Lethbridge-Stewart: Times Squared

Wednesday, 21 September 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Candy Jar Books have announced details of the first novel to be released in the third series of Lethbridge-Stewart adventures:

Lethbridge-Stewart: Times Squared (Credit: Candy Jar Books)

Times Squared
Written By Rick Cross
Cover by Martin Bainess
Published by Candy Jar Books end October 2016

When Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, his fiancée Sally Wright, and nephew Owain Vine, embark on a much-needed holiday to New York City, the last thing they expect to find is a puzzling mystery involving coma patients, a stranger from a distant land and a dark menace lurking in the bowels of the city's labyrinthine subway system.

Before long, they're battling an ancient evil pursuing a deadly campaign of terror that could bring Manhattan under its control... and the world to its knees.

The book sees the return of the Great Intelligence, last seen on television during Series 7 and influential to the Lethbridge-Stewart range from the very start. Range Editor Andy Frankham-Allen said:

For (the first novel) The Forgotten Son I was interested in wrapping up the story of the Great Intelligence as seen in Moffat’s trilogy, and exploring something of its origins. So now it’s time to go back to the Intelligence as depicted in the original Haisman/Lincoln stories. Ever wondered what happened to it in those long years between The Web of Fear and The Snowmen, and how the 1995 straight-to-video film, Downtime, fits in? Well, now it’s time to start finding out.

Times Squared, written by first-time novelist Rick Cross, takes place some eight months after The Web of Fear, transferring the Yeti from the London Underground to the underground network of New York. Shaun Russell, head of publishing at Candy Jar, said:

I had the idea of the Yeti roaming through Times Square, plaguing the immense underground of New York. And by throwing in a bit of time travelling shenanigans, the title was an obvious one.

Andy continued:

After Shaun came to me with the basic idea, it was quickly decided we wanted, ideally, an American author to write it. I turned to Rick Cross, an aspiring US author I knew via social media. We talked and he jumped at the chance. We spent a short while discussing story ideas, telling him the elements I wanted, and he came to me with a few ideas of his own. And it has turned out rather brilliantly; the first bona-fide sequel to The Web of Fear, dealing with the Intelligence from that story, as well as a story that brings back Owain, Lethbridge-Stewart’s nephew, last seen in Beast of Fang Rock. A character with a very special relationship to the Intelligence.

Rick said:

It’s been an exciting opportunity. Hard work, trying to remember the British rules of grammar, but I’ve enjoyed telling my story and delving into the relationship between Lethbridge-Stewart, his fiancée, Sally, and his nephew, Owain. Owain in particular has been fun, exploring his freedom of spirit, and his destiny – which is, one day, to be reincarnated into the person who will ascend to be the Intelligence.

On bringing back the Yeti, he continued:

I had this brilliant idea about the rats in the sewers of New York, and their connection to various plagues throughout the years. What if one such plague was the result of the Intelligence? Coupled with that was my desire to explore the origins of the Yeti. Who made them? How did so many of them get to be in the London Underground in The Web of Fear? Remember, in that story it is revealed that Travers only brought one of them back from Tibet with him. Hopefully Times Squared will provide fans with an interesting take on that, as well as expanding the mythology surrounding the Intelligence and Yeti.

The novel also links in to the BBC’s range of Eighth Doctor Adventures from the 1990s by the inclusion of character Adrienne Kramer, the future brigadier-general of the US arm of UNIT who made her official Doctor Who debut in the 1997 novel Vampire Science by Jonathan Blum and Kate Orman. Andy said:

Ever since first reading about this character in 1997 I’ve wanted to use her; indeed, she featured in an unpublished Doctor Who novel I wrote in 1998. Her connection to UNIT, and consequently the Brigadier, has been something I’ve wanted to explore since day one of this series. In particular to show the origins of how she came to know Lethbridge-Stewart and what piqued her interest in all things alien.

Rick added:

It was a wonderful opportunity. Andy set it all up, put me in touch with Jon, who compiled a detailed background document for the character. I had never heard of Kramer, but did my research, and it has been brilliant writing for her, exploring the young woman she was in 1969, long before she became the tough soldier in Vampire Science. I’ve been very blessed to play with all these wonderful much-loved Doctor Who characters in my book, and add one of my own creations to the mythos of Doctor Who.

Cover art is provided by Martin Baines, whose portfolio includes the Wallace & Gromit comic, Commando, The Beano, and more recently Thunderbirds Are Go magazine. Martin said:

As soon I was briefed on the key scene in the book, Yeti robots covered in rats coming out of the New York underground, I was onto a winner with the cover. This horrific, stark image along with the brilliant writing by Rick Cross makes this a worthy continuation to the classic Web of Fear.

