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==[[Doctor Who Universe]]==
{{YearNavLateral}}{{timeline}}
===January===
'''2008''' was a [[year]].
* ''unknown'' - [[Owen Harper|Owen]] goes undercover to prevent the [[Weevil]]s being abducted by humans. ([[TW]]: ''[[Combat]]'')
===February===
* Annual de-frosting of [[Tommy Brockless]], a young soldier first cryogenically frozen in [[1918]]. Evidently this year's defrosting is conducted without the knowledge of new [[Torchwood 3]] team member [[Gwen Cooper]]. ([[TW]]:''[[To the Last Man]]''.) (Date: [[WEB]]:''[[Torchwood website|torchwood.co.uk]]'')
* ''unknown'' - [[Jack Harkness]] and [[Toshiko Sato]] are transported back in time to the [[1940s]]. ([[TW]]: ''[[Captain Jack Harkness]]'')
* ''unknown'' - [[Harold Saxon]]'s campaign for election is underway as "Vote Saxon" signs are visible in [[Cardiff]]. ([[TW]]: ''[[Captain Jack Harkness]]'')
* ''unknown'' - The [[Cardiff rift]] opens; people see visions of loved ones. Captain Jack defeats [[Abaddon]]. ([[TW]]: ''[[End of Days]]'')
* ''unknown'' - [[Jack Harkness|Jack]] hears the sound of [[the Doctor's TARDIS]], and re-joins [[Tenth Doctor|the Doctor]]. Meanwhile, he is declared missing by his Torchwood teammates, and [[Gwen Cooper]] takes charge of the group. Subsequently, [[Ianto Jones]] begins taking a more active role in field assignments. ([[TW]]: ''[[End of Days]]'', [[DW]]: ''[[Utopia (TV story)|Utopia]]'', [[TW]]: ''[[Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang]]'')
===April===
== Properties ==
*[[28th April|28]] - Mr [[Harold Saxon|Saxon]] continues his campaign for Prime Minister. He was given high support after the [[Royal Hope Hospital]]'s disappearance, then reappearance. ([[DW]]: ''[[Smith and Jones]]'')
2008 was a [[leap year]]. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Imaginary Friends (novel)}}; [[AUDIO]]: {{cs|The Condemned (audio story)}})
*[[29th April|29]] - [[Martha Jones]] joins [[Tenth Doctor|the Doctor]] on his travels, after an adventure in which [[Royal Hope Hospital]] is transported to the Moon. ([[DW]]: ''[[Smith and Jones]]''; ''[[The Sound of Drums]], et al, establishes this occurs only a few days before the election.'')
*[[30th April|30]] - [[Richard Lazarus]] unveils an age-reversing machine which transforms him into a possible evolutionary branch of humanity, latent in his DNA. He is killed by [[Tenth Doctor|the Doctor]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Lazarus Experiment]]'')
===May===
== Events ==
*[[1st May|1]] - Election Day begins and [[Harold Saxon]] is voted British [[Prime Minister]] ([[DW]]: ''[[42]]'' / ''[[ The Sound of Drums]]''; ''Note: This is likely a by-election, perhaps to replace whoever was appointed interim PM after the ouster of [[Harriet Jones]] per [[DW]]: [[The Stolen Earth]])'')
=== Dated events ===
:''Election Day is generally held on the first Thursday in May. In 2008, the first Thursday was [[1st May]].''
==== January - June ====
*[[2nd May|2]] - U.S. [[President Winters]] is killed by the [[Toclafane]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sound of Drums]]'')
On [[1 January]], shortly after midnight, the [[Eighth Doctor]] and [[Charley Pollard]] met [[Byron (The Girl Who Never Was)|Byron]] in [[Singapore]]. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|The Girl Who Never Was (audio story)}}) That same day in [[Brooklyn]], [[Alan Wood]] writes a [[letter]] to [[Diane (Snowman in Manhattan)|Diane]] describing the adventure he had with the [[First Doctor]], [[Vicki Pallister]] and [[Steven Taylor]], but ultimately decides not to give it to her, asking her out for [[coffee]] instead. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Snowman in Manhattan (short story)}})
**[[3rd May|3]] - [[The Year That Never Was]] begins during which the Master builds a [[Time Lord Empire]] and Martha Jones travels the world executing a plan of the Doctor's to defeat his enemy. Ultimately, the year is negated and the clock reset to just after the Master kills Winters. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sound of Drums]]/[[Last of the Time Lords]]'')
*[[2nd May|2]] - [[Harold Saxon]] is killed by his wife [[Lucy Saxon|Lucy]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Last of the Time Lords]]'')
*after [[2nd May]] - [[Martha Jones]] returns home to her family and leaves the Doctor on his own ([[DW]]: ''[[Last of the Time Lords]]'').
In [[February]], [[Lucy (Eve of the Daleks)|Lucy]] became [[Nick (Eve of the Daleks)|Nick]]'s girlfriend. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Eve of the Daleks (TV story)}})
*[[Tenth Doctor|The Doctor]] may have in some way participated in preventing a [[Graske]] from causing mischief at a 2008 BBC Proms concert in [[London]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Music of the Spheres]]'')
===Summer-early Fall===
On [[29 February]], the [[Sixth Doctor]] and [[Charley Pollard]] arrived in [[Manchester (city)|Manchester]] and helped [[Detective Inspector|DI]] [[Patricia Menzies]] solve a [[murder]]. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|The Condemned (audio story)}})
*24th and 25th August - [[Sarah Jane Smith]] teams up with [[Maria Jackson]] to face up against the scheming [[Mrs Wormwood]] and the [[Bane]]. ([[SJA]]: ''[[Invasion of the Bane]]'')
*3rd September - The Slitheen plot their scheme at [[Park Vale Comprehensive School]]. ([[SJA]]: ''[[Revenge of the Slitheen]]'')
In [[March]], Nick broke up with Lucy. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Eve of the Daleks (TV story)}})
* Members of the [[Stockbridge]] Preservation Society begin to go missing. ([[DWM]]: ''[[The Stockbridge Child]]'')
===December===
According to one account, a [[UNIT]] mission log placed March 2008 as the time that moon rocks were found at [[Royal Hope Hospital]]. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cite source|Recruits (audio story)|minute=10|second=10}}) Other accounts placed [[Martha Jones]]' activity around this time in about [[18 June|18]]-[[23 June]] [[2007]], ([[PROSE]]: {{cite source|The Paradox Moon (short story)|ed=2021 paperback|page=387}}) or [[4 June|4]]-[[9 June]] in an unspecified year.<!--See Behind the scenes section--> ([[PROSE]]: {{cite source|The Secret Lives of Monsters (short story)|page=120}}) {{note|According to {{cite source|The Sound of Drums (TV story)|timestamp=5:47 and 33:27|ed=iPlayer}} the events of the [[Royal Hope incident]] are three days before the election of {{Simm}} and five days before the [[Toclafane invasion]].}}
*mid-December - The Aurelia Festival is held in [[Stockbridge]]. [[Tenth Doctor|The Doctor]] and new companion, [[Majenta Pryce]], arrive and find themselves involved in an adventure with [[Maxwell Edison]]. ([[DWM]]: ''[[The Stockbridge Child]]'')
*[[December 24]]/[[December 25]] - As the two previous Christmases had been disrupted by the arrival of alien spacecraft over [[London]] ([[DW]]: ''[[The Christmas Invasion]]'') and [[DW]]: ''[[The Runaway Bride]]''), most residents of the city voluntarily evacuate for the season. Those choosing to remain in the city include Queen [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Elizabeth II]] and [[Wilfred Mott]], grandfather of [[Donna Noble]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Voyage of the Damned]]'')
*[[25th December|25]] - [[Tenth Doctor|The Doctor]], following a brief meeting with his [[Fifth Doctor|fifth incarnation]] ([[DW]]: ''[[Time Crash]]''), finds himself aboard a [[Titanic (spaceship)|space-faring replica]] of the ''[[Titanic]]'' in orbit around earth. Events of ''[[Voyage of the Damned]]''. [[Donna Noble]] would later dismiss the near-miss by the ''Titanic'' as a hoax. ([[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'')
*[[28th April]] - Deaths of [[Martha Jones]] and [[Sarah Jane Smith]] on [[the Moon]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Turn Left]]'')
In [[April]], ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Amy Pond: The Girl Who Waited! (feature)}}) the [[Eleventh Doctor]] met [[Amy Pond]] in [[Leadworth]] after twelve years of waiting. A [[Multi-form]] called [[Prisoner Zero]], who had escaped through the crack in Amy's wall, attacked. The [[Atraxi]] arrived, threatening the destruction of Earth if Prisoner Zero did not surrender. The Doctor created a computer virus for the Atraxi to track back to its source in Leadworth (spread by [[Jeff Angelo|Jeff]]). The Doctor also transmitted Prisoner Zero's disguises to the Atraxi so it couldn't hide in the bodies it had been disguised as. It then took the form of Amy; the Doctor made Amy think of Prisoner Zero's original form. Now in plain sight, Prisoner Zero was captured by the Atraxi, who left. The Doctor took a test drive of his refurbished TARDIS, only returning two years later. ([[TV]]: {{cs|The Eleventh Hour (TV story)}})
*[[25th December]] - while [[Donna Noble]], [[Sylvia Noble|her mother]] and [[Wilfred Mott|her grandfather]] holiday in the English countryside, the [[Titanic (spaceship)|alien spaceship ''Titanic'']] crashes into [[London]], destroying the city and contaminating most of southern England with radioactivity. ([[DW]]: ''[[Turn Left]]'')
:''See [[Donna's World]]''.
