Gallifreyan Guardian

Adrian Hodges to write 60th Anniversary Film

Inone of the most remarkable twists of fate, Adrian Hodges has been announced as the screenwriter of Doctor Who’s 60th Anniversary Film, currently known as Doctor Who VIII.

Adrian Hodges certainly has quite a large CV when it comes to Doctor Who, first writing for the franchise in 2001 with the Leftover episode, The Inhuman Advantage. It would be another 15 years before he returned to the franchise, when in 2016 he joined The Elysium as a co-executive producer, and in 2017 penned the episode In Her Own Words. He left The Elysium after being hired by Jane Espenson to write for the main show, and join as a co-executive producer. After penning both Crookback and Their Story, two of the standouts of Season 52, he was picked to become Doctor Who’s new showrunner by Espenson. He went onto write 15 episodes of the programme, as showrunner, before departing following Season 55.

What is remarkable about Hodges’ return to the franchise is that his exit was viewed by many as being quite an unhappy one and there was certainly no indication that he’d ever return to the franchise, let alone so soon and in such a huge manner. As far as can be gathered, Hodges had been originally contracted to showrun Doctor Who for three seasons, and following his third season, Mal Young decided not to renew his contract. He wasn’t fired. His contract simply wasn’t renewed. Hodges did have plans for future seasons but was aware that it very well could be his last. Obviously it seems now that Young’s reasons for letting Hodges go weren’t personal and weren’t about the quality of his writing, but instead about the direction of the manner he approached the main television show, as Young seems to be more than happy to hire Hodges in this new role.

The Lambert Centre Opens WhoStudios’

WhoStudios' new base of operations, the Lambert Centre, in Greater Manchester, has opened with a lavish ceremony featuring an illustrious lineup of Doctor Who alumni. The centrepiece of the ceremony was the ribbon-cutting by Carole Ann Ford and Waris Hussein. The Lambert Centre, once fully operational in January 2023, will boast 12,000m2 of soundstage space, and will eventually be home to all of Doctor Who’s productions this side of the atlantic. Further information on Page 20.

The Time Meddlers Enters Production

Doctor Who: The Time Meddlers began production in early June with the first studio recording taking place on Friday 17 June in front of a live studio audience of 200 people at WhoStudios’ Lambert Centre. The series which stars Jo Brand, Ray Fearon, Sally Bretton, Adrian Lukis and Nina Wadia centres around the Monk and a team of fellow Time Meddlers. The first episode was written by Ronald D. Moore with the rest by Steven Moffat.

The series is due to air on BBC Three in January 2023. Full set reports for all 6 episodes can be read on Page 22, whereby a Doctor Who Magazine correspondent who was in the audience for the recordings has given their spoiler-free account of events.

Adventures Trailer Released

A trailer for Doctor Who: Adventures’ fourth series has been released. It contained many reveals in its 40 seconds including a return trip to Marinus, a run-in with Henry VIII and the appearance of the First Doctor and Susan. The First Doctor was voiced by John Guilor and it is unknown which episode he and Susan will appear in.

Prince Charles to star in Adventures

Another major part of the trailer for Doctor Who: Adventures Series 4 saw the surprise announcement that the first episode of the series “Prince of the Daleks” will be a celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and include a voiceover role for Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, as himself.

The recording secretly took place last year during a visit that the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall made to the set of The Daleks’ Master Plan in November.

The episode as a whole will celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and see Prince Charles face the Daleks, alongside the Doctor, Erin and Kyle.

The New Renegade to air from October

Originally scheduled for September, the third season of Doctor Who: The New Renegade has been pushed back for release in October, due to reasons currently undisclosed. This will now mean that the season will premiere around the time of The Restoration, whether before or after is currently unknown. The season will run for 10 episodes from October onward. A fourth season was announced, last November, as premiering in July 2023, but it is unknown whether that schedule will be held too.