Guest Stars of Doctor Who: Ingrid Pitt

Ingrid Pitt (born November 21, 1937) is an actress best known for her work in horror films of the 1960s and 1970s.

Born Ingoushka Petrov in Poland to a German father and a Jewish mother, during World War II she and her family were imprisoned in a concentration camp. She survived, and in Berlin, Germany in the 1950s met and married an American soldier and ended up living in California. After her marriage failed, she returned to Europe but after a small role in a film, she headed to Hollywood where she worked as a waitress while trying to make a career in the movies. Her natural hair colour is brown, though she frequently has lightened it to blonde.

In the early 1960s Pitt was a member of the prestigious Berliner Ensemble, under the guidance of Bertolt Brecht's widow Helene Weigel.

In 1965 she debuted in Doctor Zhivago, playing a minor role.

In 1968 she co-starred in the low budget science fiction film The Omegans and in the same year played in Where Eagles Dare opposite Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood.

It was her work with Hammer Film Productions that elevated her to cult figure status. She starred in The Vampire Lovers, a film based on Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's novella Carmilla, and Countess Dracula, a film based on the legends around Countess Elizabeth Báthory. She played a brief role of a librarian in cult film The Wicker Man (1973), appearing nude in the bathtub.

Pitt also appeared in the Amicus Horror Anthology film The House That Dripped Blood, a gothic horror film that, along with The Vampire Lovers, marked the first of a string of early 1970s successes for her in that genre.

During the 1980s, Pitt returned to roles in mainstream films and on television but her popularity with horror film buffs saw her in demand for guest appearances at horror conventions and film festivals. Other films Pitt has appeared in outside the horror genre are: Who Dares Wins, (aka The Final Option), Wild Geese 2, Hanna's War etc. Generally cast as a 'baddie', she usually manages to get killed horribly at the end of the final reel. "Being the anti-hero is great - they are always roles you can get your teeth into."

It was at this time that the theatre world also beckoned. Pitt founded her own theatrical touring company and starred in successful productions of Dial M for Murder, Duty Free (aka Don't Bother to Dress), and Woman of Straw.

She has also appeared in many TV shows in the UK and USA - Ironside, Dundee and the Calhane, Doctor Who ("The Time Monster", "Warriors of the Deep"), Smiley's People, etc.

In 1984, Pitt and her husband Tony Rudlin were commissioned to script a Doctor Who adventure. The story, entitled "The Macro Men", was one of a number of ideas submitted by the couple, after she appeared in the season 22 DW story Warriors of the Deep. The plot concerned events surrounding the Philadelphia Experiment - a US military experiment during the Second World War to try to make the naval destroyer USS Eldridge invisible to radar - about which Pitt and Rudlin had read in a book entitled The Philadelphia Experiment by leading paranormal investigator Charles Berlitz. It involved the Doctor, and companion Peri, arriving on board the USS Eldridge in Philadelphia harbour in 1943 and becoming involved in a battle against microscopic humanoid creatures native to Earth but previously unknown to humankind. The writers had several meetings with script editor Eric Saward and carried out numerous revisions, but the story progressed no further than the preparation of a draft first episode script under the new title 'The Macros'.

Pitt made her return to the big screen in the 2000 production The Asylum. The film starred Colin Baker, Patrick Mower, and daughter Steffanie Pitt and was directed by John Stewart.

In 2003, Pitt voiced the role of 'Lady Violator' in Renga Media's production Dominator. The film has the distinction of being the UK's first CGI animated film.

After a period of illness, Pitt returned to the screen in 2006 for the Hammer Films-Mario Bava tribute Sea of Dust, a feature that brought her career full circle.

Of minor note, Pitt also narrates on the 1998 Cradle of Filth album entitled Cruelty and the Beast, though her narration was done strictly in-character as Countess Elizabeth Bathory, whom she had portrayed in Countess Dracula.

