Definitely Not Blinking at Wester Drumlins

 Next on my Doctor Who location list was a spot from another one of my all-time favourite Doctor Who episodes.

 'Blink', is a Series 3 adventure by the tenth doctor. It stars the brilliant actress Carey Mulligan as Sally Sparrow who, whilst looking for subjects to photograph, climbs into the derelict Wester Drumlins house. But she's not alone, as this episode sees her encounter the weeping angels. Reminder BBC Trailer here.

 A wrong turn off the motorway later and we finally found 'Fields House' (how its really known - In my opinion, I think the owners should consider changing it to the fictional name) on the side of a quiet housing area in Newport. I have to admit, from watching the episode I was led to believe that the house was located off the beaten track in the middle of the countryside, abandoned because of its traditional architecture. Therefore I was surprised whilst driving past (and admiring) all the lovely modern houses in the area to be suddenly startled by the huge gothic gates. I then hastily turned to my partner who had a clearer view from the passenger seat and asked 'was that Wester Drumlins?' To which he replied 'I don't think so, no'. Clearly he needs be more observant, as it is hard to miss! I've included some of my snapshots below:-

Bottom IMG: BBC Doctor Who Confidential

*Don't blink. Blink and you're dead. They are fast. Faster than you can believe. Don't turn your back. Don't look away. And don't blink. Good Luck.* 

 Parking outside the house means parking on quite a steep hill, please remember to put your handbrake on. The shots we took weren't the best because of the position of the sun, *damn you sun* and as you can see, the ray of light managed to creep into every picture! The front of house was full of building tools and material, we could hear the construction work going on round of the side of the house, therefore no matter how much I would have loved to have gone in and had a few pictures inside the house, no one would have heard us at the gate anyway. 
 
  Fields House was also used for interior shots of the 2012 Christmas Special, The Snowmen. If anyone knows which scenes these were for, I'd be generally intrigued to know :-) 

 If I am completely honest, the property has a very eerie feel to it, or maybe thats just because I'm a Doctor Who geek. I was half expecting a stone statue to appear in one of the windows...

The Doctor Who Locations Website has lots more photos and information about this spot, including shots from the interior which were used in Blink along with filming reports from the christmas special, including photos captured here of new companion Jenna Louise Coleman:- http://www.doctorwholocations.net/locations/fieldshouse

 From here, we drove off round the back of the property, where we found a over-grown lane fronted by a makeshift gate, so we decided to leave. 

 Me and the partner decided to end the night with cocktails at our favourite pub in Cardiff Bay which boasts TARDIS doors, and then on to the infamous Eddies Diner (where my partner took a creative photo using a screenshot from The Impossible Astronaut - see below).

 My third and final part to my Cardiff weekender will include the location from Series 1 'Fathers Day'. Hope you have had a great weekend, not long until Series 7 Part 2. And now we can all officially state 'Doctor Who is on this month'! To keep up on all the latest Doctor Who news follow @bbcdoctorwho or check out the website - http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho

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

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The Girl Who Waited… for Matt Smith

I have sat here for a while now trying to come up with a more imaginative title to this post than the one I have chosen but my heads still spinning from the last few days, not to mention the long day I’ve had trying to get my dissertation proposal completed! I’d like to apologize for my absence from blogger, and more importantly, from my blog - I’ve been super busy as I head into my final year of University, boo :-(

So yes, I’ve had a very exciting few days! I turn 22 years old (AAH!) on Wednesday, so me and mum decided to head to Cardiff Thursday and Friday for some shopping, sightseeing and in hope of seeing some Doctor Who filming.

Once I’d survived the drive in the most torrential rain I have ever driven through, I noticed sadly that it was pretty clear from online sources that there was going to be no filming happening that night… (Just my luck- the day I decide to drive down there was nothing going on:-( ). So me and mum decided to make a night of it anyway, I took her sightseeing around the Bay and we had a lovely meal and a few cocktails in Eddies Diner. But when I logged onto Twitter that night I started to see a few mysterious tweets from a few different sources about something Doctor Who related happening the next day…

Friday morning arrived and both me and mum woke up early, had a quick walk around the Bay in the sun and headed off into the city centre on the train to visit the castle (I’ve always wanted to go in there!)

Here, the long corridors surrounding the castle grounds were used as the location for scenes in Doctor Who Series 6 ‘The Almost People’ and ‘The Rebel Flesh’.

Apart from this, Cardiff Castle was also a great addition to our day out and the views were stunning. Me and mum both paid for an Essential Ticket which cost a student like myself £9.50 and for an adult like mum £11.00. Included in the price was a chance to watch a film about the history of the castle (which we never had the chance to view because of our own time restraints) and we also received an audio pack which explained various parts of the castle as you walked around. You can find out more about Cardiff Castle, here: http://www.cardiffcastle.com/

  Luckily, whilst I was at the castle, I happened to check Twitter and saw that Matt Smith was currently down at the Doctor Who Experience in the Bay, making an appearance to unveil some of the new exhibits from Series 7. From here, mum gave me an ultimatum – Stay in the city to shop for my birthday or risk it all by jumping in a taxi to see if there was a chance of meeting the main man himself…. inevitably I chose the latter.

