Doctor Who veteran Mark Gatiss' first story of the series had a mammoth task - reintroducing the Ice Warriors! Warning: the following review contains spoilers, don't read if you haven't read the episode!

When I think of writers who have written fantastic/good stories for Doctor Who recently, Mark Gatiss does not come to mind. In my opinion, the only good episode he had written for the show was 'The Unquiet Dead', way back in 2005. All subsequent stories have been below, on, or slightly above average. Thankfully, very thankfully, Gatiss returns to excellent form to pen the best story of Series 33 so far.

Cold War sees the Doctor (Matt Smith) and Clara Oswald (Jenna-Louise Coleman) land in a Russian nuclear submarine in 1983. The Russians have found something frozen in the ice, and have accidently woken it up, and it now stalks the sub, causing havoc wherever it goes. To his shock, the Doctor finds that the monster is none other than an Ice Warrior, a native from the planet Mars. When the Warrior, Skaldak, finds out about the current 'cold war', it is up to the Doctor and Clara to stop Skaldak from plunging Earth into Mutually Assured Destruction.

One can't help but draw comparisons between 'Cold War' and 2005's Dalek. Both feature a returning Classic era monster. Both have said monster locked up/confined in some way. Both see the monster escaping, and both have a face off between the Doctor and the monster. However, unlike 'Dalek', I feel that 'Cold War' did this in such a way that the entirety of the episode was extremely enjoyable.

The Ice Warrior itself is a thing of beauty. The design team have done a wonderful job by updating the armour for the modern audience; it hasn't strayed too far from the original design and still retains that 'unique' look. While the Ice Warriors of the 60s and 70s looked big and cumbersome, the new design makes them look like the mean business: strong and powerful. The claustrophobic setting of the submarine enhances this effect, giving the camera some fantastic angles and shots.

The characterisation of the Ice Warrior is also faithful to the original. While I would have preferred the voice not to have been as deep as it ended up being, I don't really mind, as the end result complemented its appearance perfectly. The distinctive 'hiss' was still there, but more toned down, something I was disappointed with. References to the 'Tharseesian Caste' and other elements of Martian culture weren't based from the Classic series, they were influenced mainly from the novels. While I don't agree with the novels at the best of times, I do like the fact that Gatiss has made an attempt to broaden the Warriors' culture, a move that could be continued if the Ice Warriors were ever to make another appearance. Skaldak himself was well written, and the parts concerning his daughter made him more relatable, and in my case, made me feel sorry for him. I was extremely glad when he didn't die, I thought that he really deserved to live. I also loved the fact that we finally got to see the Martian behind the warrior. The face looked extremely believable and suitably repitilian, but I'm still not sure about the arms, they seemed too thin. I have to admit, though,  that I was disappointed that we didn't see more of the Ice Warrior's famed sonic destructors, weapons mounted on the forearm that can disintegrate a human brain using sound waves.

The supporting cast weren't really developed that well, with the exception Captain Zhukov (Liam Cunningham). He went from being very gung-ho to realising that sometimes it is better to negotiate and talk before leaping into action, a change in character influenced by the confilcts between Skaldak and the Doctor. Professor Grisenko, on the other hand, was little more than a lovable old man with a fondness for music, and was mainly there to provide support for Clara. Speaking of who, Clara went through some serious character development. She witnesses her first dead bodies during the episode, and realises how dangerous travelling with the Doctor can be. The fact that she could die scared her so much that she actually listened and obeyed the Doctor when, at one stage, he told her to stay put - a slap in the face to other companions (Rose, Amy), who would've ignored those directions and gone off by themselves. The scene were Clara stalls Skaldak from launching nuclear missiles by reminding him of his daughter was also particularly touching, and it builds on the companionship qualities she displayed last week in 'The Rings of Akhaten'.

I liked the explanation as to why the TARDIS dematerialised early on in the episode - the HADS, or Hostile Action Displacement System. Only used once in the 60s serial 'The Krotons', when active, it means that if the TARDIS comes under attack, or what it thinks is an attack, it was dematerialise, then rematerialise in a safe location. Unfortunately for the Doctor and Clara, that location turned out to be the South Pole!

In conclusion, Cold War was a fantastic episode that did the Ice Warriors justice. It wasn't perfect, and could've had some better characterisation, but the small, negative aspects didn't detract from the episode at all. Mark Gatiss, through the Ice Warrior, has created the best episode of Series 33 so far.

