Doctor Who Series 7 Trailer and Promo Pic

 Excited for Series 7 yet?...If you haven't seen them already, the new trailer and promo picture posted by the BBC for Doctor Who series 7 are bound to get you on the edge of your seat! Guess what?... the Daleks are back!

 In my personal opinion, the thought of Amy and Rory leaving the Doctor is upsetting because I have always felt their presence in the series would last for a longer period of time. However, I understand completely that Doctor Who relies on change to re-capture the imagination of others by constantly re-inventing and reviving itself. Back in March at the Doctor Who Convention when I met Karen Gillan whilst she signed autographs, I made sure I told her how much I was going to miss her character, and she agreed. I'm sure a lot of you feel the same, whilst many others would disagree and are looking forward to the change.

I've watched the trailer about a million times already, it never gets old...whilst monitoring it closely frame by frame... I need to get out more! 

By 1.22mins my eyes are ready to burst in to tears. 'Who killed all the daleks?' 

See the trailer for yourself, here:

let me know what you think!

Thanks for reading

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Amy and Rorys Home - Filming Location - Cardiff Bay

Hello!
Hope you are all well, just a quick post to let you know I am still here! Its crrrazy times in my household at the moment, deadlines are looming at University and I have, what feels like 100000000 things to do! I'm counting down the days until the 2nd May when my final assignment will be handed in! 
However, I have got lots to post in the near future, its just finding the time to do so, I won't let you down ;)
So I thought I'd use the small amount of time I have tonight to show you the other place I went to on the weekend of the Convention, Amy and Rorys House (Series 6 + Christmas Special). It was just around the corner from Cardiff Bay so it didn't take long to walk! Note the Tardis blue door and exterior... even the car parked outside is blue!

And a still from 'The God Complex' courtesy of the BBC:

 Here is the last few minutes of the series 6 episode 'The God Complex' to refresh your memories, where the Doctor leaves Amy and Rory. *Warning: tearjerker -

 

Uploaded by danny11712

As well as this, I have uploaded one of my many videos to Youtube from the Official Doctor Who Convention last week. It features Matt Smith, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill talking about their life before and after Doctor Who (and Matt & Arthur get a bit animated!!) 

Give it a watch if you're interested, the sounds a bit low so you may need to turn your speakers right up!

We're also expecting a new arrival to the family in a few weeks time... a baby kitten :) Its a little dark grey male but the family are finding it hard to agree on a name. I have suggested a few Doctor Who related names such as 'Rory' and 'Smithy' but its more than likely going to be called Alfie, which is cute also :) - (and is the name character Craigs son in Closing Time, hehe)
...If you have any suggestions feel free to let me know!

Blog to you soon, have a lovely weekend! 

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Bad Wolf Bay, Neath Abbey, Barry Island and More!

So after enjoying our first night in the lodge after spending much of the previous evening in the hot tub, we decided to venture out for our next few locations on a sunny Saturday morning.

About 10minutes away from where we were staying was Craig-y-nos Castle hotel, which was used in David Tennant’s episode Tooth and Claw. This was where Queen Victoria and the Royal Party arrived at Torchwood House, and the Queen later founded the Torchwood Institute. It is a beautiful building surrounded by exquisite views, altogether a lovely visit. Parking is found alongside the front of the building or in the car park, straight through the front gates. Any pictures I have used are courtesy of the BBC.

Next, we hopped back into the car and travelled down to Neath. We had trouble finding the location as we could not find a suitable postcode for the site, so relied on road signs to guide us the way. As it turned out, the site was parallel to the main dual carriageway, and if we had peeled our eyes a bit better we would have noticed it straight off. 

The site is free to enter, and another beautiful location. Parking can be found right outside the ruins. We were lucky the weather was lovely and I was able to take pictures which really emphasised the sites beauty. The exterior of this location was used for Series 6 – The Rebel Flesh and The Almost People.

  

We also found the wooden door to the inside of the one remaining room of the Abbey, but unfortunately for us, it was locked. This room had been used numerous times in Series 5 - The Beast Below as the ‘Tower of London’ and Vincent and the Doctor, when Vincent battles the monster in the crypt. It was also used in Series 6 The Rebel Flesh and The Almost People as the chapel, where the gangers were created.

We headed back to the lodge from here to get an early night, ready for our big drive the next day.

