Friday 26 November

The Three Doctors

BILLED: PETER DAVISON, COLIN BAKER AND SYLVESTER McCOY

09:00-09:55

Opening the convention, the Three Doctors panel saw the three actors who played the Doctor in the 1980s, specifically under the supervision of John Nathan-Turner, talk about their time on the show, and also their returns in 2003 for both Season 40 and the Movie, as well as their appearances in Doctor Who: Genesis. The panel has been a mainstay of many ODWC conventions, and this year was no different. All three were on top form with Davison playing his usual grumpy persona, Baker with his pompous persona and McCoy playing his eccentricities to the maximum. The panel lasted roughly 55 minutes, with the last 20 dedicated to audience questions, before the three actors left the stage for a break in the green room, before 20 minutes later they moved to the convention floor for autograph signing.

The Bond Era

BILLED: SAMANTHA BOND, MONTSERRAT LOMBARD AND WILLIAM MOSELEY

10:00-10:56

The panel began with Samantha Bond sending on her apologises that Bernard Cribbins was unable to be there with them, as announced, but was interrupted when Daniel Adegboyega appeared from backstage, saying that ‘he got a phone call from Bernard and he’s filling in’. Bond, Lombard and Moseley welcome him in as the four sit down and the audience cheer and whoop.

After that, the panel goes as can be ordinarily expected, just with a stronger focus on Season 50 than perhaps normal, due to Adegboyega’s appearance. There was few mentions of Doctor Who: Adventures, but the cast tried and change the subject, when they got into it, saying that all of that is for Sunday.

The final 20 minutes move to audience questions, and things begin to go off topic as either the line of questioning is about whether Bond will be in the 60th Anniversary; Doctor Who: Adventures Season 3 or about Season 51 & Season 52 relating things, directed at Adegboyega. 

The panel finished just before the hour, after which the cast depart to the green room, with autograph signing beginning soon after.

Ale & Cordale

BILLED: BRIAN BLESSED AND EMMA CAULFIELD

11:00-11:58

The panel began with Orinoco Flow by Enya playing before both Brian Blessed and Emma Caulfield walked out onto stage to an audience of screaming fans. Blessed stepped forward and screamed “All Hail the Vex” before he sat down with Caulfield. The panel cut to fan questions from pretty much the beginning of the panel, unlike others, whereby for every single question, Blessed proceeded to repeat it, screaming into Caulfield’s face… despite several being addressed directly to him. A few questions were along the lines of “Will you be back in Season 3 of The New Renegade” but both actors denied having any knowledge of their characters appearing, saying that they were making Season 2 as a final hurrah for the Vex. Questions mostly centre around Panopticon, but some stray into TNR Season 2, while a few asked about Blessed’s time on Mindwarp, playing King Yrcanos. The panel finished with Blessed screaming “All Hail the Vex” once more, before he and Caulfield exited to the green room. After this, an hour break for all the panels began, with the audience being directed to leave to the convention floor.

Doctor Who: The New Renegade

BILLED: ANTHONY HEAD, GUY HENRY, JANE ESPENSON AND MAL YOUNG

13:00-13:55

After a couple of minutes delay, The New Renegade theme played as Anthony Head, Guy Henry, Jane Espenson and Mal Young walked onto stage. They were then interrupted by a video glitching onto the screen above, as Chris Carter came into view. He said…

“Hello Glasgow! Sorry, I can’t be there, but I’m working on a very exciting new project at the moment. I’m just here to give all of my luck to the new team working on The New Renegade… Who is leading that team, I hear you ask? Well I have been given permission, by the people sat just below my big face, to tell you, before I leave into the void of Hollywood red tape! The new showrunner of Doctor Who: The New Renegade is not only a genius, but a massive Doctor Who fan, who honestly is going to make such a brilliant Season 3. It is my honour to introduce you all to Mike Flanagan!”

The crowd went wild, before the stage doors opened again, and Mike Flanagan raised his arms as his walked forward to join the others on the panel. Jane Espenson had a big grin on her face as Flanagan sat down. The first ten minutes of the panel focused exclusively on Flanagan as we got a situation where Espenson and Young kind of interviewed him. Bits of information we found out included that Flanagan has been a massive Whovian for years, and was also a big fan of Battlestar Galactica, and that he was in talks to develop a script for Season 53, when Moore was making initial plans. 

The next section of the panel moved to general discussion between the panelists whereby we not only find out that Anthony Head will be an Executive Producer for Season 3, but also that Season 3 is going to start filming in two weeks, and a Autumn 2022 premiere date is likely. 

Flanagan and Espenson spoke about the need to move away from the story of Season 1 and 2 and write some really good adult science fiction, but, as they motioned to Guy Henry, sitting with them, they said that “everything you loved about the Second Generation” will continue and be resolved here. Guy Henry then went onto speak about his time as Vajahnari on Doctor Who and gave us a teaser of what Vajahnari is up to in TNR Season 3, saying that Vajahnari has no concept of a linear existence, so things get interesting…

The panel then turned to fan questions, which any about Season 3, from this point on, are essentially dodged by the panelists, as they can’t say too much. When asked why there will be such a long gap between Seasons 2 and 3, Young says that it’s because they really wanted to take a good look at the show and work out what was and wasn’t working and they needed time to develop a really strong third season. Flanagan added onto this that Season 3 has been in development for quite a while, and they’ve got a brilliant team of writers looking to make it something really special.

Other notable questions included questions about the character of Gali and how she fits into this, and also whether she’ll be a companion or not. Espenson replied to this “You’ll have to wait and see. She’ll be in it.”. Also, questions were axed about whether the Vex will be back but it was confirmed that they won’t be, as they were just the threat for Season 2. Anthony Head was also asked about how it feels to be doing a third season, equalling his original run and if he intends to surpass it. Head replied that he’ll play the Doctor now for as long as they want him, and that he has had a lot of fun on this show, perhaps implying he didn’t originally, or that he was forced out of the role before he wanted to leave, originally.

