Morning Meme: Jane Espenson Talks "Torchwood," Carole Barrowman Talks Baby John, and NPH Suits Up

Plus Chelsea Handler's contract with Animal Planet is canceled, Bryan Cranston is hosting Saturday Night Live, and Russell Tovey has a beard.

Did you know that Captain Jack is terrified of Autons? This according to an excerpt from Chicks Dig Time Lords, a collection of essays about Doctor Who, which includes a piece from John Barrowman’s sister Carole. But the charming way that she describes going from trying to choke her baby brother with potato chips to their fun, loving relationship is what makes the read worth it.

As long as we’re in the Whoverse, local hero Jane Espenson talks about getting to write for the upcoming Torchwood series. She’s in for three episodes, says the entire series is being written before an actor says his first line, and that things are changing rapidly including the name of an announced character.

Romy Rosemont, who plays Finn’s mom Carole on Glee, says that you’re going to see a lot more of her and Mike O’Malley this season, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re together. Glee is more complicated than that.

The rumor mill says that True Blood’s Denis O’Hare is joining Brendan Fraser on Broadway this November in Elling, playing roommates in an insane asylum. As long as he gets some treatment for his rage issues – ripping out people’s spines is mostly unacceptable.

With the Emmy Awards broadcast contract up for renegotiation, the broadcast networks are pushing hard to strip long form programming such as miniseries out of the telecast. It seems mostly sour grapes with HBO, who is basically the only networking making long form programming anymore, and seeing them parade across the stage time after time irritates the other networks. It also bores the devil out of everyone who doesn’t watch the miniseries, which is nearly everyone.

The Point Foundation, which provides scholarships to GLBT youth for college, will be honoring Alan Cumming, Brittany Snow and Audi for their work with the organization September 25th in Los Angeles.

Rachel Maddow says that back in the days that she was interviewing for her job at Air America, she used to say that Glenn Beck was her favorite radio host because he was entertaining. Since then, Beck’s decided he’s the political version of Tammy Faye Baker, wearing makeup and crying about made-up stories for money. Maddow also doesn’t appreciate news organizations who published the address and floor plan of her new apartment, saying “I hope they die in a fire.”

Martha Stewart is about to control daytime at the Hallmark Channel, and she wants to do more interviewing and less crafting. But the way she explains it, it sounds more like she wants to act out Cougar Town for real, “the hottest, sexiest, young male movie stars -- who are they really, how do they live, how do they cope?

Bryan Cranston will be hosting Saturday Night Live October 2, meaning I have another reason to watch. I wonder if SNL thinks that hiring amazing hosts like Cranston and Jane Lynch elevates their show, or do they know it just makes their cast and writing look bad?

There are new images of David Tennant as Peter Vincent from the Fright Night remake. Well, they tell me that it’s David Tennant, and I’m not going to argue about it. Under all that hair, it could be anyone.

I remember when the first condom ad ran on television, and when the last cigarette ad ran. But I never thought I’d see the day when the first ad for marijuana ran on television. The ad is for a legal medicinal marijuana dispensary in Sacramento. I have nothing against pot – I say legalize it for everyone and tax it. But advertising it? I’m not even a fan of the Viagra and Lipitor ads. Also, “Get off my lawn, ya darn kids!”

Roger Ebert is sick of Beck and Limbaugh, and insists they put up or shut up about the Obama-is-Muslim thing. Exactly when did a movie critic become the sanest voice in American discourse?