BBC America announced today that the new era of Doctor Who will make its U.S. premiere on Saturday, April 17, 2010, soon after the UK broadcast. This announcement comes much to the delight of American audiences, including yours truly. The upcoming new season, which will star Matt Smith as the eleventh incarnation of the famous Time Lord known simply as ‘The Doctor’ and Karen Gillan as his enigmatic travel companion, Amy Pond.
Travelling both through time and space, the new series has the mysterious Doctor and Amy Pond together exploring sixteenth century Venice, France during the 1890s and the United Kingdom in the far future, now an entire nation floating in space. The first three episodes of the 13-episode series have been confirmed as The Eleventh Hour, written by Steven Moffat, The Beast Below, also by Moffat and Victory of the Daleks by Mark Gatiss.
The Waters of Mars - Saturday, December 19th at 9/8c on BBC America.
Mars, 2059. Bowie Base One. Last recorded message: "Don’t drink the water. Don’t even touch it. Not one drop."
Lindsay Duncan (Rome, Longford) joins the Doctor as his sharpest and most strong-minded companion yet for the first of three final Doctor Who specials.
The Waters of Mars is a dark, scary thriller that sees the Doctor land on the planet Mars, at a base in peril. A creeping infection beneath the Martian surface threatens not only the human race but also the Doctor's most fundamental beliefs.
Together with Adelaide Brooke - the base's commander, played by Lindsay Duncan - the Doctor must defeat a seemingly unstoppable menace before it can reach Earth and wipe out mankind.
The Doctor must fight not only the water but destiny itself. While also confronting his own existence, when the prophecy about his future begins to resonate. Is his song about to come to an end?
From The Doctor Who News Page:
A roundup of news for the broadcast of Torchwood: Children of Earth around the world.
United Kingdom (BBC1, 6th-10th July)
United States (BBC America, 20th-24th July)
Canada (SPACE, 20th-24th July)
Australia (UKTV, date unknown)
The Next Doctor - Saturday, June 27th at 9:00pm ET/6:00pm PT with encores at Midnight and 3:00am ET/9:00pm and Midnight PT on BBC America.
It is Christmas Eve, 1851, and Cybermen stalk the snow of Victorian London. When the Doctor arrives and starts to investigate a spate of mysterious deaths, he encounters a woman named Rosita (Velile Tshabalala) and another man who calls himself "The Doctor" (David Morrissey). After failing to capture a Cybershade, the two men talk and the current Doctor thinks the other is a future regeneration of himself. However, "the Next Doctor" seems to be lacking many of the current Doctor's memories.
Meanwhile, the Cybermen are planning an attack on Earth, helped by their human ally, Miss Mercy Hartigan (Dervla Kirwan). The two Doctors must combine forces to defeat the ruthless Miss Hartigan. But are two Doctors enough to stop the rise of the CyberKing?
In a turnabout from a previous arrangement, BBC America now has first US broadcast rights for the soon-to-be-aired hour-long specials of Doctor Who.
The Next Doctor, the show's 2008 Christmas episode, will make its US debut at 9:00 p.m. on June 27th, followed by Planet of the Dead in July 26th. Specific US air dates will be determined for the subsequent specials after they've aired in the UK.
BBC America - which has to bid for British shows just like any other American broadcaster - will continue its first run deal on Torchwood, airing that show's third season in July. Other science fiction shows debuting on the network this summer include Being Human (starting July 25) and Survivors, starring Doctor Who's Freema Agyeman (date TBA). The third season of ITV's dinosaur time romp Primeval is currently airing on the network.
Current BBC America president Garth Ancier says that's the network should always have had Doctor Who. "If I'd been here [when the original deal was made]," Ancier said, "we wouldn't have sold it, to be quite honest." For the last four years, the Sci Fi Channel has held first rights, with BBC America holding second rights.
Planet of the Dead - Saturday 11th April at 6:45pm on BBC One.
When a London bus takes a detour to an alien world, the Doctor must join forces with the extraordinary Lady Christina, in this one-off seasonal special. But the mysterious planet holds terrifying secrets, hidden in the sand. And time is running out, as the deadly Swarm gets closer.
Planet Of The Dead features David Tennant as the Doctor, Michelle Ryan as Lady Christina and Lee Evans as Malcolm. It is written by Russell T Davies and Gareth Roberts.
Planet Of The Dead is also being simulcast on the BBC HD channel – the BBC’s High Definition channel available through Freesat, Sky and Virgin Media.