Deep Breath - Leicester Square cosplayers

Today is the big day for Peter Capaldi! After a month of previews around the globe it is crunch time - when the bulk of the viewing audience will finally see what he has done with the role.

To unofficially round off their World Tour, the BBC are screening the opening episode live at cinemas up and down the UK, as well as selected countries around the world.


I wasn’t planning on going to see it (again) so soon after the Cardiff premiere, but the screening at London’s Odeon Leicester Square is a little unique in that it is followed by a live Q&A session with Peter, Jenna and Steven. This I gather is being beamed to the other UK cinemas in a live link-up.

In the mad scramble for tickets I had managed to grab a couple of choice seat - stalls, dead centre, only six rows from the front! So today I went up to town - in costume of course - to join the fun and share the buzz.

For those that don’t know, Leicester Square in London’s West End is the heart of the cinema district, and the Odeon is one of the largest cinemas there. It has played host to countless prestigious premieres down the years.

So, to my disappointment, there was no big poster promoting Deep Breath on the front of the building. Instead there was a TARDIS and a single Dalek on a grassed area of the park close by.


I had my photo taken with the display in the background, and then went cosplay spotting!

I found a cardboard TARDIS - who ended up to the the mum to young Eleven cosplayer!




I came across a couple of young lads as Eleven and Twelve.



Close to the entrance to the cinema I spotted a really cool Osgood.

I also found some great costumes for the Fifth Doctor; a First Doctor and femme Dalek who had come over from Paris specially for THIS screening; as well as a femme Eleven.

I was struck by how many young cosplayers were dressed as classic series Doctors, and cleverly using the costume t-shirts to block in their outfits underneath the coats they were wearing.

I then got corralled into a group shot of the Doctors. We had great fun posing for everyone.

We even made the Doctor Who Facebook page! How cool!

Facebook - official Doctor Who page

Within a few hours we had well over 10,000 likes! My mate James is so jealous.