Last year's 50th anniversary 3D special of DOCTOR WHO, "The Day of The Doctor", was an unprecedented success, partly because it was shown simultaneously in 1,500 cinemas and actually broke into the UK box-office top 10 for that weekend. While the start of Series 8 isn't as exciting (and lacks 3D), the BBC are keen to replicate the event, so premiere episode "Deep Breath" will beam into worldwide cinemas on Saturday 23 August.
Steven Moffat, showrunner:
"Last November The Doctor didn't just conquer the world on television, he did it in the cinemas too. And like the show-off he is, he can't resist another go—one taste of the silver screen is never enough. On 23 August, the new Doctor will begin his new adventures on BBC1 and in cinemas all over the world. Movie-land beware—[Peter] Capaldi is coming to get you.""Deep Breath", a Victorian adventure for the latest incarnation of the Time Lord, reuniting him with Madame Vastra, Jenny Flint and Strax the Sontaran, won't be immediately available to US and Canadian cinemagoers. The premiere will screen at selected multiplexes from 25 August, two days after its US premiere on BBC America.