Latest news with #Whovian
BBC News
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Band to play gig in Doctor Who village East Hagbourne
"I suspect my childhood love of Doctor Who has had a huge bearing on where I've ended up living."Life-long Whovian Tim Masters lives just down the road from the picturesque Oxfordshire village of East Hagbourne, where Tom Baker's Time Lord once battled villainous Tim is now organising a special live gig to commemorate 50 years since the filming of the four-part story The Android tells the BBC: "I thought, well, I'm in a space rock band, I live in the area, and it would be almost rude not to mark it in some way." His band Lunar Kites, whose influences include Hawkwind, Muse, and Pink Floyd, will play Hagbourne Village Hall on 60, formed the band in 2023, with other members hailing from Lewknor, Witney, Didcot, and Oxford."After I finished working I thought what am I going to do with my life now?" Tim explains."I thought I'm going to go back to what I loved doing as a teenager and form a rock band, and that's exactly what happened." Tim's love of Doctor Who goes much further back. His "first proper memory" of the programme is of evil mannequins gunning down innocent shoppers in Jon Pertwee's Doctor Who debut."I was a very imaginative child and I think it absolutely clicked with me," he says."I just love the endless invention of the show, the way it can refresh itself and it can literally do anything, go anywhere, at any time."That is a format which is just gold, and there's no other show that can do that." In July 1975 the human race was targeted again, as the monstrous Kraals touched down in East Hagbourne - named Devesham in the show - with a devious plan to replace all the villagers with took place around the distinctive Upper Cross monument, the Fleur de Lys pub, and outside the Post story featured a particular scene that terrified youngsters, as the Doctor's companion Sarah Jane took a tumble, revealing her true android face. Tim, who lives in neighbouring village West Hagbourne, calls the filming location "beautiful". He adds: "I'm always struck by how gorgeous it is... it's almost unchanged from when it appeared in the episode, it's almost identical. "I think that's part of the beauty of it, it's a very timeless, archetypical English village."The site has since become a place of pilgrimage for dedicated Doctor Who fans."You will often see people walking around in long scarves, posing on the village monument, and hanging out in the local pub," Tim explains. "If you go into the Fleur de Lys today they've got photos up on the wall of Tom Baker meeting all the local kids." Despite his fond memories of The Android Invasion, which averaged 11.6 million viewers half a century ago, Tim concedes quietly: "It's actually not that good.""The stories are all absolute bangers in that season so The Android Invasion does actually look a bit weak."But its first episode is amazing. I'd happily show that to any non-fan as an example of a really good Doctor Who story because it's full of mystery." You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Buzz Feed
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Why Fans Don't Think Billie Piper Is The New Doctor
Doctor Who fans across the world were gagged on Saturday night when Billie Piper made an unexpected return to the franchise. After weeks of speculation about whether Ncuti Gatwa 's time as The Doctor was coming to an end in the not-too-distant future, the most recent finale saw his character regenerating, after two seasons at the helm of the Tardis. What few could have foreseen would be that his character would regenerate into what appears to be a new incarnation of The Doctor, played by Billie Piper. Billie Piper IS the new Doctor 💙💫 #DoctorWho — Andrew McBride (@andrewmcb) May 31, 2025 @andrewmcb / Via Billie, of course, already has a long history with Doctor Who, starring in the role of Rose Tyler when the reboot first began airing 20 years ago. The Olivier winner's unexpected appearance led to a wide array of pretty much every reaction possible on social media, and a slew of headlines hailing her arrival as The Sixteenth Doctor. However, other fans are not convinced it's