Doctor Who: Series Four News

The biggest rumor in the “Whoniverse” at the moment is that the cybermen are due to make a reappearance in the Christmas Special due to be broadcast on 25 December. As usual, however, the BBC is doggedly refusing to confirm or deny the rumor!

Never mind the cybermen, though! The months of waiting are almost at an end! Finally, the BBC has released the information that so many have been waiting for - that is that the fourth series of Doctor Who will start on Saturday the 5th of April.

The BBC have yet to announce exactly at what time the new series will begin, but if it follows the usual pattern it will air at around the usual 7pm time.

And yes! The Daleks will be returning in the new series. One episode will be set in the present day and feature Donna Noble's grandfather Wilf trying to blind a dalek with a paint gun! Another episode will be set in the near future with the daleks in control of the whole planet and green house gases at danger point.

Meanwhile, as reported in the UK daily newspaper The Sun, Billie Piper will be returning to the cast and will be carrying a very large weapon, making Sarah Connor look something of a wimp! She will be involved in saving the Doctor when he is shot by a dalek. Most fans welcome the return of Rose Tyler but are unsure about her mum Jacqui making reappearance. As they are supposedly stuck in an alternative universe, how they get back to ours is yet to be explained. Certainly, most fans are scratching their heads in bewildered anticipation - Rose, Donna, Martha and Sarah Jane all in the same episode! Overkill? Why not contact Louise Jameson and throw Leela in to the mix as well? It certainly sounds like a bit of knife throwing wouldn't go amiss in the new series!

The first episode of series four is called “Partners in Crime”. Donna Noble, played by Catherine Tate, will endeavour to find the Doctor before the Adipose - yet another new brand of alien villain - take over the world. It will be very much make or break for Ms Tate, as fans have been evenly divided in their acceptance of the comedy actress reprising her role. They fear the return to the Tom Baker days when, for a few seasons, comedy rather than scariness became the norm. Tate's performance in this first episode will very much decide her fate among the legion of Who fans. She may become the “New Adric” - loathed by the masses - or possibly the “New Sarah Jane”, worshipped for generations! Only time will tell.

Russell T Davis has commented on the adverse reaction to Tate in the latest SFX magazine. He said that the criticism was uncalled for and that Tate most certainly did NOT shout her way through “The Runaway Bride” Christmas special of two years ago. A brief run through of that episode may raise questions as to the veracity of his statements!

The news that the actress Sarah Lancashire is appearing in the first episode also comes with mixed feelings among fans. The older ones among them remember her role in the long running soap opera as the dippy barmaid Raquel. Although she gave a sublime performance over the years (considering it is a soap opera, after all!) fans fear that this is yet another indicator that the series is veering towards the comedic. As she is playing a villain, there are hopes that Lancashire will really get her teeth in to the part and all memories of the dippy Raquel will be wiped from our minds!

The announcement will mean that for a few weeks, fans will get new episodes of Doctor Who and Torchwood. Captain Jack's adventures continue to do well on BBC 2, with the latest episode, “From Out of The Rain” gaining 2.6 million viewers. This may not sound a lot buy it was the most watched show on the channel that day and came 17th overall in UK viewing figures. It is very likely now that the show will return for a third season.

Meanwhile, Who fans who have been making forays to the cinema to see the new series trailer - and then a film but who cares about Hollywood - finally have the chance to see it on the TV around 7pm on March 22. The trailer will then become available to a global audience as it will be immediately posted on the BBC website which will then no doubt crash due to overwhelming demand!

Fans are also likely to set their recorders for the Jonathan Ross show, due to be broadcast late on the evening of Friday 4th April. David Tennant and Catherine Tate have been confirmed as guests and no doubt the show will air a few new clips from the series. Jonathan Ross is the sort of host that people either love or hate - but he usually manages to illicit a few new nuggets of information from his guests in between bouts of narcissistic preening.