The cybermats are pets of the cybermen, which do the jobs suited to a more stealthier shape that big, stompy handle-headed types.  With appearances in both the Patrick Troughton and Tom Baker eras, the cybermats have been kicking around in the world of Doctor Who in one form or another for some time.  In their appearance with Matt Smith’s Doctor, they consume Colchester’s power lines to feed the cybership hidden beneath a department store.

This zippy little fella is priced at £14.99, and is available to order now.  For ages 5 and over.

Yet another December release?

Instructed by the planet’s Keeper, the Doctor and Adric visit the peaceful planet of Traken.  Once there, they’re embroiled in the evil machinations of the Master.  The Universe will never be the same again…

The Keeper of Traken is a very stylish adventure, with a very Shakespearean tone.  From the costumes and set design, to the machinations and plotting of the denizons of Traken, it’s an intriguing story.  One of the most striking things about it is the design of the Melkur.

Thankfully, this set offers up the key elements of this story, with Geoffrey Beevers’ incarnation of the withered Master, and both shapes of his TARDIS in this story.  Not only do we have the aforementioned Melkur, but his grandfather clock too.  Also included is the Source Manipulator.

This figure set is due for release mid-December priced at £39.99.

Packed with stories, features and more, the book has a host of Doctor Who contributors.  Rare photos, original artwork and more appear in this quality tome surrounding the 6th series of Doctor Who.  Writers of Doctor Who, its spin offs and projects are collected in the rather cool looking hardback book.

Contributors include Jason Arnopp, James Goss, Bejamin Cook, David Llewellyn, editor Clayton Hickman and designer Paul Lang.

Gary Russell will also be on hand to sign the lavish Doctor Who Encyclopedia.

Writers of the onscreen adventures are there too, in the shape of Mark Gatiss, Tom McRae and Gareth Roberts.

Also announced as attending is showrunner Steven Moffat!

Just pop along to the Fobidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR, on Wednesday 30th November.  Signing will take place between 6 and 7pm.

Appearances may be subject to change.  Please check details online for updates.

48 years!

Very few TV shows get to celebrate such longevity, and Doctor Who still holds the record for longest running science fiction show.  It’s been quite the rollercoaster, with over 200 televised adventures, inumerable comic book adventures, novels, audio dramas, spin offs, games, toys and skits.

Doctor Who is ingrained in the culture of Great Britain, and re-asserting itself as an international success story too.  It captivates and beguiles, generating strong opinions and interest.  And there’s even more to come.

I have formed something of a tradition of making a point of watching a Doctor Who story on the evening of the anniversary.  However, as the new series DVD box sets seem to coincide with the anniversary, I shall probably be watching that (although I need to start with last Christmas’ special – not the best celebration of the show!).

So what will you be doing?  Is there a particular story you will be treating yourself to?  Will you be submerging yourself in the new Series 6 box set too?  Perhaps you’ve set aside a novel, or audio drama especially for tonight.

Leave me a comment – I’m quite intrigued to know what you do for Doctor Who’s anniversary, if anything!

These are very reminiscent of the Buffy and Star Wars animated maquettes of recent times, and offer a different take on these familiar characters.  These new Dynamix figures are still pending licensor approval, and no further information on release dates or pricing has been released as yet.

They’ve just let another little sneak peek through of their Amy Pond 12″ collectible figure on their Facebook page.  I know it’s not that revealing a shot, but she’s purported to have rooted hair – if they can pull this off, Big Chief really are showing off!  It’s not always something that can work effectively, but we shall see.  Already it’s easy to see a likeness to modelesque red head, Karen Gillan.

If you’re visiting Memorabilia on the 19-20 November at the NEC, Birmingham, Big Chief will be displaying Amy at the show.

Along with the recently announced Weeping Angel and 10th Doctor figures, and January’s 11th Doctor, 2012 looks like it could be Big Chief Studio’s year!

As the story began to take hold, and it was starting to become a little more than a rumour, my initial sceptisicm turned to actual worry. On Twitter, the outpouring of negativity was rife, which is one of Twitter’s unfortunate side effects. I was incredibly annoyed by this too. But why? What was my problem?

The main issue that I had was that the director, David Yates (with many priding him on maintaining the “Britishness” of Harry Potter, films I have enjoyed) has claimed that he wants to start it all afresh. There was even the intimation that Russell T. Davies and Steven Moffat completely junked elements from the original series and made their own versions.

