The Host Of The Crystal Maze Revival Has Been Revealed…And It’s Not David Tennant

Channel 4 have announced the host of their Crystal Maze revival…and it’s not David Tennant. Stephen Merchant has been confirmed as the presenter taking over the reigns from previous Crystal Maze host Ed Tudor-Pole. Stephen Merchant said about the announcement “As a huge fan of the original series, I’m honoured to support Stand Up To Cancer by hosting this one-off edition of The Crystal Maze. Richard O’Brien and Ed Tudor-Pole leave big shoes to fill, but I have size 14 feet, so I’ll do my best,”

The one-off special will form part of Channel 4’s telethon Stand Up To Cancer and will be filmed at the Crystal Maze Live Experience in London. Celebrities will be the contestants this time round, although the celebrity team hoping to enter the Crystal Dome has yet to be confirmed. Let’s hope Lady C won’t be involved…

Channel 4’s Head of TV Events Ed Havard stated “We wanted something extra special for the Stand Up To Cancer campaign this year, so we’re delighted that Crystal Maze will be returning for a celebrity one-off,”

The original series of The Crystal Maze aired from 15th February 1990 until 18th May 1995. The show’s original presenter Richard O’Brien hosted it for four series before Ed Tudor-Pole took over presenting duties in 1994.  It is likely that if this one-off special proves to be a ratings success a new series will follow.

Whilst some may be disappointed that David Tennant is not the presenter, The Crystal Maze is certainly in safe hands with Stephen Merchant. As the comedian behind mega hits The Office (UK) and Extras he is sure to bring a wonderful sense of wit and humour to the presenting role. He is a good choice by Channel 4 and certainly better than the frankly terrifying idea of Amanda Holden presenting the series (which was rumoured to be the case back in 2010).

The Crystal Maze’s one-off special will air this October on Channel 4.

Is It Time To Start The Fans? David Tennant Rumoured For Crystal Maze Revival

The Sun are today claiming that The Crystal Maze will be returning to Channel 4 this autumn with David Tennant as host. The popular game show will be broadcast this October as a part of the channel’s charity telethon Stand Up To Cancer, with celebrities as the contestants.

A source told the Sun “Even two decades after it last aired, there are very few shows that have been as magical and action-packed as The Crystal Maze. It is still remembered extremely fondly today. Channel 4 are hoping to tap into that nostalgia and believe viewers will jump at the chance to finally take on the show’s adventurous challenges themselves.”

Channel 4 are reported to be open to a series if the celebrity special delivers strong ratings.

Personally, as much as I love Doctor Who and David Tennant as the 10th Doctor, I can’t help but think he seems a bit of an odd choice for host of The Crystal Maze. The Crystal Maze requires a presenter with a more eccentric personality; if they want a former incarnation of The Doctor to host then surely Matt Smith would be a better choice?

Still, I’d rather a David Tennant-fronted Crystal Maze than an Amanda Holden one. Thank God that rumour didn’t turn out to be true…

If David Tennant really is to host The Crystal Maze, then I hope he does it in character as the 10th Doctor. Imagine how fun it would be to see him tell an unfortunate contestant ‘I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. But you’re locked in the room…’ or yelling ‘START THE FANS-AH!’ at the Crystal Dome? Also: who wouldn’t want to see him speeding towards the Futuristic Zone with his long brown coat flapping behind him? Maybe they could even buy the rights to use Murray Gold‘s music track All The Strange, Strange Creatures that would often play when the 10th Doctor was running?

The Crystal Maze is currently open to the public in London as an interactive experience. Booking is open until Saturday 18th March 2017. Single tickets cost £50 on weekdays and £60 on weekends with an added booking fee of £2.50. Full team tickets will set you back £420, whilst an entire session comprising of tickets for four teams made up of 32 people can be bought for £1,680.00. There is also an added transaction fee of £1.00 per e-ticket. Each session in the Crystal Maze lasts approximately 90 minutes.

‘Life Depends On Change And Renewal’ – Power Of The Daleks To Be Animated?

