The 11th Doctor (Matt Smith) and his companion Amy Pond (Karen Gillan).
The next incarnation of the sci-fi smash hit starring Matt Smith will premiere in Australia on ABC's internet video service.
In a first for ABC TV, the new series of Doctor Who will launch on the iView online video platform two days before it airs on ABC1, and just under two weeks after its UK debut on the BBC.
From midnight Friday, April 16, Australian fans can stream the first episode at abc.net.au/iview, ahead of its TV broadcast at 7:30pm Sunday, April 18 on ABC1.
However, the remaining episodes will only be on iView after they air on TV, where they will be available for two weeks. ABC plans to fast track the series, with weekly episodes continuing to air two weeks after their UK showing.
The titles of the first six episodes have also been revealed:
Episode 1: The Eleventh Hour
Episode 2: The Beast Below
Episode 3: Victory of the Daleks
Episode 4: The Time of Angels
Episode 5: Flesh and Stone
Episode 6: Vampires of Venice
Kim Dalton, director of Television at the ABC, says: "iView is a fantastic offering, an additional way for Australian audiences to watch ABC TV's content -- generally after, but in this special case before, its television broadcast.
"We hope the lure of Doctor Who -- and what a fun and exciting lure it is -- will provide incentive for more viewers to discover iView, and experience how convenient and easy to use it is."
Matt Smith (Party Animals) who plays the 11th Doctor in the new series, was introduced in "The End Of Time: Part Two", which wrapped up David Tennant's role as the 10th Doctor.
Karen Gillan also joins the cast as the Doctor's companion, Amy Pond, though she previously appeared on the show as a soothsayer in the series four episode The Fires of Pompeii.
Award-winning writer Steven Moffat (Coupling, Jekyll) will replace Russell T. Davies as lead writer and executive producer.
I'm going to miss David Tennant, he was my favorite Doctor.
Why 2 weeks after, why can't it be the same day as in the UK. They would gain so many more viewers that way..but meh
Woooooooooooooo Dr Who. Gunna miss David Tennant tho, he was my fave!
abc is my new best friend !!!!!!!! im soooo happy they're not making us wait a million years to air doctor who!! ohh how i love them and iview is actually really good quality if you have the right bandwidth!!!!
That ad was just weird not to mention contradictory - If the doctor looked at the face of that stone angel(No way he couldn't have given his position) shouldn't he have turned to stone? Anyway looking forward to the series premiere and bonus points to ABC for showing it online so quickly but personally it isn't quick enough so I'll just resort to getting it the way I and many others usually do though I'll probably end up watching it again on ABC.