InterWho - Whovian Kevin Gray from AM Audio Media

Hello Sweeties!

Welcome to our next InterWho (Whovian Interview)..

I had the privilege of interviewing Kevin Gray. Kevin is a life long whovian working with our friends at AM Audio Media on the Doctor Who Dark Journey Series.

Now grab some tea and enjoy our chat with Kevin!

Allons-y!


BBB: Please introduce yourself to our readers and tell us about yourself...
KG: My name is Kevin Gray and I am an alcoholic…oh sorry, am I in the wrong place? Ahem…ignore that, let’s start over. I’m Kevin Gray, I am a fan of science fiction and horror, although there’s not much of the latter around anymore, well…not scary horror. I also have a slight fondness for music. And since I really like synthesizer music, especially analog-type stuff, Doctor Who was always a perfect fit! The Doctor Who theme has always been one of my favourite pieces of music. I used to be a DJ (wasn’t everyone?) and I went by the name of DJ Krynoid. I still name my remixes with that moniker. When I stopped DJing (doesn’t everyone?) I focused more on making my own noises. I like to remix and re-edit songs and make my own extended versions. When I do, I usually throw in audio clips from movies and shows. I was lucky enough to be on stage with Blue Rodeo a few years back. No, I wasn’t playing, I helped set up the recording gear for the shows. Two magical nights, I’ll tell ya! The recordings were released as a CD/DVD and the DVD won a Juno! My first CD credit (although my named was spelled wrong on the first batch of discs)! Lately, I’ve been focusing on audio productions. I did some comedy skits with my brother and I did audio post on an independent film called Everyday Is Like Sunday (it’s on Netflix - check it out). And now I’m working with AM Audio Media, doing the audio production for series two of Doctor Who: Dark Journey! Series one was a damn fine show, so trying to match that or even top it…is proving to be a hard act to follow! But I’m giving it my all and I think the AM Audio Media gang has brought some (dark) magic to this second series. You can find my website at: www.bigsoundguy.com. It’s still a work in progress, samples of my work will be up soon. If you want some audio work done, you know how to find me!


BBB:  When did you first become a Whovian?
KG: I have always been a Whovian! From the day I was born! Well, at least since I was on solid food then? I've been watching Doctor Who for as long as I can remember. My earliest memory of Doctor Who (from what I can remember) is of Pertwee’s Doctor driving the three-wheeler in Day Of The Daleks. I lived in the UK for a number of years when I was young and watching Doctor Who was taken for granted. Of course, there were only three channels to choose from, so the competition wasn’t like it is now. But Doctor Who was a good show, especially in the 70’s. And there was good moral fibre there as well. I like to think that a lot of my good sense came from watching the show and emulating some of the Doctor’s traits.


BBB:  What is your favorite Classic Who or New Who episode and why?
KG: That’s hard to say. A hard thing to choose...The Robots Of Death is certainly up there. The Seeds Of Doom too (obviously – watch out for the Krynoid!). I loved The Claws of Axos and Terror Of The Autons, Inferno, The Mind Of Evil, Pyramids of Mars, Pirate Planet, Stones Of Blood, Morbius, Fendahl…I told you this would be hard! And like one or two other people, I got caught up in the hype of Doctor Who returning and because of all the buzz, I really enjoyed the ninth Doctor’s Series 1. It was good TV, Doctor Who or not. Episodes like Blink, Vincent & The Dr. stand out. But as it’s continued, things have become hit and miss…with a little too much of the latter.


BBB:  Tell us more about Doctor Who Dark Journey and your part in this fun audio production..
KG: Ooh, I didn’t know there was a question just for that, pretend you didn’t read the above…my part: do all the impossible things Andrew asks of me! Gems like “can you make his robes sound more scarlet”? “Big Ben doesn’t sound big enough”, “we need more baby” and “can you make Andrew sound better?”…Mike and Andrew already had the dialogue recorded when I came on board. It was my job to create the soundscapes and effects and edit the dialogue to fit. The goal is to create a believable environment for our heroes and villains and drop the listener right into the thick of it. And hopefully, at the end, have you begging for more!