The book includes a forward by Terry Molloy, narrator of the first series of Lethbridge-Stewart audiobooks (and best known in Doctor Who for his 1980s/Big Finish portrayal of Davros).

Times Squared can be pre-ordered individually or as part of the Series 3 Bundle (both UK and overseas), which will include the forthcoming novels Blood of Atlantis by Simon A Forward and Mind of Stone by Iain McLaughlin. There is also a subscription deal for those wishing to get six books for the price of five (UK only, covering the series three titles, plus the series four titles released early 2017)! Pre-orders are available directly from Candy Jar Books.

A free digital-only short story, The Wishing Bazaar by Sharon Bidwell, will be given out to all pre-order/subscription customers in October.

FILTER: - Books - Candy Jar Books - Lethbridge-Stewart - Merchandise

Comics Out This Week

Sunday, 11 September 2016 - Reported by Marcus

Next Wednesday September 14, as well as Titan Comics releasing the first issue in their brand new Third Doctor series - we also see a new comic featuring the Tenth Doctor, and the latest in the Summer series The Supremacy of the Cybermen.

DOCTOR WHO: TENTH #2.14

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Artist: Eleonora Carlini
Colorist: Arianna Florean
Cover A: Arianna Florean, Cover B: Photo, Cover C: Simon Myers

The Doctor, Gabby and Cindy face a difficult choice, as Anubis's ticking clock strikes the alarm, and the ancient Osiran's patience finally runs out! But they've dealt with the Son of Sutekh before… Now, armed with a year's worth of adventures and experience, can the TARDIS triumvirate rewrite the rules of a cosmic game of life and death?!

SUPREMACY OF THE CYBERMEN #3

Writers: George Mann & Cavan Scott
Artist: Ivan Rodriguez & Walter Geovanni
Cover A: Alessandro Vitti, Cover B: Photo, Cover C: Cybermen Variant - Fabio Listrani

Witness the birth of the new Cybermen invasion, as the history of this aggressive Cyberiad is at last revealed! The Tenth Doctor takes a titanic machine into combat. The Twelfth Doctor finds an unlikely ally. The Ninth Doctor loses one of his own. And the Eleventh Doctor discovers something impossible

FILTER: - Comics - Tenth Doctor

Lethbridge-Stewart: free download The Last Duty / The Havoc Files 2 update

Friday, 9 September 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Candy Jar Books have announced a special free digital release in the Lethbridge-Stewart range, The Last Duty, a tribute to real-life WAF Eileen Younghusband who features in the book.

Eileen Younghusband (Credit: Candy Jar Books)

Born in London, Eileen joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force during WW2 and worked in the Filter Room, the top secret hub of Britain’s air defence. It was during this time that Eileen tracked the first V2 rocket into the country!

A life size figure of Eileen as a twenty-one-year-old WAAF officer stands in a replica of a filter room at the Battle of Britain museum at Bentley Priory. Her advice on the WAAF was sought by historians, documentary makers and even a Hollywood scriptwriter.

Her television appearances included the BBC series, Britain's Greatest Generation, Channel 4’s WW2: The Last Heroes, and the ITV Wales programme, Welsh Heroes of World War Two, as well as BBC’s Breakfast, The One Show and Eggheads. Her book – One Woman’s War – won a People’s Book Prize. Her latest book – Eileen’s War – was written for children and was completed and published only weeks before her death on 2nd September, at the age of 95.

Lethbridge-Stewart: The Last Duty (Credit: Candy Jar Books)

Range Editor Andy Frankham-Allen says

We’ve had plans for a while to bring Eileen into the series, and the news of her death made us decide to make it happen sooner, to pay tribute to this great legend of World War II. It’s not often one meets a bona fide hero in one’s life, and the difference Eileen made to the security of the UK cannot be stressed enough; it was a natural thing to bring her into contact with the Doctor Who legend that is Lethbridge-Stewart.

The Last Duty is set shortly after The Grandfather Infestation and is written by newcomer to the range, Christopher Bryant (editor/contributor to several Doctor Who related charity books like You and Who, Seasons of War and You on Target). He says:

Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart has always been one of my favourite characters from Doctor Who, so it's a privilege to be part of bringing him back to have new adventures.

The PDF story features a cameo by Eileen, immortalised as the cousin of Derek Younghusband, a character created with Eileen’s blessing for The Band of Evil, who appears in The HAVOC Files 2. Christopher continues:

I loved writing this story because it's a great mix of monster-filled action scenes with a more thoughtful examination of how we lead our lives. It's a particular honour to be able to pay tribute to Eileen Younghusband, who lived such an amazing life.