After several more questions, the panel came to an end, as the panelists left to the green room.

The Davison Years

BILLED: PETER DAVISON, MARK STRICKSON and JANET FIELDING

14:00-15:05

Like the other panels, this panel saw the three panelists chat for the first half and then turn to audience questions. Janet Fielding, did not attend the convention, as she pulled out at the last minute due to COVID-19 concerns, she did appear, however, via video link and plenty of jokes about her being on the big screen above the other two were made.

The panel was full of fun and lighthearted banter about the three actors’ time on screen together. The panel went over the allotted time.

Doctor Who at the Movies

BILLED: ACE BHATTI, JEFFREY CHERNOV and Mal Young

15:09-15:46

After a late start, due to the previous panel overrunning, this panel focused on the upcoming eighth Doctor Who movie, which, due to Ace Bhatti’s inclusion here was finally confirmed to be starring Bhatti. Although Bhatti and Young were present, Jeffrey Chernov led the panel, talking quite a bit about the last two films and leaning into some of the previous tensions between Paramount and CBS. He then talked about the upcoming film they’re working on, giving a few teasers such as it being a big event and they really are going to be pulling out all the stops to celebrate the 60th Anniversary. Other information revealed included that Karey Kirkpatrick is, in fact, attached to write the screenplay for the film and that Mick Jackson has been attached to direct the film. After this announcement, the audience let out a massive cheer, very excited for what’s to come.

Questions then opened up from the audience, as many tried to find out whether or not this will in fact be Ace Bhatti’s final appearance as the Doctor, but the question was continually dodged by all three panelists. Other questions tended to be about the tone of the film and just what exactly they’re hoping to recreate. Mal Young described the film as taking the best action beats from the Joseph films, while really working in a celebration of everything Doctor Who. He then went onto say that the film will be a mainstream celebration of the franchise, whereas the TV show will celebrate it more in depth for the fans.

The panel ended 15 minutes early, whereby the three panellists left, to the green room, as Mal Young would be on the next panel and needed a short break.

Doctor Who: Through Time and Space

BILLED: Hanna Śleszyńska, MAGGY CHAN AND MAL YOUNG

16:00-16:45

The panel opened with the Doctor Who: Through Time and Space theme playing in the background, before a smiling Hanna Śleszyńska entered onto stage, while saying “Hello Glasgow”. Mal Young followed her, as the two sat down on a sofa. Maggy Chan came into view on the big screen via video link, apologising that she couldn’t be there.

The panel then followed the usual formula, mainly focusing on the upcoming Christmas Special, which was revealed to have the mysterious title “Eve”, but a lot of it was also about the first two seasons and especially Hanna’s first episode on the show. 

The panel then turned to audience questioning, which centred a lot on how filming bilingually differed from Season 2’s filming, to which Hanna joked about having to do everything twice. Not much was revealed throughout, but at the very end, Young revealed a short trailer for “Eve”. 

The panel ended at quarter-to, as Mal Young’s main panel was up next, and a 15-minute break was required. The two of them exited to the green room as the theme tune played.

Mal Young

BILLED: MAL YOUNG

17:11-18:27

After a delayed start of about 10 minutes, Mal Young finally appeared on stage, to huge rounds of applause. Young began the panel by stating “ready to see what we have in store, then?”, as he sat down comfortably and a horizontal line appeared on the screen behind him. 

He then pressed a clicker and the Doctor Who: Adventures logo, alongside ‘Series 3’ appeared at the beginning next to January. He then said that more details about Adventures will be revealed on Sunday, but he said that it’s not long until they get to see Fourteen and her companions again. 

He then explained that the format of Doctor Who is going to be changing again, saying that due to format changes and the move to Paramount+, as well as a demand from the BBC for a special to celebrate their 100th Anniversary, Season 56 has been split into two. He then explained that, it’s more three. Young stood up and said that in May 2022, a six-episode serial will premiere, as one single serial, making up the first 6 episodes of Season 56, and the first of it’s 3 serials. Young explained that he’ll be happy to answer questions on this later, but this 6-episodes will be one single story, which will make up just under half of the entirety of Season 56 and will air in just 7 months time. The audience, a bit confused, but intrigued applauded as Young moved on.

The next thing which appeared on the timeline, under July, was Doctor Who: Adventures again, and this time tagged ‘Series 4’. He smiled and said that “CBBC and Nickelodeon wanted more, so we are giving them more”. The audience cheered, as Young moved on, with a smile.

Under September 2022, Doctor Who: The New Renegade Season 3 appeared, to which the audience exploded with applause, very excited. Young said that they are currently aiming for a late September launch date for the season, but it may have a short mid-season break… because…

Young clicked again and Doctor Who: Centenary Special appeared. Young, to much discussion in the crowd, explained that the BBC have asked him to produce a special 90-minute episode, which will serve at the 2nd serial of the season, and the 7th individual episode, to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the BBC. Young waited for the applause to die down before he confirmed, sneakily, that “it will star Ace Bhatti, Anthony Head and Samantha Bond”. The crowd went wild as Young quickly seated himself again, for a couple of minutes, before the applause quieted down.

January 2023 then appeared, as Doctor Who: Adventures ‘Series 5’ appeared, with fans applauding again, as Young said that he’s very happy to say that a lot of Adventures has been commissioned, and it’s a very popular show within ViacomCBS, he’s happy to report. 

Then May 2023 appeared, and Young clicked Doctor Who: Serial 3 onto screen, as he explained the third and final serial will be making up the final 6 episodes of the season, and will once again be a complete serial, told over 6-weeks. Young explained that this serial will also tie into the other two serials, making Season 56, although made of three different parts, cohesive as one whole season.

July 2023 then appeared, as Young revealed that it will see the release of The New Renegade Season 4, and he also revealed that Season 3 and Season 4 will be shot back-to-back with each other, 20-episodes in a row. This received a very large applause from the crowd.