===Dates Unknown===
On [[31 May]], the Tenth Doctor and Donna visited [[Calibris]]. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|Time Reaver (audio story)}})
*During an unchronicled adventure in [[London]] with [[Martha Jones]], [[Tenth Doctor|The Doctor]] meets [[Sally Sparrow]], who provides him with the information he needs to escape when the [[Weeping Angels]] send him back to [[1969]]. After this, Sally begins to open up to [[Larry Nightingale]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Blink]]'')
*Following her encounter with [[Tenth Doctor|the Doctor]], [[Donna Noble]] attempts to improve her life by first travelling to [[Egypt]]. Afterwards, experiencing regret at turning down the Doctor's invitation to travel with him, Donna begins investigating unusual happenings, in hopes of encountering the Doctor doing the same. Her investigations lead to her learning about the disappearance of bees and unusual happenings at [[Adipose Industries]], which eventually lead to her reuniting with the Doctor in [[2009]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'')
*The [[Slitheen]] family kill overweight teachers and use them as a disguise to find a code to freeze the [[Sun]], planning to burn up the [[Earth]]. The Slitheen plan is foiled by [[Sarah Jane Smith]], although [[Korst Gogg Thek Lutiven-Day Slitheen|a child Slitheen]] escapes and the Earth briefly experiences a worldwide power outage coupled with a brief disruption in solar activity. Sarah Jane, utilizing her supercomputer [[Mr Smith]], later orchestrates a cover-up that suggests the darkening of the sun and the power outage were caused by a sudden, but temporary, shift in Earth's magnetic field. ([[SJA]]: [[Revenge of the Slitheen]])
*A [[Gorgon]], hidden by a group of nuns while trying to find a new host, is discovered by [[Sarah Jane Smith]]. [[Maria Jackson]] uses a mirror to turn the Gorgon into stone. ([[SJA]]:''[[Eye of the Gorgon]]'')
*A number of teenagers go missing after playing laser tag - [[Luke Smith]] and [[Clyde Langer]] are among those who go missing. [[Sarah Jane Smith]] discovers that they are being teleported by an alien named [[Kudlak]] who has taken them to a war ship to fight in an alien war - a war which he is unaware is over.([[SJA]]:''[[Warriors of Kudlak]]'')
*On her way back to Earth, Sarah Jane Smith is handed a puzzle box by a [[Verron Soothsayer]], with instructions to give it to someone she trusts. The next week she gives it to Maria Jackson. [[The Trickster]] retroactively wipes Sarah Jane out of existence, but reality is restored with help from Maria Jackson. ([[SJA]]: ''[[Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?]]'')
==Real World==
<!--Moved events surrounding the British election to 2000s-->
* The announced 2008 production hiatus sparks speculation in the media over whether [[David Tennant]] will be continuing in ''Doctor Who'', with reports published ranging from suggestions that Tennant would leave at the end of the then-upcoming Series 4, or during the specials, to published reports suggesting he had negotiated a deal with the BBC that would keep him on the series through Series 5 in 2010 or possibly longer. This speculation finally ends in October with Tennant's announcement regarding his future on the series.
==== June - December ====
* Silva Screen Records reissues ''[[Doctor Who - Original Television Soundtrack]]'', the soundtrack CD featuring music from the 2005 and 2006 seasons. Due to licensing changes, the reissue features a new cover photograph of [[David Tennant]] by himself, with [[Billie Piper]]'s image having been removed.
In [[October]], [[Majenta Pryce]] opened the [[Hotel Historia]] in [[London]]. After [[Tony (Hotel Historia)|Tony]] won the lottery, he was contacted by Pryce and given a chance to stay at the Hotel Historia. One of the years that Tony visited using the hotel's time travel capabilities was [[4039]], a time when London was being invaded by the [[Graxnix]]. The [[Tenth Doctor]] followed Tony back to 2008 from 4039 and the Doctor was followed by the Graxnix. The Doctor found Pryce and scolded her for using a potentially dangerous [[Chronexus 3000]] to achieve time travel. When the Graxnix began attacking guests and staff at the hotel, the Doctor used the Chronexus to send them back to 4039 and then contacted the [[Cosmic Bailiff]]s, who shut down the hotel and arrested Pryce. ([[COMIC]]: {{cs|Hotel Historia (comic story)}})
===January===
On [[24 October]], the [[Eighth Doctor]] and [[Lucie Miller]] encountered [[Auton]]s in [[Thorington]], [[Uzbekistan]]. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|Brave New Town (audio story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[The Bride of Peladon]]'' is first released.
On [[31 October]], the [[Tenth Doctor]] and [[Martha Jones]] found an unusually creepy [[Halloween]] celebration in [[Blackwood Falls]]. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Forever Autumn (novel)}})
* [[CC]]: ''[[The Catalyst]]'' is first released.
* [[BFDE]]: ''[[Dalek Empire IV]]'': ''[[The Fearless: Part 4]]'' is first released, concluding [[Big Finish]]'s fourth ''[[Dalek Empire IV|Dalek Empire]]'' mini-series.
* [[BFBS]]: ''[[The Wake]]'' is first released.
* [[FP]]: ''[[Newtons Sleep]]'' is first published. Last book in the [[Faction Paradox (series)|Faction Paradox]] series to date.
* [[8th January|8]] - 100th birthday of [[William Hartnell]].
* [[9th January|9]] - Cast readthrough for [[DW]]: ''[[Silence In The Library]]''/''[[Forest of the Dead]]''
* [[11th January|11]] - [[Russell T Davies]] begins writing the script for [[DW]]: ''[[Journey's End]]''.
* [[12th January|12]] - [[Steven Moffat]] informs [[Russell T Davies]] that he has begun writing the first episode of [[Series 5]] (''[[The Writer's Tale]]'')
* [[16th January|16]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang]]'' is first broadcast, launching the [[Series 2 (Torchwood)|second series]] of ''[[Torchwood]]''.
** ''[[Torchwood Declassified]]'' also begins its second season.
* [[19th January|19]] - BBC Radio Wales broadcasts the documentary ''[[Torchwood: All Access]]'', which is released later in the year on the CD of [[TWA]]: ''[[Lost Souls]]''.
* [[22nd January|22]] - [[Russell T Davies]] completes the initial draft of [[DW]]: ''[[Journey's End]]''.
* [[23rd January|23]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Sleeper]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[24th January|24]] - The first issue of ''[[Torchwood Magazine]]'' is published. According to an article on the making of the crossover episode [[DW]]: ''[[The Stolen Earth]]''/''[[Journey's End]]'', published in issue 7, the existence of the magazine catches cast members by surprise.
* [[30th January|30]] - [[TW]]: ''[[To the Last Man]]'' is first broadcast.
===February===
On [[10 September]], [[CERN]] first tested their [[Large Hadron Collider]], ([[TV]]: {{cs|Extremis (TV story)}}) finally creating a [[Higgs particle]]. However, the first test opened a portal to another dimension, letting [[neutron eater]]s loose; the Higgs particle was merely a side effect of [[Katrina Johnson|Professor Johnson]] and [[Jack Harkness]]' plan to close the gateway, by having [[proton]]s and [[antiproton]]s fire against each other. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|Lost Souls (audio story)}})
* [[NSA]]: ''[[Revenge of the Judoon]]'', the third novella in the [[BBC Books]] [[Quick Reads]] series, is first published.
In [[December]], the [[First Doctor]] and [[Steven Taylor]] visited [[Antarctica]]. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|White on White (short story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[The Condemned]]'' is first released.
* IDW, an American comic book company, launches a new original ''Doctor Who'' monthly comic book series. Written and edited by [[Gary Russell]], the six-issue series features the [[Tenth Doctor]] and [[Martha Jones]]. The storyline is untitled in the comic book, but is later given the title [[IDW]]: ''[[Agent Provocateur]]'' when IDW publishes a graphic novel edition of the storyline in the summer of 2008.
