Filming Photos from Margam Park - by Timeboyy
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We caught up with Matt Smith on Saturday morning, minutes before he was handed the iconic Olympic Torch. He told us how grateful he was to everyone who made it to Cardiff Bay and also to the many people who had expressed their support for his run either by replying to the Official Doctor Who Twitter feed or via this website. ‘They [the fans] have been brilliant – as always,’ Matt said. ‘I just want to say, thanks, guys. Cheers! It’s great to get that level of support.’
Matt then asked us if we could pass on his thanks to everyone who voted for him and Doctor Who in the National Television Awards and the Spike Awards. We replied we’d be glad to relay the message below:
‘Thank you so much for voting in the Spike Awards and the NTAs. I’ve never had the chance to say thank you… and it means a great deal that you took the time to vote and support the show and me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you.’
Matt was referring to the 2011 Spike TV Scream Awards where he won Best Science Fiction Actor and the National Television Awards where earlier this year he triumphed in the category of Best Male, Drama Performance for his role as the Doctor.
“It’s a great privilege to be involved. I can’t quite believe people have actually turned up, I thought I would be just be carrying it around, waving to the ducks.”
A special one-off standalone episode of Doctor Who will air exclusively on CBBC today, as the winners of the BBC’s Script to Screen competition are revealed.
The new mini-episode marks the return one of the Doctor’s most feared monsters, the Weeping Angels and was created by three talented pupils from Ashdene Primary School in Wilmslow. The Angels made their first appearance in the 2007 episode Blink and will be back in the BBC One series this autumn.
Starring Matt Smith as the Doctor and Karen Gillan as Amelia Pond, today’s episode was filmed at BBC Wales Roath Lock studios in Cardiff and is inspired by the Olympics. It will be shown on Blue Peter at 5.45pm on CBBC.
Year 6 teacher, Irene Spawton from Ashdene Primary School said the pupils involved were thrilled and surprised to have won the competition: “It’s unbelievable. I couldn’t believe it when I got the call to say that the children’s script had been chosen as the winner. They worked so hard and came up with some brilliant ideas. I’m so proud of them all and meeting the Doctor and Amy Pond was a fantastic experience for the girls, their parents and me.”
The three-minute winning script was chosen by Steven Moffat, lead writer and executive producer of Doctor Who, Katy Jones BBC Learning executive producer and Caroline Skinner, executive producer of Doctor Who.
Caroline Skinner praised the quality of the scripts, saying: “We loved reading all of the scripts from schools across the UK and the standard of entries was truly outstanding. It was a difficult, but a tremendously fun task to choose a winner and it was just brilliant to see so many children being creative in developing an adventure for the Doctor. We hope all fans enjoy this special one-off mini episode!”
This is the second time BBC Learning has run the Doctor Who Script to Screen competition, which challenges upper Primary pupils* to develop a short script that takes the Time Lord on a quest travelling through time and space.
Katy Jones, executive producer for BBC Learning, said: “This competition aimed to inspire and capture the imagination of storytellers of the future and we’re thrilled that so many schools have engaged with it. Pupils have described the competition as the highlight of their school year. There was so much real talent displayed in the entries we received and the final film is a real testament to the hard work the school put into their entry.”
Steven Moffat, television writer & producer of both Sherlock & Doctor Who will be presented with the 2012 Television Special Award.
The Award will be presented to Steven Moffat in recognition of his outstanding creative writing contribution to television. From his first scripted drama Press Gang in 1989, for which he won his first BAFTA, Moffat’s vast body of work includes titles such as Stay Lucky, Joking Apart, Murder Most Horrid, Chalk, Jekyll and Coupling.
In 2008, it was announced that he would become head writer and executive producer of Doctor Who and was instrumental in the casting of the 11th Doctor, Matt Smith.