The Tell-Tale Heart (2009/I) (pre-production) .... Mrs. Clarion
Sea of Dust (2008) (completed) .... Anna
Beyond the Rave (2008) (V) .... Tooley's Mum
Minotaur (2006) .... The Leper
... aka Minotauro (Italy)
Dominator (2003) (voice) .... Lady Violator
Green Fingers (2000) .... Mrs. Bowen
The Asylum (2000) .... Isobella
Hanna's War (1988) .... Margit
"Bulman" .... Laura (1 episode, 1987)
- Chicken of the Baskervilles (1987) TV episode .... Laura
Underworld (1985) .... Pepperdine
... aka Transmutations (USA)
Wild Geese II (1985) .... Hooker
The House (1984) (TV) .... Countess Von Eisen
"Doctor Who" .... Dr. Solow / ... (5 episodes, 1972-1984)
- Warriors of the Deep: Part 3 (1984) TV episode .... Dr. Solow
- Warriors of the Deep: Part 2 (1984) TV episode .... Dr. Solow
- Warriors of the Deep: Part 1 (1984) TV episode .... Dr. Solow
- The Time Monster: Part 6 (1972) TV episode .... Queen Galleia
- The Time Monster: Part 5 (1972) TV episode .... Queen Galleia
Parker (1984) .... Widow
... aka Bones (USA)
The Comedy of Errors (1983) (TV) .... Courtesan
... aka The Complete Dramatic Works of William Shakespeare: The Comedy of Errors (USA: video title)
Octopussy (1983) (voice) (uncredited) .... Galley Mistress
"Smiley's People" .... Elvira (2 episodes, 1982)
- Episode #1.2 (1982) TV episode .... Elvira
- Episode #1.1 (1982) TV episode .... Elvira
Who Dares Wins (1982) .... Helga
... aka The Final Option (USA)
Artemis 81 (1981) (TV) .... Hitchcock Blonde
"BBC2 Playhouse" .... Fraulein Baum (1 episode, 1981)
- Unity (1981) TV episode .... Fraulein Baum
"Thriller" .... Ilse (1 episode, 1975)
- Where the Action Is (1975) TV episode .... Ilse
"The Zoo Gang" .... Lyn Martin (1 episode, 1974)
- Mindless Murder (1974) TV episode .... Lyn Martin
The Wicker Man (1973) .... Librarian
... aka Anthony Shaffer's The Wicker Man (UK: complete title)
"The Adventurer" .... Elayna (1 episode, 1973)
- Double Exposure (1973) TV episode .... Elayna
Nobody Ordered Love (1972) .... Alice Allison
"Jason King" .... Nadine (1 episode, 1972)
- Nadine (1972) TV episode .... Nadine
The House That Dripped Blood (1971) .... Carla Lynde (segment "The Cloak")
Countess Dracula (1971) .... Countess Elisabeth Nodosheen
The Vampire Lovers (1970) .... Marcilla / Carmilla / Mircalla Karnstein
Where Eagles Dare (1968) .... Heidi
The Omegans (1968) .... Linda
"Ironside" .... Irene Novas (1 episode, 1967)
... aka "The Raymond Burr Show" (USA: syndication title)
- The Fourteenth Runner (1967) TV episode .... Irene Novas
"Dundee and the Culhane" .... Tallie Montreaux (1 episode, 1967)
- The 1000 Feet Deep Brief (1967) TV episode .... Tallie Montreaux
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966) (uncredited) .... Courtesian
Un beso en el puerto (1966)
... aka A Kiss on the Harbour
... aka Kiss in the Harbour
Doctor Zhivago (1965) (uncredited) .... Extra
Campanadas a medianoche (1965) (uncredited)
... aka Falstaff (France) (Switzerland: German title)
... aka Campanades a mitjanit (Spain: Catalan title)
... aka Chimes at Midnight (UK)
El sonido de la muerte (1964) .... Sofia Minelli
... aka Sound from a Million Years Ago
... aka Sound of Horror (USA)
... aka The Prehistoric Sound

David Tennant on BAFTA

Wonderful Doctor Who Vid.

Guest Stars of Doctor Who: Pauline Collins

Collins was born in Exmouth, Devon of Irish Catholic extraction and studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. Before turning to acting, she worked as a teacher until 1962. She made her stage debut at Windsor in A Gazelle in Park Lane in 1962 and her West End debut in Passion Flower Hotel in 1965, and many stage roles followed. Her first film was Secrets of a Windmill Girl (1966).

Collins played Samantha Briggs in the 1967 Doctor Who serial The Faceless Ones and was offered the chance to continue in the series as a new companion for the Doctor, but declined the invitation.

Other early TV credits include the UK's first medical soap Emergency Ward: 10 (1960), and the pilot episode and first series of The Liver Birds, both in 1969.