BBB:  If you could meet just one Doctor Who cast or crew member, who would it be?
KG: A few years ago I would have said without hesitation; Jon Pertwee! But as he has left us I think for my answer now, I'd be a little more practical and say whoever can get me a job on the new series.


BBB:  Who is your favourite Doctor and why?
KG: Jon Pertwee...I liked his fatherly attitude towards his companions. He was always teaching them something. And he told it like it was; if someone pissed him off, he let them know. And of course all the James Bond-ness; hovercrafts, mono-copters, motorcycles, jeeps, rockets and BESSIE!!!!...and the way he could wolf down sandwiches (Sea Devils) was impressive too!


BBB:  Who is your favorite Villain and why?
KG: Delgado's Master…such a moustache twiddler. Yeah things got silly sometimes, but he could be downright evil and still be charming. That TCE was pretty scary to a young kid! Ainley was a close second…don’t get me started on John Simm! And now we have Missy…an interesting idea, utterly wasted in the story but Michelle Gomez the actor, she seems like a blast! Have you seen her behind the scenes bits? She’d be fun at a party!


BBB:  If you could travel with The Doctor in his TARDIS to any time and/or place, where would you like to go?
KG: I was always a fan of the randomizer. Even more so if Romana I was there too...but seriously? Hmm…I’d like to see the future, see if we screw things up or not.


BBB:  As we head into Series 9 this year of Doctor Who, what are you hoping to see?
KG: I'm hoping to see some great stories. Stories that rely on substance, not style. I don't need to see stories that originate from "wouldn't it be cool if...", I want a series of good yarns. I want to get goosebumps when the Doctor does something awesome, I want Clara to be the companion, not the boss. And more hovercrafts and mono-copters! Yeah, maybe that’s what’s wrong with the new series…bring back Bessie!


BBB:  Is there anything you would like to add before we wrap up this interview (such as conventions you gone to, cast you have met, a collection you have, etc)?
KG: I did attend Visions 93 in Chicago. That was quite an experience. My only “real” convention. It was the thirtieth anniversary year so there were a lot of guests! I met Peter Davison, Colin Baker (really nice guy!), Anthony Ainley (another really nice guy!), John Levene (an awesome guy! Did you know he was a sound guy too?), Sophie Aldred (amazing singer!), Nicola Bryant, Wendy Padbury (what a doll…), Lis Sladen, John Leeson, William Russell, Carole Ann Ford, Anneke Wills and John Nathan-Turner & Gary Downie. There was also non-Doctor who stars too…I had the pleasure of meeting the cat from Red Dwarf; Danny John-Jules. And Jeremy Bulloch, who played some guy named Boba Fett in some small independent film called Star Wars.
“a collection you have”?...well, I do have a few Doctor Who items ever so subtly taking over my house…CDs, records, DVDs and now Blu-Rays. And that’s before we get into…toys! I’m a sucker for Doctor Who figures. From Denys Fisher when I was a kid, to Dapol when I should have been saving, to Product Enterprise, when any saved money left, to Character Options, where dreams came true with Krynoid’s and SV7’s to today with Big Chief, where I need a new better paying job! I did also have Weetabix cut-outs but they didn’t last very long. 



Blue Box Balm would like to say THANK YOU to Kevin for participating in our fun whovian interviews!

If you have any questions for Kevin, please leave a post and I will make sure that he stops by to answer them :) 

InterWho - Whovian Colum Sanson Regan

Hello Sweeties!

Welcome to our next InterWho (Whovian Interview)..

I had the privilege of interviewing Colum Sanson Regan. Colum was David Tennant's double in several Doctor Who episodes. Besides being an actor, Colum is also an author, musician and family man.

Now grab some tea and enjoy our chat with Colum!
Allons-y!

  BBB: Please introduce yourself to our readers and tell us about yourself...

  CSR: Hi, I’m Colum Sanson Regan. I’m a musician and author, with a book coming out next year. I have also been a double for the David Tennant’s Doctor.

