Candy Jar Books is pleased to announce a simultaneous release of the next two instalments of the Lucy Wilson series, available for pre-order, exclusively from the Candy Jar website.
Chronology can get a little slippy in the timey-wimey world of Lucy Wilson, but the first release in this double-header is entitled Apocalypse Tomorrow, and it serves as the epic conclusion of TheMystery of Lucy Wilson arc, which has seen Lucy separated from her best friend Hobo by the small matter of several decades and one apocalypse.
Co-written by debutant Steven Walton and range editor Shaun Russell, Apocalypse Tomorrow finds our heroes transported to their most alien setting yet: 1990s Cool Britannia.
Serving as a coda to this storyline, The Web of Terror, co-authored by Paul W Robinson and Shaun Russell, starts off on more familiar ground: Lucy’s home in sleepy Ogmore-by-Sea. But humanity’s last line of defence doesn’t get many off days: soon she’s confronted by a foe from her past. Or more precisely, several of her pasts…
With the arc juggling multiple timelines and locations, tying a bow on this storyline soon spilled over the bounds of a single book, which prompted the decision to release these novels simultaneously.
As Shaun explains:
“On one level, Apocalypse Tomorrow and The Web of Terror are two very different stories. What unites them, however, is that they see the characters of Lucy and Hobo rediscovering themselves – both as individuals and as a team. At this point, they’ve been separated for several books, and their reunion is not straightforward. We didn’t want to provide the readers with the setup while withholding the payoff; by the conclusion of these stories, we’re ready to kick of a distinct new phase in Lucy and Hobo’s adventures. But as we needed both novels to get there, we decided, why not release them together?”
It’s an ambitious conclusion, which sees (at least) three different timelines collide. But as co-author Steven Walton says, that’s just one of the exciting aspects of writing for these characters:
“Time travel, intergalactic spaceships, multidimensional beings… It’s all just a day in the life for Lucy Wilson! It’s the nature of storytelling to take a character from one familiar situation, and into a strange new one – and there’s no characters where you have more scope to do so! We went as big as possible with these stories, particularly with the conclusion of Apocalypse. But I think most of all I enjoyed playing with the idea of Lucy being dropped into the 1990s, a place somehow all the stranger for its seeming familiarity.”
Co-author Paul W Robinson follows Apocalypse Tomorrow with The Web of Terror. Tying up a few loose ends, this book also sends Lucy on her very first adventure to an alien planet. Paul says:
“I felt it was about time that Lucy and Hobo travelled beyond the earth’s atmosphere. It was fascinating creating a brand new world, while thrusting Lucy into her very own Hunger Games–style mystery.”
Blurb for The Mystery of Lucy Wilson: Apocalypse Tomorrow:
Lucy Wilson’s adventures in time have taken her to some strange places. Dangerous places, faraway places… But none so strange and alien as where she finds herself now… The 1990s.
Pokémon battle in the schoolyards. Tamagotchi roam the streets. And a giant spider from a ruined future looks to spark an apocalypse that, technically, has already happened.
Timelines converge and realities shattered as Lucy’s exile in time reaches its epic climax. And in the end, it all comes down to one question: who’s better, 2Unlimited or Adamski?
Blurb for The Lucy Wilson Mysteries: The Web of Terror
Lucy Wilson thought that her run-in with killer spiders was over after her time in Australia! But soon strange happenings on Ogmore-by-Sea beach set her skin crawling once again…
Still, whether trapped in a spaceship, abducted by a familiar face, or hunted by space pandas, Lucy’s just glad to have her best friend Hobo back by her side.
But the past has a way of catching up with you. Can Lucy escape the enemy that she thought she’d left behind long ago?
The Lucy Wilson Mysteries is a Lethbridge-Stewart spin-off adventure inspired by characters created for Doctor Who by Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln.
Candy Jar has put together a Spotify list for Apocalypse Tomorrow featuring all your favourites ’90s hits and much more. Click here for link.
Candy Jar Books is pleased to announce the third title in its final series of Lethbridge-Stewart novels.
United Nations is written by Jonathan Blum, his first Lethbridge-Stewart novel, but by no means his first foray into Doctor Who fiction. During the 1990s he penned several Doctor Who novels with his partner, Kate Orman, for BBC Books, including Vampire Science and Seeing I. Outside of books, he also wrote the seminal Big Finish audio, The Fearmonger.
Range Editor Andy Frankham-Allen says:
“I’ve long wanted to work with Jon Blum, having been an admirer of his work since I first read Vampire Science in 1997. It took a while to work out, since Jon is a busy chap and we needed a window that would work for him. A such, his first Lethbridge-Stewart novel comes at the end of the range, and has taken something of a lengthy gestation period. For these last few novels, starting with Spheres of Influence and It Came from the Isle of Man, I made sure the authors worked closely together to build up an ongoing situation, worthy of such a big event as the creation of UNIT.”