as simple as that. At the end of the first season of the Doctor Who revival, Rose ended up absorbing the heart of Tardis, becoming a new omniscient entity known as 'Bad Wolf'. Billie most recently appeared in Doctor Who for its 50th anniversary special, this time playing a different being altogether, known as 'The Moment'. So, given the fact that Billie has repeatedly popped up in the long-running sci-fi saga as a variety of different entities – not everyone in the Whovian fandom believes that her latest appearance necessarily means she's the new Doctor. Tellingly, her appearance in the final credits says simply 'introducing Billie Piper' rather than 'introducing Billie Piper as The Doctor', which is traditionally the terminology used when ushering in a new incarnation of the Time Lord… I didn't see one of these yesterday with everyone from Modern Who so I made one myself. But, there's something missing on the last one… #DoctorWho #doctorwhospoilers #DoctorWhofinale #TheRealityWar #ncutigatwa #billiepiper #jodieWhittaker — 𝓛𝓲𝓼𝓪 (𝓗𝓪𝓻𝓻𝔂'𝓼 𝓥𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓲𝓸𝓷)💌🍒🍉🥝 (@LisasBeautySpot) June 1, 2025 @lisasbeautyspot / Via Now did they forget to put Billie Piper as The Doctor or is there something else going on… — ᏝᏋᏇᎥᏕ (@SalamiSandwich4) May 31, 2025 @salamisandwich4 / Via Okay but where is the 'as the Doctor' in the credits #DoctorWho — beth 🫧🧚🏻✨🪩🌷 (@itsmebethh_) May 31, 2025 @itsmebeth_ / Via The fact that this does not have the words 'as the Doctor' is going to fuel a gazillion over-monetised clickbait YouTube takes between now and the start of the next series. #DoctorWho — Russell Merryman (@merryarty) May 31, 2025 @merryarty / Via Everyone failing to notice that Billie Piper was not 'introduced' as the Doctor in the credits, just as Billie Piper. She's clearly not the Doctor but some Bad Wolf shenanigans #DoctorWho — Horror Enjoyer (@TjHArtwork) May 31, 2025 @tjhartwork / Via call me deluded but billie posted this emphasising rose and the credits make no mention of the doctor when normally it always says introducing x as the doctor ???? are we being conned #doctorwho — becky | dw era (@rinaswarkles) May 31, 2025 @rinaswarkles / Via WHATTTTT Billie Piper is the 16th Doctor Billie Piper has played the famous Rose Tyler, the bad wolf and NOW the Doctor WELCOME BACK TO THE SHOW #DoctorWho — Safe Space Who (@SafeSpaceDrWho) May 31, 2025 @safespacedrwho / Via The lack of 'as The Doctor' discourse will power the fandom for a decade #DoctorWho — Ryan Love (@RyanJL) May 31, 2025 @ryanjl / Via BILLIE PIPER IS THE 16TH DOCTOR NO SHES NOT YES SHE IS for the next 2 years omfg let me out of this hell — clara oswald akgae (@oswinfilms) June 1, 2025 @oswinfilms / Via Our favourite post of them all, though, has to be this one… #DoctorWho Billie Piper predicting her own regeneration 16 years ago in the music video for her single, "Because We Want To"! — Alan 🇵🇱 | JUSTYNA ❤️🩹 (@ThatAlann) June 1, 2025 @thatalan / Via After the episode aired, Billie teased: 'It's no secret how much I love this show, and I have always said I would love to return to the Whoniverse as I have some of my best memories there, so to be given the opportunity to step back on that Tardis one more time was just something I couldn't refuse, but who, how, why and when, you'll just have to wait and see...' Showrunner Russell T Davies also said: 'Billie once changed the whole of television, back in 2005, and now she's done it again! 'It's an honour and a hoot to welcome her back to the TARDIS, but quite how and why and who is a story yet to be told. After 62 years, the Doctor's adventures are only just beginning!' The Doctor has previously regenerated into a familiar face once before, when Jodie Whittaker's Thirteenth became a new version of the Time Lord, played by David Tennant in his second stint in charge of the Tardis. It's not yet clear whether a new season of Doctor Who is currently on the cards, with tabloid speculation about the show being 'rested' at the end of its latest run. Last month, a BBC spokesperson told HuffPost UK: 'As we have previously stated, the decision on season three will be made after season two airs and any other claims are just pure speculation.'
