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  • #74557

    @devilishrobby

    Just watched it myself, and trying to decide if it was charming in its silliness, or up there with the 1978 Star Wars Christmas Special. Am probably tending towards the latter.

     

    #74531

    @jimthefish. that is really neat. Are we to assume it is your quick sketch? If so, bravo!

    #74512

    Currently watching “The Ambassadors of Death” with the Pertwee Doctor. Just finished episode 4 (of 7). A rollicking yarn! One of the great tropes of these early 70s shows is the idea that the British government itself is potentially corrupt. Am trying to visualize the same story today. I suppose “potentially” would not be necessary…

    Finding it all enormous fun. Will report in again (as the Brigadier would say) when it is all over.

     

    #74509

    @oochillyo, While I cannot join join you, I would suggest (I assume you have access to BBC iPlayer) season 2 of the Hartnell stories. They are totally different to contemporary Who, but wonderful in their own right.

    #74477

    As there many on the board these days who automatically look at Forums on the left hand side of the main page for new posts, I thought I would point out a new post (by me, sorry!) under Recent Blog Comments on the right hand side of the main page. It is a reflection on Pertwee’s Doctor, and so will not be of interest to many, but I thought I would point out the different ways of navigating the site as there are many new faces the days, as we excitedly (nervously?) wait for the upcoming specials.

     

    #74474

    Was just reading about RTD saying he is more than happy to leave Chibnall’s “timeless child” re-working of the Who universe intact. Not sure if this meant he would not actively rewrite it, or simply not engage with it. I always felt the wholesale re-writing of the Who universe with the “timeless child” was wrong-headed. But if RTD simply fails to mention it, that seems like a sensible approach (although, leaving Chibnall’s vision as is means, presumably, accepting that there are no more Time Lords around, which would be a real pity. Still, if the Toymaker can come back, who knows?

    What I thought was more amusing was RTD’s refusal to accept the admittedly silly notion that the Doctor in the 1996 TV movie had a human mother.

    #74457

    @jimthefish We are honoured to have a resident time lord back!

    I have been trying to fill in for @wolfweed, but one could never replace him. And I have probably only bothered to mention stuff available in the outposts of empire.

    But at least the Celestial Toymaker is about to return (which I think I am more excited about the return of Tennant, to be honest).

    #74454

    Hello @winston. Great to hear from you. It’s been a while. The DVDs come out before Christmas! You should request multiple copies from the children for the Christmas tree!

    They will certainly be under the Blenkinsop Christmas tree!

    #74452
    #74450
    #74436

    @janetteb I read your reply to my comment on Akinola and the referendum. Alas, my identity has apparently disappeared and been transfigured ( is it in a timey wimey sort of way…?)

    #74433

    Yes, @janetteb, his scoring was probably one of the best parts of the Chibnall years, but watching the new trailers, it becomes clear that the tone of Akinola’s music just would not fit RTD’s frentic vision.  So, to that extent, the return to Murray Gold makes perfect sense.

    P.S. The referendum outcome seemed sadly predictable.

    #74431

    Murray Gold returns to Who with new musical themes

     

    #74417

    New trailer. And it looks good.

     

    #74411

    Another glimpse of what’s to come

    https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/doctor-who-jinkx-monsoon-new-photo-newsupdate/

    Albeit, coming at an agonizingly slow pace.

     

     

    #74400

    Should we prepare for colourful language on Who?

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/2023/miriam-margolyes-doctor-who

     

    #74378

    Following the David Tennant specials, it looks like the Ncuti Gatwa season starts in Spring

    https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20230822-new-episodes-of-the-bbcs-doctor-who-will-be-streaming-globally-from-november

     

    #74371

    @dentarthurdent Yes, the island has been spared the worst, but even it has not escaped entirely on the west coast of the island. But mainland British Columbia has been hit very hard as this story from today illustrates.

    https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/what-you-need-to-know-about-bc-wildfires-aug-18-2023-1.6940311

    But as you point out, it is across the planet, from Hawaii to Greece. And are governments taking climate change seriously? Of course not. Where is the Doctor when you need him?

    #74369

    Thanks @janetteb

    We live on the southern part of the island, which fortunately has been spared the fires. The island is large, with a population of more than three quarters of a million people. Some areas, like the west coast, have been hard hit by the fires, but nothing like the apocalyptic images you might have seen on the news elsewhere in Canada. Grim times for a lot of people, unfortunately.

     

    #74366

    @winston What excellent news! (I have been missing action for a while; hence my belated reply.)

    I trust you have appropriate plans in place to spoil the newest arrival rotten, with endless treats!