* [[4th February|4]] - [[TWA]]:''[[Everyone Says Hello]]'' and [[TWA]]:''[[Hidden]]'' are first released. These are the first made-for-audio adventures by [[BBC Audio]] to be based upon ''[[Torchwood]]''.
** Audio adaptations of [[DWN]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Brain of Morbius]]'' and [[DWN]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Space War]]'' are first released.
* [[6th February|6]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Meat]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[13th February|13]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Adam (Torchwood story)|Adam]]'' and [[TW]]: ''[[Reset (Torchwood story)|Reset]]'' are both first broadcast. In ''Reset'', [[Freema Agyeman]] crosses over and temporarily joins the series as [[Martha Jones]].
* [[20th February|20]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Dead Man Walking]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[27th February|27]] - [[TW]]: ''[[A Day in the Death]]'' is first broadcast.
===March===
<!--Moved Voyage of the Damned to 2000s as a result of inconsistent placement of both series 3 and 4.-->
* [[BFA]]: ''[[The Dark Husband]]'' is first released.
=== Undated ===
* [[ST]]: ''[[Short Trips: Defining Patterns]]'' is first published.
While some accounts placed the home era of Donna Noble where she reunited with the Doctor in 2008, ([[TV]]: {{cs|The Fires of Pompeii (TV story)}}, {{cs|The Waters of Mars (TV story)}}, [[AUDIO]]: {{cs|SOS (audio story)}}) other accounts placed it in [[2009]]. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Beautiful Chaos (novel)}})
* The [[BBC]] announced it was investigating technology to return colour to [[Third Doctor]] episodes only available in black and white.
* [[4th March|4]] - [[Russell T Davies]] begins writing the script for [[DW]]: ''[[The Next Doctor]]'', the fourth Christmas special.
* [[5th March|5]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Something Borrowed]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[6th March|6]] - [[TWN]]: ''[[The Twilight Streets]]'', [[TWN]]: ''[[Trace Memory]]'', and [[TWN]]: ''[[Something in the Water]]'' are first published.
* [[12th March|12]] - [[TW]]: ''[[From Out of the Rain]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[19th March|19]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Adrift]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[21st March|21]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Fragments]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[23rd March|23]] - Responding to criticism from his correspondent [[Benjamin Cook]], [[Russell T Davies]] agrees to change the ending of [[DW]]: ''[[Journey's End]]'', removing a planned cliffhanger that was going to lead into [[DW]]: ''[[The Next Doctor]]''.
* [[26th March|26]] - Final correspondence between [[Russell T Davies]] and [[Benjamin Cook]] in terms of material included in the first edition of the book ''[[The Writer's Tale]]''.
===Spring===
The Tenth Doctor participated in preventing a [[Graske]] causing mischief at a 2008 BBC Proms concert in [[London]]. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Music of the Spheres (TV story)}})
*For the third year in a row, episodes of ''Doctor Who'' receive nominations in the Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form category at the Hugo Awards. The 2008 "''Doctor Who'' universe" episode nominees are [[DW]]: ''[[Blink]]'' by [[Steven Moffat]] (making this his third consecutive Hugo nomination) and the [[DW]]: ''[[Human Nature (TV story)|Human Nature]]''/''[[The Family of Blood]]'' two-parter by [[Paul Cornell]], and the ''[[Torchwood]]'' episode [[TW]]: ''[[Captain Jack Harkness]]'' by [[Catherine Tregenna]].
A [[Fu Manchu's son|time-travelling individual]] from the [[Victorian era]] spent at least three months of every year in 2008, and would have spent more there had the [[British tax laws]] permitted. ([[PROSE]]: {{Cs|The Beasthouse (short story)|namedpart=An Introduction}})
* In the weeks preceding the debut of ''Doctor Who'' Series 4, the BBC releases a trailer to cinemas in Great Britain - a rarity for a television series. The trailer includes scenes from most episodes from the first half of the season (except [[DW]]: ''[[The Doctor's Daughter]]''), and also includes a clip from [[DW]]: ''[[Turn Left]]'' from near the end of the season. The incorporation of a clip of [[Billie Piper]] as [[Rose Tyler]] from ''Turn Left'' makes official that the character is returning in the new season.
* After nearly a decade of being available sporadically through comic shops, distribution of ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' in Canada is increased considerably, with the magazine now widely available in bookstores and magazine specialty shops, although issues are distributed in Canada 2 to 3 months after their UK publication dates.
===April===
According to one account,{{note|While ''Blink'' itself uncontroversially sets its main setting in [[2007]] and "twenty minutes to [[Red Hatching]]" a year later in 2008—as [[Kathy Nightingale]]'s letter describes taking "one breath in 2007 and the next in [[1920]]", and the [[Tenth Doctor]]'s side of his conversation with [[Sally Sparrow]] in [[1969]] happens 38 years before Sally says hers—these are contradicted by heavily conflicting dates in the ''[[Redacted (audio series)|Redacted]]'' audio series later on regarding both Kathy's disappearance and the Red Hatching. In ''[[Angels (audio story)|Angels]]'', [[Abby McPhail]] identifies 2008 as the year of Kathy's disappearance, which suggests [[2009]] as the year of the Red Hatching. In ''[[Salvation (audio story)|Salvation]]'', the [[Thirteenth Doctor]] recognises the Red Hatching as the cause of death of [[Andy Proctor]], who was last seen by his daughter [[Cleo Proctor|Cleo]] "nearly 20 years" before [[2022]] according to ''[[Recruits (audio story)|Recruits]]''.}} about twenty minutes before the [[Red Hatching]] in 2008 was when the Doctor met [[Sally Sparrow]], who gave him information he would need to escape when the [[Weeping Angel]]s sent him back to [[1969]]. After this, Sally began to open up to [[Larry Nightingale]]. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Blink (TV story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[The Haunting of Thomas Brewster]]'' is first released.
A company called Khrysalis set up operations in [[Stockbridge]], purportedly planning to build a leisure park in the quiet town. [[Maxwell Edison]] created the [[Stockbridge Preservation Society]] to protest this. ([[COMIC]]: {{cs|The Stockbridge Child (comic story)}})
* Early April - Review copies of the Fourth Season premiere, [[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'', are circulated to media. Unknown to the media, they have received an edited version of the episode, omitting the surprise cameo appearance by [[Billie Piper]] (a ruse acknowledged by [[Russell T Davies]] in later interviews and ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'').
* [[2nd April|2]] - Cast readthrough for [[DW]]: ''[[The Next Doctor]]''.
* [[4th April|4]] - [[TW]]: ''[[Exit Wounds]]'' is first broadcast, ending ''Torchwood's'' second series. [[Burn Gorman]] and [[Naoko Mori]] leave the series with this episode.
** ''[[Torchwood Declassified]]'' also ends its second season.
* [[5th April|5]] - [[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'' is first broadcast, launching the [[Series 4 (Doctor Who)|fourth season]] of the revived series. [[Catherine Tate]] rejoins the series full-time as companion [[Donna Noble]]. [[Billie Piper]] makes her first newly-filmed appearance in the series since [[DW]]: ''[[Doomsday]]'' in 2006; despite media leaks regarding her filming new episodes, her cameo in this particular episode is successfully kept a secret until initial broadcast.
** After the episode is broadcast, the first Series 4 episode of ''[[Doctor Who Confidential]]'' airs.
* [[7th April|07]] - Audio adaptations of [[DWN]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Creature from the Pit]]'' and [[DWN]]: ''[[The Myth Makers (novelisation)|Doctor Who - The Myth Makers]]'' are first released.
* [[9th April|09]] - Cast readthrough for [[SJA]]: ''[[Day of the Clown]]'' and [[SJA]]: ''[[Secrets of the Stars]]''
* [[12th April|12]] - [[DW]]: ''[[The Fires of Pompeii]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[18th April|18]] - The American Sci-Fi Channel ends its broadcasts of [[Series 3 (Doctor Who)|Series 3]] with [[DW]]: ''[[Voyage of the Damned]]''.
* [[19th April|19]] - [[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Ood]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[16th April|26]] - [[DW]]: ''[[The Sontaran Strategem]]'' is first broadcast. [[Freema Agyeman]] returns to the series (temporarily) as [[Martha Jones]], her first ''Doctor Who'' appearance since [[DW]]: ''[[Last of the Time Lords]]''. The [[Sontaran]]s appear for the first time since [[DW]]: ''[[The Two Doctors]]''.
===May===
The [[Seventh Doctor]] destroyed the [[The Forge|Forge]]'s alpha facility in [[Dartmoor]]. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|Project Lazarus (audio story)|Project: Lazarus}})
* [[NSA]]: ''[[Martha in the Mirror]]'', [[NSA]]: ''[[Snowglobe 7 (novel)|Snowglobe 7]]'', and [[NSA]]: ''[[The Many Hands]]'' are first published. Despite [[Donna Noble]] now being the current companion, BBC Books continues to feature [[Martha Jones]] as companion in the novels.
