David Tennant has announced that he will leave the award winning BBC One drama Doctor Who when he has completed the filming of four special episodes which will be screened in 2009 and early in 2010.

David Tennant first appeared as The Doctor in 2005 and has gone on to star in three series and three Christmas specials as the tenth incarnation of the Time Lord.

The BBC has confirmed that David will continue to play The Doctor in the four specials that will make up the 2009 series before a new Doctor takes over for Series 5.

Tennant will also star in the Doctor Who Christmas special, titled The Next Doctor, this year.

David Tennant comments: "I've had the most brilliant, bewildering and life changing time working on Doctor Who.

"I have loved every day of it.. It would be very easy to cling on to the Tardis console forever and I fear that if I don't take a deep breath and make the decision to move on now, then I simply never will. You would be prising the Tardis key out of my cold dead hand.

"This show has been so special to me, I don't want to outstay my welcome.

"This is all a long way off, of course. I'm not quitting, I'm back in Cardiff in January to film four special episodes which will take Doctor Who all the way through 2009.

"I'm still the Doctor all next year but when the time finally comes I'll be honoured to hand on the best job in the world to the next lucky git – whoever that may be.

"I'd always thought the time to leave would be in conjunction with Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner who have been such a huge part of it all for me.

"Steven Moffat is the most brilliant and exciting writer, the only possible successor to Russell and it was sorely tempting to be part of his amazing new plans for the show. I will be there, glued to my TV when his stories begin in 2010.

"I feel very privileged to have been part of this incredible phenomenon, and whilst I'm looking forward to new challenges I know I'll always be very proud to be the Tenth Doctor."

Russell T Davies, Executive Producer of Doctor Who, comments: ""I've been lucky and honoured to work with David over the past few years – and it's not over yet, the Tenth Doctor still has five spectacular hours left!

"After which, I might drop an anvil on his head. Or maybe a piano. A radioactive piano.

"But we're planning the most enormous and spectacular ending, so keep watching!"

David expands upon his decision in a taped interview which can be found at bbc.co.uk/doctorwho.

Doctor Who returns to our screens on BBC this Christmas. The Next Doctor starring David Tennant, David Morrissey and Dervla Kirwan will be screened on 25 December 2008 on BBC One.

This year's BBC Children in Need show on BBC One is to feature an exclusive preview of the forthcoming Doctor Who Christmas special.

The clip, from the special entitled The Next Doctor, will show the first two minutes of a brand new episode for the Time Lord, played by David Tennant..  

This never-seen-before footage is a worldwide exclusive and will keep fans all over the globe wondering what's in store for the Doctor's next adventure.

Starring David Tennant and David Morrissey, the two-minute piece will broadcast as part of the BBC Children in Need show on Friday 14 November, BBC One, 7.00pm.

The BBC has confirmed that the title of this years Doctor Who Christmas special is The Next Doctor.

Writer Russell T. Davies recently revealed some episode details, "The Doctor arrives, hears a damsel in distress. The Doctor steps forward to save her... when this other man [to be played by David Morrissey] swings in, dashing, brilliant, amazing, clever, witty, saves the day. The Doctor says, 'Who are you?' The man says, 'I'm the Doctor!' Good scene. The Doctor becomes his companion. I like that. Sweet. There will be a beautiful woman too, of course, but really it's the Doctor paired with a new Doctor."

The BBC has confirmed the start date for the 12 part second series of The Sarah Jane Adventures. Episode one, The Last Sontaran will air on Monday 29 September at 4.35pm on BBC1. Episode 2 will follow on the CBBC digital Channel at 5.15pm.

Torchwood's third series story will be entitled 'Children Of Earth', according to the latest issue of Torchwood Magazine.

The new series will comprise one continuous story told over five one-hour episodes.

Filming will begin in Cardiff on August 18 with a spring 2009 broadcast.

As part of BBC Radio 4's Big Bang experiment, a special radio episode of Torchwood - 'Lost Souls' will be broadcast on Radio 4 on Wednesday 10 September at 2.15pm.