  BBB: Some of us know that you were David Tennant's body double in several episodes of Doctor Who, can you tell us how this came about?

  CSR: I was with an extras company and had done a bunch of jobs as an extra. I had already been in the background in a few Who episodes. I got a call for a job and when I got to the set, they gave me the Doctor’s suit and told me I was going to be the Doctor for the day. Tennant had to go up to Scotland due to family issues and they needed someone of a similar build and hair colour to finish shooting the scene. That was in Voyage of the Damned. I did some other bits and pieces throughout the series, and then did a lot in Journey’s End. It was just a case of right place right time, it wasn’t something that I had considered doing. 

  BBB: What was your most memorable moment about working on Doctor Who?

  CSR: The whole thing was quite surreal, and it never stopped being so. When the Who plus Torchwood crew were flying the Tardis, that was a lot of fun. There was such a good atmosphere on set, everyone was loving it. There are a lot of individual moments that stick in my memory, being on set late in the evening at the end of a long day with the crew setting up for the last shot of the day, chatting to a Dalek about soul music and hangover cures. Then the crew filled the room with smoke and we got on our marks got ready for a take. There are lots of moments like that which are as strong in my memory as standing on the windy beach while David Tennant and Billie Piper prepared for their final scene.

  BBB: You have a novel coming out in March of 2015 called "The Fly Guy", what can you tell us about your exciting first novel?

  CSR: It’s a psychological thriller which deals with author who creates a detective character. The detective then turns up in the author’s reality to investigate him. It follows the interconnected stories of the author, the detective, a drug dealer, and an addict. It’s about what slips between the cracks of reality and creation.
* You can NOW ORDER Colum's book on Amazon:

Order Book - USA

Order Book - UK

  BBB: @EstyJuncal on twitter would like know how you came up with the concept for "The Fly Guy" (and the rest of us would like to know also).

  CSR: The idea of a creator losing control of his creation is something that has interested me for a while. I loved reading The Strange case of Dr Jeckyll and Mr Hyde and Frankenstein, and both of these books inspired the writing of this book, as did the works of writers like Paul Auster and Haruki Murakami. When we create are we recreating ourselves and how do we control that process? How much of ourselves can we create and how much can we never change? These are questions which interest me and which I have tried to explore in the novel.

BBB: Random Question: Coffee or Tea?
CSR: Both. Studio and study, coffee. Lounge and garden, tea.

   BBB: Along with being a talented author you are also a talented musician, can you tell us when you first became interested in music.

   CSR: I have always loved music, and when I discovered I could write my own songs, I was hooked. I started learning and writing songs in my teens, and still enjoy it now as used to then. There is an instant gratification which comes with playing music and singing in particular is a fantastic experience, since you are the instrument. It’s all coming from within you and when you sing with every cell in your body, when every part of you is concentrated on making that single noise, your whole being becomes part of the melody, you can achieve a mind/body harmony that can be addictive. I do think I’m a vocal junkie.

   BBB: Back to Doctor Who, you were DT's double for Journey's End, but you were also his double for other Doctor Who episodes, please tell us which ones.

   CSR: Well there was that and Voyage of the Damned, those were the two I spent most time in. The other episodes I was involved in as David’s double are, The Sontaren Stratagem, Planet of the Ood, and Partners in Crime. I didn’t appear in all of them though, some of what I did didn’t make it on, and watching them it’s hard to find screen shots. In the last series I appeared as a roman soldier in The Pandorica Opens. I appeared in The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith in the Sarah Jane Series, also as David’s Doctor double.

BBB: You appeared as Roman Soldier in The Pandorica Opens, how did working on a Matt Smith episode differ from working on a DT episode?
CSR: Well, for one thing I was back on the regular extra gig, and there were a lot of extras on that shoot, so it was less glamorous than the Doctor shoots. I was happy not to be in one of the alien suits since it was so hot. There was a lot of fun between the extras, but also a lot of standing in place for long periods of time while all the tech stuff was done, but that's par for the course being an extra. Matt Smith on set came across as being less confident than Tennant was, there was a lot more conferring with the director about the shots, but then Tennant had really been bedded into the role when I was working close to him. 