When we woke up on the Sunday, we hopped in the car early and headed to our first location, Dunraven Bay, also known as Bad Wolf Bay. I have to admit, I was so happy to be here, I had been looking forward to this location the most, however, the tide was in when we arrived so we were unable to climb onto the beach. I had worn wellies for this part of the trip, but I must warn you, I found myself slipping over on the uneven, wet rock surface as I ventured across for a better view. For all those of you who are looking to go here, I would stick to the allocated path; it could be rather dangerous otherwise.

We parked at the top of the hill, which is miles cheaper than the car park next to the beach, you just have to endure the steep walk back up to the car after (I struggled)! To get here, I recommend you follow the signs to Southerndown Beach, as the signs then switch to Dunraven Bay.

The episodes which have been filmed here, to my own knowledge are: Series 2 – Army of Ghosts and Doomsday, where Rose says goodbye to the Doctor. Series 4 – Journeys End, where Rose leaves the Doctor with her family once again. Series 5 – Time of the Angels, where the TARDIS lands at the crash site and Matt Smith’s Doctor meets River again, Series 6 – The Almost People, where the Doctor takes ganger Jimmy to meet his son on the beach, and the cast of Series 7 have been spotted filming here late February, early March this year.

You can find more information on this location, from the Doctor Who Locations website, HERE 

Next, we drove off to Dyffryn Gardens, just down the road from Barry. This was the hardest location to find, as we took an early turning and the Sat Nav could not locate itself back onto the correct road, but we got there eventually! The building was closed for construction work, so we were unable to go through the gate but took photos from afar. The episodes filmed here were: Series 2 – Girl in the Fireplace, a few Torchwood episodes and Series 4 Forest of the Dead, as the hospital Donna is transported to from the library, and where River is saved by the Doctor. This building also featured in one of my new favourite programmes, Stella, with Ruth Jones

We then drove on to Barry, and Barry Island. It was free parking in Barry Island on a Sunday at this time of the year which was lucky for us. We had a quick walk around, saw the sites from Gavin and Stacey; the beach and arcade where Nessa worked, and the train station used in Doctor Who Series 1, The Doctor Dances and The Empty Child, with Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor and John Barrowman and Captain Jack.

 Then we went into Barry and found the houses used in Gavin and Stacey:

 So that was the end to our Doctor Who South Wales trip, we both had a lovely time and thought it was a great way to celebrate Valentine’s Day weekend together. I love going to look at locations like these; you get to learn a lot about the history of a lot of the sites, along with re-enacting shots from your favourite episodes. As well as this – there’s always some walking involved, so as a bonus, it keeps you fit and healthy!

I’d love to go back to these places, and if anyone has any recommendations of anywhere we missed, please let me know, I’d love to go back down there!

Oh, and HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all those mothers out there, I personalised my mums card a bit, needless to say she loved it :)

I've got a busy week this week with assignments, university, work and then Cardiff on Friday for the Doctor Who Convention at the weekend... I can't wait, is anyone else going?

 Hope you’ve had a lovely weekend, blog to you all soon x

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Timey Wimey Spacey Wacey - Doctor Who Video Favourites

Hi Everyone,

Bit of a different post now, as I share some of my favourite Youtube videos, montages and clips!

Credit to Doctor Who and the Tardis by Craig Hurle facebook page of whom I check regularly, and who post the best youtube videos out there, I'm always 'liking', sharing and commenting on their posts! 

For those of you that don't like Doctor Who, here's a few reasons why you should! 

Doctor Who : The Eleventh Doctor Ultimate Trailer

Uploaded by SeanMozzy

This video highlights the Eleventh Doctors journey so far, compelling and brilliant. I love the clips the creator of the video has chosen to include to tell the doctors story perfectly. 

Doctor Who: "50th Anniversary" - Ultimate Cinema Trailer

Uploaded by LastWhovian

This montage highlights all of the eleven doctors brilliantly, with the best quotations from all of the series used as a voice-over. Fans can re-live their favourite moments or non-fans can see what they are missing out on.

The Doctor and Rose Goodbye Scene

Uploaded by alysinwonderland92 

My favourite scene from the Tennant years. This clip is from Doomsday and shows the Doctor saying goodbye to Rose. This makes me teary-eyed every time, and I have been to the bay where they filmed this scene, it is beautiful.

