the actor reputedly didn’t enjoy wearing his...

Lots of Doctor Who Christmas pics and discussion here, as well as a promising hint for series 9…

Christmas - a time for presents, and exchanging kisses, and for singing Christmas songs. A time for attempting to nick pigs in blankets from your loved ones. And, according to Peter Capaldi, a time for “terrifying” and “nightmarish” television.

Indeed, that’s how he described the Moffat-penned Doctor Who seasonal special when chatting to Den Of Geek on his press tour. Here’s the full quote:

"It's a rather clever Christmas episode as it's festive and jolly but also terrifying. While Santa being on Clara's roof should be an excuse for happiness, it's actually a nightmarish development, and only the Doctor knows why."

Additionally, Capaldi added that this Santa is the reak deal, "he's not a robot or an alien - he's the real, genuine Santa Claus."

He also mentioned that "it's one...

Join Digital Spy's TV Editor Morgan Jeffery for a blog delving into the very best in science-fiction, fantasy and cult television.

9 Things that Doctor Who series 9 must deliver

Doctor Who has only been off our screens a little while and already we're dreaming of the next series. Christmas is coming, of course, but Steven Moffat and company are by now well underway on work for the ninth full series since 2005.

Beyond Moffat's continued involvement (and Peter Capaldi's), details are scarce about what to expect from the next batch of episodes. So while we're still able to indulge in rampant speculation, here are 9 things we want to see when the Doctor returns to our screens.

1. More Missy

Post-grand reveal, did anyone else feel that the manic Missy - though magnificently portrayed by Michelle Gomez - ended up a little neglected in a finale episode that also had to resolve a Cyberman Invasion of Earth,...

Androids, magic, parallel worlds, ghostly crime, and the apocalypse. Here’s a raft of new forthcoming UK sci-fi and fantasy TV…

The superhero genre may be taking up residence in cinemas for the foreseeable, and Game Of Thrones and The Walking Dead are leading Us TV's genre output, but what can fans of UK sci-fi and fantasy look forward to seeing on television over the next year?

There’s Doctor Who of course, which appears to be in rude health and going nowhere, a Christmas Special from Black Mirror, and a hint of new Red Dwarf on its way. (And of course, if there’s anything like justice in the world, the terrific In The Flesh will be recommissioned for a third series.)

If though, you’re thirsting for something new, 2015 is promising to deliver a handful of geek TV gems. We’ve scoured the new UK commission announcements for anything spooky,...

Clara, morality, guns, addiction, and unacknowledged nods to previous episodes... Nathan looks over the themes of Doctor Who series 8...

Warning: contains spoilers for Doctor Who up to and including series 8.

I don’t know about you, but I love big ideas. After all, whatever we consume – whether it’s a movie or a TV show or a video game – has a message that it wants to communicate to you, the consumer. These messages – these big ideas, themes and theories – they're not a bad thing. I’d suggest they make entertainment so… entertaining. The hallmark of a good TV show is that it makes you think. It inspires you to keep track of overarching traits in the hope that you might spot a pattern or a hint of what’s to come.

Doctor Who is one of those shows. We’ve only just said ‘goodbye’ to Series 8 (and what a great...

The directors of Doctor Who's latest series brought back the scares in a big way. Well, fear is a superpower...

Warning: contains spoilers for every episode of the eighth series of Doctor Who.

We were promised back in August that the Peter Capaldi era of Doctor Who would mark a departure from the adventurous fairy tale approach of Matt Smith's run.

“Darker” and “edgier” are buzz words that have been applied to countless Hollywood sequels, but the eighth series actually lived up to that promise and by September, the tabloid press were dispensing think-pieces about whether or not it had become too scary for children (“scary” here standing in for “complicated” in Smith's era and “heretical” when David Tennant got a lift off a couple of angel robots in Voyage Of The Damned.)

All moral panics aside, this series brought back the scares in a big, bad way.

What do we know about Doctor Who series 9 so far, and what threads is it likely to pick up? Here's what we know so far...

This article contains spoilers for Doctor Who series 8.

If the ending of Doctor Who series 8, Death In Heaven suggested one thing - appreciating we've got a Christmas special to come (with Nick Frost as Santa!) - it's that series 9 of the revived show will somewhere along the line feature Gallifrey. It's been teased very heavily again, even if its location is still a mystery. So as we look ahead to Doctor Who series 9, let's kick off with one or two story threads, that remain ripe for exploration. After all, the Doctor had what he thought were the exact coordinates for his home planet, and couldn't wait to see if it was there. It wasn't, but Death In Heaven does offer a good hint that series...

Christian Cawley is a writer at Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews - All the latest Doctor Who news and reviews with our weekly podKast, features and interviews, and a long-running forum.

Clara as the Doctor; a shrinking Tardis; a shrinking haircut. Flatline, the latest episode of Doctor Who and the second this series to have been written by Jamie Mathieson (following his superb Mummy on the Orient Express) has proved to be popular with fans and critics alike – but was it really all that good?...

The post Did Flatline Just Become An Instant Classic? appeared first on Kasterborous Doctor Who News and Reviews.

The writer of Mummy On The Orient Express and Flatline, Jamie Mathieson, talks us through his Doctor Who experience....

Even before the credits had rolled on his second Doctor Who episode, Flatline, people were asking if writer Jamie Mathieson would be back for series 9 of the show. But Mathieson's path to Doctor Who goes right the way back to his original pitch in 2004, via a feature film screenplay (Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel, his writing on Being Human and a further, unsuccessful Who pitch.

We caught up with Mathieson, once Mummy On The Orient Express and Flatline - his first two Doctor Who adventures - had screened. And he took us through his Doctor Who experience...

You've said before that you arrived at your Doctor Who pitch meeting with four episodes outlined. First thing then: what's a Doctor Who pitch meeting actually like?

A Doctor Who pitch meeting is fairly banal really.