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The Mirror are reporting today that the 1966 Doctor Who serial Power of the Daleks is to be animated. BBC Worldwide has commissioned a company to animate all six episodes; the identity of the company in question is as yet unknown. Power of the Daleks stars Patrick Troughton as The Doctor, Michael Craze as Ben Jackson and Anneke Wills as Polly Wright. The serial was Patrick Troughton’s first story as the Doctor, after William Hartnell’s regeneration in the 1966 serial The Tenth Planet (which also saw the first appearance of the Cybermen).

Whilst all six episodes of Power of the Daleks are currently missing, a few clips of the serial have survived alongside an audio recording of the serial:

Recently there was also an animation test for Power of the Daleks uploaded to YouTube that claimed to be leaked footage taken from the BBC. The video was subsequently removed and one YouTuber attempted a test to determine the reason for the removal:

Although the video claims it proof that Power of the Daleks will be released on DVD, it is worth noting that the BBC’s recent animation of a lost Dad’s Army episode was made for the BBC Store and is yet to receive a DVD release. It is possible that Power of the Daleks would be released in the same way in order to entice more customers to purchase from the BBC’s store.

Power of the Daleks was released as a BBC Radio Collection CD in 2004 and can be bought in the form of a digital download for £10.50 on Amazon.

Post-Brexit Television: Nigel Farage Mockumentary To Be Broadcast On BBC2

It has been announced that Nigel Farage will be the subject of his own mockumentary. Set to air on BBC2, Nigel Farage Gets His Life Back will star Kevin Bishop as the former UKIP leader as he tries to cope with life after his resignation from the party. The new show is being described as a fly-on-the-wall mockumentary, similar to past mockumentaries such as Arrested Development and Come Fly With Me. So far the show is planned as a one-off rather than a series but it is possible this could change if the episode proves to be a success.

But what aspects of Nigel Farage’s life should the episode follow? Here’s what I would like to see from BBC2’s new show.

Farage In The Jungle

It has been said that ITV are desperate for Nigel Farage to appear on this year’s series of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!, so wouldn’t it be funny to see him decide to go in the jungle? The rest of the episode could follow him trying to prepare for life in the celebrity-based competition, before an ITV producer rings him up to inform him that he has been replaced with the Chuckle Brothers.

The Trump Who Came To Dinner

Recently Nigel Farage joined Donald Trump across the pond at a presidential Mississippi rally, so what if in BBC2’s new show the pair are actually good friends? Perhaps the one-off episode could see Nigel Farage invite Donald Trump around for dinner. Imagine the dinner conversation they could have! It would be like Lord Voldemort and Darth Vader discussing the rise of mudbloods over breakfast at Doctor Doom’s castle.

Loose Farage

What does someone do when they’re jobless?

They watch daytime television of course!

So let’s see Nigel Farage’s view of it. What does he think of Loose Women? Is he an avid viewer of The Chase? Or is Pointless more his style? Nigel Farage may be no stranger to appearing on daytime television but I would have thought as leader of the UKIP party he would have been too busy to actually watch it before.

“I Told You, I’m Done!”

This isn’t the first time Nigel Farage has resigned from UKIP as the party has practically begged him to return in the past. What if they were to do so again? Would Nigel Farage return to his party or tell them to get lost?

Let’s see Nigel Farage change the locks on his house so the UKIP members can’t get in. Let’s see him change his landline number so they can’t keep harassing him over the phone. Let’s see Nigel Farage become a hermit and recluse himself from the world.

Stuff UKIP, Nigel Farage wants his life back!

Nigel Farage Is In Da House

Another thing I would like to see is Nigel Farage having the night lifestyle of an 18 year old teenager. I want to see Nigel Farage partying into the early hours of the morning. It’s time for Farage to get his groove on…and wake up with a massive hangover. And because he’s such a major political celebrity, the Daily Mail have pictures of his antics published the next day. Ouch.

Nigel Farage Gets His Life Back will be written by comedy writers Alan Connor and Shaun Pye, behind the hugely successful comedy shows The Rack Pack and A Young Doctor’s Notebook. An air date has yet to be confirmed for the episode. It is currently unknown whether Nigel Farage himself will be watching.

