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Matt's Home Town Visit 09 Mar 2010 by Simon

Doctor Who star Matt Smith will return to his home town of Northampton for a premiere of his first full episode as the Time Lord at the end of this month.   The former Northampton School for Boys pupil will be joined by Karen Gillan, who plays his new assistant Amy Pond in the hit show, when the Doctor Who tour bus pulls into town on Wednesday, March 31. The BBC has not yet announced where in Northampton the special screening will be held or how people can get hold of tickets, but those lucky enough to get in will be able to see the first episode of the show's latest series three days before its expected TV debut. The show's executive producer, Piers Wenger, said: "This is a great opportunity for the new Doctor and his companion to meet the people who matter most to Doctor Who, the fans. "And the chance for Matt to meet the fans in his home town will ensure the Doctor's maiden voyage is an utterly magical one." As well as watching The Eleventh Hour, the first episode of the 31st series of Doctor Who and the first to feature Matt in the title role, people who get into the premiere should also get the chance to meet the show's two new stars. Although none of the episodes for the new series have yet been completely finished, it has been revealed the first episode will be 20 minutes longer than a usual episode of Doctor Who and will see Matt Smith's Doctor meet his new assistant for the first time. Internet rumours have also suggested the episode may feature a shape-shifting dog and be set across three time zones. In the latest episode of Doctor Who Magazine, Mr Wenger admitted even the new stars of the show had been nervous about watching early versions of the programme. He said: "One of my favourite moments in recent months was when we all sat down together to watch a really rough version of the Eleventh Hour. "Matt and Karen sat on the sofa, hiding behind their hands, and we all ate pizza, drank wine and had a brilliant time. I couldn't think of a nicer bunch of people to be spending my time with." Later this month, the Chron will reveal exactly where the exclusive Northampton screening will be held.   Source: Chronicle & Echo

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Matt's Mum is Doc's assistant 07 Feb 2010 by Simon

Doctor Who's mum will become the Time Lord's latest assistant after deciding to move on from her job at the Chron after 13 years.   Great Billing resident Lynne Smith began work in the Chron's advertising department in 1997 before moving on to work for the newspaper's glossy magazine, Image. But after her actor son, Matt, landed the role of Doctor Who, she decided the time was right to fulfil her dream of opening her own women's accessories shop, while also running Matt's fan club. And despite him only appearing in the hit show for a minute so far, Lynne is already being inundated with fan mail for Matt. She said: "With all the Doctor Who stuff, Matt really needed somebody to run his fan club, so I thought what better than to keep it in the family, because nobody else is going to do it like me. "I think everybody who writes in should get an autograph, because he needs his fans. "And already, we've had loads of stuff coming in. "From the day he was first announced as the new Doctor, people have been writing to him from all over the world. "We've had stuff come from Australia where somebody sent him a T-shirt with a Matt Smith logo on it and he's had hundreds of Christmas cards, birthday cards, all sorts of things." At the moment, the BBC and Royal Mail are working together to manage the flow of fan mail to Lynne, but even before Matt's first series as the Doctor has started, she is receiving a large crate of post every week. To celebrate her new job, Lynne's colleagues at the Chron threw her a lavish party yesterday where she was inundated with cards and gifts. She said: "I've absolutely loved my time working on the Chron and Image. "I've been very proud of what we've done and working for Image was always something that was completely 'me'. "When I first started there was always the joke that almost my entire salary was going so quickly because I was going into all these lovely shops to see customers, and ending up buying things. "But because of the work on the magazines and visiting all those lovely bespoke shops I've always wanted to set up my own accessories business, so this should be a wonderful new start for me." Lynne's shop, The Accessory Room, will run as part of the current Butterflies store in Brookland Road, Kingsley. From a base inside Butterflies, Lynne will sell a range of goods, including handbags, jewellery and clothing accessories. The store will open at the beginning of April.   Source: Northampton Chronicle & Echo

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Young Matt is a 'nutty giraffe' 07 Feb 2010 by Simon