Collins first became well known for her role as the maid Sarah in the 1970s ITV drama series Upstairs, Downstairs, which was co-created by her co-star Jean Marsh. The character appeared regularly throughout the first two series, the second of which also starred her actor husband, John Alderton, with whom she later starred in a spin-off, Thomas & Sarah (1979), and the sitcom No, Honestly, as well as in a series of short story adaptations called Wodehouse Playhouse (1975-78). She also appeared alongside her husband John Alderton in the successful series co-narrated the animated British children's TV series Little Miss with him in 1983.

Pauline Collins returned to Doctor Who in 2006 becameing only the third actor to have been in both the original and new series of Doctor Who, appearing in the episode "Tooth and Claw" as Queen Victoria.

Scully visits the Doctor

The 40-year-old, best known for her role as FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in the sci-fi drama, is expected to be cast opposite the new Doctor Matt Smith.
For more on this story and possible spoilers go the daily telegraph.

Doctor Who Series 30.5: Planet of the Dead

The episode begins with a group of armed guards surrounding a gold chalice once belonging to King Athelstan; Christina then descends on a winch, avoiding the blue laser beams protecting the cup. She then evades the police by riding on the same London bus as the Doctor, shortly before the bus, now pursued by the police, suddenly passes through a wormhole and arrives on the desert planet of San Helios. The Doctor and the other passengers find that the wormhole is still present, but deduce the bus had protected them like a Faraday cage after the bus driver is killed trying to cross back. The driver's skeleton coming out of the portal causes the police to call in UNIT, commanded by Captain Erisa Magambo (Noma Dumezweni) and aided by scientific advisor Malcolm Taylor (Lee Evans), to close the wormhole. Trapped on a heavily damaged bus, the other passengers introduce themselves: Angela (Victoria Alcock) is a middle-aged mother travelling home; Lou (Reginald Tsiboe) and Carmen (Ellen Thomas) are an elderly couple who win £10 each time they play the National Lottery due to Carmen's low-level psychic abilities; Barclay (Daniel Kaluuya) was travelling to a friend's house to ask her on a date; and Nathan (David Ames) was travelling home to watch television. The Doctor and Christina decide to scout the planet and an approaching sandstorm while Nathan and Barclay try to fix the bus.

The Doctor and Christina encounter the Tritovore, an anthropomorphic fly species, who take them to their wrecked spaceship. The Tritovore explain that they were making a routine goods collection from the planet but crashed in an unfamiliar environment; a year previously, the planet housed a hundred billion inhabitants and a thriving ecosystem. The Tritovore send out a probe to investigate the cause, and discover a large swarm of metallic stingray-like aliens, who routinely create wormholes and destroy ecospheres as their biological imperatives. To rescue the Tritovore and the bus passengers, Christina uses her burglary skills to retrieve a crystal which powers the spaceship (together with the pedestal it is located on), unintentionally awakening a stingray that kills the Tritovores.

The Doctor attaches parts of the pedestal to the bus and uses the chalice of Athelstan as an interface to the technology. The technology allows the bus to fly through the wormhole, with the stingrays in hot pursuit. As soon as the bus—and three stingrays—travels through the wormhole, Malcolm closes the wormhole. After UNIT dispatch the stingrays, Christina asks the Doctor to travel with him; he rejects her because he does not want to lose another companion.

At the end of the episode, the characters part ways. The Doctor recommends that UNIT hire Barclay and Nathan, Christina is arrested by the police for the theft and Carmen has a premonition that visibly shocks the Doctor:

You be careful, because your song is ending, sir. It is returning, it is returning through the dark. And then... oh, but then... he will knock four times.

As a final act of kindness, the Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver to release Christina from her handcuffs. She flies away in the bus as he enters his TARDIS and dematerialises.

