The 12th Doctor Who is to be unveiled live on BBC One at 7pm tonight.
Doctor Who, the world's longest-running and most successful sci-fi series, celebrates its 50th birthday this year
The half-hour show, Doctor Who Live: The Next Doctor, presented by Zoe Ball, will feature an interview with the new lead, as well as 11th Doctor Matt Smith and executive producer Steven Moffat. The studio audience will be made up of Doctor Who fans, known as Whovians.
"The decision is made and the time has come to reveal who's taking over the Tardis," Moffat said.
"For the last of the Time Lords, the clock is striking twelve."
According to the official announcement, Ball "will unveil the 12th Doctor in the first ever interview in front of a live studio audience set against the backdrop of a swirling vortex, amongst Daleks and the Tardis".
Smith, who has played the Time Lord since 2010, announced in June that he would be bowing out in this year's Christmas special.
The announcement sparked much speculation about who might take over, with Peter Capaldi, Ben Daniels, Rory Kinnear and Ben Whishaw among the bookies' favourites.
Scottish actor Capaldi is famous for his role as foul-mouthed spin doctor Malcolm Tucker in hit BBC political comedy series The Thick of It. He's the bookies' favourite for the role.
Peter Capaldi is the bookies' favourite to be named the 12th Doctor Who tonight
Another name in the frame is English actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, who won the 2008 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor for his performance in Othello. If chosen he would become the first black Doctor Who.
36-year-old Londoner Chiwetel Ejiofor could become the first black Doctor
Ben Stephenson, BBC drama controller, said: "Amongst all the speculation and betting, there has been lots of fun and intrigue at work as we've been using the codename Houdini as a decoy.
"It's the biggest secret in showbiz, even those working with the new Doctor on other projects at the moment have no idea they are in the presence of the 12th incarnation."
Doctor Who marks its 50th anniversary on 23 November with a special episode, starring Matt Smith, David Tennant (the tenth Doctor) and John Hurt as the Doctor.
Billie Piper will return as Rose Tyler (the female companion of the ninth and tenth Doctors), while Jenna Coleman will continue as Clara Oswald (the current companion).
The episode will also see the return of the Daleks and the Zygons.
Zygon, 2013. These aliens first appeared in the show in 1975 and last appeared, in human form, in 2012. They first appeared in the Fourth Doctor serial Terror of the Zygons (1975), where it was revealed that centuries ago, the Zygon homeworld was destroyed in a stellar explosion. A craft escaped and somehow made it to Earth, where it then crashed into Loch Ness. When the Doctor encountered the Zygons, they were led by a warlord named Broton. Broton wished to conquer the world to allow a refugee fleet of Zygons to colonize Earth. The Zygons have shape-shifting abilities, allowing them to replicate the appearance of another being, but they must keep the subject alive in order to use its body print. This skill was vital in their concealment and in their scheme to seize power despite their small numbers. The Zygons were also accompanied by an armoured cyborg creature called the Skarasen, the lactic fluid of which was necessary for them to feed. Broton planned to unleash the Skarasen (or Loch Ness Monster as it was known) on an energy conference in London as part of a bid to conquer the Earth. The plan was foiled and both he and his crew were killed due to the intervention of the Fourth Doctor and the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT), while the Doctor caused the Skarasen to return to Loch Ness. Zygon technology is biological in nature: in essence their ships and equipment are actually alive.
BBC News - New Doctor Who star to be unveiled
Doctor Who, the world's longest-running and most successful sci-fi series, celebrates its 50th birthday this year
The half-hour show, Doctor Who Live: The Next Doctor, presented by Zoe Ball, will feature an interview with the new lead, as well as 11th Doctor Matt Smith and executive producer Steven Moffat. The studio audience will be made up of Doctor Who fans, known as Whovians.
"The decision is made and the time has come to reveal who's taking over the Tardis," Moffat said.
"For the last of the Time Lords, the clock is striking twelve."
According to the official announcement, Ball "will unveil the 12th Doctor in the first ever interview in front of a live studio audience set against the backdrop of a swirling vortex, amongst Daleks and the Tardis".
Smith, who has played the Time Lord since 2010, announced in June that he would be bowing out in this year's Christmas special.
The announcement sparked much speculation about who might take over, with Peter Capaldi, Ben Daniels, Rory Kinnear and Ben Whishaw among the bookies' favourites.
Scottish actor Capaldi is famous for his role as foul-mouthed spin doctor Malcolm Tucker in hit BBC political comedy series The Thick of It. He's the bookies' favourite for the role.
Peter Capaldi is the bookies' favourite to be named the 12th Doctor Who tonight
Another name in the frame is English actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, who won the 2008 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor for his performance in Othello. If chosen he would become the first black Doctor Who.
36-year-old Londoner Chiwetel Ejiofor could become the first black Doctor
Ben Stephenson, BBC drama controller, said: "Amongst all the speculation and betting, there has been lots of fun and intrigue at work as we've been using the codename Houdini as a decoy.
"It's the biggest secret in showbiz, even those working with the new Doctor on other projects at the moment have no idea they are in the presence of the 12th incarnation."
Doctor Who marks its 50th anniversary on 23 November with a special episode, starring Matt Smith, David Tennant (the tenth Doctor) and John Hurt as the Doctor.
Billie Piper will return as Rose Tyler (the female companion of the ninth and tenth Doctors), while Jenna Coleman will continue as Clara Oswald (the current companion).
The episode will also see the return of the Daleks and the Zygons.
Zygon, 2013. These aliens first appeared in the show in 1975 and last appeared, in human form, in 2012. They first appeared in the Fourth Doctor serial Terror of the Zygons (1975), where it was revealed that centuries ago, the Zygon homeworld was destroyed in a stellar explosion. A craft escaped and somehow made it to Earth, where it then crashed into Loch Ness. When the Doctor encountered the Zygons, they were led by a warlord named Broton. Broton wished to conquer the world to allow a refugee fleet of Zygons to colonize Earth. The Zygons have shape-shifting abilities, allowing them to replicate the appearance of another being, but they must keep the subject alive in order to use its body print. This skill was vital in their concealment and in their scheme to seize power despite their small numbers. The Zygons were also accompanied by an armoured cyborg creature called the Skarasen, the lactic fluid of which was necessary for them to feed. Broton planned to unleash the Skarasen (or Loch Ness Monster as it was known) on an energy conference in London as part of a bid to conquer the Earth. The plan was foiled and both he and his crew were killed due to the intervention of the Fourth Doctor and the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT), while the Doctor caused the Skarasen to return to Loch Ness. Zygon technology is biological in nature: in essence their ships and equipment are actually alive.
BBC News - New Doctor Who star to be unveiled
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