September 2023 then appeared, to which Young let the crowd continue in anticipation for a bit, before clicking Adventures Series 6 into view, before saying that only the first 6 seasons have been commissioned so far… but considering only 2 are out, at the moment, getting commissioned up to 6 seasons shows just the confidence the people at CBBC and Nickelodeon have in the programme and just how much they value it. He then moved the crowd to applaud Phil Ford and said that it’s a privilege to have him running it. 

Finally, November 2023 appeared, and as the crowd got more and more excited, Young clicked “Doctor Who: 60th Anniversary Film” onto the screen, as everyone went wild. Young then said, that that’s all for now, and on top of that there’s loads of foreign adaptations, but that what they’ve seen is an exciting look at the next two years of Doctor Who.

Young then paused and said “One more thing”. The audience confused, but excited began to cheer. Young then said that he’s been in talks with the BBC about developing a new Doctor Who show, for the newly returning BBC Three channel. He went onto say that nothing had been yet commissioned for green-lit, and they were just in talks, but “watch this space”. The audience cheered again, excited at the prospect of something new coming.

The image stayed up behind Young, for the rest of the panel, as he took questions from the audience. It mainly focused around the strange format of Season 56, which Young clarified. He said that a lot of it was mandated by the need to spread the 13 episodes across the two years, but also because of a reflection of the previous S53 format and looking at what did and didn’t work. He also said a lot of it was due to the Paramount+ news, which he said he knew about several months ago, and there was a need to make the show more suitable towards bingeing. Other questions centred around Doctor Who’s new showrunner, but Young just told audience members to be patient until tomorrow. 

Young clarified that this panel didn’t include any foreign adaptations, as it’s hard to work out a two-year plan for them all, with their respective broadcasters – so he joked that they will happen, they just aren’t on the presentation today. He also said that everything the audience sees on the screen could change, as there’s plenty that can happen which could prevent things going to plan – citing that no-one could’ve predicted what happened in 2020.

The panel last for an hour and a half, before the whole convention went on half an hour’s break before the final panel. Mal Young joked at the end that this has been one of the busiest days of his life, and he’ll say everyone in 30 minutes.

Doctor Who: A Look Back at Season 55

BILLED: ACE BHATTI, ALEX JENNINGS, ANJLI MOHINDRA, RONAN SUMMERS, SARAH DOLLARD, ADRIAN HODGES, JANE ESPENSON AND MAL YOUNG

19:00-19:50

The final panel of the day saw a star studded amount of panelists arrive on the stage, to look back at the season of Doctor Who which had just finished airing. At previous ODWCs this had all been part of the Doctor Who panel, but Young teased at the beginning that they would just have had “too much to talk about” if all in one panel.

Most of this panel centred around the cast talking about actually making it and the fun and games they had during the process of filming. Due to Anjli Mohindra and Ronan Summers’ presence most of the talk did become about the first and last episodes, but there was also quite a bit of talk about the Dalek episode, as Ace Bhatti said he very much enjoyed not only getting to fight the Daleks, but also being given the opportunity to play a different version of the Doctor, and he enjoyed the subtleties that entailed. 

Other questions included Alex Jennings explaining why he chose to leave the show, whereby he just repeated the answer he gave at the original press release, while also adding that he’s happy that he’s leaving with Adrian. 

Most of the behind the scenes questions were handled by Adrian Hodges, while Jane Espenson and Mal Young, only said a few words now and again, and essentially might as well have not even been there. Hodges explained his thinking in crafting the season, explaining that it was all essentially one big long story, not too dissimilar to the (just announced) serials of the following years. He continued by saying that he structured it so it began seeming as a normal episodic season, before, over the course, the audience gradually realises that all 8-episodes are one singular story. He said he thought he pulled it off quite well, but admitted that maybe it might’ve been better for the audience if they’d known from the beginning what to expect. 

Sarah Dollard briefly spoke about her writing process for Episode 3 and how it differed from writing under both Moore and Espenson’s tenure as showrunner. She added that she really enjoyed writing for the main show again, and said that the experience of writing for Adventures also really helped her.

During the last 10 minutes of the panel, most of the questions came Ace Bhatti’s way, several trying to find out clues about the next season, but Bhatti managed to turn them into questions about Season 55, during his responses, to even comic effect at one point.

The panel, and the day of panels, finished at 19:50, as the panellists left the stage and the audience (some of which had been there all day) were ushered out of the hall.

As the panel ended, the big screen, displayed the next day’s schedule, for everyone to see.

Saturday 27 November

Erin and Kyle

BILLED: MONTSERRAT LOMBARD AND WILLIAM MOSELEY

09:00-09:58

The second day of the convention was opened by Montserrat Lombard and William Moseley. The panel, after about ten minutes, went straight into audience questions with both actors humorously answering them. 

Although many of the questions did focus on their time on Doctor Who, plenty were also about Adventures. Most of the Adventures questions were about what’s coming up in the next four seasons, and if the two of them will even be in the next four. Lombard confirmed that they are in Series 3 and 4, as they have been recorded, but she said that she can’t say anything beyond that – because she doesn’t know.

During the talk about Adventures, Moseley made the comment saying that when he was initially asked to do Adventures, he was just told it was a show with Erin & Kyle, and therefore he assumed they’d be doing an Erin & Kyle sitcom. The audience erupted into laughter at this, before Lombard added that “It could still happen. Give us a call BBC Three…” and the audience continued laughing.

The panel finished on time, with the two actors exiting to the green room.

Politics of Gallifrey

BILLED: ANthONY HEAD, EMMA CAULFIELD, BRIAN BLESSED, JANE ESPENSON, IRA STEVEN BEHR AND RONALD D. MOORE

10:00-10:58

The panel began with a short video, essentially a trailer for the entire Gallifrey arc, before the panelists entered the stage and sat down. Ira Steven Behr was the first to address the crowd saying “We didn’t have enough people for a proper Head era panel, and we didn’t have enough people for a Panopticon panel, so we thought we’d combine the two and call it The Politics of Gallifrey…”, the audience laughed at this, and the panel got underway.

