Doctor Who Prom 2013

^ Photo Courtesy of the BF ^

 As part of the 50th Anniversary year celebration, Doctor Who returned to the BBC Proms with an amazing concert extravaganzer. Recorded over two identical shows, the final broadcast will be shown on Monday 26th August. Fortunately, I managed to get my hands on two returned tickets for Prom 3, held on the Sunday morning (14th July 2013) at the Royal Albert Hall in London. 

 Seeing as we were going to be heading down south this particular weekend, we thought it would make sense to organise the Harry Potter Studio Tour on the Saturday. *See post here*. We opted to stay in Milton Keynes for the night, which turned out to be about an hours train journey from London Euston Station, but it was easier on my partner who I made drive. We purchased our train tickets the night before, which was a good idea as we skipped the massive queues awaiting us the morning after, plus, because of our naivety towards the trainlines, we could ensure we purchased the correct tickets, at the cheapest price. With our student railcards in hand, we managed to buy a return to London Euston and an "All zones" travel card for a total of £13.20 each. Very impressed. Definitely worth chatting to the ticket advisor about the best option for your trip, don't always rely purely on the online information. 

 So we caught an early train to ensure we reached our destination with plenty of time to spare. The nearest underground station to the Albert Hall is South Kensington, but you should still allow a 10 minute walk, as it is still a fair way on foot. The crowds were huge and everyone was excited when we arrived, the atmosphere was amazing and we spotted a good few fezes! After walking all the way around the hall we managed to find our allocated theatre door.

 Walking into the Royal Albert Hall was surreal, I had watched dozens of productions on television based in the theatre, but I had never set foot into the building until now. After purchasing an extremely cool souvenir book (picture below) at a very reasonable price (£4.00), we located our seats, which were in the centre stalls and near the aisle, and waited for the show to start.  

 To the right is a photo of a very excited Kelly with the purchased souvenir programme and Proms ticket to hand, waiting for the show to start. It began at approximately 10.30am and ran for over two hours, with one 15 minute interval. For a proms ticket which cost a mere £12.00, that's not bad going!The programme is pretty hefty in size and includes a Q&A with the one and only Murray Gold, information on the Doctor Who series throughout its 50 year broadcast, a brief introduction and outline of some of the main cast and a running order for the day. The Doctor Who proms were performed by the London Philharmonic Choir and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, and was conducted by Ben Foster. 

 I'm now going to include some photos from the morning. If you would like to avoid *spoilers* before the show is aired on the BBC later this month, please do not scroll any further! 

 All in all I thought the show was spectacular, the interaction between the monsters and the audience was brill and the special guests were a fantastic bonus! But the main and most important reason I kept phoning up the Albert Hall everyday for about a month on the hunt for return tickets is because of my passion for the music. And oh my, didn't it deliver! Murray Gold even popped up in the audience and took a bow on stage during the finale, what a genius! 

 Although I wasn't sobbing hard into my Tardis programme, I was very emotional listening to every track, feeling goosebumps up my arms with every note. I can't compare the two hours in that hall with anything I had ever experienced before, and I don't think I will ever experience anything like it again, but I felt like for a moment, all the fans in that room, young and old, shared a moment together, and it was special. 

 My favourite tracks were the infamous "I am the Doctor", the charming "Companions" and the breathtaking "Impossible Girl". But then they went and played "Vale Decem", to which my hard surface very nearly, for a moment, faltered... but I somehow managed to compose myself and carry on. Spectators at the Proms also had the added bonus of the world premiere "Song for Fifty", which was a very touching tribute to the long-running series.  

 Here's a very bad quality video I took whilst I was watching the show, featuring Matt Smith and Jenna Coleman, enjoy:-  

 I am now extremely excited about seeing how the show is put together and broadcast on August 26th - which is bank holiday Monday everyone so mark it down in your calenders! *No channel or time slot has been announced yet as far as I know but I shall keep a lookout*. However, a release date for the Doctor Who Series 7 soundtrack has been announced. It will be hitting all good retailers on 9th September 2013 (the same day Iron Man 3 is due for UK DVD release - so that's going to be an expensive morning)! You can find more information on the soundtrack release and track listings HERE.

