Thanks to our friends at Gallifrey News Base for this tidbit: according to Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat, the show's next season will be split into two halves, with the first part of the season concluding after a "gamechanging" cliff-hanger in Episode 7.

So what this will mean is, instead months and months of waiting for the Xmas episode after the 13-week sprint through the season, next year we'll get a second "fall premiere" episode, a tactic that several U.S. cable shows have adopted to keep fans sated throughout the year.

Speaking of the DW Christmas episode, courtesy of Geek Tyrant, we got thes remarks from Moffat regarding where The Doctor and The Ponds are off to in the wake of rebooting the universe in "The Big Bang.":

Oh, we're going for broke with this one. It's all your favorite Christmas movies at once, in an hour, with monsters. And the Doctor. And a honeymoon. And ... oh, you'll see. I've honestly never been so excited about writing anything. I was laughing madly as I typed along to Christmas songs in April. My neighbors loved it so much they all moved away and set up a website demanding my execution. But I'm fairly sure they did it ironically!

The teaser for Moffat's calling "The Most Christmassy Christmas special" is under the cut, along with a picture of a possible villain for Team TARDIS: the new Yeti!

Click to read more ...

You might recall us mentioning awhile back that former Doctor Who star David Tennant filmed a pilot for NBC for Rex Is Not My Lawyer, where Tennant would play a guy who represents his clients from behind the scenes. Unfortunately, the show wasn't picked up, so we didn't get the chance to hear the answer to the crucial question: would Tennant keep his native Scottish brogue for the role, affect another British accent, or (gasp) speak like an American?

Well, look under the cut and you'll find out - it's a 1-minute clip of Tennant as Rex talking about a case in a different manner than you're probably used to.

Click to read more ...

Entertainment Weekly dropped a bomb this week, giving us the first glimpse of Ryan Reynolds as Green Lantern in the cover to this week's issue. Uh ... nice sorta abs there, Hal.

But EW online had some even more underwhelming news today with their mention of new characters for Torchwood's next season. Check out these names:

Rex Matheson, a wickedly funny (operative word: wicked) CIA agent born to make waves. Almost as key to the new season are recurring characters Esther Katusi, a CIA grunt in her early 20s who learns what she’s really made of only when she’s forced to, and Oswald Jones, a convicted murderer and pedophile who will be as shocked as anyone to learn how easily infamy and fame can be exchanged for one another.

Rex Matheson? Really? Oy. According to Gallifrey News Base, the series, which has moved to Starz, will start shooting in the U.K. in January.

From today's BBC release:

BBC Cymru Wales, BBC Worldwide and US premium entertainment network, Starz Entertainment, have today announced a three way co-production partnership that will develop a new series of the hit BBC sci-fi drama Torchwood. BBC Worldwide will also distribute the series to broadcasters globally.

... well, anything involving Jack Harkness would have to be a "three way co-production," wouldn't it?

Seriously, though, the show will indeed have John Barrowman returning as Cap'n Jack, and Eve Myles as The Mighty Gwen Cooper. But in this incarnation, the locales will expand - the new team (and it will be a new team) will operate not only in Wales, but around the world, including the U.S. Here's to hoping for a Comic-Con episode, eh?

No word yet on a filming schedule, let alone a release date. And there's a bigger question out in the ether: will this still be acknowledged as part of the Doctor Who universe? 

But those questions, inevitably, will be answered in time.  Kudos for now to the BBC and Starz for making this happen, and congrats to TW fans - your patience has been rewarded. Of course, now the "Bring Ianto Back" movement will really have something to sink its' teeth into ...

Update on Monday, June 7, 2010 at 4:23PM by Hour42

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Starz CEO Chris Albrecht directly credited last year's Children of Earth miniseries with selling the show to his network:

I'm interested in doing sci-fi and what I like a lot about "Torchwood" is it's a very classic sci-fi entry. It's all about the story, it's not about big effects. I thought "Children of Earth" evolved the franchise to a place where it could continue to evolve on pay TV with an American partner that could bring more production resources.

Albrecht also said the show moving to Starz would mean a bigger budget for the show. Meanwhile, Russell T. Davies, who will continue to serve as show-runner, also referenced COE as a stepping-stone for this new season:

It's not a new version, it's not a reboot. We're simply moving countries. The show was previously a format show -- monster of the week. The breakthrough was "Children of Earth" and that it became one long story. It's not going to be 'Lost' and take 20 years to find out what's going on. It's going to have a most remarkable conclusion after 10 episodes.

So, what do you think about the 'Wood getting away from Fox and finding this new home?