The panel began with the cast talking about the Gallifrey arc, with occasional chiming in from the creatives. Anthony Head especially enjoyed speaking about his appearance (albeit brief) in Panopticon and getting to work with Emma. Caulfield, Moore and Espenson then spoke in depth about Put Your Dreams Away, with Moore claiming that “David & Bradley are geniuses”. 

The second half of the panel turned more toward the creatives with Moore, Espenson and Behr giving a bigger look into how they crafted the story of the Head era and Panopticon, and briefly spoke about Remnants, False Prophets and The Elysium. 

Audience questioning began late, as the panelists got carried away. Lots of questions were directed to Moore and Espenson asking about Moore’s firing, and why Moore is even at the convention etc etc; some audience members even asked if Moore would consider coming back. Moore tried to give the most diplomatic answers he could, laughing off several of the questions. Other questions were to Anthony Head and were the sort you’d expect, with some trying to find out more TNR info – which Head obviously didn’t give.

Brian Blessed didn’t have much to do at the panel, but made his presence known by randomly shouting things often, including every single question after they’d been asked.

The panel came to an end, just before the hour, and, to a large round of applause, they departed.

Alex Jennings

BILLED: ALEX JENNINGS

11:00-11:55

Beginning a few minutes late, Alex Jennings made his way to the stage, for his solo panel. The panel, apart from Jennings’ introduction, was based around an audience Q&A, as Jennings was asked several questions which he gave in-depth answers to.

Questions ranged from Jennings’ casting, to his decision to initially depart and then return again to his final decision to leave. Jennings answered all the questions with lots of information, mostly about his own processes as an actor, adding a lot of detail about how he chose to play certain scenes. He mentioned that although he didn’t know Hodges was leaving when he chose to leave, he’s really happy that the two are leaving together, as Hodges’ time on the show was really “The story of Bertie Reynolds”, and that he thinks you can tell that from the episodes.

Alongside Jennings’ answers, he told lots of jokes, keeping the audience engaged, and being very entertaining. The panel ended with a short video playing showing Bertie’s best moments, before Jennings left the stage to the green room, and an hour break began.

Doctor Who

BILLED: ACE BHATTI, JANE ESPENSON AND MAL YOUNG

13:00-14:30

The panel began with a short video playing showing all the Doctors, and some iconic moments, followed by the Doctor Who logo. Then, with the theme tune playing, Ace Bhatti, Jane Espenson and Mal Young entered onto stage and sat down. Mal Young took centre stage, soon after and began a speech.

“Yesterday, I told you about Season 56’s format. Today you will find out who will be executing that format. What you aren’t aware of, is that it’s not one person – it’s three. It’s not three showrunners working together – Season 56, will have a different showrunner for each one of its serials. A new permanent showrunner will take over from 2024, but for the next two years, we’re going to be doing something… very interesting. So, may I introduce, the showrunner of the first 6-episodes of Season 56, who has crafted something brilliant, which you’ll absolutely love, I’m sure… please welcome, Ronald D. Moore!”

The audience were silent for just a moment, almost hesitant in their response, but when Ronald D. Moore actually walked onto stage, they all stood up and began cheering and whooping, ecstatically. Moore smiled, shook hands with Mal Young, and then sat down next to Espenson, before giving her a hug. He then joke “don’t worry, we’ve been vaccinated”. Espenson then whispered something in his ear, and Moore laughed. Moore then said “she said, vaccinated from CBS, but don’t quote her on that”. Espenson shook her head, laughing and horrified. 

Much of the next 10 minutes focused on Moore telling the story of how he was asked to come back for this serial and how he initially said “no”, but it was Jane who persuaded him to do it. Moore also joked that it was weird for her to be his boss, but that it’s been a fun way of working. Moore then went onto explain that his concept for his serial was actually adapted from some ideas he’d been working on for his original Season 53, and that he’d come up with the idea while shooting The Martian Equinox. Moore then said that what he’s doing is a one-off and not something that the other two serials in the season will reflect at all. He then said that before he revealed what it is, he wanted to introduce everyone to two very important cast members. The audience held their breaths in anticipation as Moore began “Now this might not come as a surprise to some of you who have read a certain newspaper, I won’t talk about, but introducing Suranne Jones and Togo Igawa!” The audience cheered as the two exited the green room and sat down.

Jones and Igawa sat down before Jones remarked “Well it’s good I’m here now, I think I’ve just spent the last half hour being chatted up by Colin Baker…”, Igawa commented “Think that’s bad, I’ve just spent the last half hour with Brian Blessed.” The audience cheered and whooped after this, also laughing at the joke.

Moore then said that the cast for his serial are unique to the first serial, so it’s a bit difficult to say whether or not certain characters who are in all 6-episodes are companions or not, so he will just use the term ‘regular cast’ and that Suranne and Togo represent just a portion of that ‘regular cast’. Moore then asked Jones and Igawa to say a bit about their characters.

Jones described her character as “ruthless” saying that she’s “got a good heart but has a firm front”, she also said that her character may “seem familiar” to some. Igawa said that his character is “crazed”, “very driven” and “very intelligent”. He also mentioned that at some points, while they’ve been filming he’s “scared himself”. The audience found this all very interesting but were cut off when Moore looked at Young, and asked “Could we show a little trailer”. Young nodded and a trailer began playing on the screen…

Doctor Who: The Daleks’ Master Plan stayed on the screen above them.

Ronald D. Moore then shouted, over the applause, “Please may I introduce to you: Suranne Jones as Sara Kingdom and Togo Igawa as Mavic Chen!” Before and pause and then “and although he can’t be with us today, Sam Claflin as Bret Vyon!” The audience erupting again into even louder applause, as everyone sat back looking pleased. Espenson spoke softly into the microphone “questions?”, to which everyone laughed.

