New Torchwood Books

Wednesday, 14 May 2008 - Reported by Marcus
BBC Books have revealed details for three new Torchwood novels due to be published on 2nd October 2008.
Pack Animals - Peter Anghelides

Shopping for wedding gifts with your fiancé is enjoyable, unless like Gwen you witness a Weevil massacre in the shopping centre. A trip to the zoo is a great day out, until a date goes tragically wrong and Ianto is badly injured by stolen alien tech. And Halloween is a day of fun and frights, before unspeakable monsters invade the streets of Cardiff and it’s no longer a trick or a treat for the terrified population.

Torchwood can control small groups of scavengers, but now someone has given large numbers of predators a season ticket to Earth. Jack’s investigation is hampered when he finds he’s being investigated himself. Owen is convinced that it’s just one guy who’s toying with them. But will Torchwood find out before it’s too late that the game is horribly real, and the deck is stacked against them?


Peter Anghelides wrote the bestselling Another Life for the first series of Torchwood novels. He has written more than a dozen Doctor Who novels, short stories and audio plays.

SkyPoint – Phil Ford

"If you’re going to be anyone in Cardiff, you’re going to be at SkyPoint!"

SkyPoint is the latest high-rise addition to the ever-developing Cardiff skyline. It’s the most high-tech, avant-garde apartment block in the city. And it’s where Rhys Williams is hoping to find a new home for himself and Gwen. Gwen’s more concerned by the money behind the tower block – Besnik Lucca, a name she knows from her days in uniform.

When Torchwood discover that residents have been going missing from the tower block, one of the team gets her dream assignment. Soon SkyPoint’s latest newly married tenants are moving in. And Toshiko Sato finally gets to make a home with Owen Harper.

Then something comes out of the wall…


Phil Ford has written scripts for both Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures for BBC Television, and also wrote the Alternate Reality Game for the official Torchwood website. His extensive screenwriting credits include episodes of Taggart, Bad Girls, New Captain Scarlet and Coronation Street.

Almost Perfect - James Goss

Emma is 30, single and frankly desperate. She woke up this morning with nothing to look forward to but another evening of unsuccessful speed-dating. But now she has a new weapon in her quest for Mr Right. And it’s made her almost perfect.

Gwen Cooper woke up this morning expecting the unexpected. As usual. She went to work and found a skeleton at a table for two and a colleague in a surprisingly glamorous dress. Perfect.

Ianto Jones woke up this morning with no memory of last night. He went to work, where he caused amusement, suspicion and a little bit of jealousy. Because Ianto Jones woke up this morning in the body of a woman. And he’s looking just about perfect.

And Jack Harkness has always had his doubts about Perfection.


James Goss spent seven years working on the BBC’s official Doctor Who website and co-wrote the website for Torchwood Series One. In 2007, he won the Best Adaptation category in the annual LA Weekly Theatre Awards for his version of Douglas Adams’ novel Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency.




FILTER: - Torchwood - Books

Doctor And Donna Books Announced

Monday, 12 May 2008 - Reported by DWNP Archive
Posted By John Bowman

Details of the forthcoming first three original, stand-alone novels featuring the Doctor and Donna have been released.

Ghosts of India by Mark Morris, The Doctor Trap by Simon Messingham and Shining Darkness by Mark Michalowski will be published in hardback by BBC Books in September.

See below for the synopses.
Ghosts of India: India in 1947 is a country in the grip of chaos - a country torn apart by internal strife. When the Doctor and Donna arrive in Calcutta, they are instantly swept up in violent events.

Barely escaping with their lives, they discover that the city is rife with tales of 'half-made men' who roam the streets at night and steal people away. These creatures, it is said, are as white as salt and have only shadows where their eyes should be. With help from India's great spiritual leader, Mohandas 'Mahatma' Gandhi, the Doctor and Donna set out to investigate these rumours.

What is the real truth behind the 'half-made men'? Why is Gandhi's role in history under threat? And has an ancient, all-powerful god of destruction really come back to wreak his vengeance upon the Earth?

The Doctor Trap: Sebastiene was perhaps once human. He might look like a 19th-century nobleman but in truth he is a ruthless hunter. He likes nothing more than luring difficult opposition to a planet then hunting them down for sport. And now he's caught them all - from Zargregs to Moogs, and even the odd Eternal…

In fact, Sebastiene is after only one more prize. For this trophy, he knows he is going to need help. He's brought together the finest hunters in the universe to play the most dangerous game for the deadliest quarry of them all. They are hunting for the last of the Time Lords - the Doctor.