Cast
Doctor David Tennant (Tenth Doctor)
Companion Michelle Ryan (Lady Christina de Souza)
Guest stars
Lee Evans – Malcolm Taylor
Noma Dumezweni – Capt. Erisa Magambo
Adam James – D.I. McMillan
Glenn Doherty – Sgt. Dennison
Victoria Alcock – Angela Whittaker
David Ames – Nathan
Ellen Thomas – Carmen
Reginald Tsiboe – Lou
Daniel Kaluuya – Barclay
Keith Parry – Bus driver
James Layton – Sgt. Ian Jenner
Paul Kasey – Sorvin
Ruari Mears – Praygat

Production
Writer Russell T Davies and Gareth Roberts
Director James Strong
Script editor Lindsey Alford
Producer Tracie Simpson
Executive producer(s) Russell T Davies
Julie Gardner
Production code 4.15
Series 2009 Easter special
Length 60 minutes
Originally broadcast 11 April 2009

source: wikipedia

Doctor Who Series 30.5: The Next Doctor

The Doctor lands in London on Christmas Eve, 1851, where he encounters a woman called Rosita and another man who calls himself 'The Doctor'. After failing to capture a Cybershade, the two men talk, with the Tenth Doctor believing the other to be a future regeneration. Unfortunately, the other (dubbed 'the Next Doctor') is lacking many memories. Meanwhile, the Cybermen are planning an attack with a human ally, Miss Mercy Hartigan. The Tenth Doctor follows the Next Doctor to a house of a dead man, the Reverend Aubrey Fairchild, where they search for clues to what the Cybermen are planning. The Next Doctor begins to regain some of his lost memories; when the Tenth Doctor finds a pair of 'infostamps' (the Cybermen's data storage devices) the Next Doctor remembers he was holding one the night he lost his memory. The Cybermen then attack the house, but before they can kill the 'Doctors', the Next Doctor kills them with an electrical charge in the infostamp.

At Fairchild's funeral, Miss Hartigan and the Cybermen attack the mourners, sparing four who are subsequently fitted with Ear-Pods and dispatched by Miss Hartigan to their workhouses to recruit the children. Returning to the Next Doctor's home base, the Tenth Doctor is shown the other's TARDIS "Tethered Aerial Release Developed In Style" - a gas balloon. Realising what has happened, the Doctor explains that the Cybermen have escaped from the Void (following the Battle of Canary Wharf) when the walls of the universe were weakened in "a greater battle". The Cybermen came upon a man named Jackson Lake, the first person to disappear, attacking him and his wife. In the confusion, Lake destroyed the Cybermen with an infostamp (one containing information on the Doctor gleaned from the Daleks), as earlier in the house, but it also backfired, overwhelming Lake's mind with information about the Doctor. In despair at losing his wife, Lake entered a fugue state and came to believe he was the Doctor. Meanwhile, the children are taken to a sluice gate to the Thames. The Doctor and Rosita investigate and are confronted by Miss Hartigan, who explains that the Cybermen offered her liberation. The Doctor returns the infostamp to the Cybermen, who download it, confirming him as their foe. Miss Hartigan orders the Cybermen to delete the pair, but Lake appears and destroys the Cybermen with another infostamp, allowing them to escape. A furious Miss Hartigan announces that "the CyberKing will rise tonight!"

Lake reveals that he and his family were attacked at their new house and the Doctor realises it may lead to the Cybermen base. There, they find a Dimension Vault, stolen Dalek technology that allowed the Cybermen to escape the Void. In the Cybermen base, the captive children are working to generate power to allow the CyberKing to ascend. Hartigan is betrayed by the CyberLeader and 'converted' to the CyberKing - thus receiving liberation from her anger and hatred. However, she proves too powerful to control, and uses her new powers to destroy the CyberLeader. The Doctor, Rosita and Jackson evacuate the children, including Jackson's son who was abducted when he was attacked. However, the CyberKing - a giant Cyberman-shaped robot ship - emerges from the Thames and begins to lay waste to London. Using the gas balloon, the Doctor confronts Hartigan and offers her a chance to live in peace. When she refuses, the Doctor uses the infostamps to sever her connection from the CyberKing. Realising what she has become, Hartigan screams in horror destroying the Cybermen and herself. Before the CyberKing can collapse on the city, the Doctor uses the dimension vault to transport it into the Time Vortex. In the aftermath, Jackson thanks the Doctor for what he has done and offers him a place at his Christmas celebration with Rosita and his son. They walk away, to a Christmas dinner in honour of those they have lost.