9/10

P.S. Did anyone notice that the sonic screwdriver now has a 'red' setting? Are we getting close to the point where the Doctor gives the screwdriver to River?

Follow the presumed success of the Lords of Time convention in Sydney and Brisbane earlier this month, Culture Shock Events is putting on two more later this year!

The first, labled 'Lords of Time 1.5' will be held in Sydney only on May 29 and will feature the following guests:

- Eric Roberts, who played both Bruce the paramedic and the Master in the 1996 TV Movie

- Eliza Roberts, who played Bruce's wife in the 1996 TV Movie

The second, 'Lords of Time 2" will be held in Sydney on December 14, and in Brisbane on December 15. Guests are:

- Frazer Hines, who played Jamie from 1966 to 1969

- Deborah Walting, who played Victoria Waterfield from 1967 to 1968

- Richard Franklin, who played UNIT member Captain Mike Yates from 1971 to 1974

- Mark Strickson, who played Vislor Turlough from 1983 to 1984

- Daphne Ashbrooke, who played Grace Holloway in the 1996 TV Movie

- Nicola Bryant, who played Peri Brown from 1984 to 1986

- Wendy Padbury, who played Zoe Herriot from 1968 to 1969

Further details can be found on the Culture Shock Events website, at http://www.cultureshockevents.com/

Doctor Who debutant Neil Cross' first story of the series has hit the screens as the seventh episode of Series 33. Warning: the following review contains spoilers, don't read if you haven't seen the episode!

When a story written by a Doctor Who newcomer airs, I always try to approach the episode with an extremely open mind. After all, this will be the episode that determines how the are recieved by Doctor Who fans. Apparently Neil Cross is an acclaimed writer, but I hadn't heard of him before he was announced as a writer sometime last year. The Rings of Akhaten is his first Doctor Who script for the series, and the result is something distinctly lacklustre.

The Rings of Akhaten sees the Doctor (Matt Smith) and new companion Clara (Jenna-Louise Coleman) travel to the rings of the planet Akhaten. Considered by the inhabitants of the star system to be a god, and the point of origin for all life in the universe, The Festival of Offerings is an event designed to appease the planet. With the Queen of Years, Merry Galel (Emilia Jones) scared at the prospect of getting her role in the Festival wrong, it is up to the Doctor and Clara to persuade Merry that she will do everything perfectly. Of course, this wouldn't be a Doctor Who episode if Merry didn't make a mistake, and she does, thus creating the complication and threat of the episode.

This episode reminds me a lot of 'The End of the World', where the Doctor takes Rose on her first trip in the TARDIS. There, she meets a variety of alien creatures, etc, etc. The same occurs in The Rings of Akhaten, but this time around, the concept is realised a whole lot better. The set design for the market place is absolutely astounding, as were the alien designs. The whole place was vibrant and felt real, it wasn't difficult for me to close my eyes and imagine myself there. This is what the the aliens in 'The End of the World' and the market place at the beginning of 'Turn Left' should have been like. 

Another excellent aspect of The Rings of Akhaten is the musical element to the episode. The songs the crowd and Queen of Years sing to soothe the 'old god' were phenomenal. Murray Gold is often unrecognised in his muscial scores for the series, but here he has outdone himself. The songs were amazing, and the music astounding. Murray Gold, this is easily you're best work on the series so far. One might note the similarities between Rings and A Christmas Carol. Both featured musical elements, but whereas A Christmas Carol went for the big, beautiful musical piece right at the end, Rings puts it in the middle. Surprisingly, this works really well, and doesn't hinder the episode at all.

The CGI in this episode was also some of the best seen. The shots of the planet Akhaten, it's pyramid, and of course, it's rings were breath taking, so it's a shame that The Mill TV, the company who has provided the computer generated shots for the series since 2005, has had to close its doors. They will be sorely missed.

Clara also plays an instrumental role in the episode, in convincing Merry that she'll be fine during her part in the Festival. This shows us that Clara is made of companion material, plus it was nice having a quiet, character driven moment for once. One must wonder, though, why the TARDIS doesn't like her enough to allow her to open the doors... The prologue depicting the story of Clara's leaf was a nice touch, if rather unexpected, but at least it set the scene for the climax, and gave a (slightly) interesting ending.

