June 2025 Newsletter, Volume 201

Jul. 5th, 2025 05:46 pm
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Posted by Elintiriel

I. SPOTLIGHT ON FICTIONALLEY IMPORT

Open Doors has nearly finished importing FictionAlley, a Harry Potter archive. With approximately 29,000 works imported so far, it is Open Doors’ largest import yet. You can check out all imported works at the FictionAlley collection. Unclaimed works are currently locked to logged-in AO3 users only, but per Open Doors’ agreement with the FictionAlley archivist, they will be unlocked 30 days after the import is fully completed.

All FictionAlley creators should have received one or more emails with links to claim, orphan, delete their works, or prevent the import of any additional works of theirs in the future. If you were a creator and did not receive this email, please contact Open Doors for assistance. You can also contact Open Doors if you would like to prevent future imports of your Harry Potter works specifically.

Open Doors has two other Harry Potter archives currently in their queue: HarryPotterFanFiction.com and MuggleNet Fan Fiction. If your email address has changed since you were a member of either archive, or you would like Open Doors not to import your works, please contact Open Doors. Please refer to the import announcements for a full list of how Open Doors can assist you with either import.

II. ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN

Accessibility, Design & Technology (AD&T) coordinated with Board and Volunteers & Recruiting to formally decommission the Quality Assurance & Testing (QA&T) subcommittee—thank you to everyone who has served on QA&T over the years. Quality assurance and testing of AO3’s code will continue under the oversight of AD&T’s new QA Supervisor role. AD&T’s latest releases have focused on various bug fixes, code clean-up, and monitoring improvements: check out the release notes. Also, Systems has installed some new Elasticsearch servers and repurposed the old ones as application servers! \o/

Open Doors announced the import of Absolution – The Inugrrrl Memorial, an InuYasha fanfiction memorial archive.

In May, Support received 3,177 tickets, while Policy & Abuse (PAC) received 3,763 tickets—a nearly 40% increase which is likely due to PAC’s recent TOS spotlight series. PAC worked with Legal and Communications’ News Post Moderation subcommittee to review over 1,700 comments across seven posts, with more than 400 comments receiving a reply. PAC will also be recruiting soon, so look out for the upcoming recruitment post!

In June, Tag Wrangling neared completion of phase two of three of their committee-wide guideline discussions on fandom metatags. They also launched a new procedure which streamlines creation of new “No Fandom” canonical tags, which are canonical tags not specific to any particular fandom. The committee plans to post announcements periodically detailing new tags, including one in a few weeks.

In May, Tag Wrangling handled over 610,000 tags, or over 1,200 tags per wrangling volunteer.

III. ELSEWHERE AT THE OTW

Fanlore’s Annual Bingo was a huge success! \o/ 25 participants completed at least one bingo, and 16 got a total blackout. Thanks to everyone who took part!

In July, Fanlore is running a themed month—Fandom in Color—which celebrates characters of color, the contributions of fans of color, and more! Check out their social media (Bluesky and Tumblr) for page spotlights throughout the month.

Communications is now overseeing the OTW’s Convention Outreach division, which was previously run by Development & Membership. If you have inquiries regarding OTW’s convention presence, Communications can be reached through their contact form on the OTW website.

TWC is finalizing their upcoming general issue of Transformative Works and Cultures, volume 46, which will be published on September 15. They are still accepting submissions for their Latin American Fandoms special issue until January 1, 2026.

IV. THE 2025 ELECTION AND GOVERNANCE

Elections announced the 2025 Election candidates; this year’s election is contested, with three candidates running for two open seats in this year’s election. Their platforms are available on the Elections website. Communications has been coordinating public posts, while Translation is working on translating candidates’ platforms.

2025’s OTW Board Election will take place on August 15-18. OTW Members who plan to nominate a proxy should contact Elections by August 6. Specific dates for Q&A and Candidate Chats will be made available on the 2025 Election Timeline page.

Development & Membership has been checking membership for Board candidates and donors who want to vote in this year’s election, while Finance has begun preparing for the 2024 audit.

Board uploaded minutes from the April 2025 Board public meeting to the OTW website. They also approved two new Finance Bookkeepers, held check-in meetings with Legal and the Paid Staff Transition Lead, and continued to work with the Organizational Culture Roadmap Workgroup. The Board Assistants Team’s work also continues on several projects, including the Procurement Policy and Board Discord Server Guidelines revamp.

V. OUR VOLUNTEERS

Volunteers & Recruiting conducted recruitment for two committees—Tag Wrangling and Support—and two subcommittees—News Post Moderation and Internal Complaint and Conflict Resolution—this month.

From May 19 to June 22, Volunteers & Recruiting received 147 new requests and completed 139, leaving them with 53 open requests (including induction and removal tasks listed below).

