With thanks to BBC DVD.

4 July 2009 - Preview of MAWDRYN UNDEAD DVD.

1 July 2009 - Again with thanks to BBC DVD, the four preview discs for this boxset have arrived and will reviewed over the coming weekend for this website.

The forthcoming release, DOCTOR WHO - THE BLACK GUARDIAN TRILOGY seems to be getting a "bit of a buzz" from fans contacting eyeofhorus.org.uk.

The third, fourth and fifth stories of the 20th. season were conceived by John Nathan-Turner and Eric Saward as a trilogy reintroducing the Black Guardian.

MAWDRYN UNDEAD The Black Guardian recruits a young man named Turlough to assassinate the Doctor. Although outwardly an ordinary pupil at a boys' private boarding school, Turlough is in fact an alien who believes that the Guardian will return him home if he succeeds.

EASTER EGGS - 1: TARDIS INFORMATION FILE animation and 2: Studio floorplan Designs

TERMINUS The TARDIS attaches itself to a space liner after Turlough, still under the Black Guardian's influence, damages its controls. The Doctor and Nyssa meet two space pirates, Kari and Olvir, who have come on board the liner in search of plunder, while Tegan and Turlough get lost in the infrastructure.

EASTER EGGS - 1: Studio Countdown Clock and 2: TARDIS INFORMATION FILE animation

ENLIGHTENMENT The White Guardian warns of impending danger and directs the TARDIS to what appears to be an Edwardian sailing yacht, the SS Shadow, but is actually one of a number of spaceships taking part in a race through the solar system, the prize being Enlightenment.

EASTER EGGS - 1: TARDIS INFORMATION FILE animation and 2: Janet Fielding and her boob tube

ENLIGHTENMENT - Special Edition disc and special features.

EASTER EGG - 1: Photo gallery of the "Making of..." the boxset

This boxset is released on 10 August 2009 RRP £39.99. (four-disc set).

eyeofhorus.org.uk will preview this release shortly.

Whilst some DOCTOR WHO fan forum websites have openly criticised BBC DVD to releasing a CLASSIC SERIES story for a third time, this new "version" has had the technical issues resolved that plagued the first two editions.

McCoy's four-part DOCTOR WHO - REMEMBRANCE OF THE DALEKS is wonderfully executed, if a little convoluted at times (to challenge even the most ardent fan) and a fascinating insight into the Seventh Doctor's manipulative universe.

This "special edition" is released on 20 July 2009 RRP £19.99. (two-disc set).

It seems that TORCHWOOD's day is numbered (unless the ratings for the forthcoming "series" prove popular) and the "brand" shelved as a TV production.

A reduced "series" (five hour-long episodes) is to be broadcast across five nights on BBC ONE at 21:00 (starting on 6 July) under the umbrella title TORCHWOOD - CHILDREN OF EARTH. It is written by Russell T Davies (3 episodes), James Moran and John Fay, and stars - and this is worth buying the DVD for - the underrated Paul Copley as well as Barrowman, Myles and David-Lloyd.

An ordinary day soon segues into terror when every one of Earth's children suddenly stops. This inexplicable phenomenon is soon followed by a message to each of the world's governments: 'We're Coming'. Captain Jack finds himself in a vulnerable position when it becomes apparent that the events of his past threaten to reveal an unspeakable truth. Torchwood is forced underground, as the powers that be take brutal action. With the members of the Torchwood team being hunted down, the country itself risks becoming a rogue state, with the shadowy 456 edging closer and Armageddon with it. Can Captain Jack, Ianto and Gwen overcome these insurmountable odds in order to save the day?

The BBC DVD of the "series" is to be released (including Extras) on DVD & BLU-RAY DVD on 27 July RRP £24.46 & £29.35 respectively.

We're trying to keep the DOCTOR WHO magic alive.

With the final three David Tennant episodes finally in the "can", and Matt Smith & Karen Gillan starting filming next month, eyeofhorus.org.uk will make the site "spoiler-free" of "major" plotline & casting updates.

It will be difficult but - without Forum padding formats on which rumours & revelations are dished out like candy - we will do our best.

The Tenth Doctor's final appearance in the DOCTOR WHO ANNUAL 2010 will be released on 6 August 2009 RRP £7.99.

BBC AUDIO has released the cover for the 3 September 2009 abridged reading of Trevor Baxendale's PRISONER OF THE DALEKS. Previously published in April 2009 by BBC BOOKS.

It's read by NEW SERIES' voice-of-the-daleks, Nicholas Briggs, and features the Tenth Doctor.

The Daleks are advancing, their empire constantly expanding in to Earth s space. The Earth forces are resisting the Daleks in every way they can. But the battles rage on across countless solar systems. And now the future of our galaxy hangs in the balance...