"Somewhere out there in that chaos of darkness and light, of science and protons, of gods and stars and death... somewhere there's an answer."

The Torchwood Institute was founded by Queen Victoria in 1879 to protect the British Empire against the threat of alien invasion. By 2008, all that remains of the organisation is a small team based in Cardiff. And now, following the tragic deaths of two of their colleagues, the remaining three - Captain Jack Harkness, Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones - have to protect the human race against another unknown force from the darkness.

Martha Jones, ex-time traveller and now working as a doctor for a UN task force, has been called to CERN - the world's largest particle physics laboratory in Geneva - where they're about to activate the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).

The LHC is a particle accelerator which has been built deep underground in a 27km tunnel under Switzerland and France. Once activated, the collider will fire beams of protons together, recreating conditions a billionth of a second after the Big Bang - and potentially allowing the human race a greater insight into what the Universe is made of.

But so much could go wrong - it could open a gateway to a parallel dimension, or create a black hole - and now voices from the past are calling out to people and scientists have started to disappear...

Where have the missing scientists gone? What is the secret of the glowing man? What is lurking in the underground tunnel? And do the dead ever really stay dead?

Afternoon Play: Torchwood 'Lost Souls'
BBC Radio 4, 2.15pm, Wednesday 10 September

Co-executive producer Julie Gardner has revealed a little more info about the 2009 Doctor Who specials in an article with The Telegraph.

Says Gardner, “Aside from Series Five, which will have a full 13 episodes and transmit in 2010, we are making four one-hour specials. The first, which we’ve already filmed, will go out this Christmas. The next will go out the following Easter. The other specials have yet to be scheduled, although one will definitely be on at Christmas 2009.”

The article also states,

"Russell T Davies, Doctor Who’s executive producer and the show’s driving creative force, will be at the helm for all four specials. Davies will write two of them himself, and co-write the others."

The series four finale saw a large boost in viewers with unofficial overnight figures showing that 9.4 million viewers watched Journeys End, a 45.9% share of the total audience.

Doctor Who returns in Christmas with a currently untitled episode featuring the Cybermen. David Morrissey and Dervla Kirwan will guest star. The trailer can be seen below.

The penultimate episode of series four, The Stolen Earth, was watched by 7.4 million viewers, a 38.3% share of the total TV audience, according to unofficial overnight figures.

Ratings were slightly down for the eleventh episode of series four. Unofficial overnight figures show that "Turn Left" was watched by 7 million people, with a 35.1% audience share.

2Entertain has released the artwork for Volume 3 of the Series Four DVD 'vanilla' releases. The third volume will contain three episodes from the third series. They comprise; Silence in the Library, Forest of the Dead, Midnight The DVD will be released on the 4th August. A complete series four boxset with extras is expected in the Autumn. (Click image for larger artwork).

2Entertain has released the artwork for Volume 2 of the Series Four DVD 'vanilla' releases. The second volume will contain four episodes from the third series. They comprise; The Sontaran Strategem, The Poison Sky, The Doctor's Daughter, The Unicorn & the Wasp The DVD will be released on the 7th July. A complete series four boxset with extras is expected in the Autumn. (Click image for larger artwork).

Ratings were slightly up for the tenth episode of series four. Unofficial overnight figures show that "Midnight" was watched by 7.3 million people, with a 37.8% audience share.

Torchwood executive producer Julie Gardner has confirmed that a third series of Torchwood will start filming in August. The new series will comprise one continuous story told over five one-hour episodes on BBC1, with episodes by Russell T Davies and other as yet unnamed writers.

“As you know, plans for a third series have been underway for a long time, and we now have a new producer and a new director in place, as well as brand new scripts all ready to go. It’s the longest and most ambitious story we have ever made, so be prepared for some shocks and surprises! Life at Torchwood is never quiet or easy, and the whole of Captain Jack's world is about to be turned upside down!", Gardner told Torchwood Magazine.

The third series will broadcast early 2009.

Ratings were back up this week with unofficial overnight figures showing that Forest of the Dead was watched by 7.1 million people, with a 40% audience share.

