Fish Fingers and Custard - A Doctor Who Fanzine - FFAC2

Now we all think we can write a series of Doctor Who.   But what would happen if the bigwigs down in Cardiff actually listened to us fans?   We’ve enlisted the help of those people who used to do surveys for Family Fortunes and they’ve been everywhere on the worldwide web (as well as in some ‘dirty and seedy establishments’ – McDonalds) and asked fans what they would like to see in their dream series’.   Here are the findings: Episode 1 – The Return of John Smith Written By Steven Moffat Another tedious episode in which The Doctor has got to use the name ‘John Smith’ at least 617 times in a 45-minute episode, just to give a ‘nod’ to the Classic Series.   Which is strange, as The Doctor didn’t actually use the name John Smith all that much in the Classic Series anyway. Episode 2 – The Rani Returns Written By Russell T. Davies The Rani (still played by Kate O’Mara) crash lands on Earth in the 21 st Century, after she was shot down by S...

The final Issue of 2011 - and if the death threats I've been receiving are to be believed - it is the last Issue EVER! (So we've pulled out all the stops!) In This Issue Series 6 (Part 2) Reviews Convention reports from London and Sydney! It's Been A Wonderful Adventure - Was The Sarah Jane Adventures a success? The Other Season 12 - What would it be like if Jon Pertwee had have stayed on? Dress Karen Gillan - YOUR chance to finger her knick-knacks And Much More (honest) You can download this issue by clicking here If you would like contribute to future issues, please get in touch via e-mail at fishcustardfanzine@googlemail.com We're also having a (online) Christmas Party on the 21st. If you fancy joining in, check out our event page . Bring beer. Cheers!

It's an aspect of Doctor Who that has always fascinated me.  Missing episodes. 106 still remain missing, as the BBC made the short-sighted decision to wipe their video tapes.  Many were recovered by overseas broadcasters and fans, but as the world grows smaller, finding them all, or just even a few, seemed like a massive uphill task.  Like walking up Everest in just your socks. Today however, the BBC have exclusively revealed that episode 3 of 1965 serial ' Galaxy 4 ' and episode 2 of 1967's ' The Underwater Menace ' were recovered by a private collector in 1980's, and only came to light a few months ago.  It's fantastic news for Doctor Who fans everywhere, as apart from getting those episodes back - it also gives us fresh hope that more will be recovered.  How many other collectors are sitting on unlabelled film cans?  How many Television stations around the world have got film cans that haven't been checked?  There's still the long-standing ...

We're delighted to announce the details of this years get together - on the Internet.  Bring beer. Join some like-minded souls for a live watching of the classic Doctor Who adventure Time and The Rani. The legendary story will form the basis of the 2011 Fish Custard Christmas Party on Wednesday 21st December. All you’ll need is alcohol, internet access and to have n o taste whatsoever. You don’t even need to wear clothes or talk to anybody. It’ll just be like a school disco. If you don't have access to the best Doctor Who episode ever, you can whack on any old episode you want and join us for a Doctor Who geek-out. Stay tuned to our various sites for details and the hashtag #welovetherani on Twitter You can find the event page, on Facebook, here   (or you can just come and say hello and join in some of the games we'll be playing!) In other news, we'd like you to take a look at another Facebook page Support Your Local Doctor Who Convention .  Basi...

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS ISSUE IS NOW SOLD OUT The final Issue of 2011 - and if the death threats I've been receiving are to be believed - it is the last Issue EVER! (So we've pulled out all the stops!) In This Issue Series 6 (Part 2) Reviews Convention reports from London and Sydney! It's Been A Wonderful Adventure - Was The Sarah Jane Adventures a success? The Other Season 12 - What would it be like if Jon Pertwee had have stayed on? Dress Karen Gillan - YOUR chance to finger her knick-knacks And Much More (honest) To order this 44-page bundle of joy, simply send the below payments to us via paypal UK: £2.00 Rest of The World: £3.00 (prices include P+P) Please send the payment as a gift (along with your name and address) to fishcustardfanzine@googlemail.com If you don't have PayPal, you can pay via one of the methods below.  The payment is undertaken by PayPal, but you won't need to sign up for anything.  Please note that the extra 20p is to c...