    #74365

    I seem to have been gone a while. But I am back with news.

    https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/doctor-who-series-1-4-blu-ray-newsupdate/

     

    #74186

     

    Glenda Jackson. When I look back, my entire adult life has been interspersed with watching truly fabulous performances by Glenda Jackson on film and TV. She gave so much, whether it was in acting or in her career in politics. I only wish I had the opportunity to see her on stage.

    Vale Glenda Jackson.

    #74176

    @nerys Very glad indeed that the fires appear to have finally been contained. We have been following the news from the other side of the county. And very glad that you have both escaped the prospect of having to flee the house. The reality of having to have the bags packed in the car just in case is not one anybody should have to face.

    Take care.

    #74169

    @dentarthurdent Ah, Danger Man, now that was a great show. I have all of it on dvd and we watch it regularly. Returning to the importance of show runners, it was devised and largely written by Ralph Smart, an Australian film maker, who was part of the intellectual and artistic emigration of Australians to Britain such as Clive James, Robert Hughes and others in the post-war years. Smart made a surprisingly nuanced movie about the dispossession of the Aborigines on the Australian frontier, with Chips Rafferty, called Bitter Springs. Danger Man was also surprisingly nuanced as you allude to.

    All of which is a long comment to return to my belief that John Nathan Turner was a hopeless show runner who did his best to ruin Who.

     

    #74165

    @dentarthurdent I actually quite enjoyed the wobbly sets in old Who, and The Avengers with Diana Rigg and The Prisoner with Patrick McGoohan, both when I watched them as a teenager and now. Why? Because the writing and the “vision” of them was miles ahead of American TV at the time. The problem with Who during the JNT years, was that the writing and vision informing the show had lost all that was special about early Who and The Avengers and The Prisoner. So when I criticized “Warriors of the Deep” it was not the budget per se, it was that they were not making “Doctor Who”, they were trying to emulate a Roger Moore James Bond movie. But fortunately, at least, without the double entendres.

    Re: the kidney stone, I hope your recovery is speedy.

     

     

    #74158

    A couple of nights ago, Mrs Blenkinsop and I thought it would be fun to watch an old Peter Davison story from the 1980s. We chose “Warriors of the Deep” featuring the Silurians, in 4 episodes. Oh dear, it was feeble!

    Two companions–Tegan, who who spent the entire four episodes being slightly whiny, and Thurlow, who was unconvincingly angry with everyone. And poor Peter Davison lacked any real sense of authority as the Doctor. I had seen a lot of Who back in those years, but remember abandoning it during the Peter Davison years. This story reminded me why. But it wasn’t Peter Davison who was at fault. It was the vision that the showrunner had for Who. And that person was, of course, John Nathan Turner. This story exemplified that. It was done like…a Roger Moore James Bond movie, but without the budget.

    Who knows, I may dip into some other 1980s Who to see if I am being too harsh. Or maybe not.

     

    #74137

    @devilishrobby Well, my theory (which I first broached upstream somewhere) is that they are all connected by Donna–and finding a way to give her back her memories. I may be wrong, but for the moment I’m sticking to it!

     

    #74135

    New Trailer for the three 60th specials

     

    #74133

    @winston Yes, the warm weather has arrived over here on the west coast as well. We are promised (or is it threatened?) temperatures in the high 20s for the next few days. As a result, Mrs Blenkinsop has been excavating the darkest recesses of the wardrobe for her summer clothes.

    And talking of clothes, recent photos of the new Doctor and companion filming historical episodes show them both in period costumes, be it 1960s London or Regency England. I am starting to wonder if there will be a dedicated Doctor (and companion) outfit at all, or if they will dress for the occasion, as it were.

     

    #74127

    In light of various goings on in London, I thought I would share this

     

    #74125

    I came across this interesting insight into the early days of the show. Thought I would share.

    https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/the-1963-doctor-who-diaries-of-waris-hussein-part-one/

     

    #74122

    @winston I love your list! It is not my list, but it is pretty cool.

    Part of the problem with a costume list, I think, is whether it is an assessment of the costume or the Doctor.

    I wonder which costume I would choose for the Master? Actually, I know. In light of what I just said, it would have to be Missy.

     

    #74113

    @janetteb Yes, I saw that in the Guardian and agree with @dentarthurdent that worst to best was more like best to worst!

    The costumes were sort of reflective of the culture at the time back in the early days. (Hartnell as the slightly distant professor in the early 60s, Troughton as the slightly comical scientist/professor of the late 60s, Pertwee’s dandy with a nod to James Bond in the early 70s, Tom Baker as the raffish professor who one suspected of sleeping with his students in the mid 70s. But then it all went weird during the JNT years, with poor Peter Davison and his leek (!) Colin Baker and his cartoon costume and the less said about the riot of question marks that poor Sylvester McCoy had to wear around, the better.