Shining Darkness: For Donna Noble, the Andromeda galaxy is a long, long way from home. But, even two and a half million light years from Earth, some things never change . . .

A visit to an art gallery turns into a race across space to uncover the secret behind a shadowy organisation. From the desert world of Karris to the interplanetary scrapyard of Junk, the Doctor and Donna discover that appearances can be deceptive, that enemies are lurking around every corner - and that the centuries-long peace between humans and machines may be about to come to an end. Because waiting in the wings to bring chaos to the galaxy is The Cult of Shining Darkness.




FILTER: - Books

BBC Wins Dalek Book Battle

Wednesday, 16 April 2008 - Reported by DWNP Archive
Posted By John Bowman

The BBC's commercial arm won a High Court battle today concerning a book about the Daleks.

Publisher JHP, which brought out four Dalek-related books in the 1960s that had input from Dalek creator Terry Nation, claimed that BBC Worldwide's The Dalek Survival Guide, which was published in 2002, had infringed its copyright by using material from one of the books.

But according to a report on BBC News, Mr Justice Norris said that although JHP had the licence to bring out the original books - three annuals plus The Dalek Pocketbook and Space-Travellers' Guide - it did not own the copyright.

In 2001, both sides had started working together on a new venture involving the original books plus fresh material, but it foundered after JHP disliked BBC Worldwide's plans.

JHP had claimed that the subsequent Dalek Survival Guide copied The Dalek Pocketbook and Space-Travellers' Guide material. However, the judge ruled that no substantial copying had taken place, and said it was "inherently improbable" that Nation, who died in 1997, would have assigned copyright to JHP.




FILTER: - Production - Books

Next Guide Title Announced

Saturday, 12 January 2008 - Reported by DWNP Archive

Starships and Spacestations will be the next Doctor Who guide in the BBC Books series.

Written by Justin Richards, it is due to be published on May 1.

A press statement said: "The Doctor has his TARDIS to get him from place to place and time to time but the rest of the universe relies on more conventional transport.

"From the British Space Programme of the late 20th century to Earth's empire in the far future, from the terrifying Dalek fleet to deadly Cyber ships, this latest Doctor Who guide documents the many starships and spacestations that the Doctor and his companions have encountered on their travels.

"He has solved mysteries on spacestations and stopped invasions spearheaded by starships. He has been held prisoner in space, escaped from the moon, witnessed the arrival of the Sycorax and the crash-landing of a space pig.

"More than anyone else, the Doctor has seen the development of space travel between countless worlds.

"In this stunningly illustrated book, Doctor Who historian Justin Richards documents the amazing story of Earth's ventures into space, examines the many alien fleets who have paid Earth a visit, and explores the other starships and spacestations that the Doctor has encountered on his many travels."

There is no cover image as yet.




FILTER: - Books

Gary Russell interviewed about IDW comic

Wednesday, 9 January 2008 - Reported by Josiah Rowe

The new Doctor Who comic book from IDW Publishing will be released soon, and Broken Frontier has an interview with its writer, Gary Russell. Russell has a long history with Doctor Who and Doctor Who fandom, and currently works as a script editor on the BBC Wales series. He speaks to Broken Frontier about the IDW comic and his other Doctor Who work.

The Doctor Who comic book will be available in comic shops across North America this month. Readers in the United States and Canada can follow this linkto find a comic shop near their location.

Thanks to Andy Oliver.




FILTER: - Books

News from commentary

Tuesday, 1 January 2008 - Reported by Anthony Weight

The audio commentary for Voyage of the Damned, available to stream from the official BBC Doctor Who website, has revealed some items of news relating to the future production of the series and media related to it. The commentary features executive producers Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner and producer Phil Collinson.

During the course of the discussion, Collinson reveals that he will not be producing the special episodes of Doctor Who that will be made for transmission in 2009. Whether he is leaving the series entirely or not is unclear, but this is the implication given.

In addition, Russell T Davies reveals that he is writing a book detailing his work on the series, to be published in time for next Christmas. The as-yet-untitled volume is a collaboration with Doctor Who Magazine reporter Benjamin Cook. No other details are currently known.