Has LEGO’s Chamber Of Secrets Been Opened? LEGO Harry Potter Collection Rumoured For PS4

A new rumour is doing the rounds today concerning a PS4 collection of the two LEGO Harry Potter games. According to LEGO fan site Brick Fanatics, Brazil’s game ratings board has listed a rating for a currently unannounced LEGO Harry Potter Collection release. It is unclear whether the LEGO Harry Potter Collection would be a PS4 exclusive, although it would seem odd for it not to be released on the Xbox One and Wii U.  Presumably the game would be similar to LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga for PC, PS3, Xbox 360, DS and Wii which boasted every level from LEGO Star Wars: The Videogame and LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy alongside updated High-Definition graphics and new gameplay mechanics.

Whilst both LEGO Harry Potter entries were released on HD consoles, graphics have improved significantly since their release so it is possible that we could see a similar graphical upgrade to the LEGO Star Wars remaster. Some new cut scenes utilising dialogue from the films would be nice and I would also like to see a more expansive hub world, perhaps with the ability to journey to Diagon Alley on the Hogwarts Express.  Imagine being able to walk from the Hogwarts grounds to Hogsmeade or pay the Weasleys a visit at their family home The Burrow?

Also: would it be too much to ask for Traveller’s Tales to include six levels based on Harry Potter and the Cursed Child?

The LEGO Harry Potter Collection may be a few twists of the Time Turner away but the LEGO Dimensions Harry Potter team pack is set to be released 30th September 2016. The pack will include Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort NFC minifigures, alongside mini builds of the Hogwarts Express and the flying Ford Anglia from The Chamber of Secrets. Also confirmed is a Hermione Granger fun pack, although further details and a release date have yet to be announced.

Avengers Assemble! Tony Stark Or Captain America To Appear In Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.?

Television news site TVLine is reporting that either Tony Stark or Captain America may appear in the first episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season Four. According to the popular news site, the cameo was filmed earlier this month in ‘Star Wars-veil level of secrecy’.

This wouldn’t be the first time a high-profile character from the Marvel Cinematic Universe has appeared in the TV Series. Samuel L Jackson and Cobie Smulders both appeared in the show’s first season as Nick Fury and Maria Hill respectively.

As for who is most likely to appear, my money’s on Tony Stark. Robert Downey Jnr filmed a scene earlier this month and many assumed it was for this November’s Doctor Strange. So what if it was actually for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.?

I’d like to see Iron Man fight J. August Richard’s Deathlok, for instance.

When asked during a Reddit AMA whether he would appear in the show, Robert Downey Jnr  replied ‘Nothing is impossible’ so he clearly isn’t against a cameo appearance.

On the other hand, a Captain America appearance would make sense given that Coulson is possibly the Cap’s biggest fan. A scene where Coulson reveals to Steve Rodgers that he is still alive could be a magical moment for the show akin to the eleventh Doctor’s conversation with Tom Baker’s Curator in the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special The Day of the Doctor.

Chris Evans hasn’t spoken out on whether he would be willing to appear, although during the rap battle between Agent Carter and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. he was on Agent Carter’s side so it’s clear where his loyalties lie!

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. returns to the U.S. on  Tuesday 20th September on ABC. E4 have yet to confirm a UK return date.

 

‘Who Ya Gonna Call?’ – Ghostbusters Universe To Continue

Whilst a sequel to the 2016 Ghostbusters may seem unlikely due to the widely reported $70m loss, plans for the Ghostbusters universe as a whole are still going ahead Sony have revealed.

A Sony representative recently offered a statement to the movie news magazine The Hollywood Reporter, where he claimed ‘We’re very proud of the bold movie Paul Feig made, which critics and audiences loved. It has enlivened a 30-year-old brand and put it into the modern zeitgeist. As a result, we have many ideas in the works to further exploit the Ghostbusters universe,’.

Ghostbusters cartoon Ecto-Force is set to debut on television in 2018 with an animated feature film following in 2019, although whether Sony have other plans in place is unclear. It’s worth noting that former Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman’s production company Ghost Corps was set up with the intention of finding ways to expand the Ghostbusters universe, so Sony are clearly dedicated towards making it their flagship franchise.

