A freezing cold morning by the Thames in London.
It’s as if the streets have been themed for the press launch of Dancing On Ice 2009.
Yesterday’s event was held at ITV’s South Bank complex.
We began by watching the 13 skating celebrities appear live on This Morning in a nearby studio.
Then they came to talk to us.
Before the interviews, we were treated to a short showreel of footage which will open this Sunday’s first show, followed by the new opening titles.
“NOBODY knows,” exclaimed Shameless star Tina Malone.
She was telling fellow housemates how shocked family and friends would be to see her in the Celebrity Big Brother House.
At least they had the decency to keep a straight face.
Tina must have missed the leak to the newspapers a full five days before the series started, accurately naming the incoming housemates.
As Verne Troyer remarked inside the house as another new arrival came through the door on Friday night:
“Everybody that I’ve seen in the papers.”
So most of the celebs were well aware of who they were going to share this experience with.
Even if some still couldn’t figure out what that Tommy bloke was called. “I want to say Michael,” ventured Verne.
Or resist the rush to grab a bed in the lugsheree bedroom.
SO now we know the identity of the new Doctor Who.
A flurry of late bets put Matt Smith’s name firmly in the frame to play the 11th Time Lord.
Within the last hour, the BBC confirmed his casting as the youngest ever actor to play the Doctor – and web forums are already in meltdown.
Many appear never to have heard of Northampton-born Matt, 26.
Which means they must have missed him as Danny in BBC2’s cruelly axed Party Animals.
Or as Jim, alongside Billie Piper in The Ruby In The Smoke and The Shadow In The North.
Not to mention the guest role of Ian – one of two cousins caught up in an incident with a taxi driver – in the second series The Street.
OFF to the gym as part of your New Year detox?
Demons star Christian Cooke will not be joining you.
He had to be fit for his role as Luke Rutherford in the new ITV1 drama which starts tomorrow night.
But like many young actors, Christian has to be careful not to bulk up too much.
“I went for a meeting a few weeks ago to play a skinny white kid,” he explained.
“So I guess now I’ve stopped going to the gym because I feel like it’s going to restrict me from getting certain parts.”
SHERIDAN Smith revealed a few behind the scenes secrets when I met her earlier this year.
She stars in the New Year’s Day return to BBC1 of Jonathan Creek.
And is back as Michelle (pictured) in BBC3 Manchester-set sitcom Grownups from Jan 13.
As a huge Creek fan, Sheridan was delighted to land the role of Joey Ross.
It was written for her by David Renwick.
He also wrote Love Soup, in which Sheridan played a perfume counter girl.
TV legend Verity Lambert was the producer behind both Jonathan Creek and Love Soup.
She was Doctor Who’s first producer in 1963.
RAIN was lashing down on the roof of his trailer the last time I caught up with Robert Glenister on location.
We were sat at the end of a muddy farm track by the Grand Union Canal in Rickmansworth.
He was taking a break from filming the fourth series of Hustle, which was screened the following year – 2007.
A very different spot compared to the original February 2004 launch for the drama at an impossibly cool bar in London’s Knightsbridge.
Robert was dressed in costume as Ash Morgan, who in the story being filmed was posing as a racehorse owner.
After that last series was aired, it appeared that Hustle was no more.
JUST a few hours to go now before the big Christmas Day TV highlights.
Doctor Who kicks off this evening’s viewing for me.
Followed by the hour long Christmas night special of Coronation Street.
It should be a cracker after last night’s classic episode featuring the attack on Jed Stone.
With echoes back to the 1960s for long-time Weatherfield fans.
Regular readers will already know not to miss Wallace and Gromit’s A Matter Of Loaf And Death on BBC1 at 8.30pm.
And along with millions of others, I have high hopes for the return of The Royle Family.
SPARE a thought for the trials our TV stars have gone through to entertain us this Christmas.
Former Spooks leading man Rupert Penry-Jones plays Richard Hannay in a new adaptation of classic novel The 39 Steps.
And he risked life and limb for some of the action scenes.
“I used to get injured all the time in Spooks from diving over cars and pulling muscles and running down streets and all that kind of thing,” Rupert told us at a recent press launch.
“I’ve just finished The 39 Steps, which was even worse than Spooks.
“It’s basically one long chase movie.
“I was running every day on that and hurt myself quite a lot.
THE world wide web can be a wonderful place.
Especially when you discover a haunting Christmas film like this.
It was posted on YouTube on December 18.
By someone called Oscar Villarreal, who is proud of his home town.
Using one of the new pocket sized high definition mini camcorders.
PHILIP Glenister in boots.
They’ve made many a female fan swoon when he’s worn them for roles on screen.
Vanity Fair, Island At War, Hornblower and Cranford all spring to mind.
It turns out there’s a family connection.
“All I know is my family come from Wellingborough, or something really interesting like that,” he says.
“They probably made boots for a living…shoemaking land.”
Phil made the comment at the recent press launch for ITV1’s Demons.
There’s a feature interview with him in today’s MEN, which I’ve just posted online here, including a pic gallery.
Life of Wylie 