In collaboration with Mark Gatiss in 2009, he created Sherlock, following Sherlock Holmes and Dr John Watson's adventures in 21st century London. The episode entitled “A Scandal In Belgravia” from the second series earned Steven a Television Craft Award for Writer at the 2012 ceremony as well as picking up BAFTAs in two other categories. (See: Sherlock Wins Three BAFTAs at the 2012 Television Craft Awards )
Tim Corrie, Chairman of BAFTA, said: “Steven has had an outstanding year with Doctor Who and Sherlock, not to mention the feature film The Adventures of Tintin, and we are delighted to honour his contribution to television and the arts at the BAFTA ceremony on 27 May. He is one of the finest exponents of his craft and his Award, presented in honour of the late, great Dennis Potter, is very well deserved indeed.”
On being recognised, Steven Moffat said: “Blimey! A Special Award! I didn't even know I was ill! So thrilled by this – especially after two years of Sherlock and Doctor Who, my two favourite shows ever. Of course the work, and the people I get to work with, has always been all the reward I need – a fact I'm very glad that BAFTA has disregarded.”
BBC Worldwide today announced the official opening date for their multi-award winning attraction the Doctor Who Experience in Cardiff, the home of the BBC One show. Doors will open to the public on the 20th July with tickets going on sale at 10am on the 14th June. Paula Al-Lach, Head of Exhibitions and Events at BBC Worldwide formally accepted the keys to the Experience’s distinctive new home in Cardiff Bay this afternoon and the first exhibits are already being moved in.
Philip Murphy, Managing Director of BBC Worldwide Live Events said: “The Doctor Who Experience in Cardiff is going to be just minutes away from where the BBC Wales television series is made which I’m incredibly excited about. The Experience sets out to engage visitors’ imaginations from the outset immersing them in the world of Doctor Who and what better place to do this than in Cardiff the home of the show.”
The Doctor Who Experience is the first ever interactive Doctor Who exhibition that invites visitors to star in their very own Doctor Who adventure. Arriving at the venue they will step through a crack in time to become the Doctor’s companion, taking on the challenge of reuniting the Doctor with the TARDIS whilst fending off threats from some of his most fearsome foes - entering a Dalek spaceship and finding a way through a maze of Weeping Angels. Featuring a replica of the Eleventh Doctor’s TARDIS which visitors get to fly themselves the interactive walk-through culminates in a stunning 3D finale that sets the scene for fans entering the exhibition.
The exhibition presents fans with the world’s most extensive collection of original Doctor Who costumes and artefacts stretching back almost 50 years to the very first series of Doctor Who.
The content of the exhibition is updated constantly with new items from the television series to ensure it is ever changing offering fans the chance to get up close to the incredible sets, costumes and props that feature in their favourite show. New items to be shown to the public for the first time in Cardiff include the Doctor’s cradle seen in A Good Man Goes to War; the Silence spaceship and Matt Smith’s sonic cane from Let’s Kill Hitler with many more items being kept under wraps until the doors open on 20th July.
The Doctor Who Experience is to be officially handed the keys to its new exhibition space in Cardiff.
The attraction, which features sets, props and memorabilia from the BBC series, closed in London in February to make way for its move to Cardiff Bay.
The new 3,000 sq m building is at Porth Teigr, next door to the BBC's Roath Lock studios, where Doctor Who, Casualty and Pobol y Cwm are produced.
The exhibition is expected to attract up to 250,000 visitors a year.
The internal fitting of the building will take place over the coming weeks.
Paula Al-Lach, head of exhibitions and events at new tenants BBC Worldwide, said: "I'm thrilled to be formally accepting the keys to the building on Monday and can't wait to start moving in.
"We've worked hard to create an outstanding visitor attraction with the Doctor Who Experience.
"It's the first ever interactive Doctor Who exhibition and for our Cardiff opening we have some exciting new exhibits to be displayed in public for the very first time."
Ken Poole, Cardiff council's head of economic development, said: "Doctor Who is a global brand and is something that has really helped boost the profile of Cardiff internationally.
"This attraction will bring millions of pounds into the economy and the benefits to Cardiff will be immense in terms of tourism."