It's this point of the year where Doctor Who fans all over the world dig out their old episodes and celebrate the birthday of our favourite programme.  Not many television programmes can have such an hold over their viewers, which just shows how successful it is.  Who would have thought that 8-episode children's show would last 48 years and be so loved all around the world? Like last year, we've done some digging around and are proud to present a interview with Tom Baker, Mary Tamm and Carole Ann Ford, on Nationwide in 1978 - Doctor Who's 15th anniversary.  Tom is on top form and its well worth checking out! Enjoy and make sure you watch an episode later!

As I write this, the BBC (or BBC Worldwide) have dropped a bollock by announcing an official convention, with Matt Smith and Steven Moffat. Great news! Well, not really. To get into the convention, you have to part with £99 which doesn’t include autographs ( £20/25 per signature, depending on whichever person you want to sign) and photographs at the same price.  All that is before you have to think about travel to and from Cardiff, food, drink and hotels...it all mounts up. I’m not for one minute saying that you shouldn’t go, as that’s up to you, but surely you can see that this is just a blatant rip-off? Using Doctor Who as a tool to rake in money in the most obscene way possible – by ripping off the very people who love it. And I’ve not even mentioned the best bit yet – Children aren’t really welcome... You heard me right, Children and Families - the very people the show is made for, are NOT advised to attend. What does the convention contain? Lapdancers with Cybermen ...

Despite our legal battles with Steven Moffat (we're trying to get more mentions of Fish Fingers and Custard in Doctor Who) we have been busy with a new issue of the fanzine.  We can't believed we've reached 7, and neither can you probably. Issue 7 contains the following: Whooverville Review and interview with convention organiser Steve Hatcher What Does Doctor Who Mean To Kids? Torchwood: Miracle Day I Love Who: Harry Sedgewick previews a chapter of his new Doctor Who book, exclusively for the fanzine 31 Things Less Painful Than Watching Journey's End And Much More! (It isn't as tedious as it sounds) You can download the Issue here Alternatively, you can be a diamond by ordering a fine paper copy (with shiny colour covers!) of this Issue here Cheers! E-Mail Us Twitter Facebook

It was with mixed emotions when I heard that The Scarifyers would return, following the death of Nicholas Courtney. Delighted that the series would continue of course, but equally sad that Nick wouldn’t be a part of it. How on earth could they make the story work? I wondered. Well I needn’t have worried, as The Magic Circle has, quite easily, become my favourite Scarifyers adventure! David Warner (who is no stranger to working on audio with various Doctor Who spin-offs) stars as new character, Ex-Police Sergeant Harry Crow, who is enlisted by Dunning (Terry Molloy) to help him search out Lionheart (Courtney), who seems to have gone missing whilst looking at an old police case. But as the pair are trying to get to the bottom of it all, someone (or something!) is attacking certain magicians… The story, as always, mixes comedy and drama superbly, but with this being more of a poignant story, I thought it was taken to another level. The performances are all top notch, but Terry Molloy is...

To many people (lazy journalists - I'm looking at you) viewing figures seem to matter above everything else.  In Issue 8, we'll be going through the Series 6 viewing figures in full.  In the meantime, here's our summary of the viewing figures of Doctor Who from 2005 to the mid-series break in 2011.  This article originally appeared in Issue 6 of Fish Fingers and Custard. (If you don't care about any of this, we'll be having the usual fives and toilet humour in the next Issue.  We have something for everyone. Like an episode of Doc Martin) “DOCTOR WHO SLUMP IN THE RATINGS” scream the tabloid media. Well that’s not exactly true is it? By the sounds of it, the media would have people believe that Doctor Who has seen a Heroes-style slump and had its figures slashed by 60%. Not true, in fact Doctor Who has never been so popular. It’s currently smashing all kinds of records for BBC America, Space (Canada) and the BBC IPlayer. So to dispel this myth we actu...