The free PDF, available from the Candy Jar website, also features excerpts from Eileen’s War and One Woman’s War. Shaun Russell, head of publishing at Candy Jar, says:

We have included these excerpts to illustrate how important Eileen was in the defence of Britain. Apart from arguably saving Winston Churchill’s life, spending time with Dylan Thomas and acting as a guide at a Nazi concentration camp, I would encourage all fans to read these excerpts as a fascinating document of our times.

Lethbridge-Stewart: The Havoc Files 2 (Credit: Candy Jar Books)

Meanwhile, the cover for the The Havoc Files 2 has now been revealed, plus news that an additional tale will be included in the anthology. Shaun Russell, says:

With the previous volume we collected the many short stories published in 2015, but it was a little different this time since we have released fewer short stories this year. However, as we like to spoil our readers, we decided it would be nice to produce new exclusive material for the collection, as well as give a couple of extras. And, just to make this collection even more worthwhile, and collector’s item, we’ve decided to add yet another story to the mix.

The Lost Skin is a novella that is set concurrently with the forthcoming Lethbridge-Stewart novel, Times Squared, focussing on several of the regular cast of characters, including the return of journalists, Harold Chorley, Larry Greene and Charlie Redfern. More importantly, it also features the first full appearance of Professor Edward Travers, last seen in 2015’s The Schizoid Earth, who heads to John o Groats to investigate a bit of Scottish lore.

Writer Andy Frankham-Allen says:

The plan was originally to release the novella alongside Times Squared, but time kind of ran away from me, so I suggested instead we release it as part of The HAVOC Files as a three-part story over three volumes. I mean, who doesn’t like a cliffhanger or two?

The cover is by Adrian Salmon, who faced the challenge of how to touch upon the various stories and yet still have a striking image to attract readers’ attentions. He says:

A unifying cover idea for a mix of stories was never going to be easy but the central idea of an incredible shrinking Lethbridge-Stewart made small work of it!

The whole collection is dedicated to the memory of Rhys Rubery, friend of the range editor and Doctor Who fan, a sixteen-year-old who lost his life in a tragic accident in July 2016. You can find out more about Rhys, and how to support the RR81 Legacy by going to this website.

The HAVOC Files 2 is released at the end of September, and is available for pre-order directly from the Candy Jar website.

The next series of Lethbridge-Stewart begins in October with the release of Times Squared by Rick Cross, followed by Blood of Atlantis by Simon A Forward and Mind of Stone by Iain McLaughlin.

FILTER: - Books - Candy Jar Books - Lethbridge-Stewart - Merchandise - Online

Third Doctor Comic - Arrives Next Week

Wednesday, 7 September 2016 - Reported by Marcus

Next Wednesday September 14, Titan Comics release the first issue in their brand new Doctor Who series - focusing on new adventures featuring the classic Third Doctor, as played by Jon Pertwee.

Fresh off last year’s epic smash-hit, Four Doctors, writer Paul Cornell (Wolverine, Action Comics) teams up with artist Christopher Jones (Young Justice, Marvel’s Avengers) to bring unexpected twists and turns to the lives of the Third Doctor and his companions in an all-new story, The Heralds Of Destruction.

This comic series launches next week and comes with 5 variant covers to collect plus 2 retailer exclusives from Forbidden Planet / Jetpack Comics and Diamond UK.

When something enormous and extraterrestrial crashes into Bedfordshire, the Doctor, Jo Grant, and the forces of UNIT under Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart mobilize immediately to investigate – and find themselves in the middle of a pitched battle against a terrifying invader! But the shocking face that awaits their return to base may tip their whole world off its axis.

Third Doctor #1 (Titan) Forbidden Planet/Jetpack store variant: Boo Cook

Third Doctor #1 (Titan) Diamond UK variant: Andy Walker

FILTER: - Comics - Third Doctor

Ninth Doctor Comic - Out this Week

Monday, 5 September 2016 - Reported by Marcus

This Wednesday, Sepetmber 7th sees the release of Ninth Doctor #5 which sees the Doctor, Jack, and Rose pulled into a city-wide civil war between strange citizens - with uncanny superpowers!