Do you have any favourite Doctor Who moments or videos? 

In my opinion, the music by Murray Gold in the series is amazing and has such an impact over scenes in which the tracks are played. I have the Series 5 soundtrack album and will be reviewing and talking about it very soon. 

But for now, hope you all have a fantastic weekend, I'm really enjoying this blogging, but I must make some time this weekend for my University assignments! I've still got a lot more posts in the pipeline so I look forward to you all reading them :-) 

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The Curse of the Black Spot Filming Location, Cornwall

So it’s early September 2011, and my parents decide to whisk the family and my partner off to Cornwall for a week in the caravan. It had been YEARS since I'd stayed in a caravan and years since I'd gone on holiday with the family, so we all agreed and what a fantastic week we ended up having!  

The weather was stunning, we picked the best week of the year by far! But being the avid Doctor Who fan I am, my favourite part was finding out they shot the majority of the 2011 Series 6 episode ‘The Curse of the Black Spot’ 10 minutes down the road in Charlestown, near St Austell.

So the second day we headed to the shipyard. It was a big place, and there was only the one ship in the dock when we went, but they sail in and out on a weekly rota.

Unfortunately for us, the ship used in the episode was out of the dock for the week we were there, but we made do with the Kaskelot, one of the three fleet, and I have to admit it was rather exciting running above and below board.

 

Then mum called me below board, intrigued for me to look at all the photos and information on past and present film and tv that had been shot on board the fleet of ships. And there it was - a huge chunk of the wall, full of images and information on the night Doctor Who set up and filmed on board the Phoenix in Charlestown. How exciting!   

Exploring the ships costs a couple of pounds each, or you can buy a cheaper family ticket (I think this was around £8.00 altogether) I definitely recommend it, Charlestown is beautiful with elegant restaurants and bars, and the scenery from the dock on looking the sea is breathtaking. I would love to go back again this year, it’s a shame it’s so far away! You can find information on the ships HERE

To be honest, the episode itself wasn't my favourite, as it came straight after the massive two-part opener to series 6. But looking back, after visiting the location, it has given me a new-found respect for the episode and the story-line.

Here’s the trailer from the episode to refresh your minds, courtesy of the BBC:

On the way back from Cornwall, we took what turned out to be a 3 hour (!!!) detour to Stonehenge. I had never been there before, and by coincidence Doctor Who filmed here in the series 5 two-parter ‘The Pandorica Opens/Big Bang’. We didn’t pay extra to go nearer to the stones themselves, but viewed them from afar for free in the sunshine.   

My Tip: Take a packed lunch if you plan on spending the day here, the food and drink are sooo expensive to buy, and the location itself is not near any shops. Also, make sure you check out the prices before visiting, it may be worth buying a family ticket if it works out cheaper than paying individually. Also, watch out for the tanks if you venture through the Salisbury Plains!

  

I’m currently watching ‘Vincent and the Doctor’ episode from Series 5…  I love it! And I love seeing the locations I’ve visited in episodes (sad I know!!) But yes, I love the concept of the episode… educational as well as entertaining :-) 

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A Doctor Who Bus Tour - Cardiff 2011 Review

If you know me, you know that I LOVE Doctor Who. However, I will admit, I was a complete latecomer to the series, as my partner only got me into it once Matt Smith took the lead in 2010. Since then, I have gone back and watched every episode since 2005 a dozen or more times, and it’s fair to say I am completely addicted! The last year has seen me doing a lot of Doctor Who related outings, so I thought I would bring you all up to speed, before I continue to endure even more of the franchise over the coming weeks.

For my 21st birthday last year, the boyfriend treated me to a weekend in Cardiff for the Doctor Who Tour, courtesy of Brit Movie Tour . I had often hinted about this day out, and had read such rave reviews, so it was brilliant to be spending my birthday this way. Here's some of the best bits:-

The tour started at Cardiff Castle, where my partner had decided to dress up in his Doctor gear, along with the much younger kids who were also on the tour. We were then introduced to our tour guide David (who was brill and had such knowledge of the city and surrounding areas which were used in the series!) who provided us with an introduction of himself, what the tour would entail and gave everyone his mobile phone number just in case anyone needed to get in contact with him during the tour. First of all, he took us around the city centre, pin-pointing spots filmed in the first 2005 episode 'Rose', the Christmas specials, ‘Closing Time’ and the church from Catherine Tate’s first episode, the 'Runaway Bride'. 