With the debt collectors shoo-ed away, we can start work on the final Issue of the year!  For Issue 8 we're mainly looking for reviews of the 2nd half of Series 6.  Please make your reviews no more than 700 words and send to fishcustardfanzine@googlemail.com The same e-mail address also applies to ANYTHING else that you are able to knock up, too!  (apart from your Girlfriends.  I know I'm handsome, but you should take responsibility for the situations that arise from using the contents of your pants) With the series, bar the Christmas episode, on ice for 9 months, we'll be regularly updating this blog with more (some will say, ignorant) opinion pieces and 'classic' stuff from the fanzine.  Hey, if Justin Bieber (who styled himself on Adric) can release an autobiography at the veteran age of 17, then surely we can dredge up a few past articles? So look out for that! The fanzine's Twitter and Facebook feeds will also be regularl...

I've praised Doctor Who and the BBC in the fanzine for bringing us such an informative behind-the-scenes look at our favourite show, in the form of Doctor Who Confidential .  Educational for adults and children alike, it was the perfect companion for a show that has single-handily revived big budget family drama in the UK.  After watching an episode of DWC , with its detailed look at how an episode was made, how certain effects were done etc - how many people would learn off that? How many children would say how 'cool' it is, and then be inspired to be an actor/director/effects maker etc, after watching it? But now its been axed . Anyone who knows me will know how much I utterly despise reality shows that involve singing.  You've got corporations and networks spending millions, so that greedy record companies can leech off some kid for a year, before they move on to someone else to carry on their vampiric tendencies.  It doesn't inspire anybody...

Despite our legal battles with Steven Moffat (we're trying to get more mentions of Fish Fingers and Custard in Doctor Who) we have been busy with a new issue of the fanzine.  We can't believed we've reached 7, and neither can you probably. Issue 7 contains the following: Whooverville Review and interview with convention organiser Steve Hatcher What Does Doctor Who Mean To Kids? Torchwood: Miracle Day I Love Who: Harry Sedgewick previews a chapter of his new Doctor Who book, exclusively for the fanzine 31 Things Less Painful Than Watching Journey's End And Much More! (It isn't as tedious as it sounds) You can purchase a copy of this fine publication by slipping us one of the following payments via PayPal. UK: £2 Rest of The World: £3 As always, please make the payment as a gift , enclose your name and address and send to fishcustardfanzine@googlemail.com If you don't have PayPal, you can still purchase a copy by credit/debit card, by using...

Then come and join our forum for discussion on the episode and general banter with fellow readers and contributors to the fanzine!  As we try and build up a community, we welcome anyone who is able to put in words, their thoughts, feelings and beliefs about an episode or anything else. And you have to be up for a laugh too! You can access the forum on the side of this page.  The direct link is http://z15.invisionfree.com/Fish_Custard_Fanzine/index.php  Cheers and enjoy the episodes!

On what's fast turning out to be a Fish Custard Tour, we'll be attending Whooverville, which is a one-day convention held at the Quad Centre in Derby.  Ran by local group The Whoovers, the convention has already established itself on the UK Con scene and is fast becoming one of the most-popular fan-run events. The guests for Whooverville 3 include the likes of Nicola Bryant, Sarah Sutton, Frazer Hines, Tristan Peatfield, Maurice Roeves and Ian McNiece, amongst others. There'll also be various Q&A's, live podcasting, merchandising room and monster appearances, amongst other events going on during the day!  Whooverville is ideally situated for almost anyone in the UK to attend and Derby is a lovely city for a day or weekend break.  We'll be doing the weekend, so that's your guarantee of quality right there!  We will also be handing out free copies of the fanzine, so come and say hello if you're about! Whoovervil...