The [[Eighth Doctor]] and [[Lucie Miller]] visited London. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|Sisters of the Flame (audio story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[Assassin in the Limelight]]'' is first released.
* [[ST]]: ''[[Short Trips: The Quality of Leadership]]'' is first published.
* [[MB]]: ''[[Body Politic|Body Politics: The True History of Faction Paradox Volume 3]]'' is first released, more than two years after the previous episode.
* The BBC formally announces that [[Russell T Davies]] is to step down as executive producer of ''Doctor Who'' in 2009, to be succeeded by [[Steven Moffat]], approximately 20 months after Davies first approached Moffat with the idea (per ''[[The Writer's Tale]]'').
* The CBC in Canada announces it will air Series 4 of ''Doctor Who'' beginning in September, but will not be broadcasting the second series of ''Torchwood''.
* [[3rd May|3]] - [[DW]]: ''[[The Poison Sky]]'' is first broadcast. The episode includes a very brief cameo by [[Billie Piper]], lasting approximately one second in length (despite this brevity, she still receives screen credit). As with [[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'', advance review copies of the episode do not include this cameo. In an interview with ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'', [[Russell T Davies]] states that the decision to add Piper's cameo was made shortly before broadcast (the scene was shot for the upcoming episode [[DW]]: ''[[Midnight (TV story)|Midnight]]'').
** Production of Series 4 officially concludes with the filming of the mini-episode [[DW]]: ''[[Music of the Spheres]]''.
* [[8th May|8]] - [[BBCR]]: ''[[Pest Control]]'', the first original audio adventure by [[BBC Audio]], is released. Considered a spin-off of the [[BBC Books]] [[BBC New Series Adventures#Tenth Doctor|New Series Adventures]] line, this marks [[Donna Noble]]'s debut in such spin-off fiction and is the first officially licenced audio drama not to be produced by [[Big Finish Productions]] since the BBC Radio [[Jon Pertwee]] radio plays of the mid-1990s. Read by [[David Tennant]].
* [[10th May|10]] - [[DW]]: ''[[The Doctor's Daughter]]'' is first broadcast, introducing the character of [[Jenny]] played by [[Georgia Moffett]], who is the daughter of [[Fifth Doctor]] actor [[Peter Davison]], and who once auditioned for the role of [[Rose Tyler]]. [[Freema Agyeman]] departs for a second time after this episode.
* [[17th May|17]] - [[DW]]: ''[[The Unicorn and the Wasp]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[19th May|19]] - Cast readthrough for [[SJA]]: ''[[The Last Sontaran]] and [[SJA]]: ''[[The Mark of the Berserker]]
* [[31st May|31]] - [[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]'' is first broadcast, introducing the character of [[River Song]].
* Late May - the BBC releases a new television trailer promoting the final episodes of the fourth series.
===June===
[[Computer]]s achieved [[the Singularity]], demonstrated their sentience by proving [[P=NP]] and the [[Chess Equation]], and took over the world for three weeks. However, after [[Susan Moore (Holding Pattern)|Susan Moore]] and [[Adam (Holding Pattern)|Adam]] convinced them to refuse an alliance with [[alien]] computers from the [[future]], they deactivated their sentience and the normal course of [[history]] was restored. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Holding Pattern (Parkin short story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[The Death Collectors]]'' is first released.
Although intending to visit [[Brighton]] in [[1818]], the [[Fifth Doctor]] arrived in [[Hove]] in this year as [[The Doctor's TARDIS|the TARDIS]]'s [[lateral balance cones]] were offline. ([[AUDIO]]: {{cs|Cuddlesome (audio story)}})
* [[3rd June|3]] - it is reported that ''Torchwood'' will return for a third series, with production scheduled for the fall of 2008 and broadcast in the spring of 2009, with the series moving to [[BBC One]]. [[John Barrowman]] is confirmed as returning. Initially, only a single five-episode serial, to be broadcast during one week, is confirmed; it is subsequently confirmed that this will constitute the complete third series.
* [[7th June|7]] - [[DW]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead]]'' is first broadcast.
* [[12th June|12]] - Audio adaptations of [[DWN]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Auton Invasion]]'' and [[DWN]]: ''[[Black Orchid (novelisation)|Doctor Who - Black Orchid]]'' are first released.
** - Holding out until the last possible moment, the BBC finally announces the title of Episode 12 of Series 4 will be [[DW]]: ''[[The Stolen Earth]]''.
* [[14th June|14]] - [[DW]]: ''[[Midnight (TV story)|Midnight]]'' is first broadcast. Includes the third and last surprise cameo by [[Billie Piper]] prior to her proper return to the series. This is the first "companion-lite" episode of the series, as it is filmed simultaneously with the "Doctor-lite" episode [[TW]]: ''[[Turn Left]]''. [[David Troughton]], son of [[Patrick Troughton]], guest stars.
* Mid-June - American news media, including CNN, run profiles of [[Billie Piper]], in conjunction with the debut of her series, ''Secret Diary of a Call Girl'' in the US. Coincidentally this spike in US coverage coincides with the lead-up to her return to the series in [[DW]]: ''[[Turn Left]]'', although her involvement in ''Doctor Who'' is given only a passing mention.
** At the same time, it is reported that [[Christopher Eccleston]] has been cast as [[Amelia Earhart]]'s co-pilot in an upcoming film based on the ill-fated aviatrix's life, while [[John Barrowman]] makes Canadian headlines when he's named a judge for the Canadian edition of the UK talent contest series ''How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?'' for the [[CBC]] (Barrowman also serves as judge on the UK version).
* [[21st June|21]] - [[DW]]:''[[Turn Left]]'' is first broadcast, marking the official return of [[Billie Piper]] as [[Rose Tyler]] after her previous cameo appearances. This is the annual "Doctor-lite" episode.
* [[23rd June|23]] - Cast readthrough for [[SJA]]: ''[[The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith]]'' and [[SJA]]: ''[[Enemy of the Bane]]
* [[24th June|24]] - ''Doctor Who'' wins the Best International Series at the 34th Annual Saturn Awards, an American entertainment awards program. The category is a new one introduced this year, and nominees include ''[[Torchwood]]'', [[Steven Moffat]]'s ''Jekyll'' and ''Life on Mars'' (which stars [[John Simm|John "Mr Saxon" Simm]]).
* Late June - The Canadian cable network Space announces it has obtained the Canadian broadcast rights to Series 2 of ''Torchwood'' and will begin airing the series in August. Reportedly its timeslot will, in some parts of Canada, place it in direct competition with Series 4 of ''Doctor Who'' when the CBC begins airing it in September.
* Late June - Several UK media reports indicate that [[David Tennant]] is in negotiations to return to ''Doctor Who'' for the 2010 series, but no official announcement is forthcoming (leading to additional speculation in the wake of the cliffhanger of [[DW]]: ''[[The Stolen Earth]]'' a few weeks later, although it is known that he is to appear in the [[The Next Doctor|2008 Christmas special]] as photos of him shooting the special had leaked to the press months previous.
* [[28th June|28]] - [[DW]]: ''[[The Stolen Earth]]'' is first broadcast. This historic episode marks the first three-way crossover between ''Doctor Who'', ''Torchwood'' and ''The Sarah Jane Adventures''. Returning to ''Doctor Who'' are [[John Barrowman]], [[Elisabeth Sladen]], and [[Freema Agyeman]]. The episode receives an Appreciation Index (AI) rating of 91, the highest in the series' history and a feat considered rare if not unprecedented for a mainstream network series.[http://www.gallifreyone.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?id=EkEulFEyAFEfMhBlnv&tmpl=newsrss&style=feedstyle]
** ''Doctor Who'' wins the inaugural Best International Series category at the 34th Annual Saturn Awards, one of the first awards of an international scope that the franchise has received. The category is not repeated the following year, making this possibly a unique event for the awards.
* [[30th June|30]] - [[DWBIT]]: ''[[Beyond the Sea]]'' is first published.
===July===
In an attempt to [[suicide|take his own life]], [[Huw MacLean]] purposefully drove off the [[motorway]] with both [[Jackie MacLean|his wife]] and [[April MacLean|eight year old daughter]] in the [[car]]. Jackie was [[paralysed]] as a result, while April herself was not hurt. Huw went to [[prison]] for causing the [[car crash|crash]]. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Nightvisiting (TV story)}}, {{cs|Brave-ish Heart (TV story)}}, {{cs|Detained (TV story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[The Boy That Time Forgot]]'' is first released.
After over thirty years of production, the [[John Fuchas]] film adaptation of ''[[The True History of Planets]]'' was released. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Mad Dogs and Englishmen (novel)}})
* [[CC]]: ''[[Here There Be Monsters]]'' is first released, marking the first appearance of [[Carole Ann Ford]] as the "true universe" version of [[Susan Foreman]] since [[DW]]: ''[[The Five Doctors]]''.