As of June 22, 2025, the OTW has 944 volunteers. \o/

New Committee Chairs/Leads: 2 Organizational Culture Roadmap Workgroup Heads
New AD&T Volunteers: 1 QA Supervisor
New Communications Volunteers: 2 Convention Specialists and 3 TikTok Moderators
New Communications News Post Moderation Volunteers: Mossie, Vihi, and 1 other News Post Moderator
New Fanlore Volunteers: 90PercentHuman, Hobgirl, Sparrow, and 1 other Policy & Admin Volunteer
New Finance Volunteers: Scott and 1 other Bookkeeper
New Open Doors Volunteers: Bette, devinwolfi, Kelpie, korry, November_Clouds, Pat Zarzecka, scattered_coreopsis, Starlings and 6 other Import Assistants
New Organizational Culture Roadmap Workgroup Volunteers: 1 Goal Supervisor; megidola and 1 other Volunteer
New Support Volunteers: 2 Chair Assistants
New Translation Volunteers: 1 Volunteer Manager; Adri Jaimes, Lia404, ttom1323, and 5 other Translators
New User Response Translation Volunteers: Felipe and friki (Translators)

Departing Committee Chairs/Leads: Nary (Support) and 2 QA&T Leads
Departing AD&T QA&T Volunteers: runt and 1 other QA&T Testing Volunteer
Departing AO3 Documentation Volunteers: Leja, Evolcahra, and 1 other Editor
Departing Communications Volunteers: 1 TikTok Lead
Departing Development & Membership Volunteers: 1 Convention Specialist
Departing Fanlore Volunteers: 1 Policy & Admin Volunteer
Departing Open Doors Volunteers: 2 Import Assistants and 1 Technical Volunteer
Departing Policy & Abuse Volunteers: 1 Volunteer
Departing Support Volunteers: Sandra 002 (Volunteer)
Departing Tag Wrangling Volunteers: ladydragona (Supervisor); Daniailís, MFY11EP, Barbara Thomas, and 3 other Volunteers
Departing Translation Volunteers: 1 Volunteer Manager; Mirjam, DaisyJane, DanielUL, and 6 other Translators
Departing Volunteers & Recruiting Volunteers: 1 Volunteer

For more information about our committees and their regular activities, you can refer to the committee pages on our website.

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Posted by Peter Nolan

The Doctor’s quest to get Belinda home continues into the world of Titan Comics in The Prison Paradox

 

The Prison Paradox is a new four issue Doctor Who comic series starring the Fifteenth Doctor and Belinda. Set during the events of the 2025 series as the Time Lord struggles to get Belinda home, it sees them encounter new enemies and new allies aboard an inescapable prison facility in a forgotten part of the universe. Writer Dan Watters returns to the Whoniverse following last year’s four issue Everyone Must Go! (Read the Blogtor Who reviews of Issues 1, 2, 3, and 4.) Watters has catapulted to the comics A-List the past couple of years with his work on Batman: Dark Patterns, so it’s great news he’s staying on Doctor Who for another run.

Finnish artist Sami Kivelä (Undone by Blood, Abbott, Machine Gun Wizards) joins Watters on The Prison Paradox. Together they promise a Doctor Who adventure like no other. The Doctor, Belinda, and an unlikely team of allies infiltrate a prison holding monsters and villains from across the cosmos.

Editor Jonathan Wilkins shared his excitement on the new series. “This storyline is Titan Comics’ most ambitious yet as the Doctor and Belinda travel to a sinister space prison from which there is no escape.

“But who or what are the inmates – and who holds the keys to the cells? Writer Dan Watters takes us on a grand tour of the facility where mystery and danger lurk in every corner! Artist-extraordinaire Sami Kivelä joins the team to bring Dan’s epic story to life! Join us for an incredible adventure featuring some familiar faces and some exciting new characters making their debut in the Whoniverse!”

 

The Prison Paradox will begin later this year

The news from the official Doctor Who site and Titan Comics hints that some familiar faces will be appearing in The Prison Paradox. The plan appears to be to tease them and release the names as the countdown to the new series continues. (Personally Blogtor is hoping for the return of Frobisher, but maybe that’s just us.)

Issue #1 features a range of covers by superstar artists Jay Anacleto, Nupini, Flops, and more, including a color-your-own-variant, and foil editions. There will also be linked covers by Sami Kivelä. These will build into a complete image once your collection is complete.