Ninth Doctor #5

Writer: Cavan Scott
Artist: Adriana Melo
Cover A: Blair Shedd (& Maddie), Cover B: Photo, Cover C: Simon Myers – Watercolor Variant

Modern-day Seattle sees the Doctor, Jack, and Rose pulled into a city-wide civil war between strangely empowered citizens. But when they start mutating into horrendous monsters, the Doctor and friends find themselves out of their depth! Fighting side-by-side with a face from his future, can the Doctor restore normalcy to the city before it's completely overrun?

FILTER: - Comics - Ninth Doctor

New Eleventh Doctor Comic

Sunday, 28 August 2016 - Reported by Marcus

This Wednesday, Aug 31 sees the release of Eleventh Doctor #2.12 written by Rob Williams and illustrated by Warren Pleece

ELEVENTH DOCTOR 2.12

Writer: Rob Williams
Artist: Warren Pleece
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letterer: Comicraft
Cover A: Claudia Ianniciello; Cover B: Photo – Will Brooks; Cover C: Lee Sullivan Abslom Daak Variant; Cover D: Stephen Byrne

Filled with new purpose, and information from the mouth of the WAR DOCTOR himself, Alice is closing in on the truth behind the Doctor's possible-crime. But something horrific is stirring within the Squire, and the Doctor finds himself caught between duty and honor! Plus, Abslom Daak makes a fateful decision...!!

FILTER: - Comics - Eleventh Doctor

Peter Capaldi and Pearl Mackie to attend New York Comic-Con

Thursday, 18 August 2016 - Reported by Marcus

The BBC has announced that the stars of Doctor Who will be attending this year's Comic Con in New York.

Both Peter Capaldi and new companion Pearl Mackie, will be at the event as well as show-runner Steven Moffat and executive producer Brian Minchin. They will be joined by the cast of Class, the new Doctor Who spin-off due to be released this Autumn. The Class panel includes stars Greg Austin, Fady Elsayed, Sophie Hopkins and Vivian Oparah, as well as writer, creator and executive producer Patrick Ness.

Current Doctor Peter Capaldi will be making his New York Comic Con debut alongside the first ever appearance at a convention by new co-star Pearl Mackie, who plays Bill, the Doctor’s companion.

Previous Doctor Matt Smith and companion Karen Gillan will also be attanding the event, which takes palce at the Javits Center in New York, between October 6 - 9.

FILTER: - Conventions - Karen Gillan - Matt Smith - Pearl Mackie - Peter Capaldi

Lethbridge-Stewart: The HAVOC Files 2

Wednesday, 17 August 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Candy Jar Books have announced the release of the second volume of The HAVOC Files, collecting the short stories released during the first half in 2016 originally released as digital downloads.

The collection included the following titles: In His Kiss by Sue Hampton, The Lock-In by Sarah Groenewegen BEM, The Black Eggs of Khufu by Tom Dexter, The Band of Evil by Roger J Simmonds & Shaun Russell, and The Playing Dead by Adrian Sherlock. As with the previous volume, The HAVOC Files 2 also includes new stories exclusive to the book, Ashes of the Inferno by Andy Frankham-Allen, and House of Giants by Rick Cross.

As the new titles might suggest, the stories are related to two of the Doctor's television adventures. Writer Andy Frankham-Allen says of his book:

As the title suggests this story is connected to the 1970 serial Inferno; indeed it begins the same day the Doctor returns from the alternative Earth. A lot of readers have asked how the expanding mythology of the Lethbridge-Stewart series fits into the UNIT era of Doctor Who, and this story goes a little way to explaining that. But it’s much more than just a response to readers’ questions, it’s a story about loss and coming to terms with losing everything that matters to you. A theme that I often come back to, and one that is even more poignant right now as only recently I lost a friend in very tragic accident. This story serves as something of a tribute to that young man, who was not only a friend but a huge Doctor Who fan, and the family he left behind, who are trying to cope with such a monumental loss.

The second brand new story picks up on a thread referenced in the most recent Lethbridge-Stewart novel, The Grandfather Infestation by John Peel, dealing with aftermath of the Doctor Who serial, Planet of Giants: Writer Rick Cross says:

Planet of Giants is a personal favourite of mine, an inventive and unexpected First Doctor experiment that has resonated in my mind since I first saw it, so it’s been fun writing a sort of coda to it. I'm thrilled and honoured to bring the Brigadier and Anne Travers onto the scene of this classic Doctor Who story, and can't wait for fellow fans to see what awaits them there.

Candy Jar’s Head of Publishing, Shaun Russell, comments on the newcomer to the range:

Rick was brought in by Andy, a result of successful networking on Facebook. We’ve been so impressed with Rick’s abilities as a writer that we thought it’d be nice to have him write us a short story while Andy works on his forthcoming novel.