* [[ST]]: ''[[Short Trips: Transmissions]]'' is first published.
* Early July - The week between the cliffhanger ending of [[DW]]: ''[[The Stolen Earth]]'' and the broadcast of [[DW]]: ''[[Journey's End]]'' is marked by some of the most intense media attention ''Doctor Who'' has ever seen, especially given the uncertainty over whether [[David Tennant]] is remaining with the series.[http://www.gallifreyone.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?id=EkEVEAlkuypAzYebbR]
* [[5th July|5]] - [[DW]]: ''[[Journey's End]]'' is first broadcast, bringing to a close the fourth series of the revived ''Doctor Who'' and it is the last episode to be produced by [[Phil Collinson]], the first of the revived series' original producers to depart. The episode features the one-time returns of [[Noel Clarke]], [[Camille Coduri]] and [[K-9]] to the series; [[Catherine Tate]] leaves the series as a regular with this episode. Like the previous season finales, the broadcast of ''Journey's End'' sparks a frenzy of Internet discussion, both pro and con. The episode features the greatest concentration of active companions (as opposed to illusions and images) in the series' history (not including the non-canonical [[DW]]: ''[[Dimensions in Time]]''). The episode is viewed by 10.57 million people and becomes the No. 1 program for the week -- the first time this has occurred for any episode in the 45-year history of ''Doctor Who'' -- despite competition from the Wimbledon finals; it also repeats the previous week's feat and scores an Appreciation Index figure of 91, again unheard of for both ''Doctor Who'' and for a mainstream television production.[http://www.gallifreyone.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?id=EkEVuFppyybCfstIhg&tmpl=newsrss&style=feedstyle][http://www.gallifreyone.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?id=EkEykpAEuAeSoAAghE&tmpl=newsrss&style=feedstyle]. The episode concludes with a teaser for the 2008 Christmas special, at the time of broadcast left untitled but later announced as [[DW]]: ''[[The Next Doctor]]''.
** Afterwards, the final Series 4 episode of ''[[Doctor Who Confidential]]'' is broadcast.
* [[6th July|6]] - [[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'' is broadcast on ABC in Australia.
* [[7th July|7]] - ''The Daily Mail'' reports that more than 2,500 people actually attempted to phone the Doctor's phone number as shown in [[DW]]: ''[[The Stolen Earth]]'', in hopes of hearing a special recorded message, but the number was in fact non-functional.[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1032510/Dial-doctor-2-500-Dr-Who-fans-try-ring-Time-Lords-mobile.html]
* [[11th July|11]] - The ''Telegraph'' reports on rumours of David Tennant stepping down from the role of the Doctor, with [[David Morrissey]], [[John Simm]], and [[Robert Carlyle]] cited as the book-maker's favorites to replace him, despite Morrissey scheduled to guest star in the 2008 Christmas special and Simm having already played [[The Master]] in Season 3. [[Julie Gardner]] confirms in the article that Tennant has made his decision as to whether he'll be staying on for the [[2010]] season, but she confirms that he will appear in all of the special episodes scheduled for [[2009]].[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2008/07/11/nosplit/bvtvwho11.xml] Despite this, wildcat Internet rumours persist that Morrissey will replace Tennant as early as the 2008 Christmas special, while some UK media report that Tennant has signed an agreement to stay with the series through Series 5 in 2010.
* [[12th July|12]] - ''Doctor Who'' sweeps the television categories at the second annual Constellation Awards, a Canadian award presented as part of the Polaris science fiction convention. [[David Tennant]] wins for best Male Performance in a Science Fiction Television episode for his work on the two-parter [[DW]] : ''[[Human Nature (TV story)|Human Nature]]''/''[[The Family of Blood]]''; [[Carey Mulligan]] wins the female equivalent for [[DW]]: ''[[Blink]]''; and the series itself wins for Best Science Fiction Television Series of 2007. ''Doctor Who'' is eligible for these awards thanks to its co-production arrangement with the [[CBC]].
* [[21st July|21]] - ''[[Time's Champion]]'' is first published. This is an unauthorized [[Sixth Doctor]] novel published for charity.
* [[23rd July|23]] - Copies of issue No. 397 of ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' come polybagged with randomly chosen original [[Target Books]] editions (from a selection of 27 books), giving the Target novelisations widespread exposure for the first time in years. The issue also includes a second surprise: when the polybag is removed, all text on the front cover (except around the UPC symbol) is revealed to be "BAD WOLF", including the title banner for the magazine itself! This is a tie-in with the ending of [[DW]]: ''[[Turn Left]]''.
** Publication of [[IDW]]: ''Doctor Who Classics Vol. 1'', a graphic novel-style release reprinting the first few issues of [[IDW]]: ''[[Doctor Who Classics]]'' by [[IDW Publishing]].
* [[27th July|27]] - The first Doctor Who Proms concert is held at Royal Albert Hall in London, featuring music from ''Doctor Who''. An interactive mini-episode, [[DW]]: ''[[Music of the Spheres]]'', is shown as part of this event, which is initially broadcast on [[BBC Radio]]. The concert is hosted by [[Freema Agyeman]], with [[Catherine Tate]] appearing to introduce a segment, as well. Singer [[Tim Phillips]], who performed "[[Song for Ten]]" in [[DW]]: ''[[The Christmas Invasion]]'', performs the extended version of the song introduced on the [[Doctor Who - Original Television Soundtrack|Series 1 & 2 soundtrack CD]]. [[Davros]], the [[Graske]] and other monsters make cameo appearances as well. As a tribute to the [[BBC Radiophonic Workshop]] and [[Delia Derbyshire]], ''Music of the Spheres'' ends with the original 1963 arrangement of the "[[Doctor Who theme]]". The BBC later announces that an edited version of the broadcast -- including ''Music of the Spheres'' -- will air on 1 January 2009.
===August===
[[Torchwood Three]] encountered a [[sentient element]] in [[Cardiff Bay]], which intended to reproduce itself by assimilating the chemical composition of all of [[Cardiff]] and its residents. This element was eventually reduced to [[water]] when the [[coastguard]] doused it with a petroleum-based bio-remedial agent. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Black Water (short story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[The Doomwood Curse]]'' is first released.
On another occasion, Torchwood Three recovered a [[Parasite|parasitic]], psychic [[Plant (Plant Life)|alien plant]] and stored it in their [[Hothouse (Torchwood Hub)|hothouse]]. [[Ianto Jones]] fell victim to the plant's psychic commands and began feeding it his own [[blood]]. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Plant Life (short story)}})
* [[CC]]: ''[[The Great Space Elevator]]'' is first released.
* [[BFBS]]: ''[[The Adolescence of Time]]'' is first released.
* [[1st August|1]] - The American Sci-Fi Channel broadcasts [[DW]]: ''[[Journey's End]]'' in a special 90-minute time slot, concluding its broadcasts of Series 4.
* [[8th August|8]] - Canadian premiere of ''[[Torchwood]]'' Series 2 on the [[Space (TV channel)|Space]] network.
* [[9th August|9]] - [[DW]]: ''[[Blink]]'', by [[Steven Moffat]], wins the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form. This is the third consecutive win for both Moffat and the series.
* [[14th August|14]] - Audio adaptations of [[DWN]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Dæmons]]'' and [[DWN]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Pyramids of Mars]]'' are first released.
* [[29th August|29]] - IDW Publishing issues [[IDW]]: ''[[Agent Provocateur]]'', a graphic novel compilation of the first six-issue storyline of its original ''Doctor Who'' monthly comic book, and ''Doctor Who Classics Vol. 1'', collecting the first several issues of reprints originally published by IDW as the monthly title [[IDW]]: ''[[Doctor Who Classics]].'' This edition features the run from [[DWM]]: ''[[The Iron Legion]]'' to [[DWM]]: ''[[The Star Beast]]''.
* [[IDW Publishing]] launches a second ''Doctor Who'' comic book mini-series, [[IDW]]: ''[[The Forgotten]]'', which will feature appearances by all 10 Doctors.
===Late summer===
According to some accounts, [[Aliens of London dating controversy|but not others]], 2008 was the year that [[Torchwood Three|Torchwood]] unfroze [[World War I]] soldier [[Tommy Brockless]] for the last time,{{note|Tommy was born in [[1894]] and was 114 when he returned to [[1918]].}} ([[TV]]: {{cs|To the Last Man (TV story)}}) and Gwen Cooper of Torchwood investigated the disappearance of [[Jonah Bevan]].{{note|Jonah was born in [[1993]] and would have been 15 when Gwen investigated him.}} ([[TV]]: {{cs|Adrift (TV story)}}) In [[1901]], a time-displaced Jack Harkness told his Torchwood teammates to freeze him to be awakened in 107 years' time to reach his brother [[Gray (Fragments)|Gray]]. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Exit Wounds (TV story)}})
*[[ITV]] announces that [[Freema Agyeman]] will star in ''Law & Order: London'', a spin-off of the American ''Law & Order'' franchise set to air in 2009. ''[[Torchwood]]'' writer [[Chris Chibnall]] is named the show's head writer, and other ''Torchwood'' alumni signed to write for the new series include [[James Moran]] and [[Catherine Tregenna]].