 

Doctor Who: The Prison Paradox. Art by Sami Kivelä (c) Titan Comics Comic book art. The Fifteenth Doctor extends his sonic screwdriver towards us as it lights up, while Belinda, in a denim romper, looks to one side, as if ready to fight or flee, her hair blowing in the wind. Behind them loom the silhouettes of several large monsters.
Doctor Who: The Prison Paradox. Art by Sami Kivelä (c) Titan Comics

Doctor Who: The Fifteenth Doctor Volume 2 Issue #1 comic series is released in comic shops and digital devices in November 2025

The post Doctor Who: The Prison Paradox – Coming Soon from Titan Comics appeared first on Blogtor Who.

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July 4th, 2025next

July 4th, 2025: For Canada Day I ate hot dogs and one (1) hamburger at a pool party and, at one point, even went into the basement to sit on a reclining chair and watch baseball with the dads! Dads love to watch baseball in the basement during social gatherings and I was invited into their circle!!

– Ryan

Season 13 Gets Blu-ray Release

Jul. 3rd, 2025 03:38 pm
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Posted by News in Time and Space Ltd

Season 13 Blu-ray<\/a>

The BBC has confirmed that Season 13 will form the contents of the next Blu-ray box set.

The season, first broadcast in the UK in 1975 and 1976, was Tom Baker's second season. Together with Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith, it features some of the best-known and highest-regarded stories of the classic era of Doctor Who. 

The eight-disc box set sees the Doctor and Sarah cross time and space to do battle with the Zygons, the biomechanoid Loch Ness monster, the fearsome Sutekh and his robot mummies, vengeful renegade Time Lord Morbius, an anti-matter creature on a distant planet, the scheming Kraals and the terrifying Krynoid.

All episodes have been newly remastered from the best available sources – these classic adventures have never looked or sounded so good on home media. 

The Collection: Season 13 is also jam-packed with hours of new and exclusive material, including:

NEW DOCUMENTARIES

  • WORLDS WITHIN: A profile of actor Ian Marter, who played Harry Sullivan
  • RETURN TO THIRTEEN: Philip Hinchcliffe returns to the locations of several Season 13 stories and is reunited with old friends
  • IN CONVERSATION: Director Graeme Harper chats to Matthew Sweet about his life, career and Doctor Who
  • TOM TALKS: Tom Baker on Season 13 and more
  • THE DOCTOR WHO ESCAPE ROOM: The Fourth Doctor team attempt their escape
  • BEHIND THE SOFA: New episodes with Colin Baker (the Sixth Doctor), Maureen O’Brien (Vicki), Katy Manning (Jo), Sarah Sutton (Nyssa), Janet Fielding (Tegan), Sophie Aldred (Ace), Sadie Miller (Elisabeth Sladen’s daughter), and comedian Toby Hadoke.
  • BRAND NEW AUDIO COMMENTARIES: Tom Baker on episodes from Terror of the Zygons, Pyramids of Mars and The Android Invasion
  • UPDATED SPECIAL EFFECTS: On Terror of the Zygons
  • OMNIBUS EDITIONS: HD recreations of the Pyramids of Mars and The Brain of Morbius repeat screenings, plus a brand-new edit of The Seeds of Doom
  • TALES OF THE TARDIS: A 2024 edit of Pyramids of Mars with updated effects and appearances from the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson)
  • EXCLUSIVE ARCHIVE TREATS: Including never-before-released footage from Mathshow, Disney Time and more
  • INTERVIEWS: Unreleased footage of Elisabeth Sladen and Michael Sheard (Laurence Scarman in Pyramids of Mars)
  • 5.1 SURROUND SOUND: New surround mix on Pyramids of Mars
  • HD PHOTO GALLERIES
  • INFO TEXT
  • PDF ARCHIVE

This eight-disc box set also includes hours of special features previously released on DVD, including Documentaries, Featurettes, Audio Commentaries and more.

The Collection: Season 13

 

The season can be pre-ordered on Amazon<\/a>

 

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Posted by Bedwyr Gullidge

BBC Studios have today announced the next release in the hugely popular Doctor Who: The Collection range will be…Season 13

In his second season, Tom Baker’s Doctor really hits his stride, with faithful companion Sarah-Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) by his side. Together they cross time and space to do battle with the Zygons, the biomechanoid Loch Ness monster, the fearsome Sutekh and his robot mummies, vengeful renegade Time Lord Morbius, an anti-matter creature on a distant planet, the scheming Kraals and the terrifying Krynoids.

All episodes have been newly remastered from the best available sources – these classic adventures have never looked or sounded so good on home media.

Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 13 (c) BBC Studios

The Collection: Season 13 is also jam-packed with hours of new and exclusive material including:

NEW DOCUMENTARIES and SPECIAL FEATURES
  •  WORLDS WITHIN

A profile of actor Ian Marter, who played Harry Sullivan.

  • RETURN TO THIRTEEN

Philip Hinchcliffe returns to the locations of several Season 13 stories and is reunited with old friends.