The man in charge of the new series of Doctor Who has described Northampton actor Matt Smith as 'unselfconsciously nutty'.   In an interview with Doctor Who magazine, the show's new head writer, Steven Moffatt, said the former Northampton School for Boys pupil would dominate the screen as The Doctor when the new series of the hit show begins in the spring. He said: "The camera just absolutely adores him. "He's got that strange, bony face and that odd, slouchy physique. You just want to look at him all the time, it's amazing." The Doctor Who writer has also revealed Matt, pictured left on the set of Doctor Who, originally auditioned to play Doctor Watson in the new television version of Sherlock Holmes he is also making, but immediately struck him as a better choice for The Doctor. He said: "He came in and gave a very good audition. But he didn't have a chance in hell of getting it because he was clearly more of a Sherlock Holmes than a Doctor Watson." But he said Matt completely understood how to play The Doctor, despite not knowing the show well, adding: "He just utterly got The Doctor. He got it in every move. "He was like Matt Smith unleashed. It was like he could just act in the way he always wanted to, as opposed to the way he always tried to. "He just sort of had the tone of it straight away, the fun of it, the unselfconscious nuttiness of it. Because let's be honest, Matt is unselfconsciously nutty, that's what he's like." Since Matt began filming his first series of the show, he has become renowned among the cast and producers for his ability to break the show's notorious gadgets, including both the Tardis and The Doctor's sonic screwdriver, which he managed to break within seconds of being handed it. His reputation for mishaps has even seen him nicknamed a 'drunk giraffe' by Mr Moffatt. Matt Smith's role as the new Doctor follows the resurgence of the show since both Christopher Ecclestone and David Tennant took on the part, attracting millions of viewers. The latest issue of Doctor Who magazine is available in shops now.   Source: Northampton Chronicle & Echo

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Matt Smith's Doctor Who is sell out 27 Jan 2010 by Simon

Shops across Northamptonshire have reported queues of people trying to get hold of a new five-inch model of Northampton-born Doctor Who star, Matt Smith.   He may have only appeared in the hit series for about a minute so far, but the action figure of the former Northampton School for Boys pupil is selling so quickly, fans are being forced to order the toy in advance or face missing out on the eleventh Doctor's first official model. Matt's mother, Lynne Smith, who works at the Chron, has managed to get hold of one of the sought-after figures. She said she was amazed how much the tiny toy looked like her 27-year-old son. She added: "The likeness is incredible. It's amazing, I think it's a really good model of him. "And he's my son, so I've obviously looked at it really closely. It was fabulous to see his first model, it was really exciting for us all." During David Tennant's four years as The Doctor, there were more than 20 types of action figures based on the star sold in the shops. Matt's first figure is based on his first appearance in the show on New Year's Day, when he regenerated from Tennant's character. The model shows him still wearing Tennant's torn suit, rather than the dickie-bow and tweed jacket he is due to wear when the new series of the programme starts in the spring. While the model is on sale for £8.99 in shops, its rarity means many people who have managed to get hold of the toy are already trying to cash in on its scarcity. On the internet auction site eBay, the Matt Smith models are currently being traded for between £20 and £30. In Northampton yesterday, both Argos and Toys R Us said they were taking regular orders for the figure, but they currently had none in stock. More than 10 million people watched Tennant regenerate into Smith in the New Year's Day episode. Trailers for the new series of Doctor Who have already revealed the new Doctor will take on his old enemies, the Daleks, when the show returns.   Source: Northampton Chronicle & Echo

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Northampton's Doctor Who 'will be the best' 02 Nov 2009 by Simon

The man in charge of the new series of Doctor Who has claimed Northampton actor Matt Smith will be "the best" when he takes on the show's star role in the new year.   The former Northampton School for Boys pupil was revealed as the new Doctor at the beginning of 2009. The BBC has not yet confirmed when his first episode will be screened, but it is widely expected he will take over from David Tennant's Doctor at the end of an episode scheduled for New Year's Day. The programme's new head writer, Steven Moffat, admitted he felt the pressure of taking it on. But, he said he had no doubt of Smith's ability to pull-off the role of the 900-year-old Time Lord, adding: "He's all the things you'd expect, including ancient. "He's someone you can't take your eyes off." At 27, Smith will be the youngest actor ever to play the Doctor. As well as Smith and Tennant, the New Year's Day episode is also expected to see a number of regular Doctor Who characters return – including Billie Piper, who plays Rose Tyler, Catherine Tate, who plays Donna Noble, and John Simm, who plays the Master. Discussing Tennant's final episode, the man who brought Doctor Who back to our television screens, writer Russell T Davies, said: "We finished the episode yesterday and we were crying our eyes out. It's very lovely, powerful stuff, it's David Tennant at his absolute finest." The next episode of Doctor Who to be broadcast will be The Waters Of Mars on Sunday, November 15. That will be followed by a special on Christmas Day, with Tennant's final episode, and Smith's first, to be shown on New Year's Day. Smith's first full series, which he began filming in July, will be screened next year. Source: Northampton Chronicle & Echo

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