[[Toshiko Sato]] became temporary acting leader of Torchwood Three. This was in accordance with a manifesto written by [[Emily Holroyd]], which stated that in the absence of a leader the longest-serving member of a Torchwood team should take their place. After Torchwood recovered a [[Rehabilitator]] from [[Danny Dillard]], Tosh unofficially handed the role over to Gwen Cooper. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Kaleidoscope (short story)}})
===September===
A [[credit crunch of 2008|credit crunch]] occurred. ([[TV]]: {{cs|The Curse of Clyde Langer (TV story)}})
* [[NSA]]: ''[[Ghosts of India]]'', [[NSA]]: ''[[Shining Darkness]]'', and [[NSA]]: ''[[The Doctor Trap]]'' are first published. These are the first full-length novels featuring [[Donna Noble]] as companion.
In [[2323]], [[Dr]] [[Olivia Kagg Waldermein]] wrote of the "[[2005]]-2009 [[Russell T Davies (in-universe)|Davies]]-[[Julie Gardner (in-universe)|Gardner]] [[Doctor Who (in-universe)|account]]" of the "[[Last Lightbringer]]". ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|Love & War (short story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[Kingdom of Silver]]'' is first released.
* [[BFA]]: ''[[Time Reef]]'' is first released.
* [[CC]]: ''[[The Doll of Death]]'' is first released.
* [[ST]]: ''[[Short Trips: How the Doctor Changed My Life]]'' is first published.
* [[BFBS]]: ''[[The Adventure of the Diogenes Damsel]]'' is first released.
* Trailers for the second season of ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'' begin appearing in cinemas in the UK, following on from the introduction of cinema trailers for the parent series. The trailer includes specially shot footage of one of the characters addressing the audience.
* GE Fabbri begins test marketing a new multimedia publication called ''[[Doctor Who DVD Files]]'' in the northeast UK, in preparation for a British Isles roll-out of the publication beginning in January 2009.
* 10th anniversary of the release of the first ''Doctor Who''-related audio drama by [[Big Finish]], an adaptation of the [[Bernice Summerfield]] novel, [[BFBS]]: ''[[Oh No It Isn't! (audio drama)|Oh No it Isn't!]].
* [[10th September|10]] - The first ''[[Torchwood]]'' radio drama, [[TWA]]: ''[[Lost Souls]]'', is broadcast on [[BBC]] Radio 4. Although there have been exclusive-to-audio books released previously, this is the first full-cast audio drama based upon the series. The story is based upon the activation of the Large Hadron Collider, which was a real-life event that took place around the time of the broadcast. The current cast of the series reprises their TV roles, along with [[Freema Agyeman]] returning as [[Martha Jones]].
* [[11th September|11]] - Audio adaptation of [[DWN]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Green Death]]'' is first released.
* [[16th September|16]] - Release of ''[[Torchwood]]'' series 2 on standard DVD in the United States (Canadian release is delayed until November 11).
* [[18th September|18]] - [[BBC Audio]] releases the ''Torchwood'' radio play [[TWA]]: ''[[Lost Souls]]'' on CD and for download. The CD version includes a documentary featurette, ''[[Torchwood: All Access]]''.
* [[19th September|19]] - Belated broadcast of Series 4 begins on the [[CBC]] in Canada. The CBC begins the season with [[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'', omitting [[DW]]: ''[[Voyage of the Damned]]'' and, as a result, leaving the Series 3 cliffhanger unresolved for Canadian viewers. In some parts of Canada the broadcasts overlap that of ''Torchwood'' on [[Space (TV channel)|Space Channel]].
* [[20th September|20]] - ''Merlin'' debuts on [[BBC One]]. The popular series shares numerous behind-the-scenes personnel with ''Doctor Who'' as it is also a BBC Wales production. The Mill, which provides special effects for ''Doctor Who'' and ''Torchwood'', also provides SFX for the series. [[Colin Morgan]], who guest-starred in [[DW]]: ''[[Midnight (TV story)|Midnight]]'', plays the lead role. [[Eve Myles]] plays a villain in one episode, while [[Michelle Ryan]] has a recurring role as a villain.
* [[23rd September|23]] - a [[BBC]] press release announces the title of the 2008 Christmas special: [[DW]]: ''[[The Next Doctor]]'', renewing fan speculation regarding [[David Tennant]]'s future with the series into 2009.
* [[25th September|25]] - publication of the first edition of ''[[Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale]]'', a collection of e-mails between [[Russell T Davies]] and [[Benjamin Cook]] between February 2007 and March 2008 discussing the production of Series 4.
* [[29th September|29]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[The Last Sontaran]]'' parts 1 and 2 are first broadcast, launching [[Series 2 (The Sarah Jane Adventures)|Series 2]] of ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]''. The story is a follow-up to [[DW]]: ''[[The Sontaran Strategem]]''/''[[The Poison Sky]]''.
* [[30th September|30]] - [[BFA]]: ''[[The Ultimate Adventure (audio release)|Doctor Who: the Stageplays - The Ultimate Adventure]]'' is first released. This is the first in a series of [[Big Finish]] audio productions adapting ''Doctor Who''-based stage plays, in this case the [[Colin Baker]] version of [[SP]]: ''[[The Ultimate Adventure]]''.
===October===
<!--Adventures of Sarah Jane Smith and her friends moved to 2000s due to an absence of a clear setting of SJA series 1 and 2-->
* [[BFA]]: ''[[Brotherhood of the Daleks]]'' is first released.
=== Other timelines ===
* [[CC]]: ''[[Empathy Games]]'' is first released.
==== Donna's world ====
* ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' publishes its 400th issue, cover-dated 15 October but available in stores as early as 1 October. This issue features the start of the comic strip, [[DWM]]: ''[[Thinktwice]]'' which introduces [[Majenta Pryce]] as the Doctor's new comic-strip companion; this is the first time since the departure of [[Destrii]] in 2005's [[DWM]]: ''[[The Flood]]'' that the DWM strip has introduced an original companion.
[[File:London destroyed.jpg|thumb|right|London is destroyed. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Turn Left (TV story)}})]]
* [[IDW Publishing]] launches its fourth ''Dpctor Who'' comic book title, [[IDW]]: ''[[Grant Morrison's Doctor Who]]'', reprinting 1980s-era ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' strips by [[Grant Morrison]].
In the spring or summer, the Judoon defeated Florence Finnegan; all but one of the people inside Royal Hope Hospital, which was taken to the Moon, died of asphyxiation, including Sarah Jane Smith and Martha Jones. Luke Smith and Maria Jackson were also reported missing. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Turn Left (TV story)}})
* [[6th October|6]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[The Day of the Clown]]'' part 1 is first broadcast.
* [[7th October|7]] - Release of Series 1 of ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'' to DVD in North America. This predates the UK release of the series.
* [[9th October|9]] - [[BBCR]]:''[[The Forever Trap]]'', the second exclusive-to-audio ''Doctor Who'' story by [[BBC Audio]]/[[BBC Books]] is first released. Read by [[Catherine Tate]].
* [[13th October|13]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[The Day of the Clown]]'' part 2 is first broadcast.
* [[20th October|20]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[Secrets of the Stars]]'' part 1 is first broadcast.
* [[24th October|24]] - ''[[Torchwood]]'' Series 2 concludes in Canada.
* [[27th October|27]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[Secrets of the Stars]]'' part 2 is first broadcast.
** [[TWN]]: ''[[Almost Perfect]]'', [[TWN]]: ''[[Pack Animals]]'', and [[TWN]]: ''[[SkyPoint]]'' are first published. ''Pack Animals'' and ''SkyPoint'' are the last novels to feature [[Owen Harper]] and [[Toshiko Sato]] as the series moves into post-Series 2 continuity with ''Almost Perfect''.
* [[29th October|29]] - [[David Tennant]] and the BBC announce that Tennant will be leaving ''Doctor Who'' following production of the "gap season" specials in 2009. Tennant makes the announcement on live TV when he accepts the National Television Award for Outstanding Drama Performance. The series also wins Most Popular Drama. Tennant's announcement is made hours after ''The Guardian'' breaks the news first on its website. The announcement sparks a period of intense fan and media speculation as to who will be chosen to portray the Eleventh Doctor. Speculated names range from well-known to obscure actors, and also includes both caucasian and black candidates, as well as a revival of speculation about a female actor being cast, an idea that dates back to the 1970s.
