Chilling New Image of the Snowmen From The 'Doctor Who Christmas Special' Revealed

BBC America revealed two new images from the upcoming Doctor Who Christmas Special - The Snowmen, the official poster for the episode and a chilling look at the Jack Frost-esque villains themselves.

Per BBC:

"This year’s Doctor Who Christmas Special, The Snowmen, features a new companion, a new look for the Doctor, plus a new monster in this movie-scale episode. Starring Matt Smith as the Doctor and introducing Jenna-Louise Coleman as new companion Clara, The Snowmen follows their adventures as they embark on a mission to save Christmas from the villainous Doctor Simeon (Richard E Grant, The Iron Lady, Dracula) and his army of icy snowmen. This year’s Doctor Who Christmas Special premieres Tuesday, December 25, 9:00pm on BBC America."

SOURCE: BBC America

Follow @NerdyRScoundrel

Check Out 'The Great Detective,' The Doctor Who Christmas Special Prequel

BBC is gearing up big time for the holiday with the Doctor Who Christmas Special set to air on December 25th.  We have seen a darker new look for Matt Smith's Doctor, and were treated to the trailer to the annual special, titled The Snowmen.

We also now have a short warm-up in the form of a prequel mini-sode set in Victorian-era England. The Great Detective, which made its broadcast debut during BBC's Children in Need Special, follows the tragic events of October's mid-season finale, The Angels Take Manhattan. The shattered Doctor is dealing with the terrible loss of the Ponds, and to continue on without his companions is not on his priority list. We are witness to a broken Time Lord here, and the darker turn for Smith's eleventh Doctor is not a complete surprise, with heavy hints dropped throughout the last season and a half of his other side.

Whether his old friends Vastra, Strax, and Jenny can convince him to come out of retirement remains to be seen, but its safe to assume the TARDIS will be hopping about again when Jenna-Louise Coleman makes her long awaited debut as the Doctor's new companion Clara on December 25th.

Check out this early Christmas gift for Whovians, which also has a special intro by Matt Smith and Jenna-Louise Coleman.

Follow @NerdyRScoundrel

SOURCE: BBC

TRAILER - Doctor Who Christmas Special: 'The Snowmen'

Following the release of the first image revealing the Doctor's darker bow tie-less new look in the 2012 Doctor Who Christmas Special, the title of this year's annual special has been revealed in addition to the full trailer.

Matt Smith and new companion Jenna-Louise Coleman provide a special introduction to the new look at The Snowmen, which is scheduled to air here on BBC America on Christmas Day.

Jenna-Louise Coleman made an unexpected appearance as Oswin in the seventh season premiere, Asylum of the Daleks, and apparently playing a completely different character than Clara, the new companion set to be introduced in the Christmas Special.

Smith and Coleman do not ignore this fact in the fun video intro to The Snowmen's sneak peek. And undoubtedly, these pieces will all fit together perfectly in the grand scheme of the Doctor Who puzzle. 

According to BBC: "A new companion, a new look for the Doctor, plus a new monster will all be introduced in this movie-scale episode. Starring Matt Smith as the Doctor and introducing Jenna-Louise Coleman as new companion Clara, The Snowmen follows their adventures as they embark on a mission to save Christmas from the villainous Doctor Simeon (Richard E Grant, The Iron Lady, Dracula) and his army of icy snowmen. "

"The Doctor at Christmas is one of my favorite things - but this year it's different. He's lost Amy and Rory to the Weeping Angels, and he's not in a good place: in fact, he's Scrooge. He's withdrawn from the world and no longer cares what happens to it," said Steven Moffat, Who's Executive Producer and head writer in a press release.

"So when all of humanity hangs in the balance, can anyone persuade a tired and heartbroken Doctor that it's time to return to the good fight. Enter Jenna-Louise Coleman...”

Matt Smith added, “For this year’s Christmas special we have the wonderfully villainous Richard E Grant as Doctor Simeon. As well as lizards, Victorian assassins and deranged warriors from the future, who all return to convince the Doctor that he should board the TARDIS again and save the world. Add to that Jenna-Louise Coleman and so begins the Christmas Special 2012. I hope everyone enjoys it!”

The Doctor Who Christmas Special premieres December 25, 9:00pm ET.

  

Follow @NerdyRScoundrel

PREVIEW - Doctor Who: The Power of Three

Check out the trailer and some sneak peek images to tomorrow night's fourth adventure from this season's Doctor Who: The Power of Three.

This will be the penultimate episode for 2012, as the fifth episode, the NYC-set The Angels Take Manhattan, will mark the final hour-long adventure of the year, and bid what promises to be a tearful farewell to the Doctor's popular companions, Amy and Rory.