 We then hopped on the tour bus to the Art Gallery, where they filmed many episodes including Matt Smiths 'Vincent and the Doctor' and ‘The Big Bang’ from series 5. We were given a good 20 minutes to walk around the building and soak up the atmosphere, as well as taking as many pictures as we liked.

 The next stop was a little village about 20mins from the centre of Cardiff. This was where the majority of the scenes from Matt Smith's first episode, 'The Eleventh Hour' were filmed. Here, me and my partner were picked from the crowd to re-enact a scene, aided with a script, played out by The Doctor and Amy Pond, as they run into the centre of 'Leadworth' after fleeing from Prisoner Zero. Personally, I loved this part of the tour, as the village was no different to how it is viewed on screen, and being chosen to re-enact one of my favourite scenes was awesome. We were then asked to re-enact the scene which takes place on 'Leadworth Green' where the locals take photos of the sun through the forcefield made by the Atraxi. I have included the photo below, but you can only see the back of my head! - Luke's bad photography skills. The village's green was also used in the 10th Doctor/David Tennant episode, ‘Family of Blood', where the memorial was the main focus.

 After hopping back onto the bus, we visited the spots from David Tennants episodes of 'Human Nature'/'Family of Blood', including the shop used as a back drop when the Doctor saves a child from a falling piano buy throwing a cricket ball, and the hall where the school dance takes place. These were found in the National History Museum in St Fagans, which I recommend for a day out. You can even buy fresh bread and cakes! 

Next off we went to the house owned by Sarah-Jane Smith in the Sarah-Jane Adventures. I had only watched a few episodes prior to this visit, but I was still well aware of the unique looking building. Our tour guide provided lots of information about Sarah-Jane's character in Doctor Who, and how sad it was to learn of her passing. 

 Our tour guide David provided a mini quiz for the bus ride back to the city centre, where all the adults were overthrown by the children concerning Doctor Who knowledge - it was great fun for everyone! He also passed round a photo of him from when he met Matt Smith and Karen Gillan when filming Doctor Who Confidential at Caerphilly Castle. You can find this video here:- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVIYAUaU9cA and my post on when I visited Caerphilly Castle the following year, here:- http://pluckykelly.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/doctor-who-does-caerphilly-castle.html 

When we arrived back into Cardiff Bay we were able to wonder around the Millennium Centre, where a huge amount of old and new scenes have taken place, such as Tennants ‘New Earth’ and Smiths ‘The Girl Who Waited’. We were also pointed to where 'The Rift' opened, now known as the ‘Torchwood Hub’ and to the American Diner used in the Series 6 episode 'The Impossible Astronaut'.

 An added little gem to the day was when David took us to Matt Smiths popular haunt, a pub located in Cardiff Bay with the most amazing entrance doors! Needless to say, me and the boyfriend have enjoyed a cocktail/beer or two in there since.

Our last location brought us to the park where Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) filmed a large number of her shots during the first two series, but is known most for the action-packed 'Bad Wolf' episode, which sees Christopher Eccleston in his last scenes. David pointed out how the 'Bad Wolf' writing is still clearly visible on some of the brick walls.

My favourite part of the weekend had to be lunch in 'Eddies Diner'. I am a HUGE fan of the Matt Smith series and I made sure I sat exactly where the doctor himself sat before he went off to meet his death in the opening scene of the dramatic 'The Impossible Astronaut', series 6. The lunch in the diner itself was fantastic, the staff were excellent and everything on the menu was reasonably priced! We loved the place so much we later went back for evening cocktails! Visit their website HERE

(Second Image: Courtesy of the BBC)

Overall, the Doctor Who bus tour of Cardiff was an absolutely brilliant day out, worth every penny and made my 21st birthday extra special. I'll never forget the day and it really  did begin igniting my passion for finding film and TV locations with the same enthusiasm shown by the tour guides themselves. I hope one day I can pass on the information I have learnt about the show to younger people who love Doctor Who as much as me! I would definitely book a tour with this company again. 

To book your Doctor Who tour or to find out more about the tour go to: http://britmovietours.com/

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