For Issue 7 of Fish Fingers and Custard we are going to dedicate a bit of it to the new series of Torchwood and we need reviewers to look at the series as an whole.  If you would like to contribute, please send a blank e-mail with TORCHWOOD in the subject header and I'll get back to you asap with further details.  Don't worry if you've never written a review before, we're always on the lookout for new contributors!  We're looking for anyone who is able to put down their thoughts and feelings on the series, good, bad or (in Rex's chat-up lines' case) the downright ugly. Don't worry, your e-mail won't be tracked and I won't have scary men following you around.  I'm not allowed to do that anymore. Cheers!

Still here and still moidering folk, we've somehow cobbled together another installment of a Doctor Who fanzine that was once lovingly described as a 'Lidl DWM'.  Yes, it's Issue 6 of Fish Fingers and Custard and it can be downloaded now! In this Issue: Series 6 (Part 1) Reviewed Are You Watching? A breakdown of viewing figures   Who's In A (Brass) Band - Doctor Who music, done differently Lis Sladen: A Heart of Gold London Film and Comic Con Pubcon and interviews with Stephen Gallagher, Tom Spilsbury and Dez Skinn And much more! You can download the Issue here If you're feeling generous and would like to support the fanzine (and not see us go into fincianal ruin!) you can slip us a couple of quid and buy a paper copy of this Issue .  The paper copies look so much better than the free download - you can actually pick it up and for £2 (inc. P+P), we believe it offers great value too! Cheers Apart from down the ...

Paradise Towers has just been recently released on DVD and with our review of the story appearing in a previous issue of Fish Fingers and Custard , we've decided to unearth it and present it in it's original form. It’s too easy to dismiss the majority of the late-80’s stories as ‘the point where Doctor Who went wrong’. I’ve read and listened to some very unfair comments about the latter stories that don’t take into account the restrictions of which the production team had to work with. I honestly believe that Paradise Towers was one of these stories that would have been a great, if it wasn’t for the budget (or lack of) afforded to Doctor Who by a BBC, who where then determined to let the show die a slow and painful death. But that doesn’t mean mistakes weren’t made by the production team… Ever since I first watched Paradise Towers, I was intrigued by the storyline: A luxurious tower block that had plunged into anarchy, amongst the folk that lived there. Many people aren’t a...

There may be no episodes of Doctor Who on the telly, but be safe in the knowledge that we are still plugging away, to bring you the best in nonsense from the depths of Doctor Who Fandom. Or Mel Bush's knicker drawer, if you prefer. In this Issue: Series 6 (Part 1) Reviewed Are You Watching? A breakdown of viewing figures Who's In A (Brass) Band - Doctor Who music, done differently Lis Sladen: A Heart of Gold London Film and Comic Con Pubcon and interviews with Stephen Gallagher, Tom Spilsbury and Dez Skinn And much more (we have to put that) You can purchase a copy of this fine publication by slipping us one of the following payments via PayPal. UK: £2 Rest of The World: £3 As always, please make the payment as a gift , enclose your name and address and send to fishcustardfanzine@googlemail.com If you don't have PayPal, you can still purchase a copy by credit/debit card, by using the box below.  The process is undertaken by PayPal, but you do not need to...

The likes of Sylvester McCoy, Karen Gillan, Alex Kingston, Mark Sheppard, Sophie Aldred, Mary Tamm, Richard Franklin, Sarah Sutton, Louise Jameson and Derek Jacobi will be at the forthcoming London Film and Comic Con...and so will we!  We'll be there on the Saturday after the 'Audience With Karen Gillan' handing out free copies of the fanzine as well as chatting/hanging around/generally making people feel uncomfortable, so come and say hello! LFCC has been running for a number of years now and has become the premier signing event in London and always boasts a quite impressive guest list, this year is something else though.  Apart from Doctor Who guests, they have the likes of Christopher Lloyd (Back To The Future), Christopher Lambert (Highlander) and Tom Sizemore (Saving Private Ryan) and many others, who will be signing during the weekend. LFCC at Earls Court 2 runs from Friday 8th July-Sunday 10th, for further details and guest upda...

