What’s life like for Doctor Who married companions Amy and Rory Pond when they’re not on the TARDIS? A new web series shows Who fans what the Ponds have been up to this summer when not journeying with the Doctor. The videos are brief 1-2 minute comedic scenes representing the months leading up to the September premiere of the new Who season. Check out all five episodes below:
The Pond Life: Part 1 – April
The Doctor leaves a the Ponds an unusual voicemail.
The Pond Life: Part 2 – May
The Doctor accidentally stumbles into the Ponds’ bedroom. Don’t worry about the future. The future is really, really safe.
The Pond Life: Part 3 – June
The Ponds find an unexpected house guest; Ood on the loo.
The Pond Life: Part 4 – July
The Ponds feel a bit guilty about their new Ood butler.
The Pond Life: Part 5 – August
The Doctor tries to leave another voicemail, but in a twist, the usually comedic tales take a sad turn as we finally see that the Pond Life is not exactly paradise.
So what’s next for the Ponds in September? We’ll find out starting Saturday, September 1 when Doctor Who Series 7 begins with “Asylum of the Daleks.” Planning a screening party with your friends? Check out our guide to Doctor Who theme treats.
At long last, Whosday is upon us. Doctor Who fans finally have a new episode and season to enjoy starting this Saturday, September 1. If you’re like us, you’re probably planning a screening party for with your close Who companions to celebrate. To make the party extra out of this world, we’ve got your guide to dishing up some special Doctor Who treats.
Appetizer & Starter Bow Tie Pasta Salad
Start your party off with the coolest thing you know: bow ties…in pasta salad. Pretty much any pasta salad recipe will do, but we recommend this recipe for Greek Basil Bow Tie Pasta Salad. You can prepare some of this in advance. Cook the pasta and toss with the vinaigrette and feta 24 hours before serving. The spinach, tomatoes, basil and olives be tossed with the bow ties an hour or so before serving.
Ingredients
3 cups uncooked bow tie (farfalle) pasta
1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
9 large basil leaves
3 cups (loosely packed) baby spinach, washed and spun dry
3/4 cup pitted kalamata olives, sliced in half lengthwise
1 1/2 cups grape tomatoes, washed then sliced in half lengthwise
7 ounces feta cheese, cubed or crumbled
Directions
1. Cook bow ties in salted water according to package directions. (If you overcook the pasta, it will fall apart somewhat and loose its bow tie shape.)
Whisk together lemon juice, garlic and oil.
2. To make basil ribbons (chiffonade), roll 3 basil leaves together tightly, cigar-style. With a sharp knife, cut rolled leaves into thin ribbons. Repeat with remaining basil leaves.
3. Toss pasta with dressing, spinach, olives, tomatoes, feta and basil ribbons. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.
Main Course - Fish Fingers and Custard
When Matt Smith first regenerated as The Doctor, he was a little peckish and seeked help from a young Amelia Pond to rustle him up something to eat. After failed attempts to eat buttered toast, yogurt and other things, the Doctor finally finds satisfaction with fish fingers and custard. Therefore, any Who party hoping for a visit from the Doctor would be wise to serve this as the main course meal. It’s pretty easy to prepare. Buy a box of fish fingers and a box of custard. Follow the box instructions for preparation and serve together.
And really watch out for serving bacon to your guests unless you’re trying to poison everyone.
Dessert - TARDIS Blue Tarts
For dessert, pay homage to everyone’s favorite blue box, the TARDIS, and make some yummy blueberry tartlets. We found a great recipe at ButterBaking’s blog:
For the pastry
1/3 cup icing sugar (55g)
1 cup plain flour (150g)
100g cold unsalted butter, cubed
2 egg yolks
To make the dough, process the icing sugar, flour and butter in a food processor or stand mixer until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
Add the egg yolks and process until a dough forms. Shape into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Meanwhile, make your pastry cream.
Once the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 160 C and grease a 12-hole muffin tin.
On a lightly floured work surface, roll out pastry to a 32cm round. Use a cookie cutter or upside down glass to cut 12 rounds out of the dough. You may need to gather together the excess and re-roll it.