  • IN CONVERSATION

Director Graeme Harper chats to Matthew Sweet about his life, career and Doctor Who.

  • TOM TALKS

Tom Baker on Season 13 and more.

  • THE DOCTOR WHO ESCAPE ROOM

The Fourth Doctor team attempt their escape.

  • BEHIND THE SOFA

New episodes with Colin Baker (the Sixth Doctor), Maureen O’Brien (Vicki), Katy Manning (Jo), Sarah Sutton (Nyssa), Janet Fielding (Tegan), Sophie Aldred (Ace), Sadie Miller (Elisabeth Sladen’s daughter), and comedian Toby Hadoke.

  • BRAND NEW AUDIO COMMENTARIES

Tom Baker on episodes from Terror of the Zygons, Pyramids of Mars and The Android Invasion.

  • UPDATED SPECIAL EFFECTS

On Terror of the Zygons.

  • OMNIBUS EDITIONS

HD recreations of the Pyramids of Mars and The Brain of Morbius repeat screenings, plus a brand-new edit of The Seeds of Doom.

  • TALES OF THE TARDIS

A 2024 edit of Pyramids of Mars with updated effects and appearances from the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson).

  • EXCLUSIVE ARCHIVE TREATS

Including never-before-released footage from Mathshow, Disney Time and more.

  • INTERVIEWS

Unreleased footage of Elisabeth Sladen and Michael Sheard (Laurence Scarman in Pyramids of Mars).

  • 5.1 SURROUND SOUND

New surround mix on Pyramids of Mars.

  • HD PHOTO GALLERIES
  • INFO TEXT
  • PDF ARCHIVE
  • PLUS LOTS MORE!

 This eight-disc box set also includes hours of special features previously released on DVD including Documentaries, Featurettes, Audio Commentaries and more.

Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 13 is available to preorder now from Amazon, Rarewaves, Zavvi and HMV. The release date will be confirmed in due course.

The post COMING SOON: Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 13 appeared first on Blogtor Who.

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Posted by Peter Nolan

Doctor Who’s Jodie Whittaker and Suranne Jones unite for the first time as con artists in new ITV drama Frauds

 

Jodie Whittaker, whose Doctor only recently returned to Doctor Who for The Reality War, is currently filming her new series in Spain. Frauds brings Whittaker together with Suranne Jones, who memorably played the TARDIS herself in human form for The Doctor’s Wife. Together, the two play Sam and Bert, a pair of skilled con women reunited after Jones’ Bert gets out from prison. But Bert already has a plan. A plan to pull off the team’s most ambitious heist yet.

Sam, however, is living a happy retirement from crime. Though she agrees to let her terminally ill friend stay in her house, is Bert as ill as she claims? And why does Sam seem to feel guilty about the previous job gone wrong that sent Bert to prison? As the pair fall back into old patterns, it’s clear Sam won’t be able to resist one last job for both of them.

The stage is set for the crime of the decade. However, it will also see the reveal of uncomfortable secrets the two women have tried to keep hidden.

It’s the first project where Jodie Whittaker and Suranne Jones have worked together having independently starred in some of the biggest British dramas of the 21st century. Jones has co-created Frauds with Anne-Marie O’Connor.

The six episode series also stars Elizabeth Berrington, who co-starred with Jones as Auntie in The Doctor’s Wife. Frauds also features Abdul Salis (Kel, with his council van, and council pick-axe in Fear Her), and Christian Cooke (UNIT driver Ross in The Sontaran Stratagem).

Frauds is coming to ITV, though it doesn’t yet have a release date. With filming only starting last month, it probably won’t be until next year that it reaches our screens.

 

 

The post Jodie Whittaker and Suranne Jones are ‘Frauds’ appeared first on Blogtor Who.

Five Things Rhine Said

Jul. 1st, 2025 03:57 pm
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Posted by Caitlynne

Every month or so the OTW will be doing a Q&A with one of its volunteers about their experiences in the organization. The posts express each volunteer’s personal views and do not necessarily reflect the views of the OTW or constitute OTW policy. Today’s post is with Rhine, who volunteers as a volunteer manager in the Translation Committee.

How does what you do as a volunteer fit into what the OTW does?

As a Translation volunteer manager I mostly deal with admin work that surrounds the work our translators do – be it talking to other committees about things that are to be translated, preparing English texts for translation, making sure our version of the text is up to date, or getting texts published once they are translated – along with more general personnel stuff like recruiting new translators, keeping a clear record of who is supposed to be working on what and who is on break, checking in with translators and how they feel about their work, that kind of thing. Having been in this role for some time now, I also help with mentoring newer volunteer managers in how to do what we do, at the scale we do it.