 Within 10 minutes of waiting outside the Experience, my luck was in as out of the front main doors walked writer and producer Steven Moffat and Executive Producer Caroline Skinner. I asked for a picture and they both agreed straight away, even after my mum had a bit of trouble with the camera, telling Moffat that he had blinked! (Embarrassing – but very ironic!) They were both very lovely- a pleasure to meet! 

From here, the weather took a turn for the worst as me and mum battled to stay warm in the cold and windy conditions for the next half hour. Matt Smiths Chauffeur turned up at 2pm and headed around the side of the building, behind huge gates – I didn’t think I had a chance of seeing him let alone meeting him, but I kept hold of my picture and sharpie pen just in case. 

But then luck struck again as a security van pulled up, blocking the gates and all Matt’s chauffeur could do was whip his car around the front of the building, right next to me! A scuffle from a few security men later and mum whispered ‘I think I can see Matt through the glass’ - sure enough, there he was, heading straight for me out of the front doors. 

Seeing as I was the only one there, I shouted him a few times to get his attention as he headed for his car and he turned and walked straight over. All I could think at this point was that I had just demolished a egg and cress sandwich, both mine and Matt Smiths favourite... bad move Kelly, bad move. From here, I can’t really remember much else, it was a complete blur, but he signed my picture, apologized for covering my face with his signature and posed for a few photos – yes, mum had to take a few *again* exclaiming ‘I hope to god they turn out’ – how embarrassing! With that I thanked matt tremendously for stopping and I wondered off as he retrieved his Doctor Who script out of the boot of his car and was driven away. What a dream come true, I'm a very lucky lady!!

Mum rounded off our day with an evening meal at Eddies, and I treated myself to a 50’s style cola bottle! We sat in the booth used from Series 6 (which is now decorated with pictures from the episode on the wall).

What a fantastic two days! I never would have expected to bump into Matt Smith, but what an amazing treat for my upcoming birthday! I don’t think anything will ever be able to top that as a present :-) You can read my review of my Doctor Who Experience visit HERE and my first encounter with Matt smith HERE. To find out more on what Matt Smith was up to at the Experience, visit the BBC news page HERE

Thanks for reading

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Who's going to the Doctor Who Experience?

Its been too long. Sorry for not posting, I've had no time and I've been away for a few weeks on holiday. (Rubbish excuse).


Just a little post to update you on my whereabouts. A few weeks ago now, me and the boyfriend randomly decided to catch the train to Cardiff for a day of holiday shopping and Doctor Who spotting. Unfortunately, the Who crew were filming in the studio the day we were down. I was devastated as it was Karen and Arthur's last few days filming! 


So on the 20th July once again I'm heading to Cardiff for the Grand Re-Opening of the Doctor Who Experience! I'm very excited, I saw a glimpse of what is to come within the props section of the DW Convention, but this looks like its on a brand new scale! Of course I'm dragging the bf to some location stops on the way down Wales, can't wait :) Find out more about the Doctor Who Experience HERE 


Here's a few pics of my visit to Cardiff, the sun came out once again over the bay :) -

This is the toy part of the department store House of Fraser, where the episode with James Corden, Closing Time was filmed for Series 6.

Eddies Diner for din dins again

The Bay in the sun :)

So, what else has happened in my life? Well, I now have Alfie, the newest member of the family, my little kitten. He's a bit of a handful but I love him all the same! I wanted to call him something Doctor Who related but the family wouldn't agree. (Although Alfie IS the name of James Cordens characters son in Closing Time) hehehe

I've also been away on holiday with my boyfriend for 2 weeks to Rhodes, it was the best holiday I've ever had, I never wanted to come home. Of course, I loaded my Ipod up with Doctor Who episodes for the flight, and I'm so glad I did because there was no in-flight entertainment. DW ensured the 4 hours fly by (literally)!!

I also bought these little beauties, which mixed with alcohol makes for an interesting game, which could go on for a loooooong time :) Generally the best cards are The Doctor, Amy, Rory and the Tardis, and you can kind of see it gets repetitive after a while of playing. 

Before I forget, what a pleasant surprise when my boyfriend realised that our hotel included a Doctor Who pinball machine! Yes, you heard correct! A DOCTOR-WHO-PINBALL-MACHINE! It was amazing, and for 1 Euro a game, you can't go wrong! Needless to say, I beat the boyfriend ;)

Here's a few snaps of my holiday, if you're interested take a peek :) -

 Thanks for reading

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