BBC AMERICA is set to premiere An Adventure in Space and Time, a film drama about the creation of Doctor Who, as part of the channel’s celebration of the long-running sci-fi series’ 50th anniversary. Frequent Who scriptwriter Mark Gatiss has already been announced as writer, and he’s also serving as executive producer alongside current Doctor Who execs Steven Moffat andCaroline Skinner. The film is a co-production between BBC AMERICA and BBC Cymru Wales and will air later in 2013.
Doctor Who first hit the BBC airwaves on November 23, 1963, and an impressive cast has been assembled to play the personalities behind the show’s earliest days. David Bradley, best known as Argus Filch in the Harry Potter movies, has taken on the role as actor William Hartnell, who played the series’ very first Doctor. Call the Midwife star Jessica Raine, already cast in the Season 7, Part 2 premiere of Doctor Who, is set to play producer Verity Lambert, and the great Brian Cox (The Bourne Supremacy, Adaptation.) is on board as Sydney Newman, BBC’s then-Head of Drama. Meanwhile, The History Boys‘ Sacha Dhawan will play Waris Hussein, director of Doctor Who‘s premiere episode, “An Unearthly Child.”
Read more at Anglophenia
with Waris Hussein, William Russell, Carole Ann Ford, Mark Gatiss, and more.
(Source: youtube.com)
via the Doctor Who Facebook Page:
Radio Times has a great writeup of this past Saturday’s all star panel to celebrate the First Doctor at BFI Southbank:
Saturday was a big day for Doctor Who – the programme and fans – as the British Film Institute launched Doctor Who at 50, its year-long celebration of the Time Lord. Every month they’ll be screening a classic story for each Doctor and reuniting many luminaries from the world of Who.
To kick off, it was right back to the very beginning, to An Unearthly Child, the atmospheric four-part serial that launched the series on BBCtv in November and December 1963. And it was amazing how many guests were able to attend, people directly involved on that programme or with the era of the first Doctor, William Hartnell. They included (pictured above) William Russell and Carole Ann Ford (companions Ian and Susan) and Jeremy Young, who played the first villain….
Click through to read the entire piece.
The BBC today announces that a special BBC TWO drama has been commissioned to mark the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who next year.
An Adventure In Space And Time will tell the story of the genesis of Doctor Who - first broadcast on 23 November 1963. Exploring all aspects of the longest-running science fiction series to date, the special one-off 90-minute drama will also look at the many personalities involved in bringing the series to life.
Written by Mark Gatiss, it is executive produced by current Doctor Who showrunner, Steven Moffat, and Caroline Skinner. The single drama was commissioned by Ben Stephenson Controller, Drama, and Janice Hadlow, Controller of BBC Two.
Mark Gatiss said: “This is the story of how an unlikely set of brilliant people created a true television original. And how an actor - William Hartnell - stereotyped in hard-man roles became a hero to millions of children. I’ve wanted to tell this story for more years than I can remember! To make it happen for Doctor Who’s 50th birthday is quite simply a dream come true.”
Steven Moffat, Executive Producer, said: “The story of Doctor Who is the story of television - so it’s fitting in the anniversary year that we make our most important journey back in time to see how the TARDIS was launched.”
The production and transmission schedule will be confirmed next year, along with casting.
The installment, which will air in 2013, is currently filming in Cardiff and will star new Who companion Jenna-Louise Coleman, Doctor Who Magazine reports.
Cross created hit Idris Elba crime drama Luther in 2010 and also served as head writer on Spooks between 2006 and 2008. He is also developing ten-part pirate series Crossbones for NBC.
Mark Gatiss has also confirmed that he will write a 2013 episode of Doctor Who.
“It’s for the new companion, Jenna-Louise Coleman - that’s all I can tell you or I will actually be shot!” he joked.
WhoLock writers extraodrinaire at Sunday’s BAFTA ceremony
(Source: tavalouris, via bakerstreetbabes)
Doctor Who & Sherlock writers extraordinaire
(Source: the-misguided-companion)
EW: Did you model him on a more traditional vampire?
Mark Gatiss: No, Toby gave me this fantastic description. He just sent me a text that said, “Would you come and play the King Vampire?” I said yes immediately. Then, he sent me the script for episode 7, which is where we arrive right at the end, and I have that wonderful line, “Well, who’s hungry?” It said in the description that I am dark as the night and older than dirt. I loved that. Also, brilliantly, Toby said, “Let’s call him Mr. Snow,” as if he’s so impossibly old he doesn’t really have a name anymore. He forgot it a thousand years ago.
Mark Gatiss is on BBC America’s Being Human tonight.
Mark Gatiss from Doctor Who Night.
(Source: doctorwhofiles)
Episode 2 of Being Human premieres tonight on BBC America. Later this season, you may recognize the actor making a guest appearance as the leader of the ancient vampires known as The Old Ones.
Yes, that’s Doctor Who and Sherlock writer, producer, actor, and all around amazingness, Mark Gatiss.
Watch the prequel for the episode here:
(Source: tavalouris)
Mark Gatiss + Daleks.
from Doctor Who Confidential: Victory of the Daleks
(Source: karenandthababes)
Mark Gatiss has dropped some small clues on his Series 7 episode of Doctor Who.
Gatiss previously penned episodes The Unquiet Dead, The Idiot’s Lantern, Victory of the Daleks and, more recently, Night Terrors.
In the latest Doctor Who Magazine (#443), Gatiss confirms he pitched his latest story idea to Steven Moffat late last year.
He goes on to say that, naturally, he can’t reveal anything yet, except that the episode contains the words ‘meat’, ‘klaxon’ and ‘Vienna’.
No further hints were given, so that’s all we have to go on, for now.
