London- BBC Worldwide has announced that the 50th Anniversary episode of Doctor Who will, for the first time ever, be broadcast simultaneously to millions of viewers worldwide in a global simulcast on November 23, 2013.
Fans in at least 75 countries spanning six continents will be able to enjoy the episode in 2D and 3D, where available, at the same time as the UK broadcast. On top of the worldwide TV broadcast, hundreds of cinemas in the UK and across the world also plan to screen the special episode simultaneously in full 3D.
Doctor Who
In addition to Matt Smith and Jenna Coleman, the one-off special, entitled The Day of the Doctor stars former Time Lord David Tennant as well as Billie Piper, and John Hurt.
Tickets for the anniversary screening are set to go on sale on Friday, October 4th.
Tim Davie, CEO of BBC Worldwide comments: “Few TV shows can still lay claim to being appointment viewing but Doctor Who takes this to another level. In its 50th Anniversary year we wanted to create a truly international event for Doctor Who fans in as many countries as possible and the simultaneous broadcast and cinema screening of the special across so many countries will make for a fitting birthday tribute to our Time Lord.”
Steven Moffat, Showrunner for Doctor Who and Executive Producer of the 50th Anniversary episode adds: “The Doctor has always been a time traveller – now he’s travelling time zones. On the 23rd of November, it won’t be the bad guys conquering the Earth – everywhere it will be The Day of the Doctor!”
The free-to-air 3D coverage will be available to those with access to a 3D TV set and to the BBC’s HD Red Button service. This is part of the BBC’s two-year trial experimenting with 3D production and distribution, which has also included selected coverage from Wimbledon 2012 and the London 2012 Olympic Games.
The 50th Anniversary weekend for Doctor Who in November will also see over 20,000 fans gather at London’s ExCel for the official celebration event which will feature appearances from cast old and new including Matt Smith and former Doctors Sylvester McCoy, Colin Baker and Tom Baker.