  BBB: Who is your favorite Doctor (we might know this already, but needed to check)
CSR: Yes, predictably its the tenth. Tennant's doctor was a brilliant tightrope between the dramatic and comedic, never tipping into the ridiculous or melodramatic. I think the the core was a great emotional attachment to the character, and because I got to wear the suit.

  BBB: Here is a hard question, since you worked with so many of them but who is your favorite companion and why?

  CSR: Freema Agyeman was lovely to be on set with, very relaxed and charming and very beautiful. Catherine Tate was the one who created the most fun though. My strongest memory of her is she and David cracking each other up in between takes.   

  BBB: If you could travel with The Doctor in his TARDIS to any time and/or place, where would you like to go?
CSR: Either a tropical island pre-industry, slave trade and tourism (might have to back a fair while) or this time next year so I can see how my book has done. 

   BBB: Weevil! Our readers may not know that you have also appeared in Torchwood as a Weevil, tell us about that experience.

  CSR: That was night shoots around Cardiff and in an old church in the Welsh valleys. It was hot in the masks and you couldn’t really see much, but racing around car parks and alleys in the night was fun. Especially the nonchalance of night clubbers who saw of us between takes. Nobody made a big deal of it, a bunch of Weevils on the street corner, just another night out in Cardiff. 

  BBB: It seems you have gained quite a female following on twitter, known as the Columistresses,  if someone would like to follow you socially, where can they find you?

  CSR: My author pages are Colum Sanson Regan on facebook and @SansonRegan on Twitter. My music stuff is Colum Regan Music on facebook and Colum Regan on Soundcloud, where you can listen to tracks from my albums, as well as instrumental and unreleased stuff, and even download some for fee if it takes your fancy. 

  BBB: Do you have any upcoming appearances? Whether, Doctor Who, Book or Music related?

  CSR: I gig regularly in Cardiff, both solo and with my band Goose (Goose Cardiff on facebook) and the next appearance I have which is Who and book related is DigiCon in Doncaster, Jan 9-10. I have also just recorded a new song which fans of Who will get a kick out of, which will be available to download soon!
  *New song available now! Call The Doctor

  BBB: Since series 8 of DW has come to an end (expect the Christmas special) what were you overall thoughts on the series?

  CSR: I like the dynamic between Capaldi and Coleman and I think he’s a really good comic actor, and has more gravitas than Matt Smith.  I really enjoyed the ones I saw, I haven’t seen them all yet, but I will catch up.

  BBB: Lastly, I hear you have been on with our friend Doctor Squee from Gallifrey Stands podcast, what did you think of his Doctor Who Quiz (he is known as the QuizLord..lol!)

  CSR: Well, on the spot I didn’t do as well as I should have, for instance going for Tennant on the jammie dodger question, but it could have been worse. It was fun, I think he took it easy on me. 
*You can listen to Colum on Gallifrey Stands Podcast HERE

Just wanted to add this in :) 

Blue Box Balm would like to say THANK YOU to Colum for participating in our fun whovian interviews!

Follow Colum..
Twitter 
Facebook
Facebook2
Website
Pre Order Book - USA
Pre Order Book - UK                            
Music: Soundcloud
Music Site

If you have any questions for Colum, please leave a post and I will make sure that Colum stops by to answer them :) 

InterWho - Whovian J'Cynda Whitely

Hello Sweeties!

Welcome to our next InterWho (Whovian Interview)..
I had the pleasure of interviewing J'Cynda Whitely, so grab a cup of tea and enjoy the read ... 
Allons-y!

BBB: Please introduce yourself to our readers and tell us about yourself…
JW: Hi everyone I’m J’Cynda (@jcynda on twitter). I live in Fort Worth Texas and am a jewelry maker. I have a dog Kila, that I love to dress up in costumes, tshirts and bow ties!