FILTER: - Production - Books

The Hopes and Fears of All the Years

Friday, 21 December 2007 - Reported by Josiah Rowe

Paul Cornell's new Doctor Who Christmas story, The Hopes and Fears of All the Years, is now available on the Daily Telegraph's website. Only one of the three illustrations by Mike Collins accompanies the web version; to see the other two, you'll have to buy the newspaper.

As previously reported, Cornell is running a competition to win the original art of Collins' illustrations on Facebook.





FILTER: - Books - Press

A Cornell Christmas Carol

Tuesday, 18 December 2007 - Reported by Josiah Rowe

The official Doctor Who site has confirmed that "The Hopes and Fears of All the Years", a new Doctor Who short story by Paul Cornell, will be published in the Daily Telegraph on December 22. Cornell, author of several Doctor Who novels and audios, and most recently the television episodes "Human Nature" and "The Family of Blood", had previously announced the story on his blog. The short story will be illustrated by Doctor Who Magazineartist Mike Collins. Cornell is running a competition to win one of Collins' illustrations on Facebook.

Last Christmas, The Times ran a Doctor Who story by Cornell; it can be found in their archives.




FILTER: - Books - Press

Mad Norwegian Update

Saturday, 8 December 2007 - Reported by Jeremy Bement

Mad Norwegian Press has announced two new projects for release later in 2008: a Second Edition of About Time 3, and the debut of Fluid Links --- a brand-new Doctor Who novel / audio guidebook series that will entirely replace the company's debut I, Who guides.

In the Second Edition of About Time 3, Tat Wood vastly expands the discussion of the Jon Pertwee Era, bringing this About Time installment up to the size and elaborate depth of its fellows. Lawrence Miles , a co-author on the First Edition, will receive a "With Additional Material by" credit, as his text has either been left as is, or folded into the many revisions and additions of the new edition.

New essays in this Second Edition will include "What the Hell Were the Daemons Doing?", "Where Were Torchwood When All This Was Happening?" and "Is This Any Way to Run a Galactic Empire?" At present, Mad Norwegian has no plans to do Second Editions of the other About Time volumes.

Meanwhile, the multi-volume Fluid Links is designed to benefit from the experience Mad Norwegian has gained since first releasing I, Who back in 1999. The series will start from scratch and vigorously examine the Doctor Who books and audios in lavish, comprehensive detail. This project is so sweeping that it has four authors (Lars Pearson, Robert Smith?, Michael D. Thomas and Anthony Wilson), and strives to become the definitive guidebooks to the material in question.

MNP Publisher Lars Pearson said: "I, Who served a purpose back in 1999, but it was done when I was new to the world of small-press publishing, and doesn't reflect the quality we've attained in recent years with the likes of About Time and AHistory. Unfortunately, it would've killed me to go through all those books again solo --- it's a LOT of material, after all --- so Robert, Michael and Anthony duly stepped up to the plate."

The initial Fluid Links installments (likely two volumes) will cover the whole of the BBC's Eighth Doctor Adventures - from its inception in The Eight Doctors straight through to its conclusion in The Gallifrey Chronicles . Essays in these volumes will include "How Much Occurs in the Vampire Science Gap?", "Is There Any Point to Parallel Universes?", and "Was Miranda the Doctor's Biological Daughter?"

Release months and retail prices for the new About Time 3 and the first Fluid Links books will be disclosed at a later time.




FILTER: - Books

Mad Norwegian Update

Tuesday, 23 October 2007 - Reported by Jeremy Bement

Mad Norwegian Press has released an update to their schedule. Says publisher Lars Pearson...
Mad Norwegian Press has announced that its two newest offerings --- "About Time 6" by Tat Wood and the "AHistory" Second Edition by Lance Parkin --- are running ahead of schedule and should be available at Chicago TARDIS convention over Thanksgiving weekend.

Subscribers who wish to pick copies up at the show are encouraged to e-mail Mad Norwegian and collect them from MNP Publisher Lars Pearson. Otherwise, copies will be dispatched in the mail as usual.

In addition, the Second Edition of "AHistory" has more content than was previously reported (nearly half again as much material as the prior version) and now incorporates nearly 800 "Doctor Who" stories. The Second Edition also features a new cover.




FILTER: - Books