As for tomorrow's episode, here is how the BBC describes it.

"The Doctor and the Ponds puzzle over an unlikely invasion of Earth, as millions of sinister black cubes arrive overnight..."

In some of the accompanying pictures following the trailer below, there seems to be some problems with the Doctor's heart, or at least one his two hearts that is...

Doctor Who: The Power of Three airs on BBC America tomorrow night at 9pm.

SOURCE: BBC America

Follow @NerdyRScoundrel

Review: DOCTOR WHO: ASYLUM OF THE DALEKS ★★★★☆

The worldwide broadcast premiere of Doctor Who: Asylum of the Daleks, the Series Seven season opener, is finally upon us. I have been posting quite a lot of Who material this week, having attended the U.S. screening at the Ziegfeld Theatre a week ago today.

I am still quite taken aback as a fan regarding that day's worth of events, from interviewing Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, and Who Executive Producer Caroline Skinner, to chatting with the eager fans waiting in line outside the theater, to seeing the episode projected on the grand big screen of the Ziegfeld. Then top it all off with the post show Q&A hosted by Chris Hardwick. It was quite a day, and just as important, I'm happy to report that the premiere episode delivers.

I will offer some quick thoughts on what will air tonight, with no spoilers. This will just encourage you to tune in tonight, whether you be a Whovian or not.

First it must be noted how well the episode looked presented in cinematic proportions in New York City's last remaining grand single screen theater. The production value of the show has reached the level that I would be more than happy to watch in geek bliss each 40-odd minute episode in a cinematic setting on a weekly basis. At no point did the directing, cinematography, or special effects scream 'TV show in a movie theater!' It also goes without saying there is something special about watching it with a capacity crowd of enthusiastic Whovians ooh'ing, ahh'ing and laughing in all the right places.

The Steven Moffat-penned episode is a rock solid start as the first of the five new adventures set to air in September before wrapping up 2012 with the Doctor Who Christmas Special.

It's no secret that the fifth episode, The Angels Take Manhattan, will be the last appearance of Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill as the Doctor's popular companions, and tonight's premiere lays firm groundwork to what fans will slowly see unfold in the coming weeks. There is an edgy dark dynamic set here, and it will be interesting to see how it progresses until Jenna Louise-Coleman is set as the new companion by year's end.

The relentless robotic Daleks, perhaps the greatest villains in the Doctor's rogue's gallery, return tonight with appropriate cause and force the Time Lord's hand into an unholy alliance. The episode doesn't quite pick up straight from the Series 6 finale. Time has passed, the Doctor has perhaps been laying low, relationships have changed, and it starts the year off on a cleaner slate with solid work all around from the cast.

Smith has grown well into mixing heroics, humor, and dead-on bravado when called for as the Eleventh Doctor, who shows a noticeable darker side here. Karen Gillan's Amy Pond has toughened up and grown into a true sci-fi heroine who manages to vamp up her look a notch or two as well. Arthur Darvill remains the emotional anchor as the heart and soul for the time traveling trio, as we wait to see what the Ponds fate ultimately is.

Much of the complex arc from last year is not played upon, making this an accessible episode for newcomers, but will make them only want to go back and see what has preceded it. With a feel of an old school Doctor Who adventure, it hits all the right marks for adventure, wit, and emotional curveball plot twists that fans have come to expect from the show.

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS:

"Kidnapped by his oldest foe, the Doctor is forced on an impossible mission – to a place even the Daleks are too terrified to enter… the Asylum. A planetary prison confining the most terrifying and insane of their kind, the Doctor and the Ponds must find an escape route. But with Amy and Rory's relationship in meltdown, and an army of mad Daleks closing in, it is up to the Doctor to save their lives, as well as the Pond’s marriage."

Doctor Who: Asylum of the Daleks airs tonight on BBC America at 9 p.m.

REVIEW RATING:  ★★★★☆
Directed By: Nick Hurran
Written By: Steven Moffat
Starring: Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill
Studio: BBC

Follow @NerdyRScoundrel

DOCTOR WHO INTERVIEW - Matt Smith Reveals How The Doctor Would Spend A Night Out In NYC

In part two of my selections from Saturday's roundtable interview with Matt Smith that preceded the U.S. Premiere screening of Asylum of the Daleks, the actor revealed what he thought The Doctor might do on a night of fun in New York City.

It seemed appropriate to me to maintain a line of NYC questioning given Smith's enthusiastic love for the Big Apple, and I thought it would be fun to hear about the possible things the 900 year-old Time Lord would do with a few hours to burn.

I asked that this was provided that the Weeping Angels, the eerie popular villains in the upcoming The Angels Take Manhattan, were not hot on his tail to spoil all of the Doctor's fun.