 Hope you enjoyed reading and the post wasn't too picture heavy. Next, I'm hoping to post about some of the London locations I visited whilst I was down south. Then, I will share my recent day in Cardiff with you all, where I visited the TARDIS set at the Roath Lock BBC studios. Ooooooooh!

 Thanks for reading
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'Fathers Day' Locations - The Long-Awaited Third Instalment

 Long time no post! It's been two long months full of assignments, presentations and dissertation work since I last wrote, but I'm finally back, after finally completing my University course :-) Now all that's left is to await my results, which happen to coincide with the day I start my work placement... uh-oh! Anyway, hope you're all enjoying Doctor Who Series 7 Part 2 so far... I really can't wait until Saturdays finale 'The Name of the Doctor', where we will finally discover the identity of Clara. 

 

 It would be relevant to add that since I last wrote, I, like many others, tried vigorously for hours on Saturday morning to apply for the Doctor Who Proms tickets at the Royal Albert Hall. I had two laptops up and running and a phone permanently set to redial. Unfortunately, like my peers, the site crashed and telephone lines were a no-go as they remained engaged, which led to lots of fans missing out on the last few tickets with only minutes to spare. I am incredibly disappointed as I am extremely passionate about the music of Doctor Who. I have all the soundtrack CD's and whenever I listen to them, they transport me away into my own little world. I suppose I should add that if anyone becomes aware of a pair of tickets which are released following this post, please do not hesitate to let me know as I am desperate to get my hands on some! 

 Anyway, back to the subject of this post, I am following on from the trip to Cardiff I made back in February. This is the third and final instalment to my visit and includes the location of the church used in the Series one Doctor Who episode and adventure by the Ninth Doctor, Father's Day.

 After a brief stop at my favourite restaurant Frankie and Benny's (YUM! - my mouth is watering from just thinking about it!), it was on to the days location. Eventually, we found our way to The Parish of St Paul's in Grangetown, Cardiff after navigating around one-way streets which can feel pretty tedious at times. (And also very embarrassing when you realise you need to reverse back down a huge stretch of narrow road to allow for an oncoming car!) 

More information on the area can be found here:- http://www.doctorwholocations.net/locations/parishofstpauls

Bride chased by deadly Reaper
Source: BBC Doctor Who 

 There is parking located in the streets surrounding the church, and it's pretty hard to miss as it towers above the small terraced houses. We didn't actually go inside as the gates were locked, but we took some photos of the outside areas, including the road directly outside the church which is used as the spot where Pete Tyler faces his final moments as he runs in front of the oncoming vehicle. 

If you were to walk from out of the front church doors, the location where Pete is killed and the TARDIS is parked is located to the left, where the corner of road bends around the edge of the church grounds, just outside the row of shops. The area looks almost completely the same as it did back in 2005 when the episode was shot, so it is definitely worth popping along to see the location. It's about a 5 minute drive from Cardiff Bay and completely free if you are able to park in the street like myself. Definitely recommended for location hunters!

 I personally really wanted to visit this location as it's the first Doctor Who episode me and mum physically sat down and watched together. We both shed a tear with what we had viewed on-screen, as it told the emotional story of how Rose Tyler witnesses the last moments of her Father's life back in 1987, but in doing so, prevents this event from ever happening. This results in the unleashing of deadly reapers who destroy everything in their wake, as history begins to change dramatically around them. This all predominately occurs during a wedding of which the Tyler family are all in attendance. The only way balance can be restored is in the form of Pete Tyler facing his inevitable end. 

More information on the episode can be found here:- http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/Father's_Day_(TV_story)

 This episode also reveals a vital moment which occurred during Rose Tyler's life before The Doctor, which helps to construct her background story, which is then built upon in the series to follow. 

 Sorry this post has been a long-time coming! I hope you're all enjoying this lovely (not-so) summer weather! It's been terrible here, but no fear as I am off on my summer holidays in the coming weeks! I can't wait, it's a much deserved break until I am thrown into the big bad world when I return after finishing university. I have lots planned, and I will be sure to keep you up to date as I am very excited. Oh, but before all of that of course, I am off to the Collectormania event next week to meet Jenna Louise Coleman. Let me know if you're going to, and I shall report back on how my day went soon after :-)

Many thanks for reading, blog to you soon :-) 

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