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'Doctor Who fans are furious again, but they should just enjoy the ride'
Doctor Who fans are furious. That's probably an evergreen sentence, to be quite honest, but in this case it's truer than usual. This weekend saw the latest series of the time-travelling show come to an end with hour-long epic episode The Reality War. To say it has been divisive would be the understatement of the year. In fact, divisive might be the wrong word. The reaction has been almost universally negative, whether it's to the return of Omega, the resolution of the story involving the Rani or, of course, that big surprise in the final few moments of the episode. With so many rumours about the cloudy future of the show, many fans were disappointed to see this series end in the way that it did. Note: There are spoilers ahead for the Doctor Who finale, so tread carefully. Many of the headlines in the wake of the episode are, naturally, focused on the surprise regeneration scene that ended the series. Ncuti Gatwa has said farewell to the TARDIS and, barring any sort of further twist, it appears that Billie Piper will be the next incarnation of the Doctor — 20 years after she became the first companion of the revival era when she debuted as Rose Tyler alongside Christopher Eccleston as the Time Lord. Notably, though, Piper's name in the final credits was not listed as playing the Doctor. So there's something afoot and the door is very much ajar for a different actor to jump in and grab the TARDIS key in the near future. In a series dominated by big, audacious swings on the part of showrunner Russell T Davies, this surprise regeneration was arguably the biggest risk of all. After all, it's very rare that a Doctor's goodbye is a complete shock. In 2013, the BBC dedicated an entire TV special to revealing Peter Capaldi as the next Doctor and, back in 2022, Gatwa was announced as the new permanent Doctor several months before Jodie Whittaker regenerated on screen. Read more: 'Doctor Who's new series is its boldest ever, and you should be watching' (Yahoo Entertainment, 4 min read) Times have changed. Unless you really had your ear to the ground in hardcore fan spaces, Billie Piper's return was an enormous surprise. And ultimately, that's the sort of thing we should welcome. The fact that a 60-year-old TV show covered in breathless detail by the tabloid press can still pull off a shock like this is worthy of celebration. And broadly, that's how I feel about the episode as a whole. The Reality War was Doctor Who at its silliest, moving at a breathless gallop of the kind that Davies proved so good at back in his previous tenure as the head Whovian. This episode had a lot of plates to spin and a smorgasbord of baddies to dispatch. There was slimy manosphere scumbag Conrad, two incarnations of the Rani, returning uber-Time Lord Omega, and the infant god of wishes Desiderium — not to mention the marauding Bone Beasts. Almost all of them were swatted aside with quite frankly hilarious ease via the sort of writing trickery that only a show this frantic can allow. Read more: This Is Why Doctor Who Fans Aren't All Convinced That Billie Piper Is Really The New Doctor (HuffPost, 5 min read) Doctor Who excels at getting itself out of corners, whether that's with a wave of the sonic screwdriver, a flourish of timey-wimey nonsense, or a smart line of dialogue. That sort of thing has been part of the show forever. Sometimes it's fun, sometimes it's profound, and sometimes it's frustrating, but it seems churlish to start complaining about it now. Put simply, this episode of Doctor Who was loads of fun. It never paused for breath long enough to allow you to think about how messy it all was — and it was — but delivered very impressive spectacle and joyous energy. It's hard to imagine the Doctor Who of old giving us an enormous battle between UNIT and skyscraper-sized bone critters and you just have to Google images of Omega's classic form to show how much he has changed thanks to the influx of Disney cash. If this was the last hurrah for Doctor Who's bond with Disney, then Davies decided to make sure he was spending every penny of that money and embracing every inch of the increased scope he was allowed. His series finales over the years have always delighted in testing the limits of the show's spectacle and The Reality War had more than a few echoes of the 2008 two-parter The Stolen Earth/Journey's End, which also featured a surprise regeneration — albeit one used as a fake-out cliffhanger — and brought back just about every significant companion of the era. Read more: Ncuti Gatwa blames bad knees for Doctor Who exit (BANG Showbiz, 3 min read) More than anybody else, Davies understands that Doctor Who is at its best when it's speedy and silly, capering through time and space with its tongue lodged firmly in its cheek and its two hearts beating double-time. Why not