Sad news to end the week on, as it has been announced that the designer Raymond Cusick has passed away at the age of 84, after a short illness. His creation of the Daleks proved to be both a blessing and a curse for him. Worldwide acknowledgement but little financial gain. He was happy to be interviewed about them, but I'm sure he would have loved to talk more about some of his other work. It's tragic that he won't be around to help us celebrate the birth of the programme this Autumn, but his creations will be around forever.
The week began with more bad news, as it was announced that the actor Richard Briers had died at the age of 79. He played the Chief Caretaker in Paradise Towers, and the reclusive millionaire Henry Parker in the Torchwood story A Day In The Death. His wife of 57 years, Ann Davies, played Jenny in The Dalek Invasion of Earth and was a close friend of Jacqueline Hill up to her untimely death.
On to happier news, more has been revealed about An Adventure In Space And Time. Mark Gatiss' fellow League of Gentleman star, Reece Shearsmith, has been cast as Patrick Troughton - so the scope of the drama goes well beyond the origins of the programme. It will be interesting to see what other moments from the series are going to be recreated. Might we get Tenth Planet Cybermen? Nick Briggs is due to play original Dalek voice-man Peter Hawkins, and Dodo actress Jackie Lane is going to be played by Sophie Holt. No news yet on who is playing Peter Purves or Maureen O'Brien, who both feature. If Troughton is appearing, we should also have Michael Craze and Anneke Wills represented.
As for the week ahead, I am going to post on The Sea Devils tomorrow, then I am away from the computer for a few days. Normal service will resume on Saturday 2nd March. Look out for the Special Edition DVD of The Ark In Space tomorrow.
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