Jonathan Blum says:
“Much of this book was springboarding off of where John Peel left his book. He set up an adventure with international scope, then resolved the crisis itself… Because John was doing the big alien adventure, I wanted to explore the other half of what would become UNIT’s remit; ‘anything unknown [on Earth], or even beyond.’ I wanted human-scale adversaries, people living with the unearthly or trying to exploit it. And I wanted to show how humans can produce the sort of global threats the UN is supposed to be uniting us to deal with. The business with the Odds was inspired by some middle-aged reflection on just how outrageously unlikely my life has been over the years. Lethbridge-Stewart keeps trying to have a normal life in the midst of barking madness, and I wanted to draw some parallels with these other people coping with improbable events. Dramatize that sense of a little bubble of normality, but on a global scale. And then blow it up.”
Setting up UNIT is a large part of these final books. Frankham-Allen continues:
“That was also the endgame of this series, to fill the gap between The Web of Fear and The Invasion, to show what happened in those four years between to not only Lethbridge-Stewart, but Earth at large. What series of events would warrant the set-up of such an international force…? We had it all planned, and things were going smoothly, and then we were hit with a bizarre reference to The War Machines (a story that happened long before The Web of Fear) in 2022 with Doctor Who: Flux…”
Jonathan Blum explains:
“We were most of the way through the story, when suddenly Flux established that UNIT was being set up years before Lethbridge-Stewart even came on board [despite countless previous references to his importance in the founding of UNIT]. But then if you look at what actually happens in Flux, it turns out there’s a very good reason why the original UNIT was strangled at birth, and needed our heroes to breathe life into it. And suddenly we see some things the Brigadier’s superiors did earlier in the book series in a rather different light…”
This book also sees the full return of Captain Kramer, who previously appeared in Times Squared…
Blum continues:
“Thirty years ago now, I made my student film Time Rift, and Marsha Twitty played Adrienne Kramer, commander of UNIT USA. And her part kept getting bigger, because her performance really jumped off the screen. Marsha became a lifelong friend, and Kate and I wrote General Kramer into our Eighth Doctor novels. Then the Lethbridge-Stewart team asked if they could feature a younger Kramer in their series. But when Marsha passed away in 2019, I decided I wanted to write for her once more as a tribute. Somehow that snowballed into being the big founding-of-UNIT story! I talked with Marsha’s friends, her mother and her boyfriend, and really tried to dig into the truth of what it would be like for a young Black woman officer working at the UN in those days. She was a joy to write for – a take-charge woman who’s also really good at keeping things to herself, and having more up her sleeve than you think. And we see very different sides to her in these books. Even after all these years, she was still able to surprise me!”
Blurb:
It was impossible that the public could ever have missed seeing the giant alien spaceship. But somehow, everyone did.
The US and USSR both want to know how the UK covered the incident up. Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart would quite like to know who actually did cover it up. Old allies from both sides of the Iron Curtain are chasing the answer – but each with their own agenda. Everyone wants the power to make inconvenient secrets disappear.
The search leads Lethbridge-Stewart to the single most normal man on the Isle of Man, and what happens to the world around him when he dies. Lethbridge-Stewart faces death by coincidence, as probability gets turned upside-down.
And as the attacks get closer and closer to home, so does the political fallout. His career, his dream of uniting the worlds’ nations against alien threats, even his family could pay the ultimate price.
The final two books in this Lethbridge-Stewart series will be Intelligence Taskforce by Jonathan Blum, and the series epilogue, The Lost Son by Andy Frankham-Allen.
If you have subscription with Candy Jar Books, United Nations is covered by this.
Get a preview of the new book ‘Doctor Who: The Daily Doctor’ with some memorable mantras from 60 years of Doctor Who.
To celebrate the release of THE DAILY DOCTOR: 365 1/4 WHONIVERSAL MEDITATIONS ON LIFE AND HOW TO LIVE IT, you can read some exclusive excerpts from the book here on the Doctor Who website.
Featuring quotes from every leading Doctor – from William Hartnell’s First Doctor to Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor – this page-a-day collection of pearls of wisdom from the show’s 60 years will help you stay inspired, remain ever the optimist, and travel hopefully.
The First Doctor (William Hartnell)
9 FEBRUARY – SENSE IN RETROSPECT
History sometimes gives us a terrible shock and that is because we don’t quite fully understand. Why should we? After all, we’re all too small to realise its final pattern. THE MASSACRE OF ST BARTHOLOMEW’S EVE by John Lucarotti (1966)
The TARDIS lands in Paris in 1592, where the Doctor and his young friend Steven are soon caught up between warring religious factions. Steven befriends a serving girl, Anne Chaplet, but when events in the city turn especially violent, the Doctor tells Anne to go home. Steven and the Doctor leave in the TARDIS where the Doctor reveals that some ten thousand people will die in the massacre he and Steven just fled.
Steven is furious that the Doctor left Anne in such potential danger but the Doctor insists (not for the first time) that history cannot be changed… The Doctor believes he’s made the right albeit difficult choice – but will come to rethink this kind of decision.
It’s hard to understand events as they’re happening. Dramas and crises can be overwhelming. But later, looking back, we can gain perspective to make sense of what happened – and learn from the experience.
The Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton)
26 FEBRUARY – GENIUS OR STUPID
Dastari, I have no doubt you could augment an earwig to the point where it understood nuclear physics – but it’d still be a very stupid thing to do! THE TWO DOCTORS by Robert Holmes (1985)
Professor Joinson Dastari is Head of Projects at Space Station Camera in the Third Zone, a pioneer in genetic engineering and, according to the Doctor, has enough letters after his name for two alphabets. He’s exceedingly clever, as demonstrated by his fascinating work on rho mesons as the unstable factor in short-lived pin galaxies (which only exist for one quintillionth of a second).
But even someone as bright as Dastari can be spectacularly dim. In technologically augmenting the Androgum known as Chessene o’ the Franzine Grig, he unwittingly creates a formidable villain. Then there’s the fact that he sides with the Sontarans because they will support his experiments, not considering what evil they might do with it. Dimmer still, he attempts to pit his wits against two incarnations of the Doctor at the same time!
Even very intelligent, talented and experienced people can make mistakes or do daft things. Judge people by their actions not their accolades.
The Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee)
24 MAY – FEAR DOESN’T HAVE TO BE A WEAKNESS
Courage isn’t just a matter of not being frightened, you know. It’s being afraid and doing what you have to do anyway. PLANET OF THE DALEKS by Terry Nation (1973)
Codal is part of a task force confronting the Daleks. He is captured in the Spiridon jungle while drawing pursuers away from his fellow Thals. The Doctor finds Codal in a Dalek cell and commends his bravery.
Codal dismisses it, saying he didn’t think about his actions. He’s been terrified ever since landing on the planet. Unlike the others, he’s a scientist and not a soldier. He didn’t have the courage to be the only one in hundreds not to volunteer for service – even though the Thals have only recently developed space flight for a voyage of this length. The Doctor’s little tutorial on bravery reassures Codal that what he’s described, and what he did in the jungle, are certainly examples of courage.
Being afraid of danger and uncertainty is natural, not a failing. Fear isn’t a weakness; failing to act because of it is. In any situation, true bravery appears when you’re understandably frightened but still choose to do the right thing.
The Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker)
12 APRIL – EVIDENCE-BASED DECISIONS
Never guess. Unless you have to. There’s enough uncertainty in the universe as it is. LOGOPOLIS by Christopher H Bidmead (1981)
A pale figure on a bridge gestures towards the TARDIS on the river- bank far below. The Doctor goes to talk with the stranger, and Adric observes their conversation from a distance.
Adric knows that they arrived by the River Thames to flush out the Doctor’s old enemy, the Master. The Doctor won’t tell him the identity of the mystery figure on the bridge, so mathematical genius Adric puts two and two together and makes five: it must be the Master. The Doctor admonishes Adric without correcting him about the stranger’s true identify. He’s spotting connections in a chain of circumstances that fragments the law that holds the universe together – and so guessing most certainly won’t help.
Expectation inspires us with possibilities in a way that dry facts do not. But random conjecture is no substitute for informed deduction, whatever the situation. Equip yourself with facts before decisions are made.
The Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison)
25 APRIL – MIRROR, MIRROR
THE DOCTOR: What is the one thing evil cannot face – not ever? TEGAN JOVANKA: What? THE DOCTOR: Itself. KINDA by Christopher Bailey (1982)
The verdant planet Deva Loka, also known as S14, is home to the peaceful, enigmatic Kinda who turn out to be far more sophisticated than they first appear. A group of would-be colonisers from another world dismiss the Kinda as ‘primitive’ because they recoil from the sight of a mirror, fearful that it might somehow capture their soul.
But there’s another lifeform on Deva Loka: the evil Mara. It usually inhabits ‘the dark places of the inside’ but succeeds in making a telepathic connection with Tegan using her dreams as a conduit. The Doctor realises that the Kinda’s fear of mirrors is a clue to their power. To defeat the huge, snake-like manifestation of the Mara and free the people it has possessed, he traps the creature within a circle of polished solar generator panels. The Mara is faced with infinite reflections of itself and can only escape by withdrawing to the dark place from which it came.
Most of us like to think that we’re basically good people. However, we might occasionally behave badly and not necessarily be aware how we’re affecting others. Every now and again it’s a good idea to hold up a mirror to our own actions and see ourselves as others do.
The Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker)
10 JANUARY – COMPASSION WHEN TESTED
THE DOCTOR: You know, I’ll never understand the people of Earth. I have spent the day using, abusing, even trying to kill you. If you’d have behaved as I have, I should have been pleased at your demise. PERI BROWN: It’s called compassion, Doctor. THE TWIN DILEMMA by Anthony Steven (1984)
The newly regenerated Sixth Doctor is liable to sudden, dramatic changes of mood. At one point, he even attacks his poor companion, Peri. Horrified by his own actions, he heads to the desolate asteroid Titan 3, to live a repentant life as a hermit. Poor Peri has no choice but to go with him.
Soon they are caught up in a sinister alien plot, and find themselves trapped in a base which has been set to self-destruct. With typical quick thinking, the Doctor finds a way to transmat Peri to safety, but the base apparently explodes before he can join her back in the TARDIS.
The Doctor is amazed by Peri’s relief when he then turns up alive; it’s not at all what he deserves. But her compassion transcends such small concerns. Don’t take pleasure in the suffering of others, no matter what they might have done.
The Seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy)
12 SEPTEMBER – TIME FLOWS BY
Funny old business, time. It delights in frustrating your plans. All Kane’s bitterness and hatred thwarted by a quirk of time. DRAGONFIRE by Ian Briggs (1987)
The vicious criminal Kane was captured by his people on Proamon and exiled to the frozen, dark side of the planet Svartos.
For 3,000 years Kane plotted revenge against his own people – without knowing that he was wasting his time. A thousand years after he was exiled from his home world, its local, cold red star turned supernova and all the planets were engulfed in the explosion. Kane finally realizes that for two-thirds of his imprisonment, there has been no one to avenge himself on. All his efforts and diabolical schemes have been for nothing.
The Doctor is also long-lived and has suffered all kinds of loss and injustice. Yet his behaviour on Svartos is completely different to Kane’s. The Doctor explores, makes new friends and even goes on a treasure hunt.
Humans don’t live as long as the Doctor or Kane. We don’t know how long our lives – or those of others – will be. Don’t waste time in bitterness. Move on and make the most of what you have.
The Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann)
16 JULY – USE THE TIME YOU’VE GOT
Four minutes? That’s ages! What if I get bored. I need a television, couple of books. Anyone for chess? Bring me knitting! THE NIGHT OF THE DOCTOR by Steven Moffat (2013)
The Doctor comes to the rescue of a young woman called Cass on a gunship racing out of control through space. Unfortunately, Cass wants nothing to do with any Time Lord – she thinks they’re no different from Daleks now, in the midst of the raging Time War. After the Doctor is unable to persuade her that he only wants to help, the ship smashes down on to the surface of the planet Karn. Cass is fatally injured in the crash. So is the Doctor.
Yet the infamous Sisterhood of Karn use their Elixir of Life to restore him for a brief time. Anyone else would surely be horrified to learn they have just four minutes to live. The Doctor, however, immediately thinks of all the fun things he can cram into that time.
In fact, this is a central idea in the philosophy of Stoicism, which flourished among the ancient Greeks and Romans. One Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, put it like this in his famous book, Meditations: “Don’t act as if you were going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over you. While you live, while it is in your power, be good.”
The Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston)
17 APRIL – SAVOUR OTHER CULTURES
Time travel’s like visiting Paris. You can’t just read the guide book, you’ve got to throw yourself in. Eat the food, use the wrong verbs, get charged double and end up kissing complete strangers. Or is that just me? Stop asking questions, go and do it! THE LONG GAME by Russell T Davies (2005)
Adam Mitchell is overwhelmed by his first trip in the TARDIS. In the Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire, planet Earth is at its height. It’s covered with mega-cities, has five moons, a population of 96 billion, and is the hub of a galactic domain stretching across a million planets and a million species.
On closer examination, the space station they’re on doesn’t exhibit the culture, art, politics, fine food and good manners Adam’s been promised. But the Doctor gives him a credit card for pocket money, tells him to stop asking nagging questions, and sends him off to explore for himself.
When you visit a foreign country, don’t just head for familiar burger and chips in the nearest themed pub. Make it your opportunity to understand a culture, language, architecture and cuisine different to your own. Who knows how your own tastes will be changed by the experience.
The Tenth Doctor (David Tennant)
25 SEPTEMBER – GIVE IT A TRY
Thing about me, I’m stupid. I talk too much. Always babbling on. This gob doesn’t stop for anything. Want to know the only reason I’m still alive? Always stay near the door. FOREST OF THE DEAD by Steven Moffat (2008)
The Doctor and his party flee through the linked skyscrapers of the biggest library in the universe. He sends the others ahead of him while he tries to talk to the creature hot on their heels.
River Song isn’t convinced the Doctor can reason with a carnivorous swarm in a suit. Nevertheless, the Vashta Nerada tell him new information about their origins – but not before they consume another victim and close in. The Doctor distracts them by chatting as he prepares to open a trapdoor beneath him and escape.
Don’t be afraid to try something novel, go to a place you’ve not visited before or meet different people at a party or an event. You’ll learn new things, make fresh connections and maybe change your perspective. And if things don’t go too well, you can always prepare an excuse that allows you to pop out at a moment’s notice.
The Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith)
5 JUNE – HOLD ON TO SUNSHINE FOR THE RAINY DAYS
What’s the point in them being happy now if they’re going to be sad later? The answer is, of course, because they are going to be sad later. THE DOCTOR, THE WIDOW AND THE WARDROBE by Steven Moffat (2011)
The Doctor says this to Madge Arwell, who is desperate for her children Lily and Cyril to have the best Christmas ever – before they learn the terrible news that their father has died. All Madge wants is for her children to be happy but she finds herself shouting at them instead. The Doctor gently explains the turbulent brew of emotions we call grief.
In time, we all lose people dear to us. Sometimes we simply drift apart or move away; sometimes people die. Grief can smother everything for a while, leaving us upset and angry and numb all at once. It’s awful and exhausting. If you don’t understand that already, sadly you will someday…
But that’s all the more reason to cherish what we have. Recognise the good times as you’re having them. Tell the people you love that you love them. None of us know how long we’ve got together, so make the most of it while you can.
The Twelfth Doctor (Peter Capaldi)
28 JUNE – POSITIVE OUTLOOK
THE DOCTOR: I have a time machine. I can be back before we left. BILL POTTS: But what if you get lost, or stuck, or something? THE DOCTOR: I’ve thought about that. BILL POTTS: And? THE DOCTOR: Well, it would be a worry, so best not to dwell on it. Look at this building. Look at it. You know what I like about humanity? Its optimism. Do you know what this building is made of? Pure, soaring optimism. SMILE by Frank Cottrell-Boyce (2017)
The Doctor tells Bill Potts that a journey back to his office in the TARDIS for a cup of tea can encompass everything that ever happened or will happen – all before the kettle boils. Where would she like to go?
He dismisses Bill’s worry that something could prevent them returning, instead pointing out the beauty and wonder of the futuristic colony city in which they have just arrived.
You’ll enjoy life more by assuming a positive outlook. Take sensible precautions, but don’t let fear of a worst-case scenario spoil your enjoyment of the moment.
The Thirteenth Doctor (Jodie Whittaker)
28 APRIL – LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE
Something seems impossible. We try – it doesn’t work, we try again. We learn, we improve. We fail again, but better. We make friends, we learn to trust, we help each other. We get it wrong again. We improve together, then ultimately succeed. Because this is what being alive is. And it’s better than the alternative. So come on, you brilliant humans. We go again. And we win. EVE OF THE DALEKS by Chris Chibnall (2022)
It’s déjà vu all over again. The Daleks track the TARDIS to execute the Doctor as punishment for destroying their war fleet. They succeed immediately, exterminating the Doctor and her friends in a storage facility. The End.
Well, not quite. The TARDIS traps them inside a time loop. The relentless Daleks learn the Doctor’s tactics each time the loop repeats. But it shortens on each reset, so they only have so many chances. The Doctor uses the penultimate loop to plan tactics that make the most of time available to each of them. Six previous failures are acceptable if it makes a final seventh attempt successful.
If at first you don’t succeed, try again. Don’t just repeat your actions. Learn from your mistakes, work out whose help you need, picture a successful outcome and go for it.
Every Doctor (Almost)
6 APRIL – WHEN I SAY RUN…
THE DOCTOR: Run! THE FACELESS ONES by David Ellis and Malcolm Hulke (1967) THE THREE DOCTORS by Bob Baker and Dave Martin (1972–73) IMAGE OF THE FENDAHL by Chris Boucher (1977) FOUR TO DOOMSDAY by Terence Dudley (1982) VENGEANCE ON VAROS by Philip Martin (1985) PARADISE TOWERS by Stephen Wyatt (1987) DOCTOR WHO by Matthew Jacobs (1996) ROSE by Russell T Davies (2005) NEW EARTH by Russell T Davies (2006) THE ELEVENTH HOUR by Steven Moffat (2010) ROBOT OF SHERWOOD by Mark Gatiss (2014) ROSA by Malorie Blackman and Chris Chibnall (2018)
Here’s a useful fact for you. The First Doctor never tells anyone to run in any of his TV adventures – he’s more likely to tell them to wait so he can catch up. But every other Doctor has yelled this instruction, and so saved someone’s life.
There’s an awful lot of running in Doctor Who. After all, there’s a whole universe of deadly creatures and robots to escape from. But look again and that’s not always what’s happening. Sometimes the Doctor runs headlong into danger, eager to help those who need it. We could all be a bit more courageous and active in helping. So imagine the Doctor taking hold of your hand – and run.
You’ve never seen a Doctor Who Annual quite like this . . .
In November 2023, Doctor Who returns to our screens with an almighty TARDIS-crashing bang. David Tennant is back as the Doctor, Catherine Tate is back as the incredible Donna Noble.
And the Doctor Who 2024 Annual is THE place to start an incredible journey. With everything you wanted to know about the Doctor – plus costumes, games, behind-the-scenes info – it even includes a never-seen-before Fourteenth Doctor story, and a sneak peek at the long-awaited Fifteenth Doctor . . .
So get your sonic screwdrivers at the ready, and plunge into a Whole New Who World.
BBC Books have announced the first story of Doctor Who’s 2005 revival is set for a special illustrated release.