Line your muffin holes with the pastry, pressing it into the corners and edges. Refrigerate, uncovered, for 30 minutes to prevent pastry from shrinking in the oven.
Line your tart shells with baking paper by first scrunching it together and then unfolding it and lining the pastry. Fill with dried beans or rice and bake for 10 minutes.
Remove beans and baking paper and bake tart shells for a further 8-10 minutes, or until golden. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before removing the tart shells.
For the pastry cream
1 1/4 cups milk (300ml)
1/2 cup sugar (100g)
1/4 cup cake flour (30g) OR 3 tbsp plain flour + 2 tsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
4 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract
To make the pastry cream, pour the milk into a medium saucepan and scald the milk – heat until bubbles appear around the edges, but it is not boiling.
While the milk is heating, mix together the sugar, flour and salt in a small bowl. In a large heatproof bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and vanilla. Whisk the flour mixture to the egg yolks slowly. It will be thick and pasty.
Once the milk is heated, slowly pour it into the egg mixture, whisking continuously. Once it is all incorporated, pour it back into the saucepan and heat over a medium heat. Whisk continuously and vigorously until the mixture thickens and comes to a boil.
Once the mixture is thickened and just beginning to bubble, whisk vigorously for 10 seconds and then turn off the heat, This cooks out the taste of flour.
Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, putting the plastic right onto the surface of the pastry cream. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or until cold.
To serve
250g fresh blueberries
To assemble the tart, evenly divide the pastry cream among the tart shells.
Arrange the blueberries on top of the pastry cream and dust with icing sugar to serve. Makes 12 little tarts.
Enjoy! We’d love to hear about your Whosday parties in the comments.
Without new episodes in the Spring, lots of Whovians have been suffering Doctor Who withdrawal. Well, good news Who fans, the trailer for Season 7 is officially here. Daleks! Weeping Angels! And DINOSAURS! Oh my!
Season 7 promises to be a doozy of a season. We’re really excited about dinosaurs on the Tardis, the return of some of the Doctor’s greatest foes and a guest appearance from another Sci Fi legend, Ben Browder (Farscape). At some point this fall, we’ll have to say goodbye to the Ponds (Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill). All gossip on the departure promises that it’s a heartbreaking one, so have those tissues ready by the TV set. Jenna-Louse Coleman will join later in the season as the new companion.
These 14 episodes of Season 7 help build to an enormous 50th anniversary year and we can’t wait to see what happens then. For now, check out the trailer for Season 7 below:
“We’ll get through this, I promise. Don’t be scared.”
Boasts Amy, “Scared?! Who’s scared? … Geronimo!!”
While we’re extremely jealous that our friends across the pond have been enjoying a whole convention filled with Doctor Who goodness, we’ll take what little goodies we can get here in the States. So for your at home pleasure, you can now watch the first trailer for Doctor Who’s season 7. We see the return of beloved companions Amy & Rory and we also see the return of the Doctor’s cowboy hat. Yee-haw!
What we don’t see yet is a glimpse of the Doctor’s newly announced companion to be played by Jenna-Louse Coleman. While we’re excited for new adventures, we’ll definitely be sad to see Amy & Rory go.
Check out the first “Doctor Who” trailer for Season 7 here:
Doctor Who is nearing its 50th anniversary and in its run since 1963, there have been lots of adventures, lots of episodes and lots of footage. Youtuber BabelColour has gone through all this Doctor Who footage and put together an amazing catalog of “every Doctor Who adventure from ‘An Unearthly Child’ in 1963 right up to ‘The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe’ {2011} Christmas Special.”
Even though there are 106 episodes still missing from the BBC archives, BabelColour still represented those missing episodes by way of stills or reconstructions. BabelColour goes into greater detail about handcoloring footage and other decisions that helped make this video extra spectacular.
The video also splices together Doctor Who quotes and features music from the Eurhythmics.
Watch 48 years of Doctor Who in less than 10 minutes below:
Let’s face it…The Doctor Who theme song is boss. You can try to say otherwise, but you’d be wrong (and the Daleks might hunt you down for your inferior theme song appreciation).
