Pig Brother

It had to be done, apparently.

Teen Titans movie in the pipeline

Hollywood Reporter and ICV2 report Warner Bros. Pictures is working on a live action adaptation of DC Comics' Teen Titans supergroup comic book. The animated series has been good fun, so let's hope a live version has the same energy - and they grab the cool theme tune, too!

Altogether now:

Puffy – TEEN TITANS THEME

When there's trouble you know who to call
Teen Titans!
From their tower, they can see it all
Teen Titans!
When there's evil on the attack
You can rest knowing they got your back
Cuz when the world needs heroes on patrol

Teen Titans GO!

With their superpowers they unite
Teen Titans!
Never met a villain that they liked
Teen Titans!
They've got the bad guys on the run
They never stop till the job gets done
Cuz when the world is losin' all control

Teen Titans GO!
Teen Titans GO!

If your heart is black you better watch out
You cannot escape the team
When they catch you there won't be any doubt
You've been beaten by the teens

Also available as a mobile ring tone, by the way...

(And if you really, really want to sing it in Japanese, click here! The link takes you to the a post on teentitans.deviantart.com)

Doctor Who exterminated again?

Not the best of sources, but The Sun is reporting that Doctor Who will be exterminated next year after the end of the fourth series. The paper claims producer Russell T. Davies, exhausted by 16-hour days, has decided to axe the BBC1 sci-fi drama and concentrate on other projects and he and senior staff have hatched a plot to hand in a group resignation in summer 2008.

If true, this seems very odd to me -- although there are also rumours that Robin Hood will not return after season two, so maybe this is part of a wider cull of fantasy shows. Perhaps with the BBC recently deciding childhood stops at 11, corprorate suits (better known as Daleks) feel there's no need for such shows and we're all better off watching gritty reality-driven misery like Holby Blue (police), Black (fueneral directors), Green (bin men) or whatever.

Any cancellation decision seems a bit premature. There's clearly demand for the show both in the UK and abroad, the BBC is building a talented pool of writers and other creative staff, and I'm sure there are plenty of talented producers who could take over the show if RTD does want to move on. It seems clear from the show's rating success that there is a mainstream audience for strong fantasy TV if done right.

Babylon 5: The Lost tales

Working on Babylon 5 Magazine for Titan was one of the best editorships I ever had, with terrific support from JMS and his team - and I wish them every success with their new venture, Babylon 5: The Lost Tales, its straight-to-DVD B5 project.

ISN News reports that Warner Bros. has finally posted information about the project over at the official B5 site, www.babylon5.com

The site pops up with some very familiar people to B5 fans -- and you'll find downloads, a photo gallery and much, much more.

The DVD is released on Region 1 on 31st July 2007 (latest Region 2 info below, see update) with stories set 10 years after John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) became President of the Interstellar Alliance and as he is preparing for a fateful Babylon 5 reunion that could prevent Earth’s impending doom… if he will also compromise his core principles.

Meanwhile, aboard B5, Commander Lochley (Tracy Scoggins), confronts an unexpected interloper on the way station – a being whose presence makes the freeport the crossroads between heaven and hell.

Written by series creator J. Michael Straczynski, I'm sure B5 fans will welcome this latest return to his vision of the 23rd century (including a dazzling New York City) – a vision Warner Bros. describes as 'made more spectacular via filmmaking technology unavailable during the original series'.

Update 16 September 2007: The Region 2 release of Babylon 5: The Lost Tales is 3 September 2007, quickly followed on 10 September by the release of Supernatural Season Two.

"Warner UK has DVD releases planned for Supernatural, Smallville and a new-to-DVD Stephen King title so rest of 2007 is going to be great for sci-fi fans," said a spokesperson.