It Ain’t Broke, So Don’t Fix It: Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor Keeps Matt Smith’s Screwdriver...And Leaked Photos Reveal a New Monster

Photographs (and a short video) have appeared online which apparently show that new ‘Doctor Who’ star Peter Capaldi will not have an updated sonic screwdriver for the latest series of the show (at least, not until episode 4, anyway)…The pictures also teased fans with images of a terrifying new monster.

The sonic screwdriver, a fictional piece of technology cherished by fans of the long-running British science fiction series, first appeared in the (now lost) 1968 story ‘Fury From the Deep’, starring Patrick Troughton as the eponymous Second Doctor.

Since that time, the screwdriver has been redesigned on numerous occasions. The first major screwdriver re-design occurred during the tenure of the Third Doctor (as played by Jon Pertwee).

Matt Smith, who portrayed the eleventh incarnation of the character from 2010 – 2013, received a brand new version of the device in his debut story ‘The Eleventh Hour’ in 2010. Prior to this, Tenth Doctor David Tennant and Ninth Doctor Christopher Eccleston had shared the same basic screwdriver design in their adventures. It is the Matt Smith-era version of the device that Capaldi appears to be using in the photographs/film.

The scenes being filmed in the photos apparently belonged to episode 3 of the newest series and were being shot by veteran ‘Casualty’, ‘Brookside’ and ‘Hollyoaks’ director Paul Murphy. The majority of the footage appears to feature multiple takes of Capaldi checking the screwdriver before anxiously running down a small alleyway.

…They also hinted at the introduction of a chilling new villain.

The un-named monster appears to be some sort of robot, with an angular, insectoid head and two glowing blue eyes. It seems to be a completely new character, although it is possibly a radical revision of an existing one. Only the head can be seen in the video, but it is enough to have fans speculating already.

Scottish actor Peter Capaldi was officially named as the casting choice for the Twelfth Doctor in August of last year and put in a cameo in the 50^th anniversary special ‘The Day of The Doctor’, before making his debut in full during the Christmas special episode ‘The Time of The Doctor’.

The upcoming series (series 8 of the revived show) will feature Capaldi’s first full episodes in the role.

SOURCES

http://www.doctorwhotv.co.uk/series-8-filming-capaldis-sonic-new-monster-62005.htm