have the Rani munched down by Omega? Why not resolve the most powerful god of the pantheon with a single whisper? Why not bring Jodie Whittaker back for a two-minute cameo? Doctor Who fans need to relax and enjoy the silly sci-fi show. It's absolutely capable of being profound and smart and intricate at times, which is great, but its default setting is to be a rollicking adventure through time and space with an immortal hero at the top of the cast list. It would be wrong to say that The Reality War completely stuck the landing or that it managed to deliver satisfactory pay-offs to the myriad plot threads introduced throughout the series. Those brief appearances of the Doctor's granddaughter, for example, came to precisely nothing. But what this finale did do was provide a healthy dose of chaos for the "mad man with a box" — and tease plenty more chaos to come. Sit back and enjoy the ride. Doctor Who is streaming now on BBC iPlayer.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
This Is Why Doctor Who Fans Aren't All Convinced That Billie Piper Is Really The New Doctor
Doctor Who fans across the world were gagged on Saturday night when Billie Piper made an unexpected return to the franchise. After weeks of speculation about whether Ncuti Gatwa's time as The Doctor was coming to an end in the not-too-distant future, the most recent finale saw his character regenerating, after two seasons at the helm of the Tardis. What few could have foreseen would be that his character would regenerate into what appears to be a new incarnation of The Doctor, played by Billie Piper. Billie Piper IS the new Doctor 💙💫 # — Andrew McBride (@andrewmcb) May 31, 2025 Billie, of course, already has a long history with Doctor Who, starring in the role of Rose Tyler when the reboot first began airing 20 years ago. The Olivier winner's unexpected appearance led to a wide array of pretty much every reaction possible on social media, and a slew of headlines hailing her arrival as The Sixteenth Doctor. However, other fans are not convinced it's as simple as that. At the end of the first season of the Doctor Who revival, Rose ended up absorbing the heart of Tardis, becoming a new omniscient entity known as 'Bad Wolf'. Billie most recently appeared in Doctor Who for its 50th anniversary special, this time playing a different being altogether, known as 'The Moment'. So, given the fact that Billie has repeatedly popped up in the long-running sci-fi saga as a variety of different entities – not everyone in the Whovian fandom believes that her latest appearance necessarily means she's the new Doctor. Tellingly, her appearance in the final credits says simply 'introducing Billie Piper' rather than 'introducing Billie Piper as The Doctor', which is traditionally the terminology used when ushering in a new incarnation of the Time Lord… I didn't see one of these yesterday with everyone from Modern Who so I made one myself. But, there's something missing on the last one… #DoctorWho#doctorwhospoilers#DoctorWhofinale#TheRealityWar#ncutigatwa#billiepiper# — 𝓛𝓲𝓼𝓪 (𝓗𝓪𝓻𝓻𝔂'𝓼 𝓥𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓲𝓸𝓷)💌🍒🍉🥝 (@LisasBeautySpot) June 1, 2025 Now did they forget to put Billie Piper as The Doctor or is there something else going on… — ᏝᏋᏇᎥᏕ (@SalamiSandwich4) May 31, 2025 Okay but where is the 'as the Doctor' in the credits # — beth 🫧🧚🏻✨🪩🌷 (@itsmebethh_) May 31, 2025 The fact that this does not have the words 'as the Doctor' is going to fuel a gazillion over-monetised clickbait YouTube takes between now and the start of the next series. # — Russell Merryman (@merryarty) May 31, 2025 Everyone failing to notice that Billie Piper was not 'introduced' as the Doctor in the credits, just as Billie Piper. She's clearly not the Doctor but some Bad Wolf shenanigans # — Horror Enjoyer (@TjHArtwork) May 31, 2025 call me deluded but billie posted this emphasising rose and the credits make no mention of the doctor when normally it always says introducing x as the doctor ???? are we being conned # — becky | dw era (@rinaswarkles) May 31, 2025 WHATTTTTBillie Piper is the 16th Doctor Billie Piper has played the famous Rose Tyler, the bad wolf and NOW the Doctor WELCOME BACK TO THE SHOW # — Safe Space Who (@SafeSpaceDrWho) May 31, 2025 The lack of 'as The Doctor' discourse will power the fandom for a decade # — Ryan Love (@RyanJL) May 31, 2025 BILLIE PIPER IS THE 16TH DOCTORNO SHES NOTYES SHE ISfor the next 2 years omfg let me out of this hell — clara oswald akgae (@oswinfilms) June 1, 2025 Our favourite post of them all, though, has to be this one… #DoctorWho Billie Piper predicting her own regeneration 16 years ago in the music video for her single, "Because We Want To"! — Alan 🇵🇱 | JUSTYNA ❤️🩹 (@ThatAlann) June 1, 2025 After the episode aired, Billie teased: 'It's no secret how much I love this show, and I have always said I would love to return to the Whoniverse as I have some of my best memories there, so to be given the opportunity to step back on that Tardis one more time was just something I couldn't refuse, but who, how, why and when, you'll just have to wait and see...' Showrunner Russell T Davies also said: 'Billie once changed the whole of television, back in 2005, and now she's done it again! 