Well, this is true of some elements. But one thing that both Davies and Moffat have stayed true to is that this is the same man the first appeared in the Totter’s Lane junk yard in 1963. I’m probably being presumptuous here, but it seems – from the tiniest snippets of information we’ve had so far – that this is going to be a completely separate Doctor from our TV hero.

I think this is where my first niggle comes from. I see Doctor Who, and the things that happen in it, centric to the television incarnation. Whoever plays the Doctor on TV at that time IS the Doctor. But we know Hollywood is about playing it safe. I concede that Matt Smith is unlikely to be playing the Doctor when this film is rumoured to be released, but whoever the actor is, it’s doubtful that’s who producers will want.

So what will we have? There have been cries of “oh no, not an American Doctor!” but that’s not too much of a problem really. The US has a great deal of talented, charismatic actors who could do the part justice. There are also a lot of actors that’d get the role, possibly based on having “killer abs”. No, I’m being unfair. There’s plenty of time to shudder over casting choices.

I also see the bypassing of the proper, TV version of the Doctor a bit of an insult to the actors that would be currently in the principle cast. If all that time, money and effort is going into telling a Doctor Who story, why shouldn’t the ‘proper’ Doctor feature?

This is just a fan perspective of course. When you’re a fan, it feels like you’re on the inside looking out. I’m not speaking for all fans of course! From this angle, Doctor Who is fine as it is. It’s a cosy bubble of fun and adventure. What would you need to make a film for? From the outside looking in, the story is very different. Doctor Who is a product, and a very, very prosperous one.

With that in mind, it’s no wonder that someone outside of the BBC wants a slice of the pie. Ker-ching! It’s a testament to Doctor Who that there are people that might barely even get what it’s about, but still want to make some cash off it. That is what it’s all about, right? I always knew that if Doctor Who would be popular again, there would be elements I might not like. I’ve watched 6 years of this rejuvinated show, and aside from a handful of bum notes, it’s been a majestic run of stories. I probably can handle one more media outlet, right?

There’s also been a comparison between a prospective movie “reboot” (shudder) of Doctor Who and the recent Star Trek film. I can understand this comparison, and everyone loved this recasting of Kirk, Spock, McCoy, et al, right? Well sure. I really like the original Star Trek series, and while I enjoyed the portrayals of the new cast, they weren’t replacements for me. I enjoyed it in the same way as I’d enjoy a skit, with people playing the parts as pastiche. The experience wasn’t dissimilar to watching Family Guy’s Star Wars parodies. Not ideal, but fun nonetheless.

So with that in mind, I can probably watch a movie version of Doctor Who. Perhaps a completely distanced version from a TV counterpart would be preferable. Instead of worrying about a film franchise tugging at the televised adventures, it will stand alone as a curio. It could be remembered as an oddity, much like the 60′s dalek movies, and thought of just as fondly.

Perhaps it’ll be a hit, and spawn its own franchise. Maybe the films will continue when the series is not on the TV. This is all second guessing, and we hardly know anything at this stage. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t curious to see the design and execution of this project, if nothing else.  Saying this, we’ve all heard this rumours before, and it should probably be taken with a pinch of salt, so not worth getting that worked up about yet.

And as a fan, I pick and choose the bits and pieces of Doctor Who I lend credence to. No, the Doctor’s not half-human, nor has he been to Albert Square. My Doctor works better on TV I’ll wager (he certainly comes off worse in big budget specials).

Of course, there might even be those that prefer this sexy, wise cracking, time travelling movie superhero over the Time Lord’s smaller scale adventures.

But they’d be wrong.

And don’t even get me started on whether or not it’ll be in 3D!

The pre-orders were due to have been active on Saturday, but unfortunately a server issued scuppered the company’s plans.  Despite some frustration from potential customers, Big Chief Studios constantly gave updates.  Following advice from those posting to Facebook they decided to put the pre-order for the signature figure off until this evening.

More detailed order information has been added to the site (as of 7pm GMT this evening you can order your very own signature edition figure).  But that’s not all, as they have also included their plans for the next steps in the 12″ figure line.  Joining Eleventh Doctor Matt Smith comes the sinister Weeping Angels, and Smith’s predecessor David Tennant.  With the amount of work and detail that has gone into the Eleventh Doctor, these are sure to be remarkable replicas of these TV favourites.

There’s no doubt that these releases will spark further interest in this premium line, although no dates for actual release have been announced.  The Weeping Angel is up next, followed by the Tenth Doctor.

The set is priced at £26.99 and made for ages 5+.

This set is confirmed to be supplied with Sharaz Jek’s alternative, disgured head and android head accessory.