"His ideal night in New York?" Smith contemplated about the iconic character for a moment with a grin, before coming up with a bunch of ideas.

"I think maybe go and play some jazz with Woody Allen for a bit," he speculated, and assumed the Doctor might love to partake in an impromptu slow jam with one of New York City's most prominent film directors at a small time club.

"Perhaps grab a steak at Balthazar," having the insight that the Time Lord's palette has now moved beyond fish sticks and custard.

"Maybe go and stand on the top of the Statue of Liberty somehow."

"Take the TARDIS to the bottom of the Hudson see what's down there."

"I think he'd go back to the '40s or the '20s maybe, hang in Brooklyn and play baseball on the street."

But if there was one thing he was certain of regarding the Doctor's big night out, "He'd do it in a brilliant way," he said.

Doctor Who's seventh season premiere, Asylum of the Daleks, is set to air this Saturday at 9pm on BBC America. The Angels Take Manhattan, which took the cast and crew to shoot in NYC for the very first time in the show's near 50-year history, is the fifth episode and final episode of the first half of the season, and will air on September 29th. the Doctor Who Christmas Special picks up the story from there.

Follow @NerdyRScoundrel

DOCTOR WHO INTERVIEW - Matt Smith: "I Want To Shoot Every Episode of 'Doctor Who' In NYC"

Shortly before last Saturday's New York City screening of Doctor Who's fantastic seventh season premiere, Asylum of the Daleks, I was among the lucky select group invited to have an audience with Matt Smith and Karen Gillan for roundtable interviews at the headquarters of BBC America.

Since the Doctor makes few house calls in NYC, it was without question an incredibly exciting opportunity for a Who fan who also happens to run a website like this.

In a roundtable interview, journalists are grouped at a table and take turns asking questions. My group was polite and cordial, and we each managed to get in a question or two in both the time slots we had with Smith and Gillan, who were extremely down to earth and forthcoming.

As a native New Yorker, I was very interested to know what Matt's impressions were of finally getting to shoot Britain's iconic Doctor Who in the Big Apple last April, which was the first time the show did so in its near 50 year history. So appropriately, that was the first question I asked him.

"First and foremost, I want to shoot every episode of Doctor Who in New York,' he said altogether with sincerity, enthusiasm, a big smile.

Shooting the episode. The Angels Take Manhattan, left a lasting impression on the actor. "I love this city. I love filming here. Everywhere you point the camera there is something brilliant to look at. I love this city, I just love it."

He also agreed when it was brought up that NYC can be considered a universe unto itself, "It really is."

Smith's answer on Saturday was a satisfying two years in the making response. I attended the event held at the Paley Center For Media in April of 2010, where Matt's debut episode as the Doctor was screened. Taking the stage in front of press and fans alike in a Q&A following that screening, he was at the time in awe of his very first NYC experience.

"I could live here. I love it here. What a city! You’ve got everything here man. So cool.”

Of course that response lead to the follow up of whether he would want to ever shoot across the pond. "I would love to do an episode here," he hoped. It should be noted that Executive Producer and Who showrunner Steven Moffat (on stage seated next to Smith and Gillan), had a simple more economic solution that night.

"It’s very easy to set us in New York. You know what will happen, you’ll be standing in front of a green cloth," he responded.

Thankfully the phenomenal success of Matt's run as the Doctor allowed them to finally do it, sans dreaded green cloth and all.

It was quite exciting to hear the rumors earlier this year (on the internet of course, where else do people like me get my hot geek gossip from?) that Doctor Who might be bringing production to New York City. Sure they have already been to the States, having filmed some of the sixth season premiere in Utah's Monument Valley, but The Doctor in NYC?  That was a whole 'nother thing altogether.

I heard my first real solid confirmation of this at an event in April that 'Alex Kingston's double had arrived in town,' so all the rumors seemed to be coming together. Sure enough, behind-the-scenes pictures surfaced online of the cast and crew shooting in Central Park and Times Square. In this day and age, it's impossible to shoot on location in New York City, or any exterior location for that matter, and not have pics turn up online.

But to see the Doctor actually standing in Times Square was quite exciting. Many additional images of Amy (Gillan), Rory (Arthur Darvill), and the Doctor in Central Park turned up online fairly quickly as well. They revealed very little conveying anything to do with the plot, but it didn't take long before the Weeping Angels had already been rumored/and or leaked as a the villains for the episode.

What also sets the NYC episode apart, scheduled to air in a few weeks, is that it marks the final appearance of the Ponds, the extremely popular husband and wife companions of the Doctor played by Gillan and Darvill. Their departure, from all accounts promises to be a true tear jerker of an episode, will make room for a new companion played by Jenna Louise Coleman, and introduced on the Doctor Who Christmas Special.

