Who spoiler - but a very exciting one!

[strange_complex]

OK, officially at the moment I am Too Busy To Post (but busy with exciting cutting-edge teaching that I shall write all about later, so that's OK). But I just had to drop by and share the love about a very exciting episode that's just been filmed for the next season of Doctor Who.

I can't really say much about why I'm so excited without spoiling those who prefer to remain innocent. I'm even going to keep the tags neutral until the episode in question has been screened. But let's just say they are pressing some particularly Pennyish buttons with this one.

*runs off squeeing loudly*

Comments

[swisstone.livejournal.com]

Yes, I'd heard about that on the grapevine. I shall have to go and rewrite a line or two in my 'Dr Who and the Classics' article, and expect a big blog post when it finally gets broadcast.

[strange-complex.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, indeed - I suspect I shall be joining you in that activity!

[swisstone.livejournal.com]

Yes, but yours won't end up in a book, will it?

Have you spotted the CLC reference?

[strange-complex.livejournal.com]

Well, Caecilius Iucundus was a real Pompeian, so it needn't be a CLC reference - although I suspect that in practice it is.

As for a book - sez who? Roman urbanism is my specialist field, so who's to say I won't publish something on responses to it some day? I've already lectured and taken seminars on the subject, and am looking forward to including both this episode and (with luck) Polanski's film in those sessions in the future.

[swisstone.livejournal.com]

True, true. I must remember to invite you if and when I put together an sf and the classics conference.

I shall check out that audio adventure Kharin mentions (warning: contains Bonnie Langford!). It's not unknown for RTD to borrow from audios or novels for ideas. There's a detailed synopsis here (http://www.drwhoguide.com/who_bf12.htm). Lots of familiar names, but not from CLC (the fact that there's a Metella as well as a Caecilius makes the CLC reference in the new ep certain, I think).

AFAIK (http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2168059,00.html), Polanski is off Pompeii, and it may never happen now.

[strange-complex.livejournal.com]

Oh dead, that's depressing (about Polanski, I mean) - especially given the reasons stated in that article.

Someone else you ought to know about for your conference (and possibly already do) is Ika Willis (http://www.bristol.ac.uk/classics/aboutthedepartment/staff/academic/willis.html), who will be coming to speak to the Leeds branch of the Classical Association (http://www.classicsnet.plus.com/LADCA/prog.htm) in May on 'Science Fiction and the Romans'. She is on LJ, but prefers to keep her professional and LJ identities separate.