Like anyone celebrating their 1st Birthday, we’ll be stumbling around, talking incomprehensibly and soiling our nappies. That’s where the comparison ends though, as the above will be a result of some Friday Night drinking, rather than excitable youthful vigour. 12 months ago, I published the first Issue of this fanzine and after watching England sneak past Slovenia in the World Cup, I went out for some beers and returned to see a number of comments waiting for me. Thankfully, they weren’t as negative as I expected, so I whacked on some Gloria Gaynor on YouTube to celebrate. Not really… I’ll admit I never expected it to have lasted for a year, I wanted to, don’t get me wrong, but I thought it would be difficult to try and attract people to write for the fanzine. However, right from conception, people have been willing to help out and have sent me some quite superb articles. They’re the real talents behind the fanzine, I just put this thing together and chuck ideas in which have inf...

We're busy putting plans in place for the next few Issues of Fish Fingers and Custard , so if you would like to contribute , the deadline for Issue 6 is the  8th July , although if you can get your contribution to me at the earliest possible time, then it stands more of a chance of appearing in the Issue! For Issue 6 we're looking for the usual things - opinion pieces, reviews, reports, art, spoofs etc BUT with Series 6 now at Half-Time, we want reviews of the series as an whole.  Please make your reviews no more than 700 words and no less than 1! You can send them to fishcustardfanzine@googlemail.com Cheers!

Issue 5 of Fish Fingers and Custard is now available for download. Now 5 Issues (and 11 months) in, Fish Fingers and Custard continues like a tube train.  But it's slow and is actually entertaining, with people willing to tell you their stories instead of staring at you, like they want to kick your head in.  In this latest Issue we have the following stuff: Our Sarah Jane - Tributes from fans of Elisabeth Sladen The Brig: A Great Chap Why I Watch Who Poetry A Look At The Scarifyers, plus an interview with creator Simon Barnard Actor, gigolo and columnist Harry Sedgewick offers some more of his wisdom Review of the opening 2 episodes of Series 6! You can download the PDF here If you would like to order one of our fine paper copies (please do!) you can do so here .  If you're a 'Fontist' and are SO offended that I use Comic Sans on a little bit of this publication/or want more information about the fanzine, please e-mail me at fishcustardfanzi...

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS ISSUE IS NOW SOLD OUT The Happy Shopper DWM returns.  It might be a brand-new series of Doctor Who, but here at Fish Custard Towers, we continue to push the same old 'entertaining' fluff and occasional serious bits.  In Issue 5, we have these following hors d'oeuvre (I had to Google it to get the correct spelling): Our Sarah Jane - Tributes from fans of Elisabeth Sladen The Brig: A Great Chap Why I Watch Who Poetry A Look At The Scarifyers, plus an interview with creator Simon Barnard Actor, gigolo and columnist Harry Sedgewick offers some more of his wisdom Review of the opening 2 episodes of Series 6! Plus, much more for you to munch on. We don't charge a lot for our tat, so it's a lot cheaper than DWM. And better. And we don't spoil it for you. Prices (inc. P+P) UK: £2 Rest of The World: £3 Twilight Fans: £21 As always, please make your payment via PalPal a 'gift' and send it to fishcustardfanzine@googlemail.co...

Like many others, I couldn’t quite believe the news. Lis Sladen can’t be gone, surely? It took the BBC news report for it to sink in and even then, I still couldn’t believe it. Lis was a person who always looked so well for her age and I would never have guessed in a million years that she was ill. But she was, but she kept it private, which I think speaks volumes about the lady. The reaction has been that of shock around the world, as many people, in many countries, grew up with Sarah Jane Smith. Lis didn’t just brighten the day for kids of the 1970’s, she also did it for the kids of today with The Sarah Jane Adventures too. Reading these messages from children on the Newsround website just shows how well this middle-aged lady is thought of. She was definitely someone special. For many, Sarah Jane was ‘their’ companion. My first foray into ‘classic’ Doctor Who was Tom Baker’s first series and watching her and The Doctor wind up Harry, seeing them working with each other...