Strong competition from ITV with 'Britain's Got Talent' led to a large drop in viewers this week. Unofficial overnight figures show that "Silence in the Library" was watched by 5.4 million people, with a 25.4% audience share.

BBC Wales and BBC Drama has announced that BAFTA and Hugo Award-winning writer Steven Moffat will succeed Russell T Davies as Lead Writer and Executive Producer of the fifth series of Doctor Who, which will broadcast on BBC One in 2010.

Moffat has penned some of the series' most unforgettable and acclaimed episodes, including Blink, with its terrifying weeping angels, for which he was awarded the BAFTA Writer Award 2008 on Sunday 11 May.

His previous work on Doctor Who includes The Girl In The Fireplace for series two, which earned him his second Hugo Award. His first was for the series one two-parter The Empty Child, which became famous for its terrifying refrain "Are you my mummy?"

For the current series, Moffat has written Silence In The Library, a two-parter starring Alex Kingston which transmits on 31 May and 7 June 2008 on BBC One.

Steven's career began with the landmark ITV children's drama Press Gang in 1989, for which he won his first Bafta.

Coupling, the hugely popular and award-winning sitcom he created and wrote for BBC Two, began in 2000 and ran for four seasons.

Jekyll, his six-part thriller starring James Nesbitt and Michelle Ryan, transmitted on BBC One last year.

Steven will continue as one of the directors on the board of Hartswood Films which produced Coupling and Jekyll, where he is also working on his new comedy Adam & Eve with wife Sue Vertue.

He has just delivered the screenplay for Tintin – the first instalment of the trilogy of films featuring the iconic Belgian comic-strip hero – to Steven Spielberg who will direct it for DreamWorks. Thomas Sangster and Andy Serkis will star.

Steven Moffat says: "My entire career has been a Secret Plan to get this job. I applied before but I got knocked back 'cos the BBC wanted someone else. Also I was seven.

"Anyway, I'm glad the BBC has finally seen the light, and it's a huge honour to be following Russell into the best - and the toughest - job in television. I say toughest 'cos Russell's at my window right now, pointing and laughing."

Lead Writer and Executive Producer Russell T Davies says: "It's been a delight and an honour working with Steven, and I can't wait to see where his extraordinary imagination takes the Doctor. Best of all, I get to be a viewer again, watching on a Saturday night!"

Jane Tranter, Controller, BBC Fiction, says: "Scripts and writers are at the heart of what BBC Drama is all about, and especially at the heart of Doctor Who. The past four series have been brilliantly helmed by the spectacularly talented Russell T Davies.

"As Lead Writer and Executive Producer, he has overseen the creative direction and detail of the 21st century relaunch of Doctor Who and we are delighted to have his continued presence on the specials over the next 18 months.

"But the challenge and excitement of the fifth series is now being handed to Steven Moffat. The Tardis couldn't be in safer hands. Steven's talents on both Doctor Who and beyond are well known. He is a writer of glittering brilliance, comedy and depth, with an extraordinary imagination and a unique voice.

"Steven has a wonderful mix of being a committed Doctor Who fan and a true artist, and his plans for the next series are totally thrilling."

The announcement follows the news that Piers Wenger will take over the role of Executive Producer from Julie Gardner on series five of Doctor Who.

Piers Wenger says: "The challenge of taking Doctor Who to a new future is a huge and thrilling one and BBC Wales is blessed to have someone with Steven's extraordinary talent in charge.

"His imagination and creativity have already given birth to some of the series' most unforgettable monsters though in this instance no-one need fear; time, space and the future of The Doctor are safe with him."

Wenger and Moffat are already working closely together on the planning of the series.

Menna Richards, Controller, BBC Wales, says: "BBC Wales is very proud of Doctor Who's phenomenal success. Steven Moffat is an extraordinary talent and we are very much looking forward to him joining the Doctor Who team."

Series four has achieved some of the show's highest audience figures to date and forthcoming episodes feature a stellar line-up of guests including Lesley Sharp, Lindsey Coulson, Alex Kingston, Colin Salmon and Michael Brandon.

