Sci-Fi

Supernatural drama Being Human returns to BBC Three in the very near future with a fourth series that features a shocking amount of changes, both on and offscreen. (Not to fret, American audiences, we can also freak out about these shifts ourselves very shortly, as Being Human will premiere on BBC America on February 25th). As a public service, all discussion about these changes will stay below the fold to protect those that might not want to know anything at all about the new series. (Though I doubt even the most stringent spoilerphobe has managed to avoid some of this news – better safe than sorry!)

So, click on through to get a first look at the brand new trailer for Series 4 and dish on some of the big changes headed our way.

Fantasy drama Merlin just aired its fourth series finale over the weekend in the UK, but American audiences won’t have to wait very long to see it for themselves. Merlin Series 4 is set to debut here in the States on Syfy this January.

Extra good news for Merlin fans: the show will be returning for a Series 5, though no word yet on when that will air on either side of the pond.

You can watch a full preview for the new series under the fold, as well as a sneak peek clip from season premiere, “The Darkest Hour”. Merlin returns to Syfy starting January 6!

BBC America’s latest addition to their Supernatural Saturday lineup will be fantasy/horror drama The Fades, premiering on Saturday, January 14 at 9pm.

Penned by Skins writer Jack Thorne, The Fades centers on a 17-year-old boy named Paul, who is haunted by apocalyptic dreams no one can explain. Unfortunately, it turns out the Paul’s visions are actually real, and he finds himself caught in a battle between the living and the undead. These undead are the titular “Fades,” or the dead who, for whatever reason, are trapped on earth and unable to pass on.

Iain De Caestecker stars as Paul, and he’s joined by Skins’ Lily Loveless, The Tudors’ Natalie Dormer, Daniel Kaluuya, Johnny Harris and more.

The BBC Three property has gotten strong buzz in the UK, and if you like Being Human, Misfits, or Skins, you’ll probably want to give this a look when it lands here.

Click through to watch BBC America's first trailer for the supernatural thriller.

Steven Moffat has dropped several informational bombshells about the next series of Doctor Who during various promotional interviews and activities focused on the upcoming Christmas special. Obviously spoilers abound in this post – huge, honking spoilers – for the upcoming season of Who, so if you don’t want to know anything then absolutely please don’t click through the cut! (It's likely that some - probably a lot - of you have seen some of these already given that one's been plastered on just about every news outlet possible for the past couple of days, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.)

The BBC has released a special prequel video for the upcoming Doctor Who Christmas special. Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor finds himself in a bit of a tight spot on an adventure and phones a friend. And, of course, well, we all wonder how the little mini-cliffhanger will resolve itself.

The Who Christmas special will air on Christmas Day on both BBC One and BBC America. If you need more goodies from this episode, Digital Spy has a great gallery of photos from "The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe" available here.

Source: BBC America

On November 23, 1963 at 5:16pm, Doctor Who premiered on the BBC, starring William Hartnell as the very first Doctor in “The Unearthly Child.” With nary a Dalek in sight, mind, as those weren’t introduced to the series until a little bit later on. (I actually meant this post to go up right at 5:16. Missed it by that much.)

Forty-eight years later, the series is the longest-running science fiction television show in the world, according to the Guiness Book of World Records, and arguably is more popular now than it has ever been, on the Eleventh incarnation of the Doctor.

Want more Who trivia today? This list of 48 Facts for the 48th Anniversary over at the Radio Times is pretty fantastic. And if you’re feeling really nostalgic you can watch classic clips and a great many of the Doctor’s regenerations at the official BBC site. How many of you are big Who fans? And who’s “your” Doctor?

As part of the BBC’s Children in Need annual charity telethon in the UK tonight, Doctor Who offered a special mini-sketch, as well as the first trailer for the series’ upcoming Christmas special, titled “The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe.”

Thanks to the lovely folks over at Doctor Who TV, click through to watch the special Children in Need segment that sees the Doctor offering to sell the clothes off his back, then catch the first preview for the Christmas special, which should air on BBC America here in the States sometime in December.