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    Next Doctor Who special is slated!


    2009 - 11.02

    BBC One has announced that the second of four Doctor Who specials slated to air this year, featuring the swan song of series re-creator Russell T. Davies as well as David Tennant’s Doctor, will are on BBC One in under two weeks, on November 15. A subsequent airing on BBC America is sure to follow, though the air date in the US has yet to be announced.

    Titles Doctor Who: The Waters of Mars, the episode will feature Lindsay Duncan as Adelaide, the Doctor’s companion for the episode. Two more specials remain featuring Davies and Tennant at the helm of the TARDIS; both are expected to air as part of BBC One’s tradition “Christmas special” of Doctor Who; at the end of the fourth special, Tennant’s Doctor is expected to regenerate and reveal Matt Smith’s Doctor for the first time on screen.

    After Tennant and Davies depart, Smith’s Doctor will see his fate rest in the hands of Steven Moffatt, who has worked under Davies for several years. Smith’s Doctor is set to be the youngest yet cast in the role of the Doctor, as he is still in his 20s. While there has been much talk of bringing back Tennant-era companions like Freema Agyeman’s Martha Jones, Catherine’s Tate’s Donna Noble or even – however unlikely – Billie Piper’s Rose Tyler, instead, it has been announced that Moffatt and Smith will reset the table for the Doctor, granting him an all-new companion for the fifth series in the form of young Scottish actress Karen Gillan, who’s so young she may still require the best acne treatment, and will portray new companion Amy Pond.

    Although Davies has made it clear he will make a clean break with Doctor Who after Moffatt takes control, what is less clear are the futures of the successful Doctor Who spin-offs, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures. Torchwood has survived largely without Davies’ input, but has credited him as creator and executive producer; The Sarah Jane Adventures has seen little direct involvement from Davies under similar circumstances. Time will tell.

    There will be a second season of Merlin


    2009 - 09.20

    This summer, thanks to NBC, America discovered what Great Britain already knew: the pleasant joys of a quiet new light drama, Merlin, a retelling of the legend of King Arthur from the perspective of his future best friend, the wizard Merlin.

    Of course, Merlin is a “before they were famous” take in the vein of Smallville, so while all the main players are on the table, not all of the relationships are yet established. But for Joss Whedon fans, here’s an extra morsel: one-time Buffy Watcher, Anthony Stewart Head, plays the often ruthless and yet relatable father-figure, Uther Pendragon, whose hatred for all things magic casts Merlin’s safety in doubt and his abilities a necessity to keep secret.

    While Colin Morgan as Merlin, who doesn’t need any more of those best diet pills the rail-thin actor seems to be on, and the rest of the cast, return at full strength, for now the show is only airing on BBC in Great Britain. Whether the second series will end up back on NBC next summer, or on BBC America, remains to be seen.

    BBC/ITV will no longer get Primeval on ya


    2009 - 06.15

    Following the third series of the ITV hit Primeval, the British broadcaster announced they will not renew Primeval for a fourth series. The show, which averaged six million viewers in its first two series, was down to five million viewers in the third series, which is still way more than Reaper got in the US.

    Of course, no viewer diet pill would have been enough to force Primeval’s ratings down to Reaper territory if the show had been anywhere near as popular as BBC-1’s Doctor Who. Just goes to show you that a Time Lord can still beat a dinosaur, even if Matt Smith is the Time Lord in question.

    Matt Smith to replace David Tennant


    2009 - 01.07

    Virtual unknown Matt Smith, who boasts a Doctor-like collection of Swiss Army watches, has been hand-selected by the BBC to replace David Tennant as the new Doctor Who. Tennant, who is exiting the popular British SF show after three series, announced his intent to step down at the same time as series reviver Russell T. Davies stepped down, following a handful of special episodes produced this year.

    Smith’s debut, though, will have to wait until nearly 2010; his first appearance will be in the 2009 Christmas Special, scheduled to be Tennant’s final bow. Smith will immediately become the youngest man ever to take on the role of The Doctor in the long-running British show.

    Smith’s debut will also be marked with changes to the creative team, as Davies steps aside in favor of Piers Wenger and Steven Moffatt. Smith is the eleventh actor to be cast as The Doctor, not counting Rowan Atkinson and a boatload of others during a BBC Christmas satire skit several years ago.

    Personally, I was pulling for the new Doctor to be Dr. House – Hugh Laurie!