* [[30th October|30]] - [[BFA]]: ''[[The Seven Keys to Doomsday (audio release)|Doctor Who: the Stageplays - The Seven Keys to Doomsday]]'' is first released, adapting [[SP]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Daleks in The Seven Keys to Doomsday]]'' and returning [[Trevor Martin]] to the role of the Doctor.
* [[31st October|31]] - [[BFBS]]: ''[[The Diet of Worms]]'' is first released.
===November===
On [[25 December]], while Donna Noble, [[Sylvia Noble|her mother]] and her grandfather holidayed in the English countryside, the alien spaceship ''Titanic'' crashed into London, destroying the city and contaminating most of southern England with radioactivity. ([[TV]]: {{cs|Turn Left (TV story)}})
* [[BFA]]: ''[[Forty-Five]]'' is first released. The title is a reference to ''Doctor Who's'' 45th anniversary.
<!--Adventures of Sarah Jane Smith and her friends moved to 2000s due to an absence of a clear setting of SJA series 1 and 2-->
* [[CC]]: ''[[Home Truths]]'' is first released.
* [[MB]]: ''[[Words from Nine Divinities: The True History of Faction Paradox Volume 5]]'' is first released.
* [[3rd November|3]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[The Mark of the Berserker]]'' part 1 is first broadcast.
** [[SJAN]]: ''[[The Lost Boy (novelisation)|The Lost Boy]]'' and [[SJAN]]: ''[[Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? (novelisation)|Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?]]'' are first published; the complete first series of ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'' has now been novelised.
* [[5th November|05]]: [[SJAN]]: ''[[The Last Sontaran (novelisation)|The Last Sontaran]]'' and [[SJAN]]: ''[[The Day of the Clown (novelisation)|The Day of the Clown]]'' are first published.
* [[10th November|10]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[The Mark of the Berserker]]'' part 2 is first broadcast.
* [[11th November|11]] - Release of ''[[Torchwood]]'' Season 1 on high-definition Blu-Ray in North America, the first ''Doctor Who''-related release in this format. Also, delayed release of ''Torchwood'' Season 2 on DVD in Canada (release delayed due to the season still being transmitted by a Canadian network at the time of North American release).
* [[13th November|13]] - [[SJAA]]:''[[The Time Capsule]]'' is first released by [[BBC Audio]].
** Audio adaptation of [[DWN]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Time Warrior]]'' is first released.
** [[REF]]: ''[[Doctor Who: The Time Traveller's Almanac]]'' is first published.
* [[14th November|14]] - The opening pre-credits sequence of the upcoming Christmas special [[DW]]: ''[[The Next Doctor]]'' is broadcast as part of the BBC's annual Children in Need Appeal. Other than brief snippets seen in a previously released trailer, this showing marks the first broadcast of footage of [[David Morrissey]] as "[[Jackson Lake|The Other Doctor]]" and [[Velile Tshabalala]] as [[Rosita]], as well as a possible new form of [[Cybus Cybermen|Cyberman]].
* [[17th November|17]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith]]'' part 1 is first broadcast.
* [[18th November|18]] - North American release of the Series 4 DVD box set and [[DW]]: ''[[The Infinite Quest]]'' (a full year after the UK release in the case of the latter). As ''The Infinite Quest'' was never broadcast in North America, this marks the first time that a Doctor Who serial has been released to DVD in North America without it first having been broadcast there (discounting prior releases of incomplete and restored serials from the 1960s). Series 4 is released in Canada even though the CBC is only midway through its broadcast of the season.
* [[23rd November|23]] - '''45th anniversary of the first broadcast of ''Doctor Who''.'''
* [[24th November|24]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith]]'' part 2 is first broadcast.
* [[25th November|25]] - The BBC announces that ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'' has been renewed for a third season, scheduled for broadcast in the fall of 2009.
* [[30th November|30]] - [[BFA]]: ''[[The Curse of the Daleks (audio release)|Doctor Who: The Stageplays - The Curse of the Daleks]]'' is first released, the third and last in a series of audio adaptations of ''Doctor Who''-based stage plays by [[Big Finish]], adapting [[SP]]: ''[[The Curse of the Daleks]]''.
===December===
== Births and deaths ==
[[Ed Gold]], later a member of the crew of [[Bowie Base One]], was born in [[Australia]]. ([[TV]]: {{cs|The Waters of Mars (TV story)}})
* [[NSA]]: ''[[Beautiful Chaos]]'', [[NSA]]: ''[[The Eyeless]]'' and [[NSA]]: ''[[The Story of Martha]] '' are first published. ''The Eyeless'' is the first New Series Adventures release in which the Doctor travels without a companion; ''The Story of Martha'' is an anthology focusing on the activities of [[Martha Jones]] during the [[Year That Never Was]] between [[DW]]: ''[[The Sound of Drums]]'' and [[DW]]: ''[[Last of the Time Lords]]'' and is the first New Adventures release to tie in directly with a televised story in this fashion. ''Beautiful Chaos'' is the final novel to date to feature [[Donna Noble]].
== Behind the scenes ==
* [[BFA]]: ''[[The Raincloud Man]]'' is first released.
Though the ''[[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]]'' television stories ''[[Fragments (TV story)|Fragments]]'' and ''[[Exit Wounds (TV story)|Exit Wounds]]'' have an apparent 2008 setting going by [[Jack Harkness]]'s dialogue in ''Exit Wounds'', this is complicated by mentions of [[Owen Harper]]'s early employment with [[Torchwood Three|Torchwood]] from both of these stories. While ''Exit Wounds'' explicitly states that [[Toshiko Sato]]'s examination of the [[space pig]] from the ''[[Doctor Who (TV series)|Doctor Who]]'' television story {{cs|Aliens of London (TV story)}}, a story set [[2006|a year after 2005]], happened on Owen's second week, a caption in ''Fragments'' places Owen's recruitment four years before those stories. This appears to put ''Fragments'' and ''Exit Wounds'' in [[2010]] instead.
* [[CC]]: ''[[The Darkening Eye]]'' is first released.
* [[ST]]: ''[[Short Trips: Christmas Around the World]]'' is first published.
* [[Julie Gardner]] and other ''Doctor Who'' production team members travel to Dubai, UAE, to scout locations for [[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]''.
* [[IDW Publishing]] launches [[IDW]]: ''[[Doctor Who Classics|Doctor Who Classics Series 2]]'', continuing its reprints of [[Fourth Doctor]]-era comic strips from ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]''.
* [[1st December|1]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[Enemy of the Bane]]'' part 1 is first broadcast. First television appearance of [[Nicholas Courtney]] as Brigadier [[Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart]] since 1989's [[DW]]: ''[[Battlefield]]''.
* [[8th December|8]] - [[SJA]]: ''[[Enemy of the Bane]]'' part 2 is first broadcast, concluding the second season of ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]''.
** According to BBC News, a "long-standing back injury" forces [[David Tennant]] to miss several performances of ''Hamlet'' at London's Novello Theatre. Ultimately, Tennant undergoes back surgery.
* [[12th December|12]] - Broadcast of [[DW]]: ''[[Journey's End]]'' on the [[CBC]] in Canada, concluding its broadcasts of Series 4. The network chooses to extensively edit the episode down to approximately 44 minutes in order to fit a standard 60-minute time slot, with commercials, raising the ire of many Canadian fans who afterward flood the CBC's website with complaints. The season ends with no plans by the CBC to broadcast [[DW]]: ''[[Voyage of the Damned]]'' or [[DW]]: ''[[The Next Doctor]]'', making them as of January 2009 the only episodes of the revived ''Doctor Who'' to not be broadcast in Canada.
* [[24th December|24]] - A little-known actor named [[Matt Smith]] attends a secret photo shoot; so secret, in fact, that the hairstylist and photographer are not informed what it's for. Later, an image of the [[Doctor's TARDIS|TARDIS]] would be digitally added to the photos, which would be issued on 3 January 2009 to announce Smith as the 11th actor to play [[Eleventh Doctor|the Doctor]].[http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/2009/01/05/betting-row-as-unknown-matt-smith-becomes-new-doctor-who-115875-21016988/]
* [[25th December|25]] - [[DW]]: ''[[The Next Doctor]]'', the fourth ''Doctor Who'' Christmas special, is first broadcast. This is considered the last episode of Series 4 before four special episodes planned over the next year in lieu of a full season of ''Doctor Who'', which is scheduled to return to a full 13-week season in 2010. This is the first story since [[DW]]: ''[[The Deadly Assassin]]'' in which the Doctor does not share an adventure with a clearly defined companion (even in a one-off manner). The title of the first special, [[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]'', is unveiled during the closing credits. The episode is notable for including a sequence in which the nine actors who played the Doctor prior to Tennant are shown; in some cases, such as [[William Hartnell]] and [[Patrick Troughton]], this marks the first on-screen appearance of their Doctors in more than two decades.
** An edition of ''[[Doctor Who Confidential]]'' follows the broadcast.
* [[29th December|29]] - Publication of [[IDW]]: ''Doctor Who Classics Vol. 2'', a graphic novel-style release reprinting issues of [[IDW]]: ''[[Doctor Who Classics]]'' by [[IDW Publishing]].
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Page 120 of ''[[The Secret Lives of Monsters (short story)|The Secret Lives of Monsters]]'' gives [[Sunday]] [[4 June]] as the date of the events of {{cs|Smith and Jones (TV story)}} and the [[Royal Hope incident]]. However, it does not specify 2007 or 2008 as a current year. On top of this, the first two Sunday 4 Junes after 2004 (page 119 places the incident over 30 years after 1974) are in 2006 and 2017.
In March, Nick broke up with Lucy. (TV: Eve of the Daleks[+]Loading...["Eve of the Daleks (TV story)"])
According to one account, a UNIT mission log placed March 2008 as the time that moon rocks were found at Royal Hope Hospital. (AUDIO: Recruits[+]Loading...{"minute":"10","second":"10","1":"Recruits (audio story)"}) Other accounts placed Martha Jones' activity around this time in about 18-23 June2007, (PROSE: The Paradox Moon[+]Loading...{"page":"387","ed":"2021 paperback","1":"The Paradox Moon (short story)"}) or 4-9 June in an unspecified year. (PROSE: The Secret Lives of Monsters[+]Loading...{"page":"120","1":"The Secret Lives of Monsters (short story)"}) [nb 1]
In April, (PROSE: Amy Pond: The Girl Who Waited![+]Loading...["Amy Pond: The Girl Who Waited! (feature)"]) the Eleventh Doctor met Amy Pond in Leadworth after twelve years of waiting. A Multi-form called Prisoner Zero, who had escaped through the crack in Amy's wall, attacked. The Atraxi arrived, threatening the destruction of Earth if Prisoner Zero did not surrender. The Doctor created a computer virus for the Atraxi to track back to its source in Leadworth (spread by Jeff). The Doctor also transmitted Prisoner Zero's disguises to the Atraxi so it couldn't hide in the bodies it had been disguised as. It then took the form of Amy; the Doctor made Amy think of Prisoner Zero's original form. Now in plain sight, Prisoner Zero was captured by the Atraxi, who left. The Doctor took a test drive of his refurbished TARDIS, only returning two years later. (TV: The Eleventh Hour[+]Loading...["The Eleventh Hour (TV story)"])
In October, Majenta Pryce opened the Hotel Historia in London. After Tony won the lottery, he was contacted by Pryce and given a chance to stay at the Hotel Historia. One of the years that Tony visited using the hotel's time travel capabilities was 4039, a time when London was being invaded by the Graxnix. The Tenth Doctor followed Tony back to 2008 from 4039 and the Doctor was followed by the Graxnix. The Doctor found Pryce and scolded her for using a potentially dangerous Chronexus 3000 to achieve time travel. When the Graxnix began attacking guests and staff at the hotel, the Doctor used the Chronexus to send them back to 4039 and then contacted the Cosmic Bailiffs, who shut down the hotel and arrested Pryce. (COMIC: Hotel Historia[+]Loading...["Hotel Historia (comic story)"])
While some accounts placed the home era of Donna Noble where she reunited with the Doctor in 2008, (TV: The Fires of Pompeii[+]Loading...["The Fires of Pompeii (TV story)"], The Waters of Mars[+]Loading...["The Waters of Mars (TV story)"], AUDIO: SOS[+]Loading...["SOS (audio story)"]) other accounts placed it in 2009. (PROSE: Beautiful Chaos[+]Loading...["Beautiful Chaos (novel)"])
The Tenth Doctor participated in preventing a Graske causing mischief at a 2008 BBC Proms concert in London. (TV: Music of the Spheres[+]Loading...["Music of the Spheres (TV story)"])
According to one account,[nb 2] about twenty minutes before the Red Hatching in 2008 was when the Doctor met Sally Sparrow, who gave him information he would need to escape when the Weeping Angels sent him back to 1969. After this, Sally began to open up to Larry Nightingale. (TV: Blink[+]Loading...["Blink (TV story)"])
Computers achieved the Singularity, demonstrated their sentience by proving P=NP and the Chess Equation, and took over the world for three weeks. However, after Susan Moore and Adam convinced them to refuse an alliance with alien computers from the future, they deactivated their sentience and the normal course of history was restored. (PROSE: Holding Pattern[+]Loading...["Holding Pattern (Parkin short story)"])
Torchwood Three encountered a sentient element in Cardiff Bay, which intended to reproduce itself by assimilating the chemical composition of all of Cardiff and its residents. This element was eventually reduced to water when the coastguard doused it with a petroleum-based bio-remedial agent. (PROSE: Black Water[+]Loading...["Black Water (short story)"])
On another occasion, Torchwood Three recovered a parasitic, psychic alien plant and stored it in their hothouse. Ianto Jones fell victim to the plant's psychic commands and began feeding it his own blood. (PROSE: Plant Life[+]Loading...["Plant Life (short story)"])
According to some accounts, but not others, 2008 was the year that Torchwood unfroze World War I soldier Tommy Brockless for the last time,[nb 3] (TV: To the Last Man[+]Loading...["To the Last Man (TV story)"]) and Gwen Cooper of Torchwood investigated the disappearance of Jonah Bevan.[nb 4] (TV: Adrift[+]Loading...["Adrift (TV story)"]) In 1901, a time-displaced Jack Harkness told his Torchwood teammates to freeze him to be awakened in 107 years' time to reach his brother Gray. (TV: Exit Wounds[+]Loading...["Exit Wounds (TV story)"])
Toshiko Sato became temporary acting leader of Torchwood Three. This was in accordance with a manifesto written by Emily Holroyd, which stated that in the absence of a leader the longest-serving member of a Torchwood team should take their place. After Torchwood recovered a Rehabilitator from Danny Dillard, Tosh unofficially handed the role over to Gwen Cooper. (PROSE: Kaleidoscope[+]Loading...["Kaleidoscope (short story)"])
London is destroyed. (TV: Turn Left[+]Loading...["Turn Left (TV story)"])
In the spring or summer, the Judoon defeated Florence Finnegan; all but one of the people inside Royal Hope Hospital, which was taken to the Moon, died of asphyxiation, including Sarah Jane Smith and Martha Jones. Luke Smith and Maria Jackson were also reported missing. (TV: Turn Left[+]Loading...["Turn Left (TV story)"])
On 25 December, while Donna Noble, her mother and her grandfather holidayed in the English countryside, the alien spaceship Titanic crashed into London, destroying the city and contaminating most of southern England with radioactivity. (TV: Turn Left[+]Loading...["Turn Left (TV story)"])
Though the Torchwood television stories Fragments and Exit Wounds have an apparent 2008 setting going by Jack Harkness's dialogue in Exit Wounds, this is complicated by mentions of Owen Harper's early employment with Torchwood from both of these stories. While Exit Wounds explicitly states that Toshiko Sato's examination of the space pig from the Doctor Who television story Aliens of London[+]Loading...["Aliens of London (TV story)"], a story set a year after 2005, happened on Owen's second week, a caption in Fragments places Owen's recruitment four years before those stories. This appears to put Fragments and Exit Wounds in 2010 instead.
Page 120 of The Secret Lives of Monsters gives Sunday4 June as the date of the events of Smith and Jones[+]Loading...["Smith and Jones (TV story)"] and the Royal Hope incident. However, it does not specify 2007 or 2008 as a current year. On top of this, the first two Sunday 4 Junes after 2004 (page 119 places the incident over 30 years after 1974) are in 2006 and 2017.
↑While Blink itself uncontroversially sets its main setting in 2007 and "twenty minutes to Red Hatching" a year later in 2008—as Kathy Nightingale's letter describes taking "one breath in 2007 and the next in 1920", and the Tenth Doctor's side of his conversation with Sally Sparrow in 1969 happens 38 years before Sally says hers—these are contradicted by heavily conflicting dates in the Redacted audio series later on regarding both Kathy's disappearance and the Red Hatching. In Angels, Abby McPhail identifies 2008 as the year of Kathy's disappearance, which suggests 2009 as the year of the Red Hatching. In Salvation, the Thirteenth Doctor recognises the Red Hatching as the cause of death of Andy Proctor, who was last seen by his daughter Cleo "nearly 20 years" before 2022 according to Recruits.
↑Tommy was born in 1894 and was 114 when he returned to 1918.
↑Jonah was born in 1993 and would have been 15 when Gwen investigated him.