'It's an honour and a hoot to welcome her back to the TARDIS, but quite how and why and who is a story yet to be told. After 62 years, the Doctor's adventures are only just beginning!' The Doctor has previously regenerated into a familiar face once before, when Jodie Whittaker's Thirteenth became a new version of the Time Lord, played by David Tennant in his second stint in charge of the Tardis. It's not yet clear whether a new season of Doctor Who is currently on the cards, with tabloid speculation about the show being 'rested' at the end of its latest run. Last month, a BBC spokesperson told HuffPost UK: 'As we have previously stated, the decision on season three will be made after season two airs and any other claims are just pure speculation.' BBC Sets The Record Straight On Latest Ncuti Gatwa Doctor Who 'Axe' Claims Doctor Who Boss Russell T Davies Has A Message For Critics Who Think The Show Is Too 'Woke' So THAT's Why Doctor Who's Tardis Is Stuck As A Police Box
Wales Online
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
David Tennant's wife Georgia reacts to Billie Piper's shock Doctor Who news
David Tennant's wife Georgia reacts to Billie Piper's shock Doctor Who news Doctor Who fans were left stunned when Ncuti Gatwa regenerated into Billie Piper on Saturday Doctor Who fans were left gobsmacked last night as Billie Piper, famed for her role as companion Rose Tyler, was "unveiled" as the new Time Lord, sparking a social media meltdown. Georgia Tennant, wife of David Tennant, who is synonymous with his portrayal of the 10th and 14th Doctors and starred opposite Billie, couldn't hide her thrill at the surprise twist. Georgia, an actress herself known for playing Jenny in Doctor Who and mother to five children with David, took to Instagram on Saturday (May 31) to share her anticipation before the episode aired, posting "Here we go. Oh yes!" She later celebrated Billie's debut with a captivating image of the actress clutching a rose, captioned with the hashtag: "Hello mum." The revelation of Billie Piper stepping into the Doctor's shoes was kept under wraps until the momentous episode, leaving fans ecstatic and flooding online platforms with their reactions. David Tennant's wife Georgia couldn't contain her excitement on Saturday (Image: Getty Images ) Ncuti Gatwa leaves Doctor Who after two series as Billie Piper returns READ MORE: Many lauded Russell T Davies, the showrunner, for his "epic casting decision". Fan reactions ranged from shock to excitement, with one viewer exclaiming on X (formerly Twitter): "OMFG just watched the final episode of Doctor Who. Spoiler alert. Billie Piper as the Doctor. WTF." Another chimed in with: "Billie Piper as the 16th Doctor wasn't what I expected but hey it is something!" reports the Mirror. And yet another fan expressed their surprise, commenting: "Billie Piper in Doctor Who. In the year 2025. Not on my bingo cards." Georgia Tennant responded to Billie Piper's Doctor Who news with this snap (Image: @georgiatennantofficial/Instagram ) Following the latest episode, Radio 2 star and self-confessed Whovian Rylan Clark couldn't hold back his emotions. Rylan, who recently appeared on Doctor Who as the host of the Interstellar Song Contest - a cosmic take on the Eurovision Song Contest - expressed his utter joy on Instagram, previously stating: "So I have been keeping that secret for a year. I am so excited. I am a massive, massive Whovian. "I love Doctor Who. I've loved it for years. And when I got that call I was so overwhelmed and I'm not gonna lie, I did have a little tear. Maybe a few more tears. It was the best experience of my life." In light of Billie's surprising reveal in Saturday's episode, an emotional Rylan confessed to his followers that his response might be something he'd later "regret". David Tennant starred alongside Billie in the show when she played companion Rose Tyler (Image: PA ) "I'll probably look back at this with real embarrassment, but I've just watched Doctor Who and I don't know what's just happened. Omg, it's unbelievable. What a turn out," he wrote. Russell, the esteemed creator of the show, responded to Rylan's touching post with affirming words and a big red heart emoji: "Love you Rylan." Article continues below Meanwhile, commenting on her return to the show, Billie said: "It's no secret how much I love this show. "I have always said I would love to return to the Whoniverse as I have some of my best memories there, so to be given the opportunity to step back on that Tardis one more time was just something I couldn't refuse." Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer
