Past Doctor Adventures

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The Devil Goblins from Neptune was the first novel in the Past Doctor Adventures range.
The Devil Goblins from Neptune was the first novel in the Past Doctor Adventures range.

The Past Doctor Adventures (sometimes known by the abbreviation PDA or PDAs) were a series of spin-off novels based on the long running BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who and published under the BBC Books imprint. For most of their existence, they were published side-by-side with the Eighth Doctor Adventures. The novels regularly featured the First through Seventh Doctors. The Eighth Doctor co-starred with the Fourth Doctor in one novel (Wolfsbane) and, after the Eighth Doctor Adventures had ceased publication, a novel (Fear Itself) featuring the Eighth Doctor and set between two earlier Eighth Doctor Adventures (EarthWorld and Vanishing Point) was published within the Past Doctor series. Like all spin-off media, their canonicity in relation to the television series is open to interpretation.

Contents

[edit] Publication history

Between 1992 and 1997, Virgin Publishing produced successful spin-off novels under the New Adventures and Missing Adventures ranges. However, following the Doctor Who television movie in 1996, the BBC did not renew Virgin Publishing's license to continue publishing Doctor Who material. Instead, they opted to publish their own range beginning in 1997 with The Devil Goblins from Neptune by Martin Day and Keith Topping. The range continued to be published through to 2005.

Virgin had distinguished the New and Missing Adventures with different cover designs. BBC Books, however, did not differentiate their novels featuring the current and past Doctors in this way, although they were listed separately within the books. Fans, however, continued to distinguish the ongoing story of the Eighth Doctor from the more stand-alone adventures of past Doctors.

Despite moving to the BBC, the writers (many of whom wrote for the Virgin series) have broadly attempted to maintain continuity with the New and Missing Adventures and many elements from these series have appeared in the Past Doctor Adventures (which replaced the Missing Adventures). Indeed, one of the novels — Millennium Shock by Justin Richards — was a direct sequel to System Shock, a Missing Adventure published by Virgin. Another notable release was Scream of the Shalka, a novelisation of the webcast of the same title and the only release in the Past Doctor range that did not feature an "official" incarnation of the Doctor.

In addition to the Past Doctor Adventures and the Eighth Doctor Adventures, the BBC also published three short story collections under the title of Short Trips which feature all eight (at the time of publication) Doctors. These were also inherited from Virgin, a version of their Decalog short story collections, and when the BBC ceased publishing them, a licence to continue was sought by Big Finish Productions, who continue to publish their own range of Short Trips collections to the present day.

The range has ceased publication. In the spring of 2005, BBC Books began publishing a series of hardcover books, the New Series Adventures. The BBC Past Doctor paperback series continued for the remainder of 2005, but no titles have been announced after Andrew Cartmel's Atom Bomb Blues, which was released in November 2005.

In a talk in July 2006, commissioning editor Justin Richards said that BBC Books have plans for the future of the Past Doctor Adventures, but that decisions have not yet been taken. (This is in the context of the BBC Books imprint being taken over by Random House and consequent managerial uncertainties.) [1]

