BBC Books are currently selling all three of the new proposed Doctor Who new series book titles previously announced to wholesalers and retailers. Clockwise Man by Justin Richards is listed for March, Death Players by Jacqueline Rayner for April and Monsters Inside by Stephen Cole for May. All three books were previously announced titles only, with the Ninth Doctor and Rose from the new series being the characters listed. They're listed as ú6.99 cover-priced hardbacks, not unlike the Lemony Snicket series. Meanwhile, the trade circulars also list a book called Monsters and Villains by Justin Richards, a ú7.99 paperback for sale in May as well. Of course, titles and dates are subject to change. (Thanks to Paul Greaves)

Mad Norwegian Press' forthcoming six-part About Time series, detailed guidebooks to the original Doctor Who series by Lawrence Miles and Tat Wood, have undergone a slight change. The books have been "reformatted to divide the TV show by Seasons rather than Doctors," says editor Lars Pearson. "This leaves the great bulk of the text unchanged, but the books will now be divided as follows: Volume 1 (Seasons 1 to 3); Volume 2 (Seasons 4 to 6); Volume 3 (Seasons 7 to 11); Volume 4 (Seasons 12 to 17); Volume 5 (Seasons 18 to 21); Volume 6 (Seasons 22 to 26, the TV Movie). Note that this alters most of the books only slightly, and some such as Volume 3 --- which details the Pertwee era --- aren't affected at all. The main change is that Season 18, Tom Baker's last season, is now paired with the Davison volume." The first volume in release, the Pertwee book (#3), is due in October; the cover illustration for that and the subsequent release (#4) are below - click on each for a larger version. (Thanks to Lars Pearson)

Telos Publishing announces the first nonfiction book covering the launch of next year's new Doctor Who television series, to be released during the summer of 2005, shortly after the first season is transmitted. Back To The Vortex: The Unofficial and Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who 2005 is written by J. Shaun Lyon, the editor of Outpost Gallifrey, with an introduction penned by Philip David Segal, the last television producer of Doctor Who (the 1996 TV movie starring Paul McGann), and cover montage illustration by noted Polish artist Dariusz Jasiczak (who did the frontispiece illustration for Telos' Doctor Who novella "Ghost Ship".)

Back to the Vortex is a two-part deconstruction of the new Doctor Who series. The first section is a primer on the time period between the announcement of the new series and the start of transmission, from the perspective of the outside looking in -- the media coverage, the press and magazines, the location shoots and the hype, as well as biographies of the cast and crew, and how the entire event changed the way the world looks at the series. The second part is a detailed and exhaustively researched guide to the first season of the show, complete with episode breakdowns, casting, historical outlook, logic issues, continuity and technology, as well as a collection of critical review and analysis of each story from a variety of perspectives by professional and fan writers from five countries, including Keith Topping, Scott Alan Woodard, Graeme Burk, Sarah Hadley, Robert Franks, Paul Hayes, Simon Catlow, Cameron J. Mason and Jon Preddle.

The book will be released in the UK very shortly after transmission of the series in both softcover and signed, limited edition numbered hardcover signed by the author and Segal, and will be distributed overseas shortly thereafter. The press release is below; meanwhile, the cover illustration is at right -- click the thumbnail for a larger version. Further details will be available shortly on the Telos Publishing website, and there is a Back to the Vortex page with some background information and other details here at Outpost Gallifrey.

Reynolds & Hearn will be releasing Script Doctor in February 2005 by Andrew Cartmel. "The Inside Story of Doctor Who 1986-89," the book by the original series' final script editor is "a unique insight into an area of the show's history that has previously been shrouded in uncertainty." Sylvester McCoy (the Seventh Doctor) provides the foreword for the book, which is listed on Amazon already. More details soon.

According to North American distributors Diamond Publishing, both "SynthespiansTM" and "The Sleep of Reason" are being distributed in the US and Canada in September, with "The Algebra of Ice" slated for early October. Apparently, however, these are in smaller numbers. "After the BBC lost a lot of money with the former US distributor, they decided not to take a chance with Diamond and have limited the number of books they will send to the USA," Keith Bradbury of WhoNA told Outpost Gallifrey. "Apparently, according to BBC America, these books are a special print run only for the USA. I know the books that come through Diamond have the USA pricing on the back, so unless the UK books do not have this pricing, I cannot imagine how the print run would be any different between the two markets. What does all of this mean? Quite simply, when we sell our last 5 copies of Shalka, we will have to get any additional copies from the UK, which means increased prices on the titles." This explains why we're not seeing large numbers of copies of the books on store shelves in the US and Canada: that the print runs for the continent have been vastly decreased. (Thanks to Keith Bradbury/WhoNA and Diana Dougherty/Ambrosia Books)

Outpost Gallifrey has received the cover illustration and cover blurb for Trevor Baxendale's The Deadstone Memorial, the October 2004 BBC Books novel featuring the Eighth Doctor, Fitz and Trix. Click on the thumbnail for a larger version. (Thanks to Trevor Baxendale)

Updated 25 August: added cover blurb!

Below are both the cover blurb and cover illustration for September's BBC Books Doctor Who novel, The Algebra of Iceby Lloyd Rose, featuring the Seventh Doctor and Ace. We hope to bring you the final cover blurb for the novel shortly (as it seems information on these novels is drying up...) Click on the thumbnail for a larger version. (Thanks to Lloyd Rose, David Howe & Tenth Planet)

Telos Publishing have informed Outpost Gallifrey that they will be reprinting the celebrated "Doctor Who: The Handbooks" series, originally published by Virgin and long out of print, as one bumper volume in 2005. The Handbook: The Unofficial and Unauthorized Guide to the Production of Doctor Who by David J. Howe, Stephen James Walker and Mark Stammers will reprint the seven volumes originally published by Virgin in a 900-page text, incorporating the massive amount of production notes, background material and facts under one cover. The cover illustration is at right (click for a larger version) and the official press release is below. "The Handbook" will be released in March 2005 in the UK and May 2005 overseas. (Thanks to David Howe & Telos Publishing).

The Empire of Glass, Andy Lane's First Doctor, Vicki & Steven novel published originally by Virgin, will be the next e-book given the treatment (later this year) on the official site... which has just undergone a spiffy refit and features some brand new design work.

Mad Norwegian Press has announced that its next Faction Paradox book Warlords of Utopia and the re-release of Lawrence Miles' Dead Romance have both been delayed one month; they'll each be out in October. (Thanks to Lars Pearson)