Cast
Doctor David Tennant (Tenth Doctor)
Companions
David Morrissey (Jackson Lake)
Velile Tshabalala (Rosita)
Guest stars
Dervla Kirwan – Miss Hartigan
Nicholas Briggs – Cybermen voices
Paul Kasey – Cyberleader
Ruari Mears – Cybershade
Edmund Kente – Mr Scoones
Michael Bertenshaw – Mr Cole
Jason Morell – Vicar
Neil McDermott – Jed
Ashley Horne – Lad
Tom Langford – Frederick
Jordan Southwell – Urchin
Matthew Allick – Docker

Production
Writer Russell T Davies
Director Andy Goddard
Script editor Lindsey Alford
Producer Susie Liggat
Executive producer(s)
Russell T Davies Julie Gardner
Production code 4.14
Series 2008 Christmas special
Length 60 minutes
Originally broadcast 25 December 2008

source: wikipedia

Guest Stars of Doctor Who: Michael Sheard

Michael Sheard was born in Aberdeen, Scotland; the son of a Church Minister, and was trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. During his National Service, Sheard was a Royal Air Force aircraftsman

Sheard made six appearances in the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, with the First, (The Ark) Third, (The Mind of Evil) Fouth (Pyramids of Mars and The Invisible Enemy) Fifth (Castrovalva) and Seventh Doctors (Remembrance of the Daleks).

He also appeared with Eighth Doctor Paul McGann, in The Stones of Venice (a Doctor Who audio drama produced by Big Finish Productions).

He was often a regular guest at both Doctor Who and Star Wars conventions over the years in the UK and America.

Star Wars fans know him as Admiral Ozzel, who Vader choked to death, from The Empire Strikes Back, whereas fans of UK Children's show Grange Hill will remember his performance as the terrifying deputy headmaster Mr Maurice Bronson. In 1983, he played Herr Grunwald, the German manager of a building site in the first series of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.

He portrayed Adolf Hitler five times, including in The Tomorrow People (1978) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). He also portrayed Heinrich Himmler three times. In 1980, he had a major supporting role in Stephen Poliakoff's esteemed B.B.C. television play Caught on a Train. He also appeared as the police sergeant in the fifth episode of the comedy series Mind Your Language.

In the Space: 1999 science fiction television series, he played Dr. Darwin King in the episode, "Dragon's Domain".

In February 2005 he played a small cameo role as the narrator in Star Wars fanatic films Order of the Sith: Vengeance and its sequel Downfall - Order of the Sith - alongside Jeremy Bulloch and David Prowse. These fanatic films were made in England in support of Save the Children.

He died 31 August 2005, aged sixty-seven years, at his home on the Isle of Wight. He had been suffering from cancer. A few weeks previously on 9 August he appeared via telephone on the Iain Lee show on LBC and talked about his many appearances in film and television.

10 Things I Would Like To See in The Next Series Of Doctor Who

I’ve been a Doctor Who fan most of my life. Ever since 1981. I love the old series and find the new shows entertaining. But here is a list of things I would like to see happen in the new series that would make me love it almost as much as the older show.
So this list is for Stephen Moffett. Though he may never see it to read it, I just want to pass on my thoughts.

1. Bring back the Brigadier. You can’t have U.N.I.T without him and I would love to see him opposite Matt Smith for the 11th Doctor’s first story

2. Bring back the original Cybermen, not those stomping brains in tin cans they forced on us.

3. Get rid of the sonic screwdriver. It seems it can now do anything, perhaps even make French toast. The Doctor would be better off without it. He relies on it too much.

4. Lets see more of the TARDIS interior. It is bigger on the inside than on the out you know. Lets see it.

5. NO MORE of the Doctor falling in love and please stop the kissing. Enough already!

6. The Doctor is an alien; lets see more of the alien qualities from him. See reason #5.

7. Lets see more two-part stories. With two parts you get 90 minutes and it would be like the old format of the original series. And besides longer stories work better.

8. Add a male companion for the Doctor, a boy friend and girl friend would be nice, or an older person to offset the young kid traveling with the Doctor

9. Less Earth stories, and more alien worlds. The new series has been doing better with it, but how about a series without going to earth, or at the very least see earth in one or two stories.

10. Bring back Gallifrey. If you must keep the time-lords dead, how about the Doctor finding his home world still intact, but void of life. It could add to the mystery of “Where are the Time-Lords?” and The Doctor second-guessing himself about the end of the Time War. It would also help me and a few other old fans from asking: “How can the TARDIS travel in time without the eye of harmony?” Gallifrey tapped into the blackhole brought there by Rassilon that gave TARDIS’s virtually inexhaustible source of power and the ability to time travel. No Gallifrey, no time travel. Period the end. So how about bringing it back?