Moore then spoke explaining that yes, they are adapting a missing serial, and yes it is the biggest Doctor Who story ever, and yes they are going to be making it longer – but Moore said that this’ll be 50% the original story and 50% a new one, as in his opinion “The first 6 parts of Master Plan are fantastic, and Episode 12 is amazing, but the rest… pretty dire, and I need to fix that”. Some of the audience members were a bit taken aback by this dig, but others were nodding, as were Young and Espenson. Espenson then said that some of the stuff Adrian set up last season will factor a role in here, so she says that she wasn’t lying when she said it would be resolved.

Moore also said that the story you know from the original 12-parter, or the 3-part Doctor Who: Remastered version is only a fraction of the story they’ll be telling here, and that this’ll be a new story for the Doctor too. Ace Bhatti explained that as everyone could tell from the trailer, the Doctor doesn’t remember the events of the original story to begin with, for whatever reason, but as they do come back to him, events change and differ, because the Doctor is a very different person now, and the story moves due to 16’s interference. Espenson added that the First Doctor and Steven aren’t showing up, something happens so they don’t come to Kembel in the first place. Moore added “don’t worry, we aren’t having to get CGI Billy Hartnell in again”. 

The rest next 15 minutes were focused on Ace Bhatti, Suranne Jones and Togo Igawa talking about filming together and playing their characters. Jones explained that she watched the two surviving episodes featuring Jean Marsh as Sara, lots and lots of times to capture the performance as best as possible, and that she also met with Jean Marsh, before filming began, to help with her portrayal. Togo Igawa mentioned that as good as Kevin Stoney was in the part, he’s very happy to give the part a more racially sensitive take and make Mavic Chen his own. Moore loudly clapped in agreement, and most of the audience applauded too. Igawa then said “Mavic Chen is really bad, and that’s a lot of fun to play”. The audience laughed. 

Moore finally added that the serial is called “The Daleks’ Master Plan” and yes that’s the exact same title as the original, and yes, TARDIS Data Core are going to be having arguments, before laughing and rubbing his hands together.

Young then interrupted and said that Moore, Jones and Igawa are going to leave, as they need to speak about the other two serials, for the final half an hour. The three of them stood up and departed to the green room, while the audience continued to loudly cheer. Mal Young began to speak.

Young stood up and said that the Centenary story will be written and creatively led by someone else quite familiar. The audience again cheered, as Jane Espenson stood up and said that she’ll be handling the Centenary story. She then explained that she technically doesn’t break the ‘no one does two jobs rule’ because writing one episode isn’t technically a showrunner. Young laughed as the crowd looked a tad confused. Espenson then proceeded to speak about the fact that the story will be big and will, as revealed by young the previous day, feature “Ace Bhatti, Anthony Head and Samantha Bond”. Espenson said that she’s had a lot of fun writing for Samantha and Anthony again, and that it’s very interesting seeing the three ongoing shows come together. She then added that sadly, Samantha isn’t animated in the story, before laughing at her own joke, which the audience didn’t really find funny.

Espenson then went onto say that the special will tie in all three shows in a very unique way and provide moreso the fan “anniversary special” a year before the film, which will be more of a mainstream blockbuster. Espenson added that she’s really proud to have written a big Doctor Who special, and she’s very glad to have done it before she departs.

Young then said that it just leaves them with 6-episodes, and one final story, for May 2023. He said that the showrunner is someone he’s worked with before, and is very happy to bring back to Doctor Who, once more. “Doctor Who: Season 56, Episodes 8-13 will be showrun by, my very good friend, David Renwick!”. The audience cheered again and again but nothing happened. Renwick did not appear. Young then laughed and said that sadly David is not there, but he does have a little video. Renwick appeared by video, on the screen, saying how thrilled he is to be back and be working with Young (who was essentially his boss when he was Executive Producer) again. He also mentioned how great it is to get the chance to work with Bhatti’s Doctor and modern computer graphics. 

Young then took over again and explained that this is their way at Doctor Who of celebrating the 60th Anniversary, and that he hopes it compares with Ira Steven Behr’s fantastic two-year way of celebrating the 50th. He continued by saying that there’s a lot of surprises in these three serials and that he can reveal one more thing. He says that in January, Doctor Who will be flying over to Toronto to shoot one block there, some for Master Plan and some for the Centenary Special, on the Pixomondo AR Wall, which was built especially for use on The New Renegade and Star Trek: Discovery. He mentioned that this will allow them to create some truly stunning locations for The Daleks’ Master Plan and the Centenary story. 

Young then said that they’ve come to the end of their time and now the audience can and have fun on social media. The three panelists stood up and exited to the green room, while the Doctor Who theme tune played.

No Q&A section was included in this panel. A half an hour break then followed, before Ace Bhatti’s solo panel.

Ace Bhatti

BILLED: ACE BHATTI

15:01-15:51

At 3pm, Bhatti entered back onto the ODWC stage, with his arms up as the Sixteenth Doctor’s theme played. Bhatti sat down and remarked that this weekend feels like a rock concert and although Anaheim was fun, Glasgow has been exceptional – especially as it’s just a short journey from where they’re filming, instead of half-way across the world.

Like many of the other solo panels, Bhatti’s followed a Q&A format from the very beginning, and focused on Bhatti answering the questions, and having a laugh with the audience.

Most questions did centre on the upcoming season to which Bhatti dodged most of the questions, being as vague as possible. He did describe working with Suranne Jones, Sam Claflin and Togo Igawa as a lot of fun, and said that they all get on like a house on fire.

Plenty of the other questions asked about Season 55 and Bhatti’s experiences filming that, and Bhatti briefly spoke about how COVID changed the way they had to work as actors, while he also spoke about filming No Good Deed originally, and how different that was. One of the audience members asked about Bhatti’s hair length, which is significantly longer, and Bhatti said that “Mal let me grow it out this year. Consider it my version of the Griffiths beard”. 