Unfortunately, that's the end of the good. While on the outside, the story may seem to be great, it lacks substance. The plot is wafer-thin and incredibly weak, I would have preferred it if we'd just spent 45 minutes watching the Doctor and Clara wander around the market place.

Once again, the curse of the lame villains strikes. We're left with a Kingdom of the Crystal Skull-esque alien in a glass box, some weird servants that can use the Force, and a sentient planet with an evil grin. Not much of a threat if you ask me. And since when did the Doctor have a wand? The sonic screwdriver really is too overused these days, we need John Nathan-Turner back to write it out of the series, or at least limit its functions. On top of this, we have some minor production and continuity errors. Clara's hair waves in the 'wind' while riding the space motorbike, and the TARDIS' translation circuits don't always work.

However, the biggest and most annoying aspect of the episode was the way it shoved the BBC's anti-religion agenda in your face. As a Christian and Biblical Creationist, I've always had to suspend my beliefs while watching the show, a fact that hasn't bothered me greatly, as I enjoy the show immensely, no matter what. However, the scene where the Doctor attempts to convince Merry that her religion isn't real by telling her the 'offical' and 'right' answer as to how we came about grinded severely on my nerves. So much, in fact, that I was very tempted just to change channel until the scene was over. Doctor Who is made for enjoyment, not to encourage atheism and evolution. Yes, put subtle references in by all means, but please, don't force it on us. Young children watch the show, and they're very impressionable. If Doctor Who says this happened, then it must have. No, leave the beliefs to the children's parents, do not preach the BBC's religion to the world. If other religions (Christianity most of all) aren't allowed to do it, why should the atheists? I and others with a faith in something other than atheism and evolution should not have to put up with this preaching in a programme such as Doctor Who. It is an entertainment programme only, not a vehicle for enforcing anti-religion sentiment.

That one scene completely ruined the episode for me. Without it, you have a great episode with only a few minor niggles. The Doctor does a great speech and references his granddaughter, Susan. The songs are great, the basic story elements are great. The ending is boring, all the planet does is eat to much. The enemies are rubbish...and the episode preaches the BBC's anti-religion agenda. Again, without that scene, this episode would have been great, a 7.5/10. However, as the scene was there:

5/10

I absolutely detested that scene. Now, I'm sure that plenty of people will want to comment on my thoughts on the episode, particularly the part discussing the anti-religion theme. I ask that all comments below are kept civil, or moderation will have to occur. If you want to be slightly...less civil, feel free to message me. However, if messages are too nasty, I'll just delete them and move on. I've offered my opinion, respect it and move on, and everything will be fine.

What did you think of the episode? Comment below to let me and others know!

Steven Moffat's back on excellent form in the sixth episode of Series 33 of Doctor Who. Beware: this review contains spoilers, don't read if you haven't watched the episode!

I must admit that my faith in Steven Moffat has been falling in recent years. His most recent episodes (The Snowmen, The Angels Take Manhatten) haven't been...quality Doctor Who stories. However, I'm very glad to say that with The Bells of Saint John, the Moff proves that he can still write amazing stories for our soon-to-be-50 year old science fiction television programme.

The Bells of Saint Johns sees the Doctor (Matt Smith) encounter a modern day version of Clara Oswald (Jenna-Louise Coleman), after previously encountering two other versions of her (see Asylum of the Daleks and The Snowmen). Together, they both have to solve the mystery of a mysterious entity living in the wi-fi, consuming human souls.

Considering that we have already been introduced to Coleman's character twice, Steven Moffat had a big task of making her third introduction leave an impact. Fortunately, he did, and this version of Clara is quite distinct from her other selves. For one, she doesn't deal out those quick retorts as much like her Victorian self did, and she's not as smug as the Oswin version. One could say that she's the mellowed version of both personalities. This works, as it makes her character appealing and likeable, something that did not strike me with her other versions. Also, a trend is starting to form with respect to all three Oswald's major character points. For example, Victorian Clara was a nanny; this trait is also shown in modern Clara. Modern Clara, after being rescued from the 'data cloud', retains advanced computer skills courtesy of a 'splice' put in place by her uploaders; the computer skills are extremely evident in the Oswin version, who uses them to hack the daleks' path web. I can't wait to see more links between Claras as the series progresses.