Ghostbusters has currently earned nearly $181 million globally, against some strong competition such as Suicide Squad and The Sexeet Life of Pets/. Paul Feig stated before Ghostbusters’ release that the film would have to make $300m to break even.

Whilst the female Ghostbusters may have failed to bust Harley Quinn and company at the box office, they have at least managed to ressurect a dormant franchise. Let’s hope Sony don’t have a Walter Peck equivalent trying to shut the business down.

‘He’s Back, And It’s About Time!’ – Doctor Who: The Movie Comes To Blu-Ray This September

BBC Worldwide have announced a Blu-ray release for Doctor Who: The Movie. The film was a co-production between the BBC and Universal and was broadcast as a TV Movie on the 27th May 1996 on BBC1 in the UK and 14th May on Fox in the USA. It stars Paul McGann as the Doctor, Daphne Ashbrook as one-off companion Grace Holloway, Yee Jee Tso as Asian-American gangster Chang Lee and Eric Roberts as the Master. To date it remains Paul McGann’s only full television appearance, although he later returned in the 2013 minisode Night of the Doctor and continues to record audio dramas for Big Finish Productions. 

The nature of the Blu-ray release is unclear. Whilst it is thought that Universal may hold a film copy of the TV Movie in their vault (which would allow for a ‘true HD’ picture), it is very unlikely that the film will be restored into full HD. The special effects were not made in high definition, therefore would need to be created entirely from scratch and the entire film would have to be re-edited as the movie was originally put together on videotape. Steve Roberts of the Restoration Team (who worked on the previous classic series releases including 2013’s Spearhead From Space Blu-ray) also tweeted ‘People asking about an alleged DW TVM Blu-ray, you know as much as I do’. The likelihood therefore is that this will be an upscale similar to the Blu-ray treatment of Series 1-4.

Amazon’s product description is as follows:

Whilst returning the Master’s remains to their home planet of Gallifrey, the Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) crash lands the TARDIS on Earth in end-of-century San Francisco. Gunned down by a street gang, the Doctor is rushed to hospital, where exploratory surgery by Doctor Grace Holloway triggers a regeneration. The Master has meanwhile taken over the body of a paramedic and infiltrated the Doctor’s TARDIS, which he plans to use in his latest scheme to take over the Doctor’s new body and destroy the world. Filmed as the pilot for a revived ‘Doctor Who’ series – tailored to the American market – which subsequently failed to materialise, this feature-length adventure introduces Paul McGann as the renegade Time Lord.

The release is listed as containing two discs on Amazon. Whilst this has yet to be confirmed by BBC Worldwide, it is safe to assume that this will be the case given that the Special Edition DVD release also contained two discs. Whether the special features from the Special Edition DVD will carry over is another matter, although it would be a shame if the Blu-ray doesn’t at least contain the Behind The Scenes location footage and alternate takes. Hopefully there will be some new features too; a retrospective on the TV Movie featuring contributions from Paul McGann and Daphne Ashbrook would be nice.

Doctor Who: The Movie comes to Blu-ray on the 19th September 2016. Hopefully these shoes will fit perfectly and classic series Blu-ray box sets will follow.

 

Buffy Who The Vampire Slayer? – Joss Whedon Would Write For A Female Doctor

Speaking at San Diego Comic Con’s Nerd HQ, Joss Whedon has stated he would write for Doctor Who…but only if the Doctor is female or played by Idris Elba.

In response to a fan’s question of whether he would consider writing for the show, Joss Whedon said ‘Check back when the Doctor is a she. Or Idris Elba!’. However he later stated that he would consider it ‘daunting’ to ‘follow in the footsteps of Moffat and the guys’. Another concern he expressed was the amount of researched involved in writing for Doctor Who.

‘I’d have to do a lot of research. Like, what, watch 40 years of television? I mean, I’ve seen some of it, but let’s get real,’ He told Nerd HQ on Sunday.