Bhatti gave plenty of humours anecdotes about his time on the show, including some details about when he was shoved into the back of a car with a bag over his head and taken to a TV studio, when he was revealed to the world as the Sixteenth Doctor in “that awful live show”. The audience found this very funny.

The panel came to an end, about ten minutes early and Bhatti exited again to the same music.

An Audience With Murray Melvin

BILLED: MURRAY MELVIN

16:00-16:48

At exactly 5pm, Murray Melvin arrived on stage, dressed spectacularly, as the Master’s theme played. He then sat down and said “let’s begin”. He spoke for the first 15 minutes, almost monologuing, about his time playing the Master and his return to the role for Doctor Who: Adventures, which he much preferred because he didn’t have to learn any lines. He then opened up the audience to questions.

Most of the questioned centred on his originally appearances as the Master, as Melvin explained how he saw the character, and the way he chose to play him. He explained that for his first story he was playing against Michael French, who was a very young and dashing Dr. Who, so he did the opposite and played a very reserved and old Master, who didn’t really have time for the Doctor and saw him as a nuisance. He then explained that when he did the second with Richard E. Grant, he had to adapt his style, to play against the more serious portrayal by Grant, in that episode, and also because he was playing the Master playing Richard III, he brought in lots of Laurence Olivier influences, as he mentioned he really enjoying “camping it up”.

When asked whether he looked to previous Masters when crafting his performance, Melvin responded by saying “No”, but he did very much enjoy watching Geoffrey Bayldon, several years later, remarking that he was a wonderful Master. 

Speaking about Doctor Who: Adventures, Melvin described adapting his Master once more to work well against Samantha Bond’s Dr. Who. He said that he had to use a lot more of his performance from his second story, as Bond’s Dr. Who was much older and wiser, so he had to counter that more by being a bit more “over-the-top” as the Master. He remarked that he enjoyed doing that a lot, even from a recording booth.

There was a particular question whereby Melvin was asked about Series 3 of Adventures and accidentally revealed he’d be in it, but he said that it didn’t matter as they’d all find out tomorrow anyway. The audience turned into hysterical laughter from this, which was cut off when Melvin told them that “I’m leaving now”, and he walked out to the green room, at 4:48pm, a bit earlier than planned.

The Franchise Executives

BILLED: MAL YOUNG, JANE ESPENSON, RONALD D. MOORE AND IRA STEVEN BEHR

17:02-17:58

Applause erupted as the four franchise executives of Doctor Who walked onto stage and sat down, already laughing and joking with each other. Ira Steven Behr began talking first, explaining that while he officially became Franchise Executive in 2011, he really held the position from 2003 until 2015, and many others before him did the same, despite not officially using the phrase. The others nodded, as Behr pointed out the work of those who came before them. Moore then said that now they get to discuss why they all did Doctor Who completely differently, before the audience laughed at this, and the four panelists pretended to be annoyed at each other.

The first half of the panel was just a banterous discussion with the describing how they each saw the Doctor Who franchise. A nice moment occurred when Young mentioned that he was really inspired by how Ira Steven Behr handled the franchise, and has seeked to recreate a lot of that. Behr said that he was really humbled by this but joked that he preferred Panopticon to The New Renegade by a mile – Young wasn’t quite expecting him to say that, but the audience found it hilarious. 

Moore’s firing was briefly brought up, but it was laughed off by Espenson pointing out that she and Young “unfired” him, apart from that, the subject was glossed over. Moore did speak, briefly, about the tweetalongs from 2020, and how much they meant to him, and that they probably had a big hand in him deciding to do Doctor Who again, when asked.

The final half of the panel once again turned to fan questions, and all the ones you’d expect were asked. One interesting question was “what was your favourite thing you did on the franchise?” Behr replied with “Killing the Doctor”, Moore said “Samantha Bond and Adjoa Andoh”, Espenson said “Keeping the ship together” and Young said “The 60th Anniversary – just you wait”. The panel ended close to the end of the hour, before a break. 

Foreign Adaptations

BILLED: JAMIE BLANCH AND MAGGY CHAN

19:00-19:55

The final panel of the day featured Jamie Blanch, and an on-screen Maggy Chan, as they talked about the Foreign Adaptations and what they could tell the audience about what was coming up. 

Blanch began with a big long speech, before announcing, gleefully, that Doctor Misterio would in fact be returning more a second season in 2023, and that RTVE are not involved, as the rights have reverted back to CBS and the BBC. Blanch joyfully continued saying that Paramount+ have picked up the show, and want to use it for their upcoming launch in Spain in 2023, as well as for Latin America audiences. Blanch said that Doctor Misterio is going to pick up many years later for El Doctor, and be startlingly different to the RTVE produced season. The audience cheered at this, as Blanch explained that they’ve only just got the green-light, so it’s a while off, but he’s very thankful for Paramount+ for having faith in his show.

The panel then moved to the others, as Chan explained that Dokter Wie Season 3 is starting in March, and Through Time and Space is beginning to film its third season in March. Chan refused to say how it will be filmed, as she said that decision hadn’t been made yet and it will be based on the reaction to Eve this Christmas. She also confirmed that Mysteriet Doktorn Season 3 would begin filming in the spring, as well as the fact at least one more foreign adaptation is in development, but she can’t say what.

An interesting part of the panel was when Chan talked everyone through the plans for the Indian Adaptation which was recently dropped. Chan explained that it wouldn’t have been aired on BBC Four, and wouldn’t have even been shown by the BBC, instead only available to Paramount+ internationally, including the UK. She explained the reason was due to the fact the BBC didn’t want it, and Chan went onto explain why. She said that the Indians wanted to make 104 episodes a season, 22 minutes each, airing twice a week every week. She said it would’ve felt very much like 1960s Doctor Who, but with a Bollywood style twist. Blanch interjected joking that it would’ve stolen Doctor Misterio’s Paramount+ thunder, to which Chan said that she thought it did have legs, to be fair, but due to many factors, didn’t end up happening.

