BBC Inks Deal with New Zealand’s Prime Television

SYDNEY, April 3: Through a deal with BBC Worldwide
Australasia, Prime Television in New Zealand has picked up the third season of
the hit drama Doctor Who and the ninth
season of the motoring entertainment show Top Gear.

The 13×45-minute season three of Doctor Who will air on Prime Television this year. This season
will see the Doctor getting to know his new assistant Martha Jones (Freema
Agyeman), meeting William Shakespeare and facing off once more against the
Daleks. Guest stars include Ardal O’Hanlon from My Hero, Jessica Stevenson from Spaced, Mark Gatiss from The League of Gentlemen, and Sir Derek Jacobi.

A one-hour special, The Runaway Bride, featuring David Tennant from Doctor Who and the British comedian Catherine Tate, will be broadcast prior to the premiere of the third
season on Prime. When the special was aired on the BBC during its Christmas
schedule, it pulled in 9.3 million viewers.

Top Gear will return
to Prime Television with its ninth season. Guest stars in the new season
include Hugh Grant, Kristin Scott-Thomas, Jamie Oliver, Billie Piper and Hot
Fuzz’s Simon Pegg.