Doctor Who - Series 8 Begins Filming

Well, the Matt Smith era is well and truly over for Doctor Who and after two brief appearances in The Day Of the Doctor and The Time Of The Doctor, Peter Capaldi has begun filming for his first series as the Twelfth Doctor, along with Jenna Coleman reprising her role as Clara Oswald.

The first picture of the Twelfth Doctor and Clara together and it seems that the first episode, written by Steven Moffat is also the first one to be filmed. This means we're going to have to wait another while to actually see Capaldi's costume but we do know that the first block will contained the first two episodes (the second one penned by Phil Ford, who has previously co-scribed, The Waters Of Mars as well as The Sarah Jane Adventures) directed by Ben Wheatley.

The first episode of the upcoming eighth series will also feature the return of the Paternoster Gang. Seen on set yesterday were Neve McIntosh (Madame Vastra), Catrin Stewart (Jenny Flint) and Dan Starkey (Strax) and it seems that the three characters not only will be assisting the Doctor and Clara during the former's transition into his current incarnation but they've also got some weapons of their own. Weapons that include a sonic hat pin, a gauntlet and a Lorgnette as well. Of course, they're not the only returning characters for Capaldi's debut episode either.

It's been heavily rumoured that the Clockwork Droids, last seen in the second series story The Girl In The Fireplace are appearing in this episode. I'm not sure if they've got a major role (though I am assuming they do) but they're an interesting antagonist to reuse again though if it's true they're coming back. Other confirmed rumours for the upcoming eighth year are that the series will have no split, that writers such as Neil Cross, Gareth Roberts and Mark Gatiss will be penning upcoming episodes and other directors also include Douglas McKinnon and Paul Murphy. The producers for this series also include Brian Minchin, Nikki Wilson and Peter Bennett, who previously worked on the show when Russell T. Davies was in charge. So far, looks like we've got an exciting debut series for the Twelfth Doctor in our midst.

Series 8 Press Release: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/doctorwho/articles/Peter-Capaldi-begins-filming-on-Doctor-Who
Series 8 Filming Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/54169297@N04/sets/72157639520716354/

Series 8 of Doctor Who is currently being filmed and is expected to air on BBC1 around August/September 2014.