Doctor Who audiobooks

Tuesday, 19 June 2007 - Reported by Marcus
BBC Audiobooks have released details of their next three Storybooks due to be released on 2 July 2007.

The Last Dodo by Jacqueline Rayner.

Civilisations rise and fall, time moves on - and species die out. Extinction is a fact of life in the universe. But extinction doesn't have to be for ever. The TARDIS arrives in the Museum of the Last Ones - a facility dedicated to preserving the final specimens of every species in the universe. But all is not well, and before long the Doctor and Martha are in deep trouble.
How will Martha react to the stasis cabinets and preservation techniques? What will happen if – and when – the stasis fields break down and the specimens escape? And how will the Curator of the Museum react to the arrival of the last surviving Time Lord?

Abridged reading by Freema Agyeman.

Wooden Heart by Martin Day.

The Castor, a vast starship, seemingly deserted, spinning slowly in the void of deep space. Martha and the Doctor explore the drifting tomb, and discover that they may not be alone after all...Who survived the disaster that overcame the rest of the crew? What continues to power the vessel? And why has a stretch of wooded countryside suddenly appeared in the middle of the craft? As the Doctor and Martha journey through the forest, they find a mysterious, fogbound village - a village traumatised by missing children and tales of its own destruction...

Read by Adjoa Andoh (who plays Francine Jones in the TV series).

Sting of the Zygons by Stephen Cole

The TARDIS lands the Doctor and Martha in the Lake District in 1909, where a small village has been terrorised by a giant, scaly monster. The search is on for the elusive 'Beast of Westmorland', and explorers, naturalists and hunters from across the country are descending on the fells. King Edward VII himself is on his way to join the search, with a knighthood for whoever finds the Beast. But there is a more sinister presence at work in the Lakes than a mere monster on the rampage, and the Doctor is soon embroiled in the plans of an old and terrifying enemy. And as the hunters become the hunted, a desperate battle of wits begins - with the future of the entire world at stake...

Abridged reading by Reggie Yates (Leo Jones in the TV series).




FILTER: - Audio - Books

December Novels Announced

Saturday, 16 June 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Amazon.co.uk have released the titles and blurbs for December's trio of Tenth Doctor Novels.
Peacemaker by James Swallow
The peace and quiet of a remote homestead in the 1880s American West is shattered by the arrival of two shadowy outriders searching for 'the healer'. When the farmer refuses to help them, they raze the house to the ground using guns that shoot bolts of energy instead of bullets... In the town of Redwater, the Doctor and Martha learn of a snake-oil salesman who's patent medicines actually cure his patient. But when the Doctor and Martha investigate they discover the truth is stranger, and far more dangerous. Caught between the law of the gun and the deadly plans of intergalactic mercenaries, the Doctor and Martha are about to discover just how wild the West can become... This title features the Doctor and Martha as played by David Tennant and Freema Agyeman in the hit series from BBC Television.

The Pirate Loop by Simon Guerrier
The Doctor's been everywhere and everywhen in the whole of the universe and seems to know all the answers. But ask him what happened to the Starship Brilliant and he hasn't the first idea. Did it fall into a sun or black hole? Was it shot down in the first moments of the galactic war? And what's this about a secret experimental drive? The Doctor is skittish. But if Martha is so keen to find out he'll land the TARDIS on the Brilliant, a few days before it vanishes. Then they can see for themselves... Soon the Doctor learns the awful truth. And Martha learns that you need to be careful what you wish for. She certainly wasn't hoping for mayhem, death, and badger-faced space pirates. This title features the Doctor and Martha as played by David Tennant and Freema Agyeman in the hit series from BBC Television.

Wishing Well by Trevor Baxendale
The old village well is just a curiosity - something to attract tourists intrigued by stories of lost treasure, or visitors just making a wish. Unless something alien and terrifying could be lurking inside the well. Something utterly monstrous that causes nothing but death and destruction. But who knows the real truth about the well? Who wishes to unleash the hideous force it contains? What terrible consequences will follow the search for a legendary treasure hidden at the bottom? No one wants to believe the Doctor's warnings about the deadly horror lying in wait - but soon they'll wish they had... This title features the Doctor and Martha as played by David Tennant and Freema Agyeman in the hit series from BBC Television.




FILTER: - Books

Views From Behind The Sofa

Saturday, 9 June 2007 - Reported by Marcus
A new book due to be released in August looks at Doctor Who from a fan's point of view.

