It’s been a big news week for Doctor Who, with some major announcements and rumors floating around the web about Series 7. The BBC has made a formal announcement that they have commissioned 14 new episodes for 2012, including a Christmas Special, which has become a tradition for the new era of Doctor Who.

Additionally, Steven Moffat and the BBC have also confirmed that Matt Smith will be continuing his role as the Doctor in Series 7 during 2012, following some silly rumors online that he was stepping down. With the official confirmation from the BBC, the rumors were put to rest… but that didn’t stop Moffat and others lay out some clues as to what else we might be seeing in Series 7.

Following the official announcements from the BBC, John Barrowman (aka Captain Jack Harkness from Torchwood) revealed in an interview with Zap2It that the return of Captain Jack to Doctor Who has been discussed between Russell T Davies and Steven Moffat. “I’ve always said that if I’m asked to go back to Doctor Who, I’ll go at the drop of a hat,” Barrowman says. “That’s where Captain Jack got his beginnings. And it’s already been discussed.”

Following the broadcast of the Doctor Who Christmas Special, the TARDISblend returns, as we not only review A Christmas Carol, but discuss the new teaser trailer for Doctor Who Series 6, and discover a couple of bits and pieces you may have missed!

To kick off the show, we dissect the new trailer, discussing the elements we enjoyed seeing the most, and then highlight a couple of minor pieces of footage included in the trailer that connect to a stand-alone episode in Series 5 called The Lodger. We dive into reviewing A Christmas Carol, and examine the excellent performance of Michael Gambon in the show.

Later, we review some of the related Doctor Who news floating around the web — including information about new cast members for Torchwood, and a free Doctor Who e-book released by the BBC.

See below for the podcast player to listen to TARDISblend Episode 18.

For those who saw the Doctor Who Christmas Special, entitled A Christmas Carol, if you stuck around for the end credits you would have been treated to the first teaser trailer for Series 6 of Doctor Who… and it’s a ripper.

Scroll down to view the trailer.

Filming and production is continuing on Series 6, so this teaser trailer includes footage from episodes that are mostly from the first part of the season. Included in the trailer is a great deal of portions from the opening two episodes set in the United States. Doctor Who Series 6 will continue the multi-series story arc of “The Silence,” and more secrets are to be revealed about the mysterious River Song.

Doctor Who Series 6 is executive produced by showrunner Steven Moffat, and will feature Matt Smith continuing his portrayal of the eleventh Doctor. Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill are also returning, reprising their roles as Amy Pond and Rory Williams respectively, traveling with the Doctor as his companions. River Song, as mentioned, is also back for Series 6 as portrayed by Alex Kingston.

BBC has posted a FREE Doctor Who eBook called Snowfall.

You can download the PDF of this short story collection here.

The short stories are linked and build to up to “an unexpected Christmas conclusion.”

The Doctor Who Christmas Special is only a few weeks away, and BBC America are continuing promotion of A Christmas Carol with the release of a short video featuring cast members Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, and Arthur Darvill discussing the special and the guests acting in the show.

View the “inside-look” video below.

Directed by Toby Haynes, the 2010 Doctor Who Christmas Special picks up where Series 5 left off, and also features Michael Gambon and Katherine Jenkins.

Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol will air on both the BBC in the UK and BBC America in the USA on December 25.