Doctor Who is making headlines once again this month, with show runner Stephan Moffat putting rumors to rest, touching on the return of David Tennant and Catherine Tate as the Tenth Doctor and Donna, and the impending departure of companion Clara Oswald.
Earlier this month “intelligent” tabloid The Mirror ran a story claiming that next season, the tenth season of the new incarnation of the U.K national treasure Doctor Who, would be cut short due to (the current and twelfth incarnation of the Doctor) Peter Capaldi’s busy schedule.
Just days later Moffat spoke to Radio Times and said the claims were absolutely untrue,
“We’re making a full series. I can confirm that,” said Moffat. “I’m making a full series of 12 episodes, plus a Christmas special. I don’t know when it goes out. That’s up to someone else. And even if I did know – which I genuinely don’t – I wouldn’t be allowed to say so as I have absolutely no say in it whatsoever.
“[But] it’s not being reduced in size. We’re not making fewer episodes. That’s all complete bunk. I can confirm that absolutely.”
In his recent interview with Variety, Moffat further confirmed that, as previously announced, Jenna Coleman (Clara Oswald) would be leaving the TARDIS, but Capaldi will remain in the role.
“Peter Capaldi is going nowhere,”
While Moffat has been rather cheeky about whether we can expect those sonic glasses to become a bad memory some time soon, he has spilled some juicy details about the upcoming tenth season. Moffat shut down any hope that the new companion joining the Doctor in the coming season will have a familiar face when he spoke with Digital Spy, specifically the rumor it might be some version of Osgood (Ingrid Oliver), who played a key role in the recent Zygon invasion episodes.
“[Osgood’s] a great character and we love her, but whether you really get a relaunch out of bringing someone on board the TARDIS who’s already been there, I don’t know. […] It did work very well with Catherine Tate [as Donna], but that’s not the direction we’re currently going in. I quite like where we’ve got Osgood at the moment.”
Season 10 will begin filming later in the spring, with a potential release date in early fall, though no official dates have been announced.
For those still worried that the Doctor is nearing his final incarnation, Moffat also assuaged those fears by stating that the series will run for at least another five seasons. No telling if this means we will have five years of Capaldi, or if we have yet another Doctor in our future. Perhaps Rupert Grint would be old enough to give us a long-awaited ginger Doctor?
And while Capaldi has only just joined the rank of Doctor, fan favorite David Tennant is taking at least one more trip in the TARDIS. Working once again with the incomparable Catherine Tate, the dynamic duo will star in three Doctor Who Audio Dramas with Big Finish productions.
The three stories will be titled Doctor Who – The Tenth Doctor Adventures, written by Matt Fitton and James Goss. The Tenth Doctors Adventures will be produced by David Richardson, and directed by Nicholas Briggs.
The Tenth Doctor Adventures will release in May 2016 – exclusively on the Big Finish website. Each of the three titles are available to pre-order separately now. All three stories will also be available in the Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Adventures Volume 1 – Limited Edition set. Limited to just 5,000 copies and available exclusively from bigfinish.com, the lovely book-sized box set includes exclusive artwork, photography, articles and a one-hour documentary featuring interviews with the stars and production team. Sounds like a must have for die-hard Whovians.
In other Who news, a couple of alumni are branching out from the series. Loyal pet and spacetime companion K-9 is getting a spin-off of his own. The robot dog, who first appeared on the show back in 1977, will star in a film by one of his original creators and well know Who writer, Bob Baker (Wallace & Gromit). K9-Timequake is being touted as a multi million dollar project that will featrure “dashing heroes and heroines, Androids, monstrous Aliens” and a well-known foe; the megalomaniac OMEGA.
The film is set to hit theaters 2017, though there is no word if it will only appear in British cinemas, or world wide.
Michelle Gomez, known to Who fans as the Doctor‘s long time nemesis “Missy,” has joined the Fox series Gotham this season as part of the Rise of Villains. Gotham may already be on the radar of many Whovians as the role of Alfred is played by Sean Pertwee, son of Jon Pertwee, the Third Doctor.
The Lady is waiting. Coming up on Fox Mon 16th Nov. #gotham pic.twitter.com/lkZyz4lR0k
— MichelleGomez (@MichelleGomez) November 10, 2015
Gomez takes on the role of The Lady, who is rumored to be a possible nod to DC villainess Lady Shiva. Those who have seen in her performance as a masterminding time lady will know there is little doubt she will fit right in alongside fellow villains Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) and Riddler (Corey Michael Smith).
Are you looking forward to five more years of Who? What is it with those glasses?! Let us know what YOU think in the comments below or on Facebook, and be sure to check out Grizzly Bomb for all your Whovian News.
Images: BBC
Sources: Variety, Mirror, Radio Times, Digital Spy, i09