What is a typical week like for you as a volunteer?

There isn’t one singular stereotypical week in this role, but some different modes with different focuses that are more or less typical for me:

  • Going on-call for a week: Translation volunteer managers work from a shared inbox that serves as a first point of contact for all inquiries related to the Translation Committee. Each week, one or two volunteer managers go on-call as the ones primarily responsible for making sure everything gets actioned and squared away as needed. This usually means spending a couple hours each day working through everything in the shared inbox, including but not limited to assigning tasks to translators, checking on translators who were on hiatus, triaging translation requests from other committees, and responding to any questions translators may have in the course of their work.
  • Working on a bigger project, like a series of high-visibility posts (e.g. membership drive, OTW Board elections), opening recruitment, or internal surveys: When Translation does a committee-wide thing, it’ll by necessity involve most or even all of our forty-some language teams, each with 1–8 members. Coordinating all that takes some organisational overhead (and some love for checklists and spreadsheets, along with automations where feasible), which typically means sitting down for a few hours on three or four days of the week and chipping away at various related tasks to keep things moving, including but not limited to asking other people to double-check my work before moving on to the next step.
  • Working on smaller tasks: When I want to have a more relaxed week while still being active, I’ll sit down on one or two afternoons/evenings, and take care of a task that is fairly straightforward, like scheduling and leading chats to check in with translators or train people on our tools, creating a template document with English text for translation, drafting and updating our internal documentation, asking others to look over and give feedback on my drafts, and giving feedback on others’ tasks, drafts, and projects.
  • Weekly chair training/catch-up chats: We have a regular weekly meeting slot to sit down and talk about the few chair-exclusive things in the Translation Committee, as part of chair training.

What made you decide to volunteer?

I actually started volunteering at the OTW as an AO3 tag wrangler back in 2020, when lockdowns were on the horizon and I felt like I could pick up some extra stuff to do. Growing up bilingual and with some extra languages under my belt, I ended up hanging out in some of the spaces with lots of OTW translators. Then I found out that I could internally apply as a Translation volunteer manager, and the rest is pretty much history. At that point I was missing the feeling of doing some volunteer management and admin work anyway!

What has been your biggest challenge doing work for the OTW?

On a high level, I’d say it’s striking a balance between the expectations and the reality of the work the Translation Committee does, including the sheer scale. On a more concrete level, it’s like this: Being a translator in the Translation Committee is, by default, a relatively low commitment, with a number of optional tasks and rosters that we encourage people to take on, if they have the time and attention to spare. Part of how we ensure that is by dealing with as much of the overhead in advance as we can, as Translation volunteer managers.

This means that for instance, when the English version of a text is updated – which may take about two minutes in the original text – we go through each language team’s copy of the text, make the changes as needed in the English copy, highlight what was changed, and reset the status in our internal task tracker so that it can be reassigned to a translator. This way the changed part is clearly visible to the translator, so they can quickly pinpoint what they need to do and make the corresponding changes in the translated text.

For both the author of the original English text and the translator, this is a very quick task. On the admin side, on the other hand, it’s the same two-minute process of updating our documents repeated over and over, about 15 times on the low end for frequent news post series that we only assign to teams that consistently have some buffer to absorb the extra workload, and almost 50 times on the high end for some of our staple static pages that (almost) all teams have worked on, meaning it’s something that takes somewhere between 30 minutes to almost two hours even when it’s a tiny change and you’re familiar with the workflow.

(And that’s before getting to very last-minute changes and emergency news post translations with less than two days’ turnaround time, where we manually track everything across around thirty teams, usually. Each time that has happened, everyone’s dedication has blown me away. Thank you so much to everyone who answers those calls, you know who you are!)

What fannish things do you like to do?

I like to read, especially if it’s something that plays around with worldbuilding or other things that were left unsaid in canon. I wish there were more hours in the day so that I can pick up some of my creative projects again. I suppose some of my coding projects like my AO3 userscripts and my AO3 Saved Filters bookmarklet also count as fannish?


Now that our volunteer’s said five things about what they do, it’s your turn to ask one more thing! Feel free to ask about their work in the comments. Or if you’d like, you can check out earlier Five Things posts.

The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, and OTW Legal Advocacy. We are a fan-run, entirely donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

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Posted by Peter Nolan

The Capitol marks the 50th Anniversary of the Doctor Who Appreciation Society with a dedicated convention in May 2026

 

The Doctor Who Appreciation Society is celebrating a major milestone with The Capitol: 50 Years of DWAS. The full scale two day event will take place across the weekend of 9th/10th May 2026 at the Crowne Plaza, London – Gatwick.