One flaw I often find with Moffat's stories of late is that the villains are generally rubbish in execution (see my review of The Snowmen). Thankfully,  this isn't a problem with The Bells of Saint John, as the villains are very well realised...except for the fact that their general plan is rubbish. Instead of drawing attention to themselves by uploading hundreds of people at once, why not restrict the operation to a few per day? This would have the benefit of a) satisfying the Great Intelligence's appetite, b) reducing memory storage on the data cloud, and c) as mentioned previously, minimising the possibility of being noticed. I'm pretty sure people are going to start investigation if members of the public just collapse with no evident cause. Also, the whole set up of people being uploaded in the wi-fi, with their faces showing up on screens reminds me a lot of the 2006 episode The Idiot's Lantern...

The Great Intelligence's reappearence was a pleasant surprise, and it was good that some mention of him and his relationship with UNIT was mentioned for those viewers without knowledge of the Classic Series (The Great Intelligence's attempt to take over London via the London Underground was the event that started UNIT in the first place). I'm sure that we'll be seeing the GI sometime later in the series, perhaps he's even a member of The Silence! Previously, the GI has operated using both humans and monsters. Originally, the monsters were robotic yeti, then last year we progressed (or moved back) to snowmen. This time around, we are given robotic 'base stations' with spoons for heads, spoonheads. For starters, I like the fact that they actually did something, even if they're not scary. I do have a question though: how did the villains get them into their targets' house? Teleport? Also, the production team needs to pay more attention to the angle of the camera shots; for example, when the spoonhead-Doctor is confronting Miss Kislet (Celia Imrie) towards the end of the episode, the back of Matt Smith's head is clearly visible in some shots, when there's only meant to be a spoon-shaped indent. Oh well.

Matt Smith's portrayl of the Doctor was absolutely fantastic in this episode, one of his best performances. Smith now completely owns the role, and the subtle gestures and facial expressions he makes are the icing on a very delicious cake. Matt Smith is the Doctor, no doubt about it. My favourite scene from the episode would have to be when the Doctor is informing Clara that something is in the wi-fi, his facial expression as he delivers the line, and as Clara responds, was spot on. We also get to see some of the Doctor's often unrealised computer skills; he manages to reverse Clara's upload and he hacks into a spoonhead (robotic base station). I have to admit I really like this demonstration of his hands-on technological skills, it's much better than the 'wave sonic screwdriver at computer and all will be solved' solution that has plagued the revived series. One minor niggle though, it upset me to see the Doctor's computer skills superceded by Clara, but I'll get over it (plot contrivence!)

The pacing of the episode was perfect, we'd go from a frantic action scene to a quiet, character driven moment. The episode was also full of iconic moments, such as when the Doctor lands the TARDIS on the plane, and the anti-grav motorbike. While the latter was a admittedly silly, it provided a great laugh, and I can see it becoming a classic Doctor Who scene.

The resolution of this episode was well done, but it could have been better. For once, all of the elements required to end the threat were mentioned before hand (the ability to download everyone off the data cloud, the Doctor-spoonhead, the Doctor's computer skills, Miss Kislet's  people-hacking tablet), making a very satisfying conclusion. My problem with the ending was that, after all the setting up, it still felt too easy; all that was required to download the data cloud was a millisecond of typing. At least make an effort to make the downloading seem hard! Also, the 'restore to factory settings' was generally pointless, all it did was show how long the Great Intelligence had been talking to Miss Kislet.

In conclusion, The Bells of Saint John was a fantastic episode that has marvellous characters, a great plot, a few production errors and some good villains with a rather silly plan.

8/10

What did you think of the episode? Leave your comments below!

Who was the "woman in the shop" who gave Clara the number to call the Tardis in "The Bells of St John"?

Click on comments to give your theories!

In the lead up to the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who on November 23, I shall be posting an article on each Doctor every four weeks. Today, I have a look at the Second Doctor, played by PatrickTroughton from 1966 to 1969.

Once William Hartnell decided to leave the programme, it was down to his successor, the much acclaimed actor Patrick Troughton, to make sure the transition between actors went as smoothly as possible. Troughton not only met expectations, but exceeded them, as the show flourished.

The First Doctor had been a grumpy old man, but the Second was the polar opposite. He hid his extroadinary intelligence behind a bumbling exterior, which enabled him to fool his enemies into thinking he was no threat. He was also quite manipulative, able to influence the situation to his favour without anyone knowing about it. Sometimes, it appeared that he did this for fun, like in the famous Tomb of the Cybermen, where he finishes calculations behind peoples' backs. However, his manipulative abilities were generally used for darker means, as evidenced in The Evil of the Daleks, where he manipulates his companion, Jamie, into rescuing his soon-to-be-companion Victoria, thus setting in motion a series of Dalek tests.