There you have it. My list of 10 things the new series can do to make us older fans embrace the show. I love Doctor Who, I will keep watching it and supporting it and hoping it will change just slightly to appease my appetite for a tighter fit between the old and new series.

Waters of Mars

Planet of the Dead Review

Planet of the Dead: Well what can I say? I liked it, but there were, as always things I did not like about it. Let me break this down:


What I liked:
I liked U.N.I.T’s involvement. Captain Erisa Magambo wasn’t annoying as I thought she might be. Why they didn’t have the Brig show up in this story is beyond me. But she was an added breath of fresh air to the U.N.I.T fold.

Malcolm Taylor, played by Lee Evans, as UNIT's Welsh scientific advisor was a decent add too. I liked his hero worship of the Doctor and the Doctor asking him about the case files he read, mentioning the giant robot from Tom Baker’s first story.

The bug like aliens were reminiscent of classic stories (I hate the term classic) of old. They weren’t the monster of the week, but under used.

The flapjack flying creatures were interesting. Though I couldn’t help thinking about the Nimon and their great journey of life.

I was surprised only the bus driver died in this story, but thankful the rest of the riders on the bus made it back to earth safe.

I even liked the flying bus. It made sense and seemed so much like Doctor Who without being over stupid.

He will knock 4 times. That was really cool. Who will knock? The Master? The 11th Doctor?

What I disliked:
The Kiss. David Tennant isn’t playing Doctor Who and much as Doctor Whore. Do we have to see a kiss in every story. Again Russel T. Davis has shown his shoddy ability to tell a story by giving us the same thing again and again.

As much as I know every one liked Michelle Ryan as Lady Christina de Souza, and indeed she is good eye candy, she played the character like cardboard and she boarded the hell out of me.

Why was the Doctor on the Bus? Couldn’t he have used the TARDIS to track the wormhole or even still walk toward it? Why the bus? Unless he needed the metal to go through the wormhole. But why endanger the rest of the people on the bus?

The use of so much story in so little time. This would have worked better as a 90 minute special. At least the last three stories, which are rumored to be linked in some way, which might add to better story (unless RTD writes himself into a corner again).

The last thing I disliked about this story was: There will be no more Doctor Who for seven months. They should have broadcast the next story in August and then in November and December.

So there you have it. The story though with some bad points was as always well acted by all of the cast except maybe Michelle Ryan. The effects were top notch and all in all I liked it.


I give Planet of the Dead an 8 out of 10

Guest Stars of Doctor Who: Michelle Ryan

With the arrival of “Planet of the Dead” this Saturday I thought it would be a nice idea to focus on Michelle Ryan the guest star in the aforementioned special and use it as a lead in to a new section on the Gallifreyian Gazette, called (though not so original) Guest Stars of Doctor Who:

Michelle Ryan was born in Enfield, Greater London, on April 22 1984, and was a student at Chace Community School. A member of a local theatre group since she was 10, she was picked for her role in EastEnders when she was 15 and first appeared on the show in September 2000; for the part, she affected an East End cockney accent, rather than speaking her usual Received Pronunciation. In 2005, she announced she was leaving EastEnders to concentrate on work in theatre and films. She has mused.
Ryan got her first big break playing Sheylla Grands in the Series TV Show "Chosen Ones" in the 1st season and Zoe Slater in the BBC soap EastEnders her involvement with the show served as a dress rehearsal for working on Bionic Woman
During summer 2005, Ryan appeared in a run of Who's the Daddy? at the King's Head Theatre. The play by Toby Young and Lloyd Evans is based on the David Blunkett paternity case.
Ryan had a small role in an episode of Marple which screened in February 2006, and also appeared in a small independent film the same year, Cashback
In early 2007, Ryan was seen as Maria in a new adaptation of Mansfield Park opposite Billie Piper for ITV and also as Lila in the film I Want Candy, co-starring Carmen Electra and Mackenzie Crook. In February 2007, it was announced that she had been cast as the lead in the new drama Bionic Woman.[4] The series began airing in the United States on the broadcast network NBC in September 2007. Ryan affects an American accent for the role of Jaime Sommers, except in the episode "The Education of Jaime Sommers" in which her character goes under cover as an English transfer student at a university; for this episode, she uses an Oxfordshire accent instead of her natural London accent. She has had professional dance training and attributes to it helping her with the physically demanding stunts required for the show.
On Red Nose Day 2007, Ryan appeared in a brand new Mr. Bean sketch written and recorded for Comic Relief. She will shortly be seen in Flick, a new Welsh independent film co-starring Faye Dunaway and Leslie Phillips.

