gordon@uw-june (Gordon Davisson) (06/23/84)
<Mmmmm ... good cracker>
This is for all you neophytes (and possibly some of you
old-phytes) who are, like I was, looking for various references
on _Doctor Who_, or who just want some information, >any<
information on it. I remember in my early days wondering
what TARDIS meant, what a Time Lord was and where they came
from, basically what the show was about! (Note for old hands:
the first episode I ever saw was "The Deadly Assassin", one of
the two episodes >ever made< in which The Doctor had no side-
kick, and as a result I thought this was the normal state of
affairs. In fact, the next episode, when Leela came on board,
I was amazed that the producers of the show would introduce a
character for more than one episode!) In response, I am post-
ing this list of books, along with notes as to what kind of
info can be found. (A friend of mine gave me a similar list
which was posted to the net, but it was some time ago, and
didn't go into much detail, so...)
DOCTOR WHO A Celebration: Two Decades Through Time and Space
by Peter Haining. W.H. Allen, $19.95. Hardcover.
An all-around great book, with lots of info on the various
actors who've played The Doctor, history and making of the
show, the two movies, articles on the companions, Daleks,
The Master, Gallifrey, and fan clubs, "and much, much more."
Includes a program guide up to the twentieth season ("The
King's Demons"), which states each episode's claim to fame/
infamy and what was happening behind the scenes.
BBC Doctor Who Twentieth Anniversary Special
British Broadcasting Corporation, $4.95 (Distributed in U.S.
by Starlog Press). Magazine.
This magazine also has a program guide up to "The King's
Demons", but they are very short, and often misleading, so
if all you want is a program guide, look to the other two
books on the list. What this has, however, is hundreds of
pictures, most in color, including several pages of pictures
of the various groobies The Doctor has run up against in his
travels. It is therefore recommended for these if for
nothing else, but it also has lots of info on the actors,
and a preview of the sixth Doctor, among other things.
The Doctor Who Programme Guide Volume 1: The Programmes
by Jean-Marc Lofficier. Target Books, $2.95. Paperback.
If all you want is a program guide, this is the one. It
only goes so far as the end of the eighteenth season/Baker
series, but the plot outlines are longer and more complete
than the other two program guides mentioned here, and it
includes the names of the major characters in each episode.
I have not had a chance to review Volume 2: What's What and
Who's Who in Space and Time, as it is on back-order and I
haven't seen it yet.
This list is by no means exhaustive, but it contains the books
I know of that contain program guides. Some of the other books
available (from _Two Decades..._):
The Adventures of K9 and Other Mechanical Creatures
The Doctor Who Crossword Book (!)
The Doctor Who Quiz Books I and II
The Making of Doctor Who
The Second Doctor Who Monster Book (but not the first?)
These are all available through Target Books. I have none of
these yet, but I have the first three I mentioned, so if you
have any more questions, on the books or show itself, feel
free to ask, via mail. Dumb questions will be cheerfully
answered; I been there.
"Remember, Leela, don't fire until you
see the green of its tentacles!"
Human: Jamie Green @ Gordon's Account
UUCP: {ihnp4,decvax,tektronix}!uw-beaver!uw-june!gordon
ARPA: gordon@uw-june
Gordon hates flames, so send 'em in!