All the whirring, and then the epic ooo–ee-ooohs. So simple, yet it says so much. There have been countless tributes to it from a video that showcases the theme through the ages & another that covers it with a didgeridoo and a cello. But perhaps the coolest tribute to the theme song is Radiophonatron.
Radiophonatron is a BBC site that created buttons out of different sounds that went into the Classic Doctor Who themes. With a simple roll-over these buttons, you can create your own Whovian tune.
2012 is officially here, but as we look back at 2011 in entertainment, one thing really stands out…gingers ruled!!! Yes, 2011 was the year of the ginger. In music, television and film there were fiery red-heads at every turn, stealing our hearts. Without further ado, here are the top 10 gingers that ruled entertainment in 2011:
10. Jany Levy: Bringing cool back to the suburbs in “Suburgatory”
When ABC announced “Suburgatory” for its fall line-up, I admit I was underwhelmed. A single dad forces his teen to move from the city to the suburbs? Big whoop. But thanks to Jane Levy’s snarky wit as Tessa, “Suburgatory” has been a great addition to ABC’s comedy Wednesdays. A full season of the show was shortly ordered after its September debut. In 2011, Levy also had regular appearances on a cable series: “Shameless.” This rising star broke out in 2011 and I expect her career will only continue to grow.
9. Alex Trimble: Showing “Something Good Can Work”
Some might say their success is the luck of the Irish, but Irish band Two Door Cinema Club is making it through hard work. Fronted by ginger Alex Trimble, this band has been hard at work trying to make it in the states. Their catchy album Tourist History came out in 2010, but it wasn’t until 2011 that America began to realize just how great these pop rock gems were. In 2011, TDCC found several of their songs on American radio, in TV shows and on plenty of iPods. The boys were also busy touring and were invited to major festival events such as Coachella and Lollapalooza. In 2011, they’ll work on putting out their follow-up album.
8. Connie Britton: Even ‘death’ can’t damper her spirit
Connie Britton’s red locks keep the 44-year-old actress looking as young. In 2011, Connie Britton wrapped production on “Friday Night Lights,” but the talented actress quickly found her home on the new FX series “American Horror Story.” Despite some ups and downs with the writing and the plot, Britton was one of the main reasons to tune in each week. Her brain eating scene was one of the most talked about moments of the fall line-up. Though the show will have a new cast next season, we look forward to seeing what new projects Britton finds in 2012.
7. Mystique: Learning to embrace her true color, while kicking-ass
In “X-Men: First Class,” shapeshifter mutant Mystique spends half the movie blonde and trying to fit in with the humans. But the X-men stories are all about equality and acceptance of who you are. So when Mystique embraces her blue bod and red hair, that’s when she really begins to kick ass. This reboot of the franchise was not only a great movie, but a great reimagining of the Mystique character.
6. Maurice from “Rise of the Planet of the Apes”: Proving creatures with brains come in all shapes & sizes
“Rise of the Planet of the Apes” featured some spectacular characters that really tugged out our heartstrings. There was none we loved more than Maurice: The Orangutan. Maurice’s friendship with Caesar is instrumental to the storyline. He also shows the audience that even without the boost of drugs, he’s a pretty smart guy. Maurice’s name is in homage to actor Maurice Evans, who played the orangutan Dr. Zaius in the vintage films.
5. Amy Pond: “Well it’s complicated a long time ago tomorrow”
Poor Amelia Pond. She’s had a tough and very complicated life and yet has the most spectacular attitude through it all. Then the arrival of the Doctor in her youth only made things even more complicated with the added timey wimey stuff. Though she wouldn’t have it any other way. In 2011, this companion of the Doctor confronted some of the most terrible foes (The Silence, Hitler). She was also kidnapped in one of the most unusual kidnappings to date — completely unaware that she was kidnapped, unaware that she was pregnant and unaware of where she was. Fortunately, the Doctor and Mr. Pond were able track her down (of course, they had to kill her sweet, intelligent duplicate first) and save her. Then Amy had her child abducted from her in a similar manner and within seconds was introduced to that same child as a grownup. It’s quite a lot for one person to take in, but again Amy has the most spectacular attitude. She’s also one of the Doctor’s boldest companions to date and has even been able to teach the old timelord a thing or two about life and family. Plus, she’s awesome by default because she has Rory, the Last Centurion.