To celebrate the return of showrunner Russell T Davies to Doctor Who, a special deluxe edition of ROSE will be published this autumn. Novelised by Russell from his original script, ROSE is the story that relaunched Doctor Who for the 21st century.
Originally published in 2018, this deluxe edition of ROSE features illustrations from acclaimed artist Robert Hack. It is set to publish on 23rd November 2023, to coincide with Doctor Who’s 60th anniversary.
In a lair somewhere beneath central London, a malevolent alien intelligence is plotting the end of humanity. Shop window dummies that can move – and kill – are taking up key positions, ready to strike.
Rose Tyler, an ordinary Londoner, is working her shift in a department store, unaware that this is the most important day of her life. She’s about to meet the only man who understands the true nature of the threat facing Earth, a stranger who will open her eyes to all the wonder and terror of the universe – a traveller in time and space known as the Doctor.
ROSE is the story that brought Doctor Who back for the 21st century – and Russell T Davies’s novelisation, based on his script, set the standard for new-era Target novelisations. Now with illustrations by acclaimed artist Robert Hack, this is Rose as you’ve never seen it before…
As Doctor Who starts its celebrations for the sixtieth anniversary, Candy Jar Books is proud to announce the first book it will be publishing to mark the upcoming festivities. So, get ready to be taken back to one of the most colourful highlights the series experienced in the 1960s when the Daleks took to the big screen, and now we share the memories of someone who was not only there, but also directly involved – Actress Jill Curzon, who played Doctor Who’s niece, Louise in Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 A.D. But, that’s not all.
Jill has lead a spectacular life, working with beloved names in the entertainment industry such as Roger Moore, Morecambe and Wise, Patrick McGoohan, etc, and starred in legendary cult TV series, such as The Champions, The Saint, Adam Adamant Lives and Not Only… But, Also with comedy icons Peter Cook and Dudley Moore.
Jill says: “Our generation of actors were the first to bring live theatre to the living rooms of tens of millions of people. What we did set the benchmark for all future television and movie productions.”
This is her story. From BBC Television Centre at its height, to Shepperton and Pinewood film studios, and taking in London and the Soho nightclubs and comedy bars of the early 1960s, this memoir captures the rich atmosphere and the vivid colour of the night-life that shaped the entertainment world both in front and behind the lens.
Follow Jill’s life as it takes unexpected twists and turns, through the fame of the 1960s and into the 1970s, where despite giving up acting, she continues to live life to the fullest.
Shaun Russell, head of publishing at Candy Jar Books, says:
“The Dalek movies were part of all of our childhoods, whether you were there seeing them at the cinema in the 1960s, on Saturday mornings on BBC1 during summer holidays of the 1970s, or on VHS and Blu-Ray up to today. Jill was there front and centre. I am so pleased that Jill has decided to share her memories of the Daleks, and indeed her other appearances with comedy icons such as Terry Scott and Dick Emery, but I believe readers will be as fascinated as I was as they discover Jill’s story; her journey through emotional highs and lows, and how she resolved to set it all down in text once and for all. This is her definitive account of an amazing life.”
Drawing extensively from diaries kept throughout her life, Jill paints a sharply accurate portrait of a life where the world seems to present everything at her feet, from success to love, and then takes it all away as betrayal brings her to a point where nearly everything is lost.
As Jill says:
“Fate being fickle leaves you to decide much of how your life progresses. At least it does so in a teasing way, for it gives you the impression that it is you who makes the decisions that guide your path through life.’
Jill Curzon 2023 A.D.: My Eventful life offers an insight into a complex yet inspiring life, showing determination, optimism and above all else, how not to get exterminated!
Blurb:
Jill Curzon writes her memoirs with absolute candour, detailing the highs and lows of her professional and private life.
Within these pages are reflections on her life along with reminiscences on those who have mattered the most. These include fellow actors, directors, friends and family.
The book highlights Jill’s absolute zest for life and a great love of humour both professionally and personally.
Jill’s life hasn’t all been glitz, glamour and Daleks! Her stories of living through tough times and health worries will resonate with many, but what shines through is faith and positivity.
Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials to be novelised for the Target range
The three latest Doctor Who adventures featuring the Fourteenth Doctor and Donna Noble will become novels.
BBC Books is delighted to announce that it will be expanding the Doctor Who Target range with three new titles in January 2024. The collection are novelisations of the 2023 Doctor Who Specials, which will feature David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble. Each book will have specially commissioned cover artwork by Anthony Dry.
Launched in 1973, Target Books published novelisations of almost every Doctor Who serial aired between 1963 and 1989. To the delight of fans, BBC Books began reissuing these classic paperbacks in 2012, and in 2018 expanded the Target range to include all-new novelisations of modern-era Doctor Who episodes. This year, Target Books celebrates its 50th year publishing Doctor Who books.
Candy Jar Books is pleased to announce details of the second of its Counter Measures!
Birds of Prey is the second book in a two-novel event, following up book one Birds of Passage.