    #74108

    @janetteb, @winston

    That is very sad news about @ichabod. She had wonderful posts on the site. I confess to being completely unaware of her background, but will definitely search out her published work.

    Vale @ichabod

    #74095
    #74087

    New Villain

    And the Governor of Florida probably won’t approve…

    https://ew.com/tv/jinkx-monsoon-doctor-who-costume/

     

    #74039

    @auntie8nay6

    Welcome to the site. I am ancient enough to have discovered Doctor Who as a small child around the time when the very first  episode with William Hartnell was shown in the UK in November 1963. I was in Australia then, and I suspect it may have screened a few months after that in the colonial wilds of Australia. I do remember my mother thinking it might have been too scary for a little nipper like me. But I was made of sterner stuff and have been a fan ever since.

     

    #74037

    The word is that RTD is developing a UNIT spin-off series, with Jemma Redgrave.

    Of course, the story emanated from The Daily Mirror, so should be treated with a modicum of healthy scepticism.

    And as for Torchwood, well…

    #74026

    @nerys

    Well, I am here to report that Mrs Blenkinsop and I just watched episode 4 of the new Picard and it was really very good indeed. The show has redeemed itself! I strongly suggest you give it a go.

     

    #74025

    @nerys (and everyone else)

    I just rewatched my all time favourite episode of ST: The Next Generation:”Identity Crisis”  from season 4  or, as I like to call it” Geordie turns blue”. It is about humanity  and commitment and it is perfect. It is my desert island video of choice and I could watch it forever.

     

    “Identity Crisis”

    #74023

    @nerys I know what you mean. I, too, really enjoyed the first season for the reason you noted: “an inspiring fresh take on an old character”. Indeed, the episode “Nepenthe” is one of my all time favourite TV viewing experiences. I gave up on Season 2. So far, with Season 3, I am willing to persevere (although the plot devices to bring back old NG characters seem to stretch credulity).

    But what happened to all the light bulbs in Season 3? Everything is so dark I am surprised that the actors don’t keep bumping into the furniture. I know it is all about creating an “edgy” atmosphere, but still.

     

    #73952
    #73951

    @winston So sorry to hear of your loss. A number of us are getting to that age… I have an older brother back in Australia with serious medical issues, and I confess to being slightly apprehensive each time I turn on my email in the mornings.

    But I can report the discovery of new Who news! I am about to post it on the Spoilers page for those who are game.

    #73901

    @jimthefish

    Great to hear from our resident Time Lord. Yes, I confess that I was also less than rapturous about the Donna Noble/ Tennant pairing back in the day, but RTD obviously loved it, hence my bonkers theory.

    I wish I could say I remember the 70s Doctor Who weekly comic strip, but alas I do not (of course, I have reached that stage of life where I occasionally fail to remember what I had for breakfast). But still.

    Also agree on the new costume. It seems a bit…beige. If that makes any sense.

    And yes, it would be great to hear from @phaseshift, @wolfweed, and so many more.

     

     

    #73884

    A bonkers theory for Christmas.

    Was just re-watching the trailer above. While it is short, it seems to emphasis Donna’s story. Specifically, it is revisiting the fact that the Doctor wiped her memories (something many people had an issue with back in the day). It would appear that (somehow) she will be reunited with the Doctor–almost as if RTD is undoing the sadness of having her memories taken from her. How?

    Well (early bonker thoughts follow) what if what happens in the specials in some way never actually happened? What if the re-appearance of the Tennant doctor and his adventures during the three upcoming specials is either a dream, or a microscopic moment in time, that happens during  the transformation from the Whittaker Doctor into the Ncuti Gatwa Doctor?

    In other words, what if RTD is using the three specials to give Donna back her memories while not interfering with canon?

     

    #73878

    60th anniversary specials– BBC trailer

     

    #73877

    Best wishes to all on this Christmas Day here on Vancouver Island. Inside the Blenkinsop home the fire is on, the cats are sleeping, yours truly is sitting in front of the fire, while Mrs Blenkinsop has decided that today of all days is the day she is going to re-arrange the basement! Christmas cake and mince tarts should ensure our survival until Boxing Day.

    And, of course, ongoing thanks to @craig for keeping this site going.

    (Mrs Blenkinsop has emerged from the basement with a request for coffee, so my barista skills are required…)

     

     

    #73857

    Since we are in the year-end silly season, I thought I would post this for the handful of people on the planet who have not seen this yet. The allusion to 2001: A Space Odyssey is pretty brilliant

     

    #73856

    Ncuti Gawati and Millie Gibson on set and in costume.

    https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/ncuti-gatwa-doctor-who-costume-newsupdate/

     

    #73817
Viewing 50 posts - 51 through 100 (of 2,064 total)