BBB: When did you first become a Whovian?
JW: I'm a fairly new Whovian! Last year I had run out of things on Netflix/Hulu/Amazon to watch while I was working and Two of my friends suggested that I give Doctor Who a try. My friend Jeanette was the first. She was watching it and would recap what was going on in the episodes she was watching and indulge my many questions. Then my buddy Kent really convinced me. We’ve been friends for a very long time and he knows what kind of entertainment will grab me (I can be rather difficult when it comes to finding things that really entertain me). He was such a good salesman on the subject that I started watching the next day. He had told me that the first couple of episodes of the new series were a little bit cheesy and to just make it through those and stick with it. Im so glad I listened. That first episode was a bit difficult to watch and enjoy but luckily I knew quite a bit about the show from my two friends and knew it was going to get better. After I made it through the first two I was HOOKED! It didn’t take me very long before I had breezed through the all the series available to me.
Then came twitter. Doctor Squee was a friend of mine on Twitter because we are both fans of the same podcast ( Tell em Steve-Dave) and he mentioned one morning he was starting a podcast about Doctor Who. I tweeted him and told him that I had been watching and we started talking about it. He also indulged all my questions. He was the first person outside of my two friends that discussed the show with me. He probably solidified my active fandom ( I don’t think I’ve ever told him that LOL ). He was so nice and through his podcast (Gallifrey Stands) introduced me to several other super nice people that really encouraged my watching and curiosity. So I guess I owe all three of them a BIG thank you!

BBB: What is your favorite Classic Who and/or New Who episode and why?
JW: I had a very hard time getting into the classic episodes. They are just a little too long for my liking . Being broken up into so many parts , I felt like there were several episodes that absolutely nothing happened. It just didn’t hold my interest.
My favorite episode of the newer series is Vincent and The Doctor. I absolutely love the story of Vincent Van Gogh being influenced by the Doctor and Amy and some of his , well known, madness explained . Even though they couldn’t save him from himself they gave him one of the greatest gifts someone could receive. A look into the future to see how he was remembered. He got to see that even though he wasn’t appreciated and felt he had no value in his time that in the future he was revered. I don’t know about you but I have spent quite a bit of time thinking about how I will be remembered. I think everyone has ! So that episode really resonated with me because of the beautiful story line.

BBB: Series 8 is nearly over, tell us what do you think of Peter Capaldi as the Doctor?
JW: I am LOVING Capaldi. He is so different from the other doctors I am familiar with but I find him to be incredibly endearing. The intensity he brings to the role blows me away sometimes. And while he can he very intense and aloof of other people, when he does have an “emotional” moment it comes across as very sincere. Like you can actually see the wall that this Doctor has built around himself come down and he’s free of himself. Capaldi has amazing facial expressions and eyes! So when he is having a more tender moment or something is bothering him, you see it all over his face no matter what he is saying. I love that ! Im also really enjoying his interactions with the kids on the show. He tends to be very fatherly ( in his own eccentric way ) towards them and I’m finding myself enjoying that aspect of him very much. I am looking forward to seeing more Doctor centric episodes so we can really see what he’s made of, so to speak.

BBB: If you could meet just one Doctor Who cast or crew member, who would it be?
JW: I would really like to meet Murray Gold. I think he is an incredible composer and his music really sticks out to me in the show. I would love to sit down and pick his brain about how he uses the music to set the tone of scenes, how he decides on the Doctor’s themes (because they are all pretty personal to each Doctor) and ask him about the challenges of both of the afore mentioned things. I listen to the scores quite often and they really take you to whatever scene that they were written for. he does such an incredible job, I would love to fangirl out and hang out with that guy!