Counter Measures, featuring characters Group Captain Gilmore, Professor Rachel Jensen and Dr Allison Williams, was created by Ben Aaronovitch for Doctor Who back in 1988. The characters were expanded on in Aaronovitch’s later novelisation of their debut story, Remembrance of the Daleks, and made the odd appearance in Doctor Who prose fiction throughout the 1990s. The team has enjoyed a long life in audio dramas from Big Finish Productions since 2012, and Gilmore made a cameo in one of Candy Jar’s Lethbridge-Stewart short stories. They even appeared in a comic written by Andrew Cartmel.
Birds of Passage was written by Robert Mammone, who had hoped to write the follow up too. Alas, life intervened…
Range Editor Andy Frankham-Allen explains:
“Due to a change in circumstances, Robert felt he would be unable to commit the time needed. However, we agreed to look at it again a few months later, and sadly little had changed by time it came to move forward. Robert allowed me to use his outline and ideas for book two as a jumping on point for his replacement, but in the event I decided it was better to let whoever that was to just read the first book and take it in their own direction.”
The chosen author was James Middleditch, who has written a couple of Lethbridge-Stewart novels, plus short stories for the UNIT series.
James says:
“The prospect of writing for the Counter Measures series felt quite different to my prior work on the Lethbridge-Stewart range. I would say the tone is a bit darker and more morally complex, with the threats emerging from the behaviour of humans as much as anything from elsewhere, although influences of past invasions continue to play a big role in awakening our own worst instincts. Like Robert before me, the thought of following the narrative threads and themes of Remembrance of the Daleks was a jaw-dropping one. Robert produced such a thrilling follow-up in Birds of Passage, which itself left some intriguing strands dangling, that I had not one but two great stories to do justice to. The Remembrance novelisation, rightly heralded as a late highpoint for the Target range, contains such depth in its depiction of ’60s Britain and its racial landscape. I also revisited Andrew Cartmel’s Cat’s Cradle: Warhead and found a shockingly prescient and familiar dystopia in what had been his speculation about the early twenty-first century. Without wanting to be too negative, it’s worth remembering how close we all are to such breakdowns in order and certainty, so I tried to channel both of their concerns and the reflective moods of their novels in writing Birds of Prey.”
Andy continues:
“James jumped at the chance before any sense of trepidation could set in, and once he’d finished his reading and research, he soon had an outline to me. There were only a few changes I wanted, in keeping with the goals Andrew Cartmel and I had set out for the series.”
James concludes:
“Storyline guidance from Andy was invaluable as always, in particular in providing the geographical focus of London and a core group of characters there. Real history and locations have been interwoven into this dark parallel past, and may change the way you see the parts of the capital on your next visit; a Birds of Prey Walking Tour is certainly possible! To move further into the London-based thriller genre, I also took inspiration from the original television version of Edge of Darkness with its rain-soaked pavements and its uncanny way of suggesting an impending apocalypse in otherwise very small scale events and moments. I hope all these ingredients have come together to be a testament to some of the best writers, their characters and themes. None of us really write in isolation, and to have been in their literary company for a while has been a privilege.”
BLURB FOR COUNTER MEASURES RETURN:
If the people of Britain thought the energy crisis was over, they were very wrong. Power cuts are returning, spreading from London and focusing on particularly vulnerable targets, almost as if by intention.
The Association has risen again and is stepping up its campaign to take power and enact its supremist ideology. Ian Gilmore, Rachel Jensen and even their son Dillon become embroiled in a plan to survive a plot for revenge. They must stand against old enemies as the spectres of past conflicts are raised and a new battle starts to spread through the streets of the capital.
For there are others who stand ready to face the Association too. But how far will they go and what weapons will they deploy? Gilmore, Jensen and their allies find that the monsters of the human race may be far more terrifying than anything from beyond it, and that this time, humanity will need saving from its own worst instincts.
THE GRANDFATHER INFESTATION: THE ILLUSTRATED EDITION
Candy Jar Books is pleased to announce a very special book for 2023, the hardback illustrated edition of The Grandfather Infestation by John Peel.
Like the illustrated edition of Beast of Fang Rock, this book has been inspired by the illustrated Doctor Who Target books from the early 1970s, combined with the popularity of the Lethbridge-Stewart Colouring Book, which was made available via Amazon and good retailers last month with four brand new images.
In 2016 Range Editor Andy Frankham-Allen compared The Grandfather Infestation with the work of John Wyndham in 2016. He said:
“I’ve always been a huge fan of his work, and I knew I wanted something in a similar vein. I asked John to give us something Triffid-esque and he did exactly that. He’s created a nice blend of genres, mixing the best elements of storytelling that you’d find in the works of Robert Banks Stewart and Wyndham, giving it Peel’s own distinctive twist. And John is no stranger to twisting tales, make no mistake. He’s been writing prose fiction beyond Doctor Who continuously for over twenty-five years, and you don’t do that without being good.”
