Thursday 31 October 2013

Witch's brew

Lovely but somewhat baffling Hallowe’en Google Doodle. And Easter Eggs instead of candy.

As noted before, Doctor Who has never quite done a Hallowe’en special. Too close to the anniversary, and the show prefers to spring horror stories on its viewers without warning....

But it’s had plenty of witches over the years. Good and evil, human and alien, genuine believers and tricksters. Wizards too, possibly including the Seventh Doctor, and warlocks and sorcerers. And plenty of people learning secrets Man Was Not Meant To Know, despite the show’s overall moral that knowing is better than not.

Monday 28 October 2013

Edith Head

Today’s Google Doodle celebrates the 116th birthday of Edith Head, winner of a record eight Oscars (out of thirty-five nominations) for her costume designs, including instantly recognisable styles from Breakfast At Tiffany’s to Vertigo.

I suspect if Doctor Who were to have a Celebrity Historical about a fashion designer it would be Coco Chanel, but the Doctor might bump into Edith repeatedly on set as he chases something sinister through Hitchcock’s career, and she always notices the time travellers first of all the people around because of what they wear. The trick would be not to play her too much like Edna from The Incredibles.

And of course The Birds is a Doctor Who adventure waiting to happen, just add a resolution probably involving aliens.

(Speaking of, she also worked on the 50s version of War Of The Worlds...)

Tuesday 22 October 2013

The Official Aeronaut of France

Cute interactive Google Doodle today for the, er, 216th anniversary of the first parachute jump. Immediate thought - has the Doctor broken that record?

Saturday 19 October 2013

Easter Eggs Of The Trailer Of Day Of The Doctor

Some people at Doctor Who dot TV get a bit thorough when looking at the trailer. Of these, I spotted the laser screwdriver myself...

The Intruders

Doctor Who producers team up with The X Files producer to adapt Michael Marshall (Smith) thriller The Intruders for BBC America. Innnteresting.

Thursday 17 October 2013

Time Travel!

io9 sums up events that seem like evidence of time travel, offering rational explanations for some... and only some. Reporting this for its adventure hooks, not because I have my fingers crossed for a trip in the TARDIS.

Tuesday 15 October 2013

Happy Ada Lovelace Day

Happy Ada Lovelace Day to all those on computers now. (And if you're not on a computer how are you reading this...?)

I could post on the Google Doodle about Nietzsche's 169th birthday, but I mostly find his mind looking like Australia distracting.

Monday 14 October 2013

The Time Traveller's Wife... and fiancée... and girlfriend...

Rachel McAdams is feeling rather narrowly typecast. She’d like a turn being the time traveller for once...

Hmm...

Would she make a good Doctor? I think she probably would - sparky, charming, mischievous and (as Irene Adler) she can be dangerous.

Friday 11 October 2013

Enemy Of The World and (most of) The Web Of Fear found

Via Doctor Who Magazine and SFX, the latter complete with map of Nigeria showing where the find was made.

Nine episodes is better than none, although a long way off the full missing 106 as reported (if that’s the word...) by certain tabloids. Still, the number of missing episodes is now down to double figures!

A classic doppelganger trick, the return of the Yeti and the first appearance of the not-yet-Brigadier!

And a DWAITAS bonus, The Web Of Fear as a preview for the Second Doctor sourcebook.

And in related news as that first link shows, DWM now has an actual website.

Tuesday 8 October 2013

American Psychovore

Matt Smith has announced his next starring role - a musical version of American Psycho.

I confess I am slightly annoyed. We could have had a musical episode at any time in the last four years!

Of course, the Eleventh Doctor has had a musical story. In the comics...

But even without the musical factor, this is quite a shift in characterisation, into the role of an 80s yuppie who may be murdering loads of people or may just be thinking about it a bit too much.

(Hmm. Adventure about aliens using bored idle thoughts of humanity as a weapon... wouldn’t want to suggest a message that imagination is bad, of course, so turn the idea-materialiser against the aliens and let the people fight them...)
Also today in science, Peter Higgs shares the Nobel Prize with François Englert.

William John Swainson

Google returns to perplexing anniversary dates with the 224th birthday of William John Swainson, one of the great ornithological illustrators, who travelled the world and is best known for his work in New Zealand, emigrating there in 1841, the year it was made a separate colony.

Friday 4 October 2013

"Pitch a Doctor Who story!"

If this RPGnet thread takes off, it could be a gold mine of adventure hooks. If not, the first is still good. ;)

Wednesday 2 October 2013

Vincent Van Gogh had a sketchbook. Unsurprisingly it is beautiful, and rather melancholic.

DWAITAS update thing

850 posts, and resisting the temptation to grumble about not getting a ticket for the birthday convention. Looks like I can probably see Day Of The Doctor in 3D at the cinema.

The Second Doctor book exists physically, the Third has a cover (all monsters apart from the Doctor, including the Master), C7 are reshuffling staff. Main priority is the Doctor books, with a Twelfth Doctor rebranding of the core rules likely to hit once he’s had a series. Talk of releasing adventures (starting with the convention adventures) would be nice.