Filmography
1. "Doctor Who" .... Lady Christina de Souza (1 episode, 2009)
- Planet of the Dead (2009) TV episode .... Lady Christina de Souza
2. "Merlin" .... Nimueh (4 episodes, 2008)
- Le Morte d'Arthur (2008) TV episode .... Nimueh
- Excalibur (2008) TV episode .... Nimueh
- The Poisoned Chalice (2008) TV episode .... Nimueh
- The Mark of Nimueh (2008) TV episode .... Nimueh
3. Flick (2008) .... Sandra Martin
4. "Mr. Eleven" (2008) TV mini-series .... Saz Paley
5. "Bionic Woman" .... Jaime Sommers (14 episodes, 2007)
... aka "The Bionic Woman" (USA: complete title)
- Do Not Disturb (2007) TV episode .... Jaime Sommers
- Trust Issues (2007) TV episode .... Jaime Sommers
- The List (2007) TV episode .... Jaime Sommers
- The Education of Jaime Sommers (2007) TV episode .... Jaime Sommers
- Faceoff (2007) TV episode .... Jaime Sommers
(9 more)
6. "Jekyll" .... Katherine Reimer (6 episodes, 2007)
- Episode #1.6 (2007) TV episode .... Katherine Reimer
- Episode #1.5 (2007) TV episode .... Katherine Reimer
- Episode #1.4 (2007) TV episode .... Katherine Reimer
- Episode #1.3 (2007) TV episode .... Katherine Reimer
- Episode #1.2 (2007) TV episode .... Katherine Reimer
(1 more)
7. Mansfield Park (2007) (TV) .... Maria Bertram
8. Comic Relief 2007: The Big One (2007) (TV) .... Kate
9. I Want Candy (2007) .... Lila
10. Cashback (2006) .... Suzy
... aka Cashback (USA)
11. Marple: By the Pricking of My Thumbs (2006) (TV) .... Rose Waters
... aka Agatha Christie - Marple: By the Pricking of My Thumbs (Australia: DVD title)
12. "EastEnders" .... Zoe (478 episodes, 2000-2005)
- Episode dated 24 June 2005 (2005) TV episode .... Zoe
- Episode dated 23 June 2005 (2005) TV episode .... Zoe
- Episode dated 21 June 2005 (2005) TV episode .... Zoe
- Episode dated 20 June 2005 (2005) TV episode .... Zoe
- Episode dated 17 June 2005 (2005) TV episode .... Zoe
(473 more)
13. EastEnders: Slaters in Detention (2003) (V) .... Zoe Slater
14. Comic Relief 2003: The Big Hair Do (2003) (TV) .... Zoe Slater
15. "Burnside" .... School Friend (2 episodes, 2000)
- Exposed: Part 2 (2000) TV episode .... School Friend
- Exposed: Part 1 (2000) TV episode .... School Friend
16. "The Worst Witch" .... Dolores (1 episode, 2000)
... aka "Amandine Malabul" (Canada: French title)
- Fair Is Foul & Fouls Are Fair (2000) TV episode .... Dolores

Source: Wikipedia and IMDB

Michelle Ryan GMTV 09/04/2009 Doctor Who

Waters of Mars in November?

Den of geeks is reporting:
Despite previous reports suggesting otherwise, the second of this year's Doctor Who specials is to be broadcast in "November(ish)." This rather vague timeframe was announced today by Russell T Davies on the BBC One show, Breakfast.
The showrunner also revealed that Bernard Cribbins will play the companion to the Doctor in David Tennant's finale as the Time Lord whllst adding that the first of this year's specials, Planet of the Dead, is now finished - having being completed at 11.30pm, the previous night.

New Doctor Who Pictures Posted

The guys over at i09 have posted some pitures of filming for David Tennant's next 2009 special. Follow the link to see them.

Rumors About David Tennants Final

Rumors are afoot that Bernard Cribbins (Wilf) has been confirmed as the companion of the Doctor in the final episode! The next special is likely (but not confirmed) to be screened around the anniversary in November. Followed by a 2 parter over Christmas/New Year, this is only a rumor.