Views From Behind The Sofa is compiled by David May using contributions from Doctor Who fans around the globe. It promises individual stories of how fans got hooked, their experiences of being a fan, their views of the various characters and stories, and their memories of not just watching the series but collecting the merchandise and attending events.

The book is published by Lulu.




FILTER: - Books

Human Nature Ebook Returns

Saturday, 2 June 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

The Doctor Who homepage has placed Human Nature by Paul Cornell back on its Ebook page complete with new features.
Although we've been resting it for a while (so newcomers wouldn't be tempted to find out how it all ends in between TV episodes), the Human Nature ebook is back.

Our version of Paul Cornell's classic Seventh Doctor tale still contains extensive notes from the author, plus all of Daryl Joyce's original artwork - but we've take the opportunity to pimp it up a bit.

As well as smartening up the presentation, we've also created downloadable versions that you can read on all sorts of PDAs, Pocket PCs and mobile phones.

Best of all, Paul has written a brand new article, revealing how he adapted the novel into the televised version.




FILTER: - Online - Books

New Doctor Who Novels

Friday, 18 May 2007 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

A trio of new Doctor Who novels are due out from BBC Books on 6 September: Mark Michalowski's Wetworld, Mark Morris' Forever Autumnand Paul Magrs' Sick Building. The cover illustrations and cover blurbs are below
Doctor Who: Wetworld by Mark Michalowski

When the TARDIS makes a disastrous landing in the swamps of the planet Sunday, the Doctor has no choice but to abandon Martha and try to find help. But the tranquillity of Sunday's swamps is deceptive, and even the TARDIS can't protect Martha forever.

The human pioneers of Sunday have their own dangers to face: homeless and alone, they're only just starting to realise that Sunday's wildlife isn't as harmless as it first seems. Why are the native otters behaving so strangely, and what is the creature in the swamps that is so interested in the humans, and the new arrivals?

The Doctor and Martha must fight to ensure that human intelligence doesn't become the greatest danger of all.


Doctor Who: Forever Autumn by Mark Morris

It is almost Halloween in the sleepy New England town of Blackwood Falls. Autumn leaves litter lawns and sidewalks, paper skeletons hang in windows, and carved pumpkins leer from stoops and front porches.

The Doctor and Martha soon discover that something long-dormant has awoken in the town, and this will be no ordinary Halloween. What is the secret of the ancient tree and the mysterious book discovered tangled in its roots? What rises from the local churchyard in the dead of night, sealing up the lips of the only witness? And why are the harmless trappings of Halloween suddenly taking on a creepy new life of their own?

As nightmarish creatures prowl the streets, the Doctor and Martha must battle to prevent both the townspeople and themselves from suffering a grisly fate…


Doctor Who: Sick Building by Paul Magrs

Tiermann's World: a planet covered in wintry woods and roamed by sabre-toothed tigers and other savage beasts. The Doctor is here to warn Professor Tiermann, his wife and their son that a terrible danger is on its way.

The Tiermanns live in luxury, in a fantastic, futuristic, fully-automated Dreamhome, under an impenetrable force shield. But that won't protect them from the Voracious Craw. A gigantic and extremely hungry alien creature is heading remorselessly towards their home. When it gets there everything will be devoured.

Can they get away in time? With the force shield cracking up, and the Dreamhome itself deciding who should or should not leave, things are looking desperate...

Doctor Who Storybook 2008
May 18, 2007 • Posted By Shaun Lyon
Below is the cover illustration for Panini's Doctor Who Storybook 2008. Says the press release, "Join the Doctor and Martha in a collection of brand-new stories, featuring writers of the multi-award-winning BBC One adventure series. These eight original adventures in Time and Space are beautifully illustrated in full colour by some of the UK's top artists. This sumptuous hardback storybook, with painted dustjacket, is the perfect gift for Doctor Who fans of all ages." The book is published in August.




FILTER: - Books

Mad Norwegian Update

Saturday, 12 May 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

The following is from a statement made by Mad Norwegian publisher Lars Pearson:
Mad Norwegian Press has announced that titles, release dates and prices for its 2007/early 2008 releases will be forthcoming, and that - while the company quietly has more books in progress than ever before - some restraint is being applied with regards to declaring new books to the public, in order to better guarantee that books will publish as promised.

"Along those lines, it’s entirely feasible that we’ll release multiple books at once - as we did when we released four books simultaneously at the end of last year - but when you’re doing small-press publishing, anything can wreck your deadlines and generally does. Better to hold off promising something, then, until we’re certain we can pull it off."