The Capitol: 50 Years of DWAS will offer a mix of guest panels, on screen presentations, autographs, photo studio, merchandise and more besides. DWAS are planning special events, as well as a plethora of guests, for the weekend. More details are arriving over the coming months. But guest announcements have already begun.

Paul McGann – as well as being the 50th Anniversary of DWAS, 2026 is the 30th anniversary of the Doctor Who TV Movie. The Eighth Doctor himself, Paul McGann, will be celebrating at the Capitol.

Colin Baker – Sixth Doctor actor Colin Baker, who starred in the show between 1984 and 1986, as well as recently returning for Tales of the TARDIS, will also be entertaining fans at the Capitol.

Mickey Lewis – Lewis has appeared in 18 episode of Doctor Who, usually as one of the show’s regular creature performers. So far he’s been Daleks, Cybermen, Sea Devils and many others. The Capitol 2026 will be his first DWAS event

Jane Goddard – the regular Big Finish voice actor has appeared in almost two dozen audio plays set in the Whoniverse, including playing the iconic Alpha Centuri. The Capitol will be her first ever Doctor Who convention appearance.

Tickets are £150 per adult, and £100 for under 16s. Attendees get access to both days, Saturday night entertainment, and two free autographs from most guests. There will also be photo opportunities with guests, though these come for an additional costs.

You can order your tickets for The Capitol: 50 Years of DWAS from the official Doctor Who Appreciation Society website.

The post The Capitol Celebrates 50 Years of the Doctor Who Appreciation Society appeared first on Blogtor Who.

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Posted by Peter Nolan

This year’s Doctor Who Annual will include a brand new short story featuring the Doctor and Ruby

 

The Doctor Who Annual 2026 is out on the 21st of August and there are more details of what fans can expect from this year’s stocking filler. The hardback book will contain a special short story written by Lucky Day scriptwriter Pete McTighe. Night of the Shreek offers a Target Books style expansion of the action, leading directly into one of the early scenes of the episode.

 

Night of the Shreek

It was cold. And it was hungry.

The shock of interdimensional travel had stunned it for a moment, so it lay there on a cold, unfamiliar floor, breathing hard. Vulnerable for just a few seconds. Then it flipped quickly on to all fours, scanning its surroundings with a defensive glare. But it was alone.

Its instincts said that this place was a fertile hunting ground. But this was its first time out of its hive, away from its kin. Detached from everything it had ever known, in a strange new world. Breathing the bitterly cold, toxic air, surrounded by towering concrete buildings, it felt lost. And lonely. And scared.

And it really, really needed to eat…

 

You can read the rest of the action in the annual. As well as Night of the Shreek, readers will have the usual mix of fact pages, quizzes and games. Although a more detailed breakdown isn’t available, previous annuals suggest there will very likely be an episode-by-episode guide to the most recent season, a character guide covering both heroes and villains, and more.

You can pre-order the annual now from your preferred bookseller, through the links on the Penguin Books website.

 

Doctor Who The Official Annual 2026 (c) BBC Books. The Doctor adopts an action pose, one leg and arm extended, the sonic screwdriver at the ready, while Belinda smiles behind him and the TARDIS and various planets float in space
Doctor Who The Official Annual 2026 (c) BBC Books

Doctor Who Annual 2026

The second official Annual of a brand-new era of Doctor Who is the must-have companion book to the latest adventures of Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor.

From the latest terrifying monsters to the friends helping to save the day, this book is packed with facts, quizzes and games.

So, jump on board the TARDIS, and step into a whole new Whoniverse!

The post Doctor Who Annual 2026: Night of the Shreek appeared first on Blogtor Who.

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June 30th, 2025next

June 30th, 2025: Today's comic was inspired by Robert "the Bobster" Frost! To answer your question, I have NOT researched his nickname and do not intend to.

– Ryan

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Posted by Peter Nolan

Fear Death by Water provides an old school pseudo historical as the Doctor meets real life hero Grace Darling as well as something darker in the depths

 

The Doctor plunges into the icy waters of history in Fear Death by Water, the debut novel by Emily Cook. This is far from Cook’s first association with Doctor Who, however, with the publication of Fear Death by Water marking ten years since she first began with DWM. Over the course of the decade she’s taken her place as one of the new generation of voices in fandom. She undoubtedly one of those who will continue to guard the flame well into the 21st century. She’s gone on to produce webisodes and Big Finish audio series, and built a career in the television industry beyond the Whoniverse too.

It’s both surprising and heartwarming then, that a voice born of the new Who generation tells such a deeply traditional story as Fear Death by Water. At times the pseudo historical about 19th century lighthouse keeper Grace Darling feels like a throwback. It’s care to educate and inform calls to mind the days of William Hartnell’s Doctor. Indeed, one of the novel’s strongest aspects is its willingness to simply dwell on the details of Grace’s day to day life. Grace isn’t the flashy historical celebrity of recent years: no Charles Dickens or Agatha Christie. Instead, she was a quiet hero whose actions inspired a movement that endures today, even as most forget her name.

