Renowned Writer/Actor Mark Gatiss Announced For 2015 'Doctor Who' Festival

About a month ago, we received word that Australia would be hosting its first-ever Doctor Who Festival, a two-day celebration of all things Time Lordian in honour of the BBC's half-century-strong sci-fi hit series.

Now, the event — already boasting the likes of Twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi and incumbent showrunner Steven Moffat on its bill — has boosted its credibility even more with the revelation that long-serving series writer (and occasional actor) Mark Gatiss will be joining the party, alongside the BAFTA-winning Real SFX team led by Danny Hargreaves, who have been responsible for bringing to life multiple aspects of The Doctor's fantastic intergalactic adventures during the show's decade-long revival.

Gatiss holds the distinction of being one of only a handful of scribes who has written episodes for all four revival doctors, from Christopher Ecclestone's Ninth through David Tennant and Matt Smith's Tenth & Eleventh to Capaldi's current Twelfth incarnation of the Gallifreyan Time Lord, and also served as writer and showrunner for An Adventure In Space & Time, which dramatically retold the origin story of the series back in the 1960s. 

Fans will also recognise Gatiss for his work as co-creator, with Moffat, of the acclaimed Sherlock, for which he acts as co-executive producer and in which he stars (somewhat unbelievably) as Benedict Cumberbatch's brother. He's also popped up on Game Of Thrones recently (as Tycho Nestoris), starred in Wolf Hall and was a member of renowned comedy troupe The League Of Gentlemen — but his true love has always been shaped like a police box.

"Watching Doctor Who as a child made me want to become a writer and actor — I used to jot down ideas in my school exercise book," Gatiss said in a statement. "Doing it for real for the past 10 years and four Doctors is a dream come true. At the Doctor Who Festival, you can come and hear the stories behind my stories!"

The first Australian Doctor Who Festival hits the Hordern Pavilion on 21-22 November. See the event website for more information.