That novel will be Times Squared, written before House of Giants. Cross says:

I'm actually quite pleased that House of Giants will arrive ahead of Times Squared. I hope it will serve as an appetizer of sorts to the entree to come, one that will introduce Lethbridge-Stewart readers to my particular Yankee style, borne of a lifelong obsession with Doctor Who, sci-fi films and Stephen King novels. Hopefully, they'll come away eager to explore the labyrinthine streets of late-‘60s New York City... and what lies beneath.

Two additional extras in the book include the original prologue from John Peel’s The Grandfather Infestation - which reveals why the Ymir brought their Grandfathers to Earth in the first place - and the unpublished interludes from The Showstoppers by Jonathan Cooper. Range editor Andy Frankham-Allen says:

I decided to remove the interludes from the novel because, in my opinion, they slowed the pace of the story down too much. However, the background on Schädengeist and Commander Shepstone was too good to simply consign to the rubbish bin, so it’s a great pleasure to make the interludes available as one short story.

As with the first volume, The HAVOC Files 2 will only be available as a strictly limited edition print run, and is can be pre-ordered directly from the Candy Jar Bookstore.

The next series of Lethbridge-Stewart begins in October with the release of Times Squared by Rick Cross, followed by Blood of Atlantis by Simon A Forward and Mind of Stone by Iain McLaughlin.

The whole collection is dedicated to the memory of Rhys Rubery, friend of the range editor and Doctor Who fan, a sixteen-year-old who lost his life in a tragic accident in July 2016. You can find out more about Rhys, and how to support the RR81 Legacy by going to this website.

FILTER: - Books - Candy Jar Books - Lethbridge-Stewart

New Titan Comics

Tuesday, 9 August 2016 - Reported by Marcus

Wednesday, Aug 10 sees the continuing adventures of the Ninth, Tenth, and Twelfth Doctors in Titan's ongoing Doctor Who comic series.

The Tenth Doctor Vol. 3 soft cover also arrives in comic stores. Written by Nick Abadzis and illustrated by Elena Casagrande & Eleonora Carlini, this collection contains Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #11-15 and the 10D story from FCBD 2015.

THE NINTH DOCTOR #4

Writers: Cavan Scott
Artist: Cris Bolson
Colorist: Mateus Lopes
Letterer: Comicraft
Cover A: Verity Glass, Cover B: Will Brooks Photo, Cover C: Mike Collins, Cover D: Blair Shedd,

The Doctor, Rose, and Captain Jack, bouncing back from their most recent adventure with a destructive doppelganger, run into a most unexpected face! As the Doctor struggles to keep Rose apart from an element of her future she cannot know, Jack discovers another twist on his missing past that complicates his present!

THE TENTH DOCTOR #2.13

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Artist: Elena Casagrande
Colorist: Arianna Florean
Letterer: Comicraft
Cover A: Rod Reis, Cover B: Will Brooks Photo, Cover C: Mike Collins

Tested by Anubis at the far reaches of the universe... is he following in the genocidal footsteps of his father?! Reality invaded by the old, angry gods of Primeval Time! The Doctor, Gabby and Cindy have their work cut out for them, as the endgame of Year Two begins!

THE TWELFTH DOCTOR #2.8

Writers: George Mann
Artist: Mariano Laclaustra
Colorist: Carlos Cabrera
Letterer: Comicraft
Cover A: Mark Wheatley, Cover B: Photo – Will Brooks, Cover C: Simon Myers

He's seen the universe begin and end – and now all of time and space is his plaything. When there are innocents to save, vistas to savour, and a complete lack of savoir to faire, the Twelfth Doctor will be there to challenge dictators, change the fate of whole worlds, and discover secrets hidden for millennia!

FILTER: - Comics - Ninth Doctor - Tenth Doctor - Twelfth Doctor

New Eleventh Doctor Comic

Sunday, 24 July 2016 - Reported by Marcus

This week sees Titan release a new comic featuring The Eleventh Doctor in a new story arc.

THE ELEVENTH DOCTOR #2.11

Writers: Si Spurrier & Rob Williams
Artist: Warren Pleece
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letterer: Comicraft
Covers A: Dan Boultwood, B: Photo Subscription – Will Brooks, C: Steve Dillon, D: Simon Myers

Alice Obiefune is trapped in the Time War – caged in a time-locked region of space when stars burned, planets died and abominations walked the worlds, wreaking havoc with every unearthly step! She has lost the Doctor she knew, but the WAR DOCTOR has all the answers she seeks – if she can live long enough to reach him!