Freema Agyeman and Billie Piper – The Doctor's two former companions – have also returned to assist The Doctor in series four.

Doctor Who will return in 2009 with four specials, and the full-length fifth series is currently scheduled to be broadcast on BBC One in Spring 2010.

Ratings for the seventh episode of series four were up by over a million according to the early overnight figures. An average 7.7 million people tuned in to see The Unicorn and the Wasp, gaining an average 36.1% audience share.

Doctor Who returns on the Saturday 31st May at 7.00pm.

There will be no episode of Doctor Who on Saturday 24th May, according to listings on the Radio Times website. The ninth episode of series four has, like last year, been postponed due to the Eurovision Song Contest. The episode entitled 'Silence in the Library will now air on Saturday 31st May.

Ratings were up for the sixth episode of series four. Unofficial overnight figures show that "The Doctors Daughter" was watched by 6.6 million people, with a 38.4% audience share.

Doctor Who returns to its once regular 7pm timelslot on Saturday 17th May.

The fifth episode of series four, The Poison Sky, was watched by 5.9 million people, with a 32.5% audience share, according to overnight figures.

Next Saturday, Doctor Who moves to a slightly later 6.45pm timeslot.

The fourth episode of series four, The Sontaran Stratagem, was watched by 6.4 million people, with a 35.2% audience share, according to overnight figures.

The third episode of series four, Planet of the Ood, was watched by 6.9 million people, with a 33.4% audience share, according to overnight figures.

The second episode of series four was watched by 8.1 million people, with a 36.7% audience share, according to overnight figures.

Overnight figures show that, despite the earlier timeslot, the fourth series got off to a strong start with 8.4 million viewers, a 39.4% audience share.

Episode two, The Fires of Pompeii will be broadcast at 6.45pm next week.

The series two finale, Exit Wounds was watched by 2.7 million viewers, a 12% share of the total TV audience, according to unofficial overnight figures.

2Entertain has released the artwork for Volume One of the Series Four DVD 'vanilla' releases. Volume one will contain the first three episodes from the fourth series. They comprise; Partners in Crime, The Fires of Pompeii and Planet of the Ood. The DVD will be released on the 2nd June. It will be followed by three further volumes. A complete series four boxset with extras is expected in the Autumn. (Click image for larger artwork).

The penultimate episode of series two, Fragments was watched by 2.4 million viewers, a 10.2% share of the total TV audience, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The eleventh episode of series two, Adrift, was watched by 2.1 million people, with a 8.9% audience share, according to unofficial overnight figures.

UPDATE 26/03/08 : The BBC have confirmed a 6.20pm start on Saturday 5th April.

The BBC has finally confirmed the start date for the fourth series of Doctor Who. Episode one, Partners in Crime will air on the 5th April. No time has been confirmed yet, but it is likely to be around 7pm.

Trailers are due to start airing from this Saturday (23rd) around 7pm, according to the official site. The trailer will be the same one that has been showing in cinemas across the UK since February. See the trailer below.

Ratings were slightly up for the tenth episode of series two. Unofficial overnight figures show that "From Out of the Rain" was watched by 2.6 million people, with a 11% audience share.

The first showing of the eleventh episode, Adrift on BBC3, was watched by 0.84 million viewers with a 4.9% audience share.

There will be two episodes of Torchwood broadcast next week, with one episode shown in the usual Wednesday slot and then another on Friday. The final two episodes of the series air the following Fridays.

The detailed schedule is below -

The ninth episode of series two, Something Borrowed, was watched by 2.4 million people, with a 10.2% audience share, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The first showing of the tenth episode, From Out of the Rain, on BBC3, was watched by 0.81 viewers with a 4.3% audience share.

The eighth episode of series two was watched by 2.7 million people, with a 11.7% audience share, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The first showing of the ninth episode, Something Borrowed on BBC3, was watched by 0.81 viewers with a 4.9% audience share.

Ratings were up for the seventh episode of series two. Unofficial overnight figures show that "Dead Man Walking" was watched by 3.0 million people, with a 12.5% audience share.

