Americans, prepare for an alien invasion. 'Doctor Who' is coming.

A couple of months ago, we learned that part of the upcoming 'Torchwood' season will be shot in America. On Sunday, the BBC announced that 'Doctor Who,' the series that spun off 'Torchwood,' will be filming in the United States as well.

Production begins soon in Cardiff on 'Doctor Who's' season-opening two-parter, which was penned by executive producer Steven Moffat. By mid-November, however, filming of the episodes will transfer to the United States. Presumably Matt Smith (the Doctor), Karen Gillan (companion Amy Pond) and Arthur Darvill (Amy's boyfriend Rory) will not be able to take the TARDIS to these shores. (There's one more spoilery bit of information about the two-parter at the end of this post.)

The episodes will be set in the 1960s and "the Doctor, Amy and Rory [will] find themselves on a secret summons that takes them on an adventure from the desert in Utah right to the Oval Office itself." (Fingers crossed that they encounter not Daleks but Don Draper.)

"The Doctor has visited every weird and wonderful planet you can imagine, so he was bound get round to America eventually!" Moffat said in the BBC's Sunday statement. "And of course every 'Doctor Who' fan will be jumping up and down and saying he's been in America before. But not for real, not on location - and not with a story like this one! Oh, you wait!"

Before the next season begins, we'll get the usual 'Doctor Who' Christmas special (this year's edition features guest stars Katherine Jenkins and Michael Gambon). The new 'Doctor Who' season has been broken up into two blocks that will air in the spring and the fall of 2011.

Production on 'Torchwood: The New World,' the fourth season of the 'Doctor Who' spinoff, begins in early 2011 and that drama debuts on Starz in the summer of 2011.

A substantial portion of 'The New World,' which the producers have said will tell a "global" story, will be shot in North America, and some well-known American TV writers (John Shiban, Doris Egan and Jane Espenson) are joining head writer 'Torchwood' Russell T Davies in penning the scripts for that 10-parter.

John Barrowman and Eve Myles will be back for 'The New World,' but they'll be joined by some new actors who have yet to be cast.

Spoiler alert:

Not sure if others would consider this a spoiler, but Alex Kingston will also appear in the 'Doctor Who' season opener as River Song.



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