The BBC plans to offer a video-rich red-button interactive TV application, dubbed "Attack of the Graske," to accompany "The Christmas Invasion," a Christmas Day special (airs 7:00PM GMT) of its long-running science-fiction series, "Doctor Who." The app, which will be available after the show ends, will invite viewers to take part in an interactive adventure with the goal of preventing an alien creature, called the Graske (played by Jimmy Vee), from taking over the earth. According to the BBC, the app will feature live-action video, as well as "state-of-the-art" special effects that were produced by The Mill. Viewers will have to use the arrow keys on their remote controls to perform a series of challenges, in which they will be tested on observation, dexterity, memory and--the BBC says--bravery. They will also have an opportunity to fly Doctor Who's time-travel machine, the Tardis. Throughout the course of the adventure presented by the application, the Doctor will be "on hand to give advice, encouragement, and even step in when things go wrong," the BBC says.
The app was produced in Cardiff by BBC New Media and BBC Wales: it was written by Gareth Roberts and directed by Ashley Way. Its executive producers are Russell T. Davies and Julie Gardner (the latter is head of drama at BBC Wales); its producer is Sophie Fante, and its interactive producers are Jo Pearce and Andrew Whitehouse. "Attack of the Graske gives the viewer the unique opportunity to immerse themselves fully in the world of Doctor Who," Fante said in a prepared statement. "We aimed to make the challenge with the same scope and feel of the main series and, in 'Attack of The Graske,' the viewer finds themselves not only flying the Tardis with the Doctor but fighting the Graske on the planet Griffoth and hunting him out in Victorian London. Filming was great fun because of the variety of locations within a relatively short shoot. The high point was creating an authentic Dickensian Christmas scene, complete with snow, in a small corner of Cardiff."
Click http://www.itvt.com to subscribe to our free email newsletter, which contains all the news stories you see on this Web site, and additional breaking news and scoops, in-depth features, interviews, screenshots, videos, and other exclusive content you will not find anywhere else.