"At present, the only confirmed book on the MNP schedule - About Time 6 by Tat Wood - should see publication in an as-yet undecided month in 2007. Other guidebooks - some on Doctor Who, some not - are also making good progress."

Mad Norwegian thanks its readers for their patience and continued support.




FILTER: - Books

The Greatest Show in the Galaxy

Wednesday, 9 May 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

McFarland Publishing have announced a new title, The Greatest Show in the Galaxy: The Discerning Fan's Guide to Doctor Who, to be published later this year.
The long-running BBC science fiction program Doctor Who has garnered an intense and extremely loyal fan base since its 1963 debut. This work examines the influences of psychology, literature, pop culture, and the social sciences on Doctor Who storylines and characters. Topics explored include how such issues as class, gender, and sexual attraction factor into the relationships between the Doctor and his companions; whether the Doctor suffered from multiple personality disorder or other psychological afflictions; and the role of the Doctor’s native culture in shaping his sense of identity.




FILTER: - Books

Dalek I Loved You

Monday, 7 May 2007 - Reported by Josiah Rowe

Recently published is Dalek I Loved You, a memoir by journalist, critic and Doctor Who fanNick GriffithsDavid Tennant describes Dalek I Loved You as "A very funny book for anyone who grew up wearing Tom Baker underpants - I know I did."

The publisher's blurb is below, and you can see the author interviewed by a Cyberman onYouTube.
Nick Griffiths watched his first Doctor Who aged four and a bit. He would have hidden behind the sofa but it was back against the wall and his parents didn't let him move furniture so he hid behind a cushion instead. He's since been told by his mum and dad that they didn't have a sofa only armchairs. So this book should really be called Behind the Armchair, but that didn't sound right.

And so began a life long obsession. When Doctor Who started getting rubbish (after Tom Baker basically) he nearly escaped into the world of music and girls until he discovered someone selling tapes of old episodes in the small ads and that was that again.

Dalek I Loved You is an irresistible memoir of a childhood lived through the 1970s and 1980s. Writing with wit and humour, Griffiths takes us on a poignant and often hilarious journey through his childhood, where he first encountered Dr Who, into his teens where he is packed off to boarding school and discovers girls and David Bowie, onto his first formative years of employment at some hip but now defunct music magazines and into life as a father and husband who is now writing about his childhood passion for a living.

For anyone who hid behind the sofa, dreamed of far away planets, or remembers those long lazy carefree summers of your childhood, Dalek I Loved You will be a wonderful journey. He may not have a TARDIS to whisk you off to far flung galaxies, but in Dalek I Loved You Nick Griffiths reminds us that growing up is the greatest adventure of them all.




FILTER: - Books

Eighth Doctor Comic Strips Vol 4

Monday, 30 April 2007 - Reported by Kenny Davidson

Panini Books have released the cover and a press release for their final volume of comic strips featuring the eighth Doctor, as previously featured in the pages of Doctor Who Magazine.

The full-colour softcover book runs to 228 pages and is due in UK shops in early May 2007. It includes the following eight stories:
  • Where Nobody Knows Your Name
  • Doctor Who and The Nightmare Game
  • The Power of Thoueris!
  • The Curious Tale of Spring-Heeled Jack
  • The Land of Happy Endings
  • Bad Blood
  • Sins of the Fathers
  • The Flood!

The last two will feature newly-extended conclusions. The book will also feature a behind-the-scenes feature in which writers Scott Gray and Gareth Roberts reveal the background and origins to each story, alongside sketches from the artists. You can also learn about the regeneration that never was in an eye-opening feature by Clayton Hickman on the new TV series' effect on the comic strip, with comments from Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies. Plus, in full, the alternative, unused script for Part Eight of "The Flood"!




FILTER: - Books

Interactive Comic Book

Friday, 27 April 2007 - Reported by DWNP Archive

Digital Spy carries a report today about an interactive Doctor Who comic book being launched on the official programme website.

It quotes series co-executive producer Russell T Davies as saying: "For the very first time, fans of the show will be able to create their own magical Doctor Who adventure and bring it to life."

People will be able to incorporate a photo of themselves in their stories, with guidance being given on creating adventures.

Davies adds: "The amazing Comic Maker will allow fans to interact with every aspect of the exciting world of Doctor Who."

New Media Age carried a report earlier this month about the BBC producing a Comic Maker for the site.

NB: Due to rights restrictions, the Flash version of the site is only available to users based in the United Kingdom.

(Thanks to Paul Gregory.)





FILTER: - Online - Books