There's a new Time Lord in the universe! Matt Smith has been cast as the replacement for David Tennant in the BBC's sci-fi series Doctor Who.

Smith will be the 11th actor to play the most popular Time Lord known to earth. So who is Matt Smith? The 26-year-old British actor is best known to BBC audiences from The Ruby in the Smoke (??) and BBC2's Party Animals. Neither of which has been shown here on the other side of the pond.

But here's a photo in case you're curious.



Well, at least he's got the Doctor's signature tossled hair! Should be interesting to see what they come up for the younger doc.

According to Britian's Telegraph, Smith has the personality to be the Doctor. Unassuming and "normal," this boy from Northampton isn't a product of a starry acting school. In fact, as a teenager, Smith wanted to be a footballer before an injury sidelined him, and he did a stint at the National Youth Theatre instead. The Evening Standard called him "funny and charming," based on a prior interview.

I can't find anything as to when the good Doctor will reappear on U.S. TV, but I'll be looking forward to the next Christmas special (which doesn't usually air around Xmas time here) to see the Doctor "regenerate" from Tennant to Smith. Based on 2008's schedule, the Sci-Fi Channel should pick it up sometime in the spring.

"I had to spit it out into my napkin," Padma Lakshmi, in Bravo's promo for tonight's episode of Top Chef. I don't know about you, but unless she said that after the quick fire challenge, whoever's food she's referring to is going home ...
This is exactly what I love about this show ... the judges' snarky comments! That's what last week's opener was missing, so I'm glad to see it's starting already. Whatever the dish is, I wonder if it'll compare to Season 3's notorious broccolini side dish. I can't remember who made it, but head judge/chef Tom Colicchio called it "the single worst dish in Top Chef history." While guest judge chef Anthony Bourdain said it was "horrifying!" Really, horrifying!! Food? (Dibs to Elfman for reminding me about the "horrifying" quote, thanks).
Top Chef airs tonight at 10 p.m.

So here it is already Wednesday, and I'm still catching up from the weekend. Long story short, dating couple Terence & Sarah were the unlucky last place finishers on the Amazing Race this week. They were eliminated.

Terence & Sarah
Lots of mistakes were made as the season winds down. A Fast Forward was offered at the beginning of the leg, and although they made it there first, Terence & Sarah had to opt out since Terence is vegetarian and it involved eating meat. This ultimately led to their demise. (Nick & Starr easily finished it and came in first again.) Ken & Tina forgot to read a clue at the bottom of a glass of milk, then returned their cow costumes and had to go back for them. And frat boys Andrew & Dan took a cab to the Pit Stop instead of going on foot (as the clue advised) and had to go back to the last challenge and walk it in.
During a commercial break, we got a promo for this week's Survivor, which has Randy thinking of asking Bob for his "immunity idol." Bob's idol is fake, he made it while on Exile Island last week. Should be interesting ...

Over on Wisteria Lane, the Deperate Housewives' lived thru a nightclub fire that saw the demise of Edie's creepy husband's mysterious doctor - at Dave's hands no less. Everyone else survived, making the episode quite a yawn. The most exciting thing for me was near the end when ABC chose to give us a promo for LOST, starting Jan. 21! Mark your calendars ...

HBO's True Blood was equally boring. Bill completed his sentence, turning the young girl into a vamp. Seems the vamps in this series can only be turned by being burried after they're bitten. Sookie and Sam got closer. Tara got arrested on suspicion of DUI and is bailed out by a strange woman whose agenda we don't know yet. Jason's new girlfriend got murdered by the mystery killer, while the two were tripping on vampire blood. Jason asked to be locked up, believing that he did it and must have been the killer all along. And Sookie rescinded her invitation to Bill after he ruffed up Jason, when he came home to find them together (remember, a vampire must be invited into your home or he can't enter). This Sunday is the finale and we're supposed to find out who the killer is ...

And what the hell is going on over at Seattle Grace? While I'm enjoying Grey's Anatomy again, and I love Denny Duquette, how are they going to explain last week's ending. Izzy, who is desperately trying to let her dead fiance, Denny, go, finally gave in at the end and touched him .... WTH? Can't wait to see where this goes tomorrow night.

Bye-Bye Cody
Last night saw Hannah Montana costar Cody Linley leave the dance floor for the last time on Dancing with the Stars. I guess Julianne Hough didn't have to speed thru her surgical recovery afterall.

Bravo's Real Housewives of Atlanta came to a impasse last night with the show culminating in a dinner where the girls tried to get Kim, Sheree and NeNe back together as friends. It didn't work. Which leaves everything open for an all out brawl next week on the Reunion show (Tuesday, 9 p.m., Bravo).The only other highlight was Project Runway's Mychael Night showing up to offer some fashion design tips to Sheree. Next week, following the reunion, the original real housewives are back for season 3 of the Real Housewives of Orange County.

FX's Sons of Anarchy builds to next week's finale tonight at 10 p.m., while over on Comedy Central, the boys of South Park skewer Twilight.

Over on PBS tonight is the second episode of Monarchy: The Royal Family at Work. I'm totally into this one. It's a guilty pleasure I can't deny (hey, I admit it, I just love the way they talk). And tonight's episode is supposed to feature preparations for the Queen's birthday celebration and a visit by Tony Blair and his wife to the Queen's Balmoral estate.

And speaking of lovely-voiced Brits, Twilight star Robert Pattinson stops by the Today show tomorrow to promote, what else, the most anticipated movie of the holiday season. His co-star Kristen Stewart will appear as well. Today airs from 7-11 a.m. on NBC.

Yeah, just another excuse for
a pic of Pattz
In other Brit news (and I know this is a little late): BBC announced that Scottish actor David Tennant will leave the long-running science fiction series Doctor Who. Tennant has played the show's time- and space-traveling alien hero since 2005. He will appear in a Christmas special and four hour-long episodes to be aired in 2009 and 2010, but when the show returns for its next season there will be a new Doctor. Oddly enough, besides the Doctor, Tennant is best known for playing Barty Crouch Jr. in Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire.

The Doctor
And as long as we're on the subject, a new trailer for Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince is supposed to be attached to Twilight and debuting in theaters this weekend.


Bad Boy Bruno
Bruno sighting: Production on NBC's Medium was temporarily shut down earlier this month when an unruly extra in a tense courtroom scene turned out to be Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen, in disguise, filming his next movie. Security forcibly removed Cohen from the jury box and production resumed.
The film is tentatively titled: Bruno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable. Now that's a mouthful.

Sexy Jackman!
And finally, congratulations to Hugh Jackman, People magazine's newest Sexiest Man Alive. I couldn't agree more!The saucy-aussie, who will next be scene on the big screen in Baz Luhrman's Australia with Nicole Kidman, sure is one tall drink of water. And let's not forget, we'll get to see him in his rugged sexiness this summer in his very own Wolverine flick. Now that's something to look forward too! Yum!

Sexier Wolverine!