The first showing of the eighth episode, A Day in the Death on BBC3, was watched by 1.05 million viewers with a 5.4% audience share.

The sixth episode of series two was watched by 2.8 million people, with a 11.1% audience share, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The first showing of the seventh episode, Dead Man Walking on BBC3, was watched by 900,000 viewers with a 5.4% audience share.

UK viewers can, once again, catch both episodes on BBC's iPlayer (until next Wednesday).

Ratings were up for the fifth episode of series two. Unofficial overnight figures show that "Adam" was watched by 3.3 million people, with a 13.8% audience share.

The first showing of the sixth episode, Reset on BBC3, was watched by 807,000 viewers with a 4.5% audience share.

UK viewers can catch both episodes on BBC's iPlayer (until next Wednesday).

The fourth episode of series two was watched by 2.9 million people, with a 11.2% audience share, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The BBC has issued a press release confirming that a second series of The Sarah Jane Adventures has been commissioned.

The show will return later in the year with 12 new episodes, not 24 like originally reported.

Source: BBC

2Entertain has released the artwork for the Voyage of the Damned 'vanilla' DVD release. The DVD will contain the 2007 feature length Christmas special, Voyage of the Damned. It will be released on the 10th March 2008. (Click the image for larger artwork).

An exclusive trailer of the eagerly awaited new series of BBC One's BAFTA Award-winning drama Doctor Who breaks today in cinemas across the UK.

The trailer is part of a BBC test with Carlton Screen Advertising to showcase BBC content.

The deal, which covers 837 Odeon screens, 736 Cineworld screens and 142 Empire screens, will see a 90-second trailer of the new series shown before some of the most anticipated new releases including Cloverfield, Juno, John Rambo and There Will Be Blood.

The fourth series will air this spring. No date has been confirmed yet.

The third episode of series two was watched by 3.2 million people, with a 13% audience share, according to overnight figures.

Sarah Jane actress Elizabeth Sladen has confirmed a second series of The Sarah Jane Adventures is in the works.

Sladen told SFX magazine: “Yes, we’re doing 24 episodes...I think we start [filming] end of March.“

Sladen also talks about Doctor Who.

[Spoiler Warning]

She confirms that her character will return later in the fourth series.

"I don't think I'll be at the centre of things. I would think it would be apportioned off, a bit here a bit there, and the major people will be the Doctor and Donna. That is my take on it. We are coming back to reinforce an already established team. So I don’t think I’ll be leading the group, if you know what I mean! I think there will be a distinct kind of sectioning and apportioning off. Because you can only do so much with so many people.“

British actors Alex Kingston and Colin Salmon have joined the stellar line-up of guest stars for the fourth series of BBC One's BAFTA award-winning drama Doctor Who.

Alex Kingston, best known for roles in ER and Moll Flanders, will appear in a Steven Moffat penned two-parter as River Song – a mysterious character who meets The Doctor on an expedition to uncover the secrets of an abandoned library.

She is joined by James Bond regular, Colin Salmon who also stars in the two episodes.

Alex Kingston comments: "I used to watch Doctor Who through the crack in the door. I was so terrified but I couldn't tear myself away. I loved it so much and I'm so delighted to be a part of the new series."

Further guest stars already confirmed to appear in the new series include Sarah Lancashire, Felicity Kendal, Lesley Sharp, Georgia Moffett, Lindsey Coulson, Fenella Woolgar, Tim McInnerny, Peter Capaldi, Phil Davis and Tracey Childs.

The second episode of series two was watched by 3.4 million people, with a 14% audience share, according to overnight figures.

The pre-watershed repeat of the first episode received an audience of 1.1 million.

Early overnight ratings show that 3.7 million viewers tuned in to watch the opening episode of Series 2, with a 14.8% audience share.

The pre-watershed repeat of the first episode is scheduled for Wednesday 23rd at 7pm on BBC2.

The Radio Times website has confirmed the start date and time for the second series of Torchwood. The first episode of the series - "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang" will be broadcast on BBC Two on Wednesday 16th January at 9pm.

A preview for "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" can be viewed at the official site.