 

The first third of the novel allows the real life story of Grace and the Forfashire to unfold true to history for an inspiring profile in courage

Cook is determined to shine a line on Grace’s courage. Refreshingly she’s as interested in the quiet dignity of duty that marked most of her days. There’s more to Grace than the one night of thrilling adventure that captured the public imagination. In 1838, during the night of the 7th of September, 22 year old Grace spotted the wreck of the Forfarshire. She quickly roused her family, and rowed with her father through the stormy darkness to rescue the survivors. But the early chapters concern themselves just as much as much with the hardships of 19th century lighthouse life. They provide a portrait of Grace’s love of the sea, nature, and solitude. In centering the patience, dedication, and humility of those who spend a life ready for the call, over the flashy heroics of a moment, Fear Death is unusually mature for a Doctor Who novel.

The novel also smartly places the Doctor aboard the Forfarshire on the fateful night. It not only gives us insight into the part of the story Grace herself wasn’t present for, but lets her heroism stand alone, without the Doctor’s help. The rich use of language creates an atmosphere thick when tension, too. Even though we already know how these events will play out, the characters’ fear is keenly felt.

 

The book’s middle act is typical, well done Doctor Who fare as the Doctor races to save the Earth from both an alien menace and those who simply want to blow it up

Of course, in 2025 no Doctor Who book will entirely embrace the Hartnell standard of simply bearing witness to history. So the aftermath of the Forfarshire rescue features some rather more alien complications. The Leviathan, an alien sea monster somehow able to teleport between the galaxy’s oceans, destroying entire marine ecosystems as it goes, has come to the seas around Longstone Lighthouse. Close on its fins are two agents of an interstellar ecological enforcement agency. A pair of brothers determined to end the threat of this invasive species by any means necessary.

In terms of pure plot mechanics, Fear Death by Water’s second act is well crafted, if reasonably standard, Doctor Who fare. The Doctor wants to save the Earth without killing the Leviathan. In contrast, Ketor and Chip’s single-mindedness in their hunt may only make the situation more dangerous. All the while Grace, as the Doctor’s stand-in companion, provides a human perspective. Unsurprisingly, it’s also Grace’s bravery and moral sense that will be called upon to save the day by the end.

Thematically, and even scientifically, the results are more mixed. There’s a lot of sympathy for the idea that the sea itself is like a wild and uncontrollable beast that people have to accept on its own terms. Meanwhile, there’s an element of shaming Ketor for the supposed hypocrisy hunting a sea creature to kill it. At least while claiming to be a protector of the oceans. Yet controlling or eliminating invasive species is a genuine and legitimate function of real wildlife organisations. While the genocidal threat the Leviathan represents for every marine species on Earth is a poor vehicle for the theme of letting nature be.

 

The story lingers after the danger longer than usual, allowing a richer insight than usual of its central guest’s legacy

The Leviathan itself has possibly the daftest biology in Doctor Who since Kill the Moon’s moon-egg laying space dragon. Elsewhere, the Doctor’s humane solution to the conundrum is quite charmingly silly in its application, calling to mind classic story Horror of Fang Rock. But in its long term implications it borders perilously on complete nonsense.

There’s a sense, then, of the novel being one of those instances where the monster exists because Doctor Who has to have a monster. Things certainly pick up again in the extended coda that re-focuses us again on the real Grace’s life story. It’s a sensitive exploration of both the good and the bad that came from Grace’s unasked for fame. The hero worship takes a toll on the young woman, who finds it increasingly difficult to live the life of solitude and service she desires most. Yet, born from her example was a new public drive to save lives at sea. It ultimately kick starts a charitable tradition that continues today with the RNLI.

It’s Cook’s ability to capture this bittersweet contradiction in Grace’s legacy that’s perhaps her novel’s greatest achievement. In the past two centuries, poets like William Wordsworth, and songsmiths like the Strawbs have celebrated Grace Darling. With Fear Death by Water, Emily Cook, who the post-scripts make clear is distantly related to the Darlings, can be proud of her addition.

 

With the Ncuti Gatwa era cut tragically short on TV, Fear Death by Water provides the perfect opportunity to spend a little more time with this Doctor

If it at times feels like the Doctor is a guest character in his own novel, it’s made up for by how well it captures his charisma and energy. In a particularly nice touch early on, he actually uses his jukebox for once. The image of the Doctor grooving around the console as he works is lovely fun. It underlines how rarely we got it to see the jukebox in use on TV. Similarly, there’s another callback to the lack of chairs in the TARDIS. It adds to the pang of that dangling thread of this Doctor’s arc.