The Doctor finds himself stranded on board a starship near the frontline with a group of ruthless bounty hunters. Earth Command will pay them for every Dalek they kill, every eye stalk they bring back as proof.

With the Doctor s help, the bounty hunters achieve the ultimate prize: a Dalek prisoner intact, powerless, and ready for interrogation. But where the Daleks are involved, nothing is what it seems, and no one is safe. Before long the tables will be turned, and how will the Doctor survive when he becomes a prisoner of the Daleks?

BBC AUDIO has released the cover for the 2 July 2009 unabridged Seventh Doctor novelisation reading (Rula Lenska), DOCTOR WHO AND THE HAPPINESS PATROL.

Helen A, ruler of colony Terra Alpha, is determined that happiness will prevail. And if any killjoys insist on being miserable, the fun guns of the Happiness Patrol will remove them; or they will vanish into the Kandy Kitchen, where the Kandy Man will deal with them. When the Doctor and Ace spend a night on the dark streets of Terra Alpha they have to keep a smile on their faces - or else! - while making contact with the native Pipe People and trying to convince the colonists that they can have too much of a good thing - even sweets and happiness. Rula Lenska, who played Styles in the TV serial "Resurrection of the Daleks", reads Graeme Curry's complete and unabridged novelisation, first published by Target Books in 1990.

Troughton's 1969 DOCTOR WHO - THE WAR GAMES is released on 6 July 2009 as a three disc set, and, with thanks, BBC DVD has mailed an advanced copy for preview.

Preview of DOCTOR WHO - THE WAR GAMES DVD

UPDATED: However, eyeofhorus.org.uk has just received DISC 3 (the Extras) and can wholly recommend this BBC DVD all fans - buy it even if it is merely for the fan production, DEVIOUS featuring the last filmed appearance of the Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee. An excellent "episode".

Below are few screengrabs: Graphic Menus and a "sock-puppet theatre" skit as part of three Easter Eggs.

• Disc One Easter Egg: ON LOCATION is an audio track of behind-the-scene recordings (20:00 minutes)
• Disc Two Easter Egg: The Trial of a Time Lord - Sock Puppet Theatre (06:00 minutes)
• Disc Three Easter Egg: See Preview (link above)

Since our vacation, BBC AUDIO has released information relating to this summer's DOCTOR WHO items.

• DOCTOR WHO: THE RISING NIGHT by Scott Handcock and read by PLANET OF THE DEAD's Michelle Ryan - 02/07/2009 (another BBC EXCLUSIVE)
• DOCTOR WHO: THE DAY OF THE TROLL - 03/09/2009 (yet another BBC EXCLUSIVE)

Confirmation of the readers for the unabridged releases has been detailed too. DOCTOR WHO AND THE MIND ROBBER is read by Sir Derek Jacobi and DOCTOR WHO - HAPPINESS PATROL is read by Rula Lenska.

The plotline for DOCTOR WHO: THE RISING NIGHT: The TARDIS arrives in an 18th Century village in the Yorkshire Moors, where livestock has been vanishing from the farmland and strange lights have been seen in the skies. Something is very wrong here, and he soon becomes involved in a nightmarish adventure, in which he is helped by a young local woman named Charity. Who is feeding on the blood of the locals, and where will the carnage stop?

McCoy's 1987 DELTA AND THE BANNERMEN adventure is released by BBC DVD on Monday 22 June 2009.

With thanks to BBC DVD, eyeofhorus.org.uk previews the DVD.

As a round-up, the forthcoming 2009 BBC AUDIO releases are as follows:

DOCTOR WHO AND THE HAPPINESS PATROL
Helen A, ruler of colony Terra Alpha, is determined that happiness will prevail. And if any killjoys insist on being miserable, the fun guns of the Happiness Patrol will remove them; or they will vanish into the Kandy Kitchen, where the Kandy Man will deal with them. When the Doctor and Ace spend a night on the dark streets of Terra Alpha they have to keep a smile on their faces - or else! - while making contact with the native Pipe People and trying to convince the colonists that they can have too much of a good thing - even sweets and happiness. Rula Lenska, who played Styles in the TV serial "Resurrection of the Daleks", reads Graeme Curry's complete and unabridged novelisation, first published by Target Books in 1990.
Unabridged - 2 July 2009

DOCTOR WHO AND THE DALEK INVASION OF EARTH
The TARDIS lands in a London of future times - a city of fear, devastation and holocaust...a city now ruled by Daleks. The Doctor and his companions meet a team of underground resistance workers, among the few survivors, but after an unsuccessful attack on the Dalek spaceship, they are all forced to flee the capital. A perilous journey through England finally brings them to the secret centre of Dalek operations...and the mysterious reason for the Dalek invasion of Earth! William Russell, who played the Doctor's companion Ian in the original TV serial, reads Terrance Dicks' complete and unabridged novelisation, with specially composed music and sound and Dalek voices by Nicholas Briggs.
Unabridged - 6 August 2009