The Second Doctor retained the moral compass that his former self had, often saving civilisations from old enemies such as the daleks and cybermen, as well as new ones, like the Ice Warriors or the Great Intelligence. It was during this incarnation that the Doctor also made a lifelong friend: Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, the future commander of UNIT's British contingent.

Whilst the First Doctor was a grandfatherly figure to many, the Second Doctor became the surrogate father. This concept was even extended into the show itself, as he offers to look after Victoria Waterfield after he father is exterminated by the daleks. He is shown to be very caring towards her,asking her if she is happy travelling with him.

During this time, we also get the first glimpse into the Doctor's past family life; he mentions to Victoria that he can remember his family 'sometimes', but most of the time they 'sleep' in his mind. More of the Doctor's backstory is revealed towards the end of the Second Doctor's era. Viewer found out that the Doctor is a Time Lord on the run from his people, and that the TARDIS was in fact stolen. Theses revelations would have a dramatic impact of the future of the programme, and would be explored in many subsequent stories.

Eventually, the Doctor is captured by the Time Lords and put on trial for 'interfering'. However, he succeeds with his defense that he is helping to protect those in need, but is nevertheless senteced to exile on Earth, as well as a forced regeneration. In a cruel twist, his then companions, Jamie and Zoe, would be returned to their own times and have the memory wiped of all but their inital encounter of the Doctor. However, the Doctor would continue to work for the Time Lords for some time before being exiled, once even meeting his Sixth incarnation.

The Second Doctor was very much the opposite of the First; young, clownish, energetic. Yet he still retained some of his former incarnation's character traits, such as his ability to be kind and caring, as well as manipulative. This is all down to the astounding acting ability of Patrick Troughton, without whom the show would not have survived past its first regeneration.

The time has come to announce the first ever ABC WHOVIANS Member of the Year.

Congratulations goes to joint winners Tardis001 and Photon, who scored an equal number of nominations.

Both members have been prolific contributors to our forums, creating interesting content for the entire membership in both the Doctor Who and general forums. They are both passionate supporters of the site- I've lost count of the number of new members who have told me it was Photon that told them about the site on the ABC Message Boards, or other forum site. And Tardis is nearly always first to welcome any new contributor to the site. 

Congratulations Tardis and Photon on being named our inaugural ABC WHOVIANS Members of the Year! Please accept your Gold Police Box trophies as presents. Note: No real trophy will be sent to you, just this picture.

In a promo ad currently airing on ABC1 Doctor Who features prominently among shows to be coming to the ABC in March 2013.

The BBC has already announced their airdate on the 30th March 2013, so that leaves the 31st of March as the only possible day for ABC1 to air it in March.

Which means we will be getting new Doctor Who on the tele less than 24 hrs after it premieres in the UK! Good work ABC!

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Vote in our "Favourite Doctor Who Episode Poll" here

In the lead up to the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who on November 23, I shall be posting an article on each Doctor every four weeks. Today, I have a look at the First Doctor, played by William Hartnell from 1963 to 1966.

Believe it or not, but the Doctor was originally an unlikeable character. His first appearance it ‘An Unearthly Child’ portrayed him as an arrogant, selfish, distrustful and grumpy old man. He abducted two of his granddaughter’s schoolteachers, Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright, attempted to kill a caveman so he could get to the TARDIS, and vented his anger at Ian for stopping him from committing the act.

The Doctor’s unlikeable personality traits were emphasised further in the next two serials, ‘The Daleks’ and ‘The Edge of Destruction’. In the former, he selfishly sabotaged a TARDIS fluid link so he could investigate the dalek city, subsequently exposing him and his companions to deadly radiation. In the latter, he coldly blamed Ian and Barbara for the frightful occurrences that plagued theTARDIS, and even threatened to have them thrown out of the ship. However, it soon transpired that the ‘fast return switch’ had become stuck, and once that fault was rectified, he apologised to the schoolteachers for his behaviour.

This marked the emergence of a more likable persona, and his many faults were slowly toned down. He was still arrogant, but now respected and trusted Ian and Barbara, willing to place his life in their hands.Throughout their journeys together, the original TARDIS team formed a very close friendship.