Personally, I have to disagree with Joss Whedon’s notion about the amount of research involved. Some of the best Doctor Who stories ignore the continuity previously established in the show – 2007’s Blink, for example, barely even featured the Doctor and is widely considered a classic by Whovians. One of the many things 80s producer John Nathan Turner was accused of was pandering too closely to Doctor Who’s mythology and alienating new viewers in the process. 1985’s The Two Doctors brought back the second Doctor (as played by Patrick Troughton) only two years’ after his last appearance!

Joss Whedon is one of the Media Industry’s strongest writers and I am sure he could think up an original idea that would attract the audience’s imagination rather than rely too heavily on the show’s past. He’s also the mind behind some of the industry’s strongest female characters including the likes of Buffy Summers and arguably one of the most awesome SHIELD Agents of all time: Melinda May (whilst he is not the showrunner of Agents of SHIELD, he was one of the writers behind the show’s very first episode). Doctor Who has a long history of strong female characters – the fourth Doctor’s companion Romana (a Time Lady from the planet Gallifrey) being the most notable example – and who wouldn’t want to see Joss Whedon gift the show another? Hell, I’d give anything to see Joss Whedon write Lalla Ward’s Romana!

Also: note to Joss Whedon – Doctor Who’s been on nearly 53 years, not 40.

 

Robot Wars Is Back! We Review Episode 1

Robot Wars returned to the UK on Sunday night and proved to be a much more successful revival than the terrible Chris Evans’ version of Top Gear (or as I like to call it, ‘Flop Gear’). Whilst there was disappointingly no Craig Charles, the revival proved to be both a faithful and fresh take on the show about robots fighting each other.

The new presenters Dara Ó Briain and Angela Scanlon make for a brilliant presenting duo. Going in I expected I would prefer Dara Ó Briain presenting, so I was surprised to find I was actually more impressed by Angela Scanlon. Angela Scanlon has a wonderfully sweet nature when interviewing the competing teams, like a cross between Melinda Messenger and Kate Humble. I get the feeling that Angela Scanlon could easily host the show on her own; whilst Dara Ó Briain is good I’m not entirely sure this is the show for him. At times he feels as uncomfortable as Jeremy Clarkson did during the first series of Robot Wars, although he seems a bit more relaxed when talking about the teams’ work in the lab stations.

The lab station segments can however have the tendency to drag. If like me you enjoyed Channel 4’s Scrapheap Challenge then this likely wouldn’t be a problem but I imagine that many may be put off by the amount of time devoted to showing the teams working on their creations between each battle. Robot Wars would perhaps work better in a 45 minute slot than the one hour it was given.

When the robots actually fight, it is top quality entertainment. Watching these robotic machines fight each other is a lot of fun and it’s not long before you find yourself having a favourite. Mine was Carbide: a robot made from steel usually used for armour on military tanks and according to the official site a blade with sixty times more energy than a sniper bullet. I am sure Carbide is going to go down as a favourite among Robot Wars fans. Talking of the Robot Wars fanbase, they would undoubtedly have been happy to see past competitor Behemoth return to the series. Behemoth provided some good entertainment with its shovel mechanic allowing it to topple over its competitors with ease. It didn’t manage to secure a place in the final (that honour went to Carbide) but regardless it was fun to watch.

Return appearances have also been made by the house robots Sir Killalot, Matilda, Shunt and Dead Metal. The robots have of course been radically redesigned to appear more modern and current but they still retain the same basic look. All four add a lot of the fun and chaos to Robot Wars’ format, especially Sir Killalot who is a superbly barmy robot that feels like it has come straight out of a Looney Tunes cartoon. Sir Killalot has a much more humanoid look than before, and it’s a look that is undeniably better than its original appearance.

Then:

Now:

The others look much more faithful to their original designs, although Matilda now has red LED lights, Shunt is taller and Dead Metal has LEDs and larger claws.

Matilda

Shunt

Dead Metal

Robot Wars is a promising revival of the original television series, however Dara Ó Briain hasn’t quite managed to fill Craig Charles’ shoes yet and occasionally the lab scenes in-between fights can slow down the show’s pace. It is definitely worth a watch though; the robot fights provide quality entertainment and the house robots are unbelievably cool with their updated appearances.

You can catch Robot Wars every Sunday at 8pm on BBC2.