BBB: Who is your favorite Doctor and why?
JW: Man this is a hard question! I loved David Tennant from the get go! I was devastated when he regenerated! LOL It made me cry a bit. It was just so sad! So, when Matt Smith came into the picture I had a harder time warming up to him.  But, by the time his run was over and I was re-watching episodes on TV and he was sweet and charming in his own way. So, can I pick 2?
Tennant was playful, caring and such a defender of humanity. When he first became the Doctor you could sense that all of the brooding guilt that Eccelston’s character carried with him had been released and he was more carefree and loving.  He always made it seem like humans were capable and so much better than we give ourselves credit for. In several episodes he becomes our biggest cheerleader, even when the humans he was dealing with wanted to carry out some awful plan. I was really drawn to that. Plus how can you not be attracted to and love that adorable mischievous smile ! It will get you every time.
Matt Smith’s Doctor was still playful and sweet but also seemed more sad. It was a combination I didn’t truly appreciate till he regenerated and made me super sad. That's when I realized I was way more attached to him than I had thought! He was emotional and picked up more guilt as his run went on. It was a bit heart breaking you know? Also Matt Smith for being such a young actor to play the role did an AMAZING job of seeming so much older and wiser than his predecessor. He did an incredible job and sometimes it seems doesn’t get the credit he deserves for the performance he turned out .
Overall I suppose Tennant was my favorite Doctor but Matt Smith had my favorite stories and episodes <— see what I did there ? I sorta made a choice!

BBB: Who is your favorite companion and why?
JW: This is another toss up. I loved Rose and the Bad Wolf story line.  The whole thing was so sweet. I also loved Donna because she was a nice change from the love sick ladies accompanying the Doctor. She was a buddy and was not interested in him at all and that was a very nice change . Then there is Clara. What is not to like about the impossible girl. I was fascinated by her story ESPECIALLY after she entered the Doctor’s time line and had always been around him. It was such a cool twist. I loved how in “Listen” it was revealed that she had effected the Doctor’s whole life. She was there even at the beginning. But now I’m kind of over her LOL! So I guess if I have to choose my favorite companion is Rose .

BBB: If you could travel with The Doctor in his TARDIS to any time and/or place, where would you like to go?
JW: Where and when WOULDN’T I like to go !?! I would love to see any part of space and any other time besides the 30 years I’ve lived. I would want to visit a planet that had multiple moons in the night sky,  planets you could see clearly from the surface of wherever you are and meet whatever and whomever is out in the universe. If the Doctor were to pick me up, I would be enthusiastic and so in to whatever he wanted / needed to do . Of course after I settled into my companion role and wasn’t so overwhelmed by the infinite choices I’m sure I could come up with some specific time and place.

BBB: Are you in any other fandoms besides Doctor Who? Such as Torchwood or Sherlock?
JW: I'm not really in any other fandoms. If I were to find myself in another one I would probably be a Trekkie. I have loved Star Trek since I was a kid! Every couple of years or so I find myself re-watching all the series up to Deep Space 9 . I don’t know what it is about the show, but I’m fairly certain there will never be a time that I've had enough of it.

BBB: If you could receive one Doctor Who related item this Christmas, what would it be?
JW: Oh man there are so many cool Doctor Who related items out there ! I'm a big fan of cups (coffee cups, tumblers, pint glasses) and there are tons of cute ones I wouldn't mind having. There are also these cute little Tardis salt and pepper shakers I want ( wink wink nudge nudge Mom ).

BBB: Tell us your favorite geek stix or geek scent from Blue Box Balm..
JW: Another hard hitting question! I have loved all that I have tried and I have tried A LOT! My current favorite is Dandy. It smells so good!

BBB: Is there anything you would like to add before we wrap up this interview (such as conventions you gone to, cast you have met, a collection you have, etc)?
JW: First,  I would just like to say a BIG thank you to you Traci for making such an awesome product and bringing so many friendly and fun people together. I truly enjoy talking to everyone in the Facebook Group and seeing all the fun stuff they’re coming up with to express their fandom. It really is special and none of it would be possible without you bringing everyone together.  Another BIG thank you to Doctor Squee for really hooking me into the show and always being a gracious host when he has invited me onto his podcast. And last but not least Thank you to all the Balmers for being so engaging and fun everyday. You guys really make my work day go by a lot faster and I’m inspired by some of the cool creative stuff you all have come up with.

Big THANK YOU to J'Cynda for participating in our whovian interviews!

If you have any questions for J'Cynda please comment below..