This friendship was disrupted somewhat with the departure of Susan, the Doctor’s beloved granddaughter. Having landed on 22nd Century Earth and subsequently leading a successful resistance movement against the dalek rulers, he chose to leave Susan behind to settle down with David Campbell, a resistance fighter with whom she had fallen in love. This decision affected the Doctor profoundly, though he made efforts to hide his emotions from Ian and Barbara. However, the full impact of Susan’s departure was somewhat offset when theTARDIS arrived on the planet Dido. There the trio found Vicki, an orphaned survivorof a spaceship crash. The young girl reminded the Doctor of his granddaughter, and he subsequently invited her to join him, Ian and Barbara on their travels. This was a milestone for the character, as it now showed that the Doctor enjoyed the company of others on his travels through the fourth dimension.

Another emotional blow to the Doctor would be made when Ian and Barbara decided to return to their own era in a dalek time machine. The Doctor was initally staunch in his refusal to help them achieve their goal, with hisc haracter seemingly regressing back to his personality at the beginning of the show. Eventually, though, it turned out that the Doctor was simply sad to see them go, and was concerned for their safety, as they had a “fifty-fifty chance” of making it home. This marked the pinnacle of the Doctor’s character development, as he now realised how much he had valued the company of the two people he initially kidnapped and distrusted, and that he had mellowed enough to respect their decision, not believing himself to be above them.

The First Doctor would continue to travel for some time, picking up new companions, some of whom left, some of whom died. He even met a fellow Time Lord, the Monk, a trickster who was planning to disrupt the Battleof Hastings by arming King Harold with atomic weapons. Eventually, though, the Doctor’s travels led him to Antarctica in the latter half of the twentieth century, where he first encountered the Cybermen. By this time, though, the Doctor was seemingly becoming inceasingly absent minded and was starting to look unhealthily frail. The situation worsened under the influence of Mondas, the Cybermen’s home planet, which was absorbing energy from Earth and its inhabitants. This energy loss forced the Doctor to rest for most of the events, leaving it up to others to save the day. After the Cyber Invasion was successfully defeated, the Doctor and his then companions, Ben and Polly, quietly returned to the TARDIS. It was there that the Doctor regenerated for the first time, bringing an end to the first era of a television phenomenon.

The First Doctor exhibited many qualities throughout his tenure. Initially an immensely unlikeable character, he quickly mellowed into a grandfatherly figure, a person who trusted and valued his friends. He was an authority figure, very much in charge of a situation. The Doctor loved his granddaughter very much, and was profoundly affected by her departure, but found some consolation when Vicki joined the crew.

William Hartnell’s interpretation of the multi-layered character insured the show’s continuation for many years, giving it the popularity it needed to survive. Without him or his amazing portrayl of the character, the show simply wouldn’t be around today.

The Sci-fi magazine SFX has confirmed that the Ice Warriors, fan-favourite monsters from Mars, will be returning for the first time since 1974's 'The Monster of Peladon'! They will be appearing in the 'submarine-under-siege' episode penned by Doctor Who veteran Mark Gatiss.

Caroline Skinner, executive producer of Doctor Who, told SFX:

“We’ve got the most fantastic episode by Mark Gatiss where we are bringing back the Ice Warrior… on a submarine! It’s a really wonderful kind of ‘bunker’ episode, and a classic monster which Mark has brought his own inimitable twist to.”“We wanted to bring them back because they’re wonderful! In the mix of stories that we were planning for this year it felt as if doing something very bold with a monster that hadn’t been seen for a while would be really cool. Mark is an enormous fan of the Ice Warrior stories and came up with the idea. The sense of a monster of that scale and that size trapped in a really small, contained environment such as a submarine was a really brilliant story to be able to tell. And obviously we’ve had a huge amount of fun going back to the traditional designs and recreating them, bringing the Ice Warriors back to life again.

“They were such a beautiful original design, and are genuinely really scary in terms of what they look like as they’re coming towards you in that armour. Letting a huge Ice Warrior loose at the heart of a classic Hunt For Red October style submarine movie was exactly the kind of story that the Doctor should get mixed up in.

“They’ve got really scary voices as well,” smiled Skinner. “I spent quite a lot of time on set trying to hiss like an Ice Warrior…”

What do you think of the news? Will Mark Gatiss be do justice to these classic monsters? Let me and others know by commenting below!