The panel then turned to audience questions, to which most was directed to Blanch as he spoke about Doctor Misterio as a whole. This section just turned into a Jamie Blanch solo panel, especially when some of the questions were about Amerigo Vespucci. The panel ended at about 7:55pm, and the second day of the convention ended with it.

Sunday 28 November

The Writer’s Room

BILLED: ADRIAN HODGES, JANE ESPENSON, PHIL FORD, SARAH DOLLARD, TONI GRAPHIA, IRA STEVEN BEHR AND RONALD D. MOORE

09:02-09:58

The third and final day of the convention opened with a big panel featuring all of the writers who were attending the convention. The panel was far more an informal chat than anything too structured and went off topic several times.

After the first 15 minutes, the panel opened up to a Q&A with audience members and all sorts were asked about. Lots of the answers from the panelists devolved into the telling of anecdotes about writing Doctor Who and some of the issues that come about when trying to write Doctor Who in particular. 

As a whole the panel was a nice fun opener to the day, but not quite the serious discussion about writing that most people expected.

When 11 Met 14

BILLED: ANTHONY HEAD AND SAMANTHA BOND

10:00-10:59

The panel began with Anthony Head first arriving on stage, pretending it was his solo panel before Samantha Bond interrupted and the panel proceeded. 

The panel was mostly just consisting of the two swapping anecdotes, and also talking about reprising the roles in the past few years for their respective shows and how that’s differed. Several jokes were made about Samantha Bond being animated, and not having to learn any lines. Head suggested that Bond should come on for a guest appearance on the New Renegade and exercise some classic TNR creative language, but Bond didn’t seem keen, despite the audience cheering. She maintained that the Doctor would never swear. Anthony Head mouthed “fuck off”. 

The panel turned into an audience Q&A half way through and the questions mainly revolved around trying to mine for information about TNR and ADV’s upcoming seasons, as well as the Centenary Special. Despite many of the questions really trying, Head and Bond didn’t let anything slip, and instead made a joke of the constant questions about stuff they just can’t speak about.

The panel ended on time, and was a lot of fun for the audience.

Adrian Hodges

BILLED: ADRIAN HODGES

11:00-11:57

Adrian Hodges’ solo panel used the full hour for an audience Q&A, but he began with banning questions about why he left, saying that he’s made that clear before. The questions which were asked focused a lot on his three seasons, and several questions were asked about particular story details. Some questions centred around Season 54 and why all the Second Generation stuff was in it, to which Hodges gave the most diplomatic answers possible, but they still ended up basically saying ‘It’s Jane’s fault’. 

One fan tried to find out what the Restoration is, to which Hodges replied saying that he knows what it is, and he has told Jane and Mal what it is, but whether it is that in the end, he doesn’t know, but just in case, he’s got his mouth shut until then. 

Someone else asked about Hodges’ work on The Elysium, which he was delighted to talk about has he rarely has had the chance to, and he also brought his scripts for Leftover, as well, into the discussion.

Overall, not much was learnt in this panel, but it did provide a big insight into Adrian Hodges’ writing process and how he saw Doctor Who, when in charge. 

The panel ended just before the hour, and a break followed afterwards.

Doctor Who: Adventures

BILLED: SAMANTHA BOND, MONTSERRAT LOMBARD, WILLIAM MOSELEY, PHIL FORD, TONI GRAPHIA, SARAH DOLLARD, JANE ESPENSON AND MAL YOUNG

13:00-13:55

The panel began with the Doctor Who: Adventures theme playing before the panelists all arrived on stage. When they sat down, Phil Ford began speaking saying that, in 30 minutes time, they were going to get Murray Melvin to make a surprise appearance, but since he leaked his involvement the previous day, they’re just going to welcome him now. The audience hesitantly cheered as Murray Melvin entered the stage and sat down with the others.

The first part of the panel spoke exclusively about the first two seasons, as Ford described the concepts and ideas behind many of the stories, as well as the cast speaking about their thoughts on them. 

It then moved to Mal Young as he spoke about the show’s big renewal. He then admitted that really the show was renewed for two seasons, but two 20-episode seasons, and they decided to split them into two, transmission wise and numbering wise, as not to confuse children. Espenson added that “renewed for 4 seasons” sounds cooler. The audience laughed at this.

Speaking about Series 3, Ford explained that they’re trying to mix up the formula a bit and do some more experimental stories. He explained that not only have they worked with BBC Bitesize during the making of the series, but also they’ve been working with the National Autistic Society on a very special episode of the show. Samantha Bond added that that’s an episode she’s very proud of and he hopes helps a lot of children feel confident in themselves. 

Phil Ford, then, as the audience began laughing, moved over to Murray Melvin as he said “and the Master is going to be in this series”. Melvin looked completely serious as he said that he was back and that he will be in the first episode. Jane Espenson facepalmed, implying that was a detail that wasn’t supposed to be shared.  

After that, Ford then revealed the first three episode titles which are ‘The Invaders’, ‘Patriot’ and ‘Wonderland’. The audience were intrigued by this, but the reaction wasn’t major. Bond then stood up and said that it’s time for them to release a trailer, to which the audience were a bit more enthusiastic towards. The trailer then played. It didn’t show any details that we didn’t already know, but did show some cool shots and the Master.

The panel then moved to audience questions, which had a degree of people asking for flat out spoilers, mostly directed at Murray Melvin, in an attempt to get some, but this didn’t work. Most of the questions, however, did focus on the first two seasons, with a lot along the lines of ‘Why did you bring the Melvin Master back’ and ‘Will we see the Rani again’ etc etc. The panel came to an end, just before the hour, and finished to the Doctor Who: Adventures theme tune playing once more.