More Tennant Final News, - SPOILERS -

This could be a spoiler, unless you've read it somewhere else:

The "Master" actor John Simm has been seen on set for the final David Tennant story. Simm's character, of course, was last seen dying in the season 3 story "Last Of The Time Lords," before dying and being burned in a funeral pyre, only to see his ring rescued by a mysterious female hand.
Is Simms back as the Master? Or is it a regeneration flashback? Only time will tell.

SPOILER: Returning Faces to Doctor Who

OK SPOILER! DON'T READ UNLESS YOU WANT TO KNOW:

Filming on David Tennant's finale as the Time Lord continues today on the streets of Cardiff with the return of Catherine Tate.
The award-winning actress played Donna Noble in the 2006 Christmas special, The Runaway Bride, and then returned (for the first time) in 2008's Partners In Crime and remained in the TARDIS throughout Series 4. Also spotted on set was Tate's onscreen grandfather, Bernard Cribbins, and mother, Jacqueline King.

Read it all at den of geek

3 Easter Showings of Planet of the Dead

Via Outpost Gallifrey: The BBC has confirmed that Planet of the Dead will get three transmissions over the Easter Weekend.

As reported the first showing will be Saturday on BBC One at 6.45pm. This broadcast will be simulcast with the BBC HD channel, which is available free to air on Freesat as well as on Sky and Virgin Media. The programme is sandwiched between the Disney film Finding Nemo and the drama series Robin Hood. ITV1 will be showing Primeval from 6.15 - 7.15 clashing with the first half of Doctor Who. The second half is up against New You've Been Framed.
On BBC2, Doctor Who faces the natural history series Planet Earth while Channel 4 is showing the News followed by Henry VIII: Mind of a Tyrant.

Planet of the Dead gets a second showing on the digital channel BBC Three at 7pm on Easter Sunday. For this showing satellite and cable viewers will be able to access a Red Button commentary from David Tennant, Julie Gardner and James Strong.

The final showing will be on BBC One on Easter Monday at 5pm. This showing will follow the Disney film Bedknobs and Broomsticks and will be up against Taste the Nation on ITV1. It will be simulcast on the BBC HD channel which is also showing the HD version of Doctor Who at the Proms on Monday afternoon.

Doctor Who Confidential also gets a number of showings over the weekend with a programme exploring behind the scenes as the cast and crew travel to Dubai. First shown on Saturday at 8.30pm on BBC3, the programme is repeated on Sunday at 4.10am and 8pm.

RTD & David Tennant Interview

The Times Online have a womderful interview with RTD and David Tennant:

Tell us about the Easter special, Planet of the Dead.

Russell T Davies: People are going to be Doctor Who-deprived this year, so it’s got everything in it: CGI monsters, prosthetic monsters, army, police, an alien planet . . . It’s our last chance to have a bit of a laugh. Now the Doctor’s facing the end of his life, it’s going to get dark.

David Tennant: Some of it was filmed in Dubai, and there were sandstorms . . . We were despairing. I’d look into the distance and go (Acting), “What is this strange alien world?” Well, I couldn’t actually open my eyes to look at it. The Exfoliation of Doom would be a good subtitle. My hair was full of sand. And blonde. I looked like Tina Turner.

Read it all here

K-9 Series Promo.

via Outpost Gallifrey: A preliminary trailer for the forthcoming K9 series has been released on YouTube and can be seen below.

The trailer was made to promote the series at the MIPTV festival in Cannes. Series co-creator and associate producer Paul Tams notes that "All music and titles and K9's voice are for demo purposes only and [are] not the actual voice, etc. that will be used in the programme." Tams also says that monsters designed for the series remain "under wraps".

The trailer shows the first glimpses of the redesigned K9 in action, as well as revealing the series' human characters. Filming for K9 continues in Australia through April; the BBC is not involved in the series' production. K9 is expected to air on Australia's Network Ten and UK digital channel Jetix/Disney XD in the autumn.

Planet of the Dead Trailer

The Airdate For Planet of the Dead

Via Outpost Gallifrey: The BBC Press Office has stated that the Doctor Who Easter special, "Planet of the Dead", will air on Saturday, April 11 from 6:45 to 7:45 pm. The Saturday date was posted last week on the Press Office's website, and subsequently withdrawn; it has now been reposted.