4. Tintin: Taking moviegoers on a comical adventure
Herge’s beloved comic story about the androgynous adventurer Tintin found its way to the big screen this year. The inquisitive ginger found himself swept away on a search for treasure with a drunken sailor. It was a fun adventure tale with some beautiful animation. The story was tight — and how could it not be with Peter Jackson, Steven Spielberg, Steven Moffat and other entertainments greats working on it? It also had one action sequence sure to make Indiana Jones envious. Tintin makes for a smart, inquisitive role model and we’re hoping to see more of his adventures on the big screen.
3. Emma Stone: Showing that change begins with a whisper
I really want to hate Emma because I’m jealous that she is dating my future husband Andrew Garfield. But then I remember reality…I never stood a chance with Garfield and try as I might to hate her, Emma is smart, funny and I have yet to hate a film that’s she’s been in (fingers crossed that this continues to be true with the Spider-man reboot). In 2011, Emma continued to have a great year. She starred in the Oscar-worthy “The Help,” which also featured fellow gingers Bryce Dallas Howard and Jessica Chastain. “The Help” was a bit more serious than Emma’s other works, but we still were glad that she gave us two comedies this year: “Crazy, Stupid, Love” and “Friends with Benefits.” Emma’s a natural blonde, and 2012 will return her to that color, but for now, we’ve enjoyed her run as a redhead.
2. Florence Welsh of Florence + The Machine: Getting hit by happiness
It seems like you couldn’t turn a corner without hearing a song by Florence and the Machine. The beautiful songstress and her band hypnotized audiences with a flawless performance on SNL. Then their new album Ceremonials was released to critical and commercial success. This woman has a voice that an angel would be jealous of and if you missed one of her many live performances in 2011, make sure you don’t miss out in 2012.
1. The Weasleys: A whole family of awesome
We couldn’t choose just one member from this whole family of gingers. To put it simply, all of the Weasleys rule. Bill helped our trio of heroes find a temporary home on the run. Ginny finally took some action. The twins made us laugh…and cry. Ron will always be our king. Plus, he finally got to snog Hermione in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Pt. 2. And the Weasley parents showed us why we should always respect our elders. Case in point: “Not my daughter, you Bitch!” Oh, Molly. We really realized just how much we loved thee. Yes, the Weasley clan really ruled in spectacular fashion in 2011, but it was with great sadness that we also had to say goodbye to this family as their chapter in film history officially came to a close. In fifty years, we’ll still be watching the Weasley family kicking ass and our families will ask, “After all this time?” The answer will, of course, be “Always.”
Did we leave off your favorite ginger? Share your favorite redheads in the comments!
Doctor left fans with a killer midseason finale. Just as the big question of “Who is River Song?” was answered, a thousand more arose. This August, Who is back. We already knew that the rest of the season promises Nazis, but based on the intense trailer for episodes 8-13, it contains a whole lot more. Eye patches! Cybermen! The Silence! Oh my–does Rory punch Hitler!? Check out the trailer below:
And if you’re not terrified of clowns, check out this creeptacular clip from an upcoming episode below:
We wish the TARDIS could whisk us off to the future so we could watch these shows now.
Shortly after BBC announced that they had commissioned 14 new episodes of the sci-fi adventure series Doctor Who, BBC has followed with the downside of this news: Doctor Who will not air as a full-series in 2012.
The announcement came during a conference early Tuesday. Jokes were flying that the abbreviated season was to allow the current series mastermind Steven Moffat time to work on writing for another of his programs, Sherlock. Many have been speculating that budgetary concerns might be plaguing the program, but BBC staffers have been indicating that the changes in scheduling are to allow for the series have a special run in 2013 for its 50th anniversary.
BBC and BBCAmerica recently aired a spectacular mid-season finale that left even more questions than it answered. The show is slated to return in the fall of 2011 with “Let’s Kill Hitler” and will finish out the current season. The traditional holiday special will also air this December.
Matt Smith is confirmed to continue playing the Doctor for the 14 commissioned episodes.