And after wishing us a good time at the screening at the Ziegfeld, Matt's thoughts on the season premiere set to air on Saturday at 9pm on BBC America?

"I think its a belter, I really do," he said.

Having seen it, don't miss it.

And to complete my Whovian experience, I was thrilled to shake the Doctor's hand on the way out of the room.

Check back here for what Matt had to say when I asked him what the Doctor would do on an ideal night of fun in New York City, in addition to Karen Gillan's Big Apple memories.  Plus I asked her to take us back to her final moments on the set of Doctor Who, shooting the last ever scene with the Doctor, Amy, and Rory in the TARDIS...

Follow @NerdyRScoundrel

'Doctor Who' Matt Smith Joins The Olympic Torch Relay

Yesterday Patrick Stewart was bestowed an honored place in the Olympic Torch Relay. Today sci-fi fans got to see another one of their favorite figures join the hallowed ranks: The Eleventh Doctor himself, Matt Smith.

In this interview with the BBC, Smith shares his thoughts about the privilege, who he will be passing the torch to following his sprint, and see him among fans, as well as prep, run, and pass.

This is not the first time The Doctor has carried the iconic flame on the road to the Opening Ceremony. Albeit fictitiously, David Tennant's Tenth Doctor was depicted in the Torch Relay for the London 2012 Olympics in the 2006 Who episode 'Fear Her.'

Follow @NerdyRScoundrel

FIRST LOOK: The Doctor and the Ponds from 'Doctor Who' Series 7 Set

Check out the first official picture of the Doctor, and Amy & Rory Pond from the set of Doctor Who. The seventh season/series just started shooting the first of fourteen episodes yesterday and will see at some point the departure of his companions Amy and Rory played by Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill.

From BBC:

Filming has just started on Series 7 of Doctor Who in Cardiff.

This series will see the last days of the Ponds with Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill returning for their final, rollercoaster voyage with the Doctor. Amy and Rory have been at the Doctor's side for more than two series but what will he do after their heartbreaking departure?

On returning for his third series as the Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith says: "It's thrilling and exciting to be back and working with two of my closest friends."

Karen Gillan adds: "It's just brilliant to be back on the TARDIS with Matt and Arthur for our craziest adventures yet."

Series 7 will then see a dramatic turn of events when the Doctor meets a new friend.
Prepare yourselves for thrills, adventures and dramatic surprises as the show builds towards its enormous, climactic 50th anniversary year. Fourteen big, blockbuster-movie episodes — each a brand new epic adventure featuring new monsters and some familiar foes as you've never seen them before. 

So far, the confirmed guest stars include David Bradley (better known as Argus Filch in the Harry Potter films), Rupert Graves and Mark Williams.

The first set new of Doctor Who episodes is planned to air here in the States in the fall of 2012.

SOURCE: Doctor Who TV

Celebrate Christmas Weekend With 'Doctor Who'

Whovians have something extra to look forward to this year on Christmas Weekend.

BBC America  is set to broadcast the 2011 Christmas Special, Doctor Who: The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe on December 25th at 9pm.

This will be the second Yuletide special for current and 11th Doctor, Matt Smith. Smith took over the iconic sci-fi role in 2010.

©BBC

Here is BBC America's synopsis of the annual event episode.

It’s Christmas Eve, 1938, when Madge Arwell comes to the aid of an injured Spaceman Angel as she cycles home, in this year’s Doctor Who Christmas Special, starring Matt Smith as the Doctor.

He promises to repay her kindness – all she has to do is make a wish.

Three years later, a devastated Madge escapes war-torn London with her two children for a dilapidated house in Dorset. She is crippled with grief at the news her husband has been lost over the channel, but determined to give Lily and Cyril the best Christmas ever.

The Arwells are surprised to be greeted by a madcap caretaker whose mysterious Christmas gift leads them into a magical wintry world. Here, Madge will learn how to be braver than she ever thought possible. And that wishes can come true…

You can view the trailer below.

To gear up on The Night Before Christmas, you can check out Doctor Who: The Best of The Christmas Specials featuring highlights from the holiday themed adventures of both the 10th Doctor, David Tennant, and number 11, Matt Smith. The special airs December 24th at 8pm on BBC America.

Though fans hoping for a swift return with new episodes in the New Year will unfortunately have to hold their breath for some time.

Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat hints that we won't see the popular Time Lord and the TARDIS back on the airwaves until the fall of 2012. By that time the character will be firmly positioned in the on-deck circle to set up for what's in store for the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who in 2013.

©BBC

Have a Happy Who-liday Weekend!