DOCTOR WHO - THE AMBASSADORS OF DEATH
Seven months after it left the red planet, Mars Probe 7 still hasn't returned to Earth. The Doctor and Liz Shaw join the investigation as a second capsule, Recovery 7, is sent to discover what has happened. But when it returns, something is terribly wrong with its three astronauts...The space-suited figures are kidnapped and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart leads UNIT in a rescue attempt - whilst Liz finds herself at the mercy of dangerous fanatics. Only a solo space flight by the Doctor can break the deadlock surrounding the crew of Mars Probe 7. Closer to home, however, a deadly fear threatens a catastrophic end for the entire Earth. Jon Pertwee is the Doctor in the soundtrack of this classic 1970 BBC TV adventure, and Caroline John, who played Liz Shaw in the original episodes, provides linking narration for this exciting seven-part story. In a bonus interview she recalls the making of the TV serial, and her time on Doctor Who in general.
TV SOUNDTRACK - 6 August 2009

DOCTOR WHO AND THE MIND ROBBER
To escape a catastrophic volcanic eruption the Doctor takes the TARDIS out of space and time - and into a void he can only describe as 'nowhere'. But the crisis is far from over and when the time-machine's circuits overload, the TARDIS explodes. The Doctor, Jamie and Zoe come to in a dark unearthly forest. There they encounter a host of characters who seem somehow familiar: a beautiful princess with long flaxen hair, a sea traveler dressed in eighteenth-century clothes, and a white rabbit frantically consulting his pocket watch...What is happening to the three time-travelers? What strange power guides their actions? In the Land of Fiction who can really tell? Derek Jacobi, who played The Master in the Doctor Who episode "Utopia", reads Peter Ling's complete and unabridged novelisation, first published by Target Books in 1986.
Unabridged - 6 August 2009

DOCTOR WHO - HORNETS' NEST (Volume 1 of 5) Read by Tom Baker and Nicholas Courtney. A single CD released every month featuring a reading by the CLASSIC SERIES actors.
3 September 2009

DOCTOR WHO - THE DAY OF THE TROLL
A BBC AUDIO exclusive featuring the Tenth Doctor written by Simon Messingham
8 October 2009

DOCTOR WHO AT THE BBC - A LEGEND REBORN
A fascinating volume of interviews and behind-the-scenes features from the world of "Doctor Who", as first featured on BBC radio and television. Featuring the voices of David Tennant, Catherine Tate, Billie Piper, Christopher Eccleston, Kylie Minogue, Freema Agyeman, Russell T Davies, Julie Gardner, Phil Collinson and many others, this is a retrospective look at the return of Doctor Who to our screens in 2005, following the story up to 2008 and the impending departure of David Tennant as the Doctor.
5 November 2009

TORCHWOOD
IN THE SHADOWS - 7 May 2009
THE SIN EATERS - 18 June 2009
ASYLUM - 2 July 2009

THE SARAH JANE ADVENTURES
THE SHADOW PEOPLE - 3 September 2009
THE WHITE WOLF - 3 September 2009

Shortly, eyeofhorus.org.uk will be launching a free-to-enter competition to win one of six copies of BBC DVD's release of the 1969 10-part epic, THE WAR GAMES.

Since our vacation, BBC DVD has released information relating to this summer's DOCTOR WHO items.

• THE WAR GAMES - Released 06/07/2009
• THE BLACK GUARDIAN TRILOGY - Released 10/08/2009
• THE TWIN DILEMMA - Released 07/09/2009
• THE KEYS OF MARINUS - 21/09/2009

Follow the links above to review the relevant DVD EXTRAS for each story.

On 29 May, 21 year old Scottish actress, Karen Gillan has been announced as the companion/assistant (character name unknown) to Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor.

She appeared in SERIES 4's THE FIRES OF POMPEII as a "Soothsayer".

Photo © BBC PICTURES

The ultimate DOCTOR WHO USA-based website OUTPOST-GALLIFREY is to close permanently on 31 July. Even for UK-based fan-website Editors it has been the first-stop for information & news and rumour.

Invaluable, passionate and resourced - it will be missed but its place in DOCTOR WHO fandom, like DWB and JNT, is secured.

Russell T Davies has confirmed that the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) is appear in THE SARAH JANE ADVENTURES in October 2009.

The Doctor will appear in a two-part story (episodes five and six) as Sarah Jane battles the biggest threat she has encountered to date. Additionally DOCTOR WHO NEW SERIES alien, Judoon will appear in the forthcoming SERIES 3 (12 episodes starting in September) as will a new alien race, the Veil.

We forgot to tell you.

eyeofhorus.org.uk is on vacation (from 21 May) and updates will re-start Sunday 7 June. Including a preview of DOCTOR WHO - DELTA AND THE BANNERMEN DVD.