The Intendant and Moraes

BILLED: RONAN SUMMERS AND ANJLI MOHINDRA

14:02-14:59

The panel began with Ronan Summers and Anjli Mohindra walking in hand-in-hand, doing their best evil laughs, before sitting down in front of the audience. The panel then went straight into the Q&A format, as the audience asked the two of them questions for the next hour.

Questions included ‘Will you two be back next season?’ to which Anjli Mohindra replied with “Ask Murray Melvin” and the audience exploded in laughter. Other questions were more based around their appearances in Season 55, where extended discussions about them ensued, getting nice details about how the two actors approached playing the roles. Ronan Summers remarked that it was very easy to play the Intendant in the Rebirth as it was just a background role, but when he was asked back to the do the finale, he really had to work hard to match Ace Bhatti’s level of performance. Mohindra said that Summers had done a really good job and the audience applauded in agreement.

The panel ended on time, as the two exited to the green room.

Jane Espenson

BILLED: JANE ESPENSON

15:06-15:51

Jane Espenson’s solo panel began slightly late, but when she eventually appeared the audience applauded as ‘My Way’ by Frank Sinatra played. It then turned straight into the Q&A format, as with other solo panels, as the audience began asking her a range of questions about her whole time on Doctor Who.

A few questions did fall into the ‘Why are you leaving?’ category, to which she gave the answer that it’s more like retiring as she’s exhausted from doing the job for so long, and maintained that it had nothing to do with any sort of creative differences. 

Espenson continually told a lot of jokes during the panel, and not all of them landed, however, she took this in her stride and doubled down on the fact, before actually earning a round of applause.

One fan did ask about the Centenary story, which she’ll be writing, but Espenson refused to say anything apart from repeating that Ace Bhatti, Anthony Head and Samantha Bond will be starring in it. 

The panel wrapped up about ten minutes early, and ‘My Way’ played again as Espenson left. She softly remarked, as she was walking off “Which idiot chose the song?”.

Samantha Bond

BILLED: SAMANTHA BOND

16:00-17:00

Samantha Bond’s solo panel began with the Fourteenth Doctor’s theme playing as she sat down, comfortably and began an audience Q&A. One of the first questions asked was why she has a solo panel and Anthony Head didn’t, Bond replied by saying “Someone though Murray Melvin need one more”. The audience immediately collapsed into hysterics.

Bond then decided to organise the panel with a bit more structure, asking for firstly a question about her casting and Panopticon appearance, to which one was asked and she answered. She then moved onto Doctor Who: Genesis questions, before Season 49 questions, Season 50 questions and then Adventures questions. This not only avoided questions about the Centenary Story, but also made the panel a lot more organised than any of the others this weekend. 

Bond gave extensive and detailed answers, and was a lot of fun for all the audience. The panel ended on the hour, before an hours break began, for the final panel.

The Eight Doctors

BILLED: PETER DAVISON, COLIN BAKER, SYLVESTER MCCOY, ANTHONY HEAD, SAMANTHA BOND, ACE BHATTI, JAMIE BLANCH AND Hanna Śleszyńska

18:00-18:46

The final panel of the convention saw all attending Doctors come together for a big chat. This was a highly anticipated panel, but didn’t quite work out the way it was intended. Jamie Blanch and Hanna Śleszyńska basically got nothing to do, essentially being sidelined and not really able to get a word in. Sylvester McCoy and Colin Baker took most of the limelight during the panel, not only being the two most outgoing Doctors present, but having some of the most experience of doing conventions and panels. Samantha Bond, obviously tired from the weekend, was pretty quiet as well. 

The panel was fun, and saw quite a lot of cool interaction between the actors, but it did end up becoming redundant as at least three of the Doctors present might as well have not been there.

Mostly the panel was made up of anecdotes and jokes about running up corridors and fighting Daleks etc. The panel ended about 15 minutes early, before the Closing Ceremony, which would begin at 7pm, and finish off the weekend.

All eight doctors got a big round of applause as they left the stage.

Closing Ceremony

19:00-20:10

The closing ceremony has been an honoured ODWC tradition since Anaheim 2014, and it sees many of the guests coming back onto stage and performing something of their choice. 

Glasgow 2021’s Closing Ceremony opened with Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy appearing on stage to sing “When I’m Fighting Daleks”- a song they had written together. The song was in a minstrel music hall style, to the tune of George Formby’s “When I’m Cleaning Windows” and featured lyrics making fun of all the Doctors, especially themselves. (See the Newsletter for full lyrics).

Next, Murray Melvin appeared on stage, where he recited the Master’s speech from Logopolis: “Peoples of the Universe, please attend carefully. The message that follows is vital to the future of you all. The choice for you all is simple; a continued existence under my guidance or total annihilation.” He then left the stage.

He was followed by Brian Blessed and Emma Caulfield who performed a little sketch they had written called ‘Ale and Cordale’s Day Off’, which was essentially a scene from a sitcom set on the Vex Sphere, with the two of them arguing like a married couple.

Next on stage was John Levene who just came on to say “Why was I the only one without a panel appearance” and then left again.

Anthony Head came onto the stage next and began singing a parody of ‘Standing’, which he originally sang in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, with lyrics about being Lord President of Gallifrey. This received a lot of laughs and a very loud applause.

Ronald D. Moore and Jane Espenson appeared next performing a short comic scene set during the writing of Season 49, where they were arguing about whether to bring back Gemma. This put the audience into hysterics, and received a lot of applause.

The final performance of the night came when Samantha Bond appeared on stage dressed as Jane Espenson, to a huge round of applause, then Ace Bhatti came on dressed as Mal Young. They then began to perform a routine whereby they Young was feeding Espenson lines over an earpiece and Espenson was going massively off script, saying all sorts of things. The audience found this very funny, before at the end, Espenson and Young came onto stage themselves, looking slightly horrified and maintaining that they had no idea that was going to happen.

The entire selection of performers came onto the stage at the end as the Doctor Who theme played and Ace Bhatti wished all the fans the best and said “see you next year!”.