[edit] List of Past Doctor Adventures

# Title Author Doctor Featuring Published
1 The Devil Goblins from Neptune Martin Day and Keith Topping 3rd Liz, UNIT June 1997
2 The Murder Game Steve Lyons 2nd Ben and Polly July 1997
3 The Ultimate Treasure Christopher Bulis 5th Peri August 1997
4 Business Unusual Gary Russell 6th Mel and The Brigadier September 1997
5 Illegal Alien Mike Tucker and Robert Perry 7th Ace October 1997
6 The Roundheads Mark Gatiss 2nd Ben, Polly and Jamie November 1997
7 The Face of the Enemy David A. McIntee None The Master, UNIT, The Brigadier,
Ian, Barbara, and Harry		 January 1998
8 Eye of Heaven Jim Mortimore 4th Leela February 1998
9 The Witch Hunters Steve Lyons 1st Susan, Ian and Barbara March 1998
10 The Hollow Men Martin Day and Keith Topping 7th Ace April 1998
11 Catastrophea Terrance Dicks 3rd Jo May 1998
12 Mission: Impractical David A. McIntee 6th Frobisher June 1998
13 Zeta Major Simon Messingham 5th Tegan and Nyssa July 1998
14 Dreams of Empire Justin Richards 2nd Jamie and Victoria August 1998
15 Last Man Running Chris Boucher 4th Leela September 1998
16 Matrix Mike Tucker and Robert Perry 7th Ace October 1998
17 The Infinity Doctors Lance Parkin Unspecified Doctor None November 1998
18 Salvation Steve Lyons 1st Steven and Dodo January 1999
19 The Wages of Sin David A. McIntee 3rd Jo and Liz February 1999
20 Deep Blue Mark Morris 5th Tegan, Turlough and UNIT March 1999
21 Players Terrance Dicks 6th Peri April 1999
22 Millennium Shock Justin Richards 4th Harry May 1999
23 Storm Harvest Mike Tucker and Robert Perry 7th Ace June 1999
24 The Final Sanction Steve Lyons 2nd Jamie and Zoe July 1999
25 City at World's End Christopher Bulis 1st Ian, Barbara and Susan September 1999
26 Divided Loyalties Gary Russell 5th Adric, Nyssa and Tegan October 1999
27 Corpse Marker Chris Boucher 4th Leela November 1999
28 Last of the Gaderene Mark Gatiss 3rd Jo and UNIT January 2000
29 Tomb of Valdemar Simon Messingham 4th Romana I and K-9 February 2000
30 Verdigris Paul Magrs 3rd Jo April 2000
31 Grave Matter Justin Richards 6th Peri May 2000
32 Heart of TARDIS Dave Stone 2nd and 4th Jamie, Victoria and Romana I June 2000
33 Prime Time Mike Tucker 7th Ace July 2000
34 Imperial Moon Christopher Bulis 5th Turlough and Kamelion August 2000
35 Festival of Death Jonathan Morris 4th Romana II September 2000
36 Independence Day Peter Darvill-Evans 7th * Ace * October 2000
37 The King of Terror Keith Topping 5th Tegan, Turlough and The Brigadier November 2000
38 The Quantum Archangel Craig Hinton 6th Mel January 2001
39 Bunker Soldiers Martin Day 1st Steven and Dodo February 2001
40 Rags Mick Lewis 3rd Jo and UNIT March 2001
41 The Shadow in the Glass Justin Richards and Stephen Cole 6th The Brigadier April 2001
42 Asylum Peter Darvill-Evans 4th Nyssa May 2001
43 Superior Beings Nick Walters 5th Peri June 2001
44 Byzantium! Keith Topping 1st Ian, Barbara and Vicki July 2001
45 Bullet Time David A. McIntee 7th Sarah Jane Smith August 2001
46 Psi-ence Fiction Chris Boucher 4th Leela September 2001
47 Dying in the Sun Jon de Burgh Miller 2nd Ben and Polly October 2001
48 Instruments of Darkness Gary Russell 6th Mel and Evelyn Smythe November 2001
49 Relative Dementias Mark Michalowski 7th Ace January 2002
50 Drift Simon A. Forward 4th Leela February 2002
51 Palace of the Red Sun Christopher Bulis 6th Peri March 2002
52 Amorality Tale David Bishop 3rd Sarah Jane April 2002
53 Warmonger Terrance Dicks 5th Peri May 2002
54 Ten Little Aliens Stephen Cole 1st Ben and Polly June 2002
55 Combat Rock Mick Lewis 2nd Jamie and Victoria July 2002
56 The Suns of Caresh Paul Saint 3rd Jo August 2002
57 Heritage Dale Smith 7th Ace October 2002
58 Fear of the Dark Trevor Baxendale 5th Tegan and Nyssa December 2002
59 Blue Box Kate Orman 6th Peri March 2003
60 Loving the Alien Mike Tucker and Robert Perry 7th Ace May 2003
61 The Colony of Lies Colin Brake 2nd and 7th # Jamie, Zoe and Ace # July 2003
62 Wolfsbane Jacqueline Rayner 4th and 8th ~ Harry and Sarah ~ September 2003
63 Deadly Reunion Terrance Dicks and Barry Letts 3rd Jo and UNIT November 2003
64 Scream of the Shalka Paul Cornell Unofficial 9th Doctor Alison, The Master February 2004
65 Empire of Death David Bishop 5th Nyssa March 2004
66 The Eleventh Tiger David A. McIntee 1st Ian, Barbara and Vicki May 2004
67 Synthespians™ Craig Hinton 6th Peri July 2004
68 The Algebra of Ice Lloyd Rose 7th Ace September 2004
69 The Indestructible Man Simon Messingham 2nd Jamie and Zoe November 2004
70 Match of the Day Chris Boucher 4th Leela February 2005
71 Island of Death Barry Letts 3rd Sarah July 2005
72 Spiral Scratch Gary Russell 6th Mel August 2005
73 Fear Itself Nick Wallace 8th Fitz and Anji September 2005
74 World Game Terrance Dicks 2nd Lady Serena October 2005
75 The Time Travellers Simon Guerrier 1st Susan, Ian and Barbara November 2005
76 Atom Bomb Blues Andrew Cartmel 7th Ace December 2005

[edit] References

* This novel also features brief appearances by The Second Doctor and Jamie. However, they do not interact with The Seventh Doctor and Ace during the novel.

# Although the Seventh Doctor and Ace appear at the beginning and the conclusion of the novel, Ace never meets the past Doctor and companions, and the Seventh's only contact with his other self occurs in an artificial reality simulation when his second self is attempting to access a computer, subsequently providing his younger self with advice and information for tackling the current situation

~ Although both Doctors play important roles in solving the crisis, their involvement takes place a month apart, with the Eighth Doctor and Harry Sullivan tackling the problem in November while the Fourth Doctor and Sarah deal with the aftermath in December. Also, Harry is the only person to interact with both Doctors, and the Eighth's current state of amnesia- in the aftermath of "The Ancestor Cell"- prevents Harry from realising that the two Doctors are the same person.

[edit] See also

v • d • e
Doctor Who novels, novellas and short stories

[edit] External links