Dark Eyes

Absolutely loving this - the promo/cover image for Big Finish's upcoming Doctor Who miniseries Dark Eyes. It's set after the cataclysmic events of the fourth series of 'EDAs' - Eighth Doctor Adventures - when the Doctor pretty much got his Time Lord ass handed to him. I love how Eight's fan-made new costume has now become pretty much official. Not everyone approves of the leather jacketed, Eccleston-esque look, but I like it. It's still natty and quirky enough to fit the eighth Doctor, but more practical and less flamboyant. Makes sense how that he's heading towards a war footing with the Daleks. Plus, it's just great to have some new images of the eighth Doctor, after that handful of shots from the movie have been paraded out time after time for the last ten years. And McGann looks very handsome now that's he's older. A sexy, rugged Doctor.

Then with got the lovely Ruth Bradley, who is on ITV right now playing Emily the Victorian adventuress in Primeval. She really has got very dark eyes. She plays Molly, a voluntary nurse in the First World War. I'm hoping that she'll be using her natural Irish accent for this part. Plus, Toby Jones, who's always great, although I very much doubt he'll be in a familiar role (so fans of the Dream Lord shouldn't get excited). I preordered this way back, before it had even got a title, and I'm very much looking forward to it.

Big Finish have kind of saturated the market for Doctor Who audio these days. Jago and Litefoot is on its fifth series and confirmed for two more, and I've only just got hold of the first - which was rather brilliant. I'm hoping to get Countermeasures, the Remembrance of the Daleks spin off, but that may have to wait. It's not just the expense, it's finding the time to listen to all this...

Things to look forward to in the Whoniverse

I'm supposed to be writing some fan-fiction, but I feel like I've swallowed a cactus and my brain seems to have turned to porridge. So I'm going to attempt to get myself in the Doctor Who mind set properly. I've rewatched The Doctor's Wife and listened to part two of Serpent Crest, and am now amusing myself by looking ahead to what's to come in the world of the Doctor.

The Radio Times has a nice preview ahead for the Christmas special, The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe. I'm starting to really look forward to this one. I enjoy the RT articles on Doctor Who - they usually get the balance right, neither fawning over the show or mercilessly tearing it apart, and, while I might not necessarily agree with a review, I always feel the reviewer has been fair in their appraisal. RT previews often put a little hint in for diehards, letting them know of a reference to watch out for. It's a fun little fan game. Apparently there's a nod to a 1984 story in this one, so I'm hoping the Malus is hiding somewhere in the woods. Plus, there's a host of new images, including this marvellous one of Bill Bailey in a spacesuit:

I adore Bill Bailey, and I'm pleased to see that he hasn't changed his classic bemused expression for his Who appearance. Whenever I see him on TV, he always looks as if he was expecting to be somewhere else, as if he's just walked into the wrong room.