Despite the generally serious tone, that cheeky sense of fun still filters through. Especially in the chapter titles, which includes such gems as Rocky Horror Show, John Smith and the Common Men, and When Life Gives You Potatoes. (Sadly, the answer isn’t ‘make vodka.’)

Fear Death by Water also takes on a new importance in view of recent developments on television. When it was first announced, few would have guessed Ncuti Gatwa would have left the role by the time it arrived. As it is, following this all too brief era, every opportunity to spend more time with the Fifteenth Doctor should be seized with both hands. It’s fortunate, however, that that time should be taken with something as gently compelling as this.

 

Doctor Who: Fear Death by Water (c) Penguin Books. The Doctor in his 2025 premiere outfit of blue denim waistcoat over white t-shirt, with long matching denim kilt over blue jeans, points dramatically with the sonic screwdriver, his legs planted firmly apart on a rolling sailing ship deck, one hand griping a rope while the sea churns all around.
Doctor Who: Fear Death by Water (c) Penguin Books

Doctor Who: Fear Death by Water

Northumberland, 1838. The TARDIS crash lands on board a sinking steamship. Stranded, the Doctor and the few survivors fight for their lives – while the local lighthouse keeper’s daughter, Grace Darling, risks her life to row to their rescue.

Lauded a heroine, Grace struggles to cope with her new-found fame. But the Doctor senses something else is troubling Grace. She’s been tormented by the terrifying vision she saw out at sea in the storm. There’s a monster in her mind, wrecking ships and stealing the souls of the drowned.

And it’s real.

The post REVIEW: Doctor Who: Fear Death by Water appeared first on Blogtor Who.

Doctor Who: Causeway – Coming Soon!

Jun. 29th, 2025 11:00 am
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Posted by Peter Nolan

Paul McGann, India Fisher and Jaye Griffiths star in Doctor Who: Causeway in November 2025

 

There are brand-new adventures for the Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann) and his companions – Edwardian adventuress Charley Pollard (India Fisher) and Regency aristocrat Lady Audacity Montague (Jaye Griffiths) in this November’s release from Big Finish – Causeway.

The box set begins with a trip out into the far reaches of space, where Audacity realises the great dangers that come with life in the TARDIS. Then, in the vein of City of Death and Arc of Infinity, the travellers take a European excursion, enjoying the sights of Copenhagen. And everywhere they go, the Causeway is calling…

But what is the Causeway? Big Finish producer David Richardson explains: “The Eighth Doctor has been following a scent for some time, although listeners may not even have noticed. The word ‘Causeway’ has been seeded throughout his adventures with Charley and Audacity, and now their destination is the Causeway itself… Worlds will collide, and for one of the TARDIS team, life will never be the same again.”

he Time You Never Had guest stars Richard Hope – who played Silurian characters in Doctor Who TV episodes The Hungry Earth, Cold Blood, and The Wedding of River Song, and once again plays a Homo reptilia, the enigmatic Mr Barabbas.

The box set’s cast also includes Nicholas Khan, Bee Menabny, Robert Whitelock, Obioma Ugoala, Andrew Wincott, Poppy Miller, and Henrietta Wolfmountain.

Writer Rochana Patel said: “I particularly enjoy the dynamic between Charley and Audacity, as this is the only series where you have two female historical companions, exploring time and history together, and that is a very special and unique window on the universe. But it’s very easy for this range to become cosy, because we know two of our leads are safe. So I put Audacity through hell in this one!”

 

 

Doctor Who: Causeway

Exploring with best friends Audacity and Charley, the Doctor delights in showing them the wonders of the universe. But something dogs their footsteps… 

On a dangerous expedition into deep space, at an anachronistic business venture in Copenhagen, and meeting visitors from another reality, the TARDIS travellers begin to unravel the mystery of the Causeway… 

Lost Amongst the Stars by Rochana Patel

The Doctor wants to find a challenge for Charley and Audacity. All of time and space awaits, with wonders beyond their wildest dreams and darkest nightmares, but are they truly ready to venture further out amongst the stars?

The Time You Never Had – Parts One and Two by Tim Foley

The yesterday of opulence

Tomorrow soft and ironclad

Beyond the merry Oculus:

The time you never had.

 

Doctor Who – The Eighth Doctor Adventures: Causeway is available to pre-order now from Big Finish for just £19.99 (download to own) or £24.99 (download to own + collector’s edition 3-disc CD box set). Please note: the collector’s edition CD box set is strictly limited to 1,500 copies and will not be repressed.   

 

The post Doctor Who: Causeway – Coming Soon! appeared first on Blogtor Who.

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