The book has a brand new cover, but the actual look of the Grandfathers has not been changed. Martin Baines opted to keep Colin Howard’s original design. Martin said: “Colin is a Doctor Who demi-god and I wouldn’t have felt comfortable changing his work. His realisation of the Grandfathers was perfect. Like all his Doctor Who artwork, Colin really understand what makes a good monster.”
For anyone who wants to revisit Colin’s work Timeslides, the Doctor Who Artwork of Colin Howard, also still available from Candy Jar.
Martin has also provided internal illustrations for the book. He continued:
“Like the Beast of Fang Rock, I read the book and choose my favourite scenes. I was excited to discover that The Grandfather Infestation is a jam-packed full of action, so it made illustrating it very fun indeed.”
The Grandfather Infestation: The Illustrated Edition comes with a free postcard, as well as a brand new Lucy Wilson Mysteries book The Grandfather Club written by John Peel. Shaun Russell, head of publishing at Candy Jar, felt that the time was right return to the Grandfathers. He said:
“John’s first ever Lethbridge-Stewart book was The Grandfather Infestation. And what a book it is! And, over the years we’ve always tremendous feedback about it, receiving so many requests to release a new edition. But instead of doing a paperback with a new cover, we decided to do something a little more special. Like Beast of Fang Rock, Martin’s artwork really helps to bring this exciting book alive. And the Lucy story is the cherry on the cake, allowing us to introduce the alien Grandfathers to a new audience.”
BLURB FOR THE GRANDFATHER INFESTATION:
The late 1960s and pirate radio is at its height. DJ Mary Wilde is second-guessing herself, and her career choice – is she a fool to think she can succeed in a man’s world? But such problems are soon put into sharp relief when something emerges from the depths of the North Sea, and drags Radio Crossbones down.
Meanwhile, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart has to contend with the politics of running the Fifth Operational Corps, but he’s soon pulledaway from such tedious back-patting when a nuclear submarine is lost with all hands while investigating the strange occurrences in the North Sea.
What are the Ymir, and why is it important for them to collect so many humans for their Grandfathers? And why does their success spell certain doom for Edinburgh? Lethbridge-Stewart, Anne Travers and Mary Wilde are about to learn the shocking truth first hand.
All of the school clubs have been cancelled, effective immediately. All except one…
Lucy and Hobo can’t understand why everyone at school has joined the gardening club. They also can’t understand why no one is doing any gardening!
Why are the students constructing a gigantic greenhouse? And why does it need such a powerful heating system? But, more to the point, what sort of plants will this greenhouse be the home to?
Will Lucy and Hobo be able to solve this mystery or have the seeds of destruction already been sown?
The Grandfather Infestation is now available for pre-order, for £25.00, directly from www.candyjarbooks.co.uk.
PULL TO OPEN: 1962–1963: THE INSIDE STORY OF HOW THE BBC CREATED AND LAUNCHED DOCTOR WHO
‘Fresh and compelling… As definitive an account of those early years as I have read’ Toby Hadoke
When Doctor Who began on Saturday November 23 1963, few could have guessed that it marked the start of perhaps the most extraordinary story in the history of BBC television drama. But there had already been another story, equally extraordinary yet unseen, leading up to the transmission of that opening episode – the creation of the series itself.
Pull to Open explores the behind-the-scenes saga of Doctor Who in 1963, when a chain of events at the BBC brought together a disparate group to launch what would become one of British TV’s best-loved and most successful programmes. It’s the story of why these events happened; the BBC creative culture into which Doctor Who was born; how television drama was made in the early 1960s; and an insight into the people who started this epic journey.
Drawing from the BBC’s written archives and new interviews with some of those who were there, including Doctor Who’s first director Waris Hussein and original co-star Carole Ann Ford, Pull to Open is a detailed and comprehensive account of the programme’s path to the screen. Immerse yourself in the world of BBC Television in 1963 and discover how a series which was almost cancelled before a single episode was shown survived to cement its place in the popular culture of a nation.
Foreword by Toby Hadoke
Paul Hayes was born and raised in West Sussex, and now lives in Norwich. A writer and broadcaster, he has contributed feature articles to the likes of Doctor Who Magazine, BBC Online, The Stage and the Eastern Daily Press. For the BBC he has produced and presented a variety of radio documentaries, on subjects including The Beatles, motor racing, broadcasting history, politics, film, football and – of course! – Doctor Who, a programme which he has loved for as long as he can remember.
Paperback: 424 pages in black and white
THIS IS A PRE-ORDER: RELEASE DATE – JULY 24 2023
BBC Books to Publish ‘Whotopia: The Ultimate Guide to the Whoniverse’
BBC Books is delighted to announce the publication of WHOTOPIA: THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO THE WHONIVERSE on 16th November 2023.
Co-written by Simon Guerrier, Una McCormack and Jonathan Morris, this official 60th anniversary celebration book will publish in November alongside three anniversary specials starring David Tennant and Catherine Tate.
Crammed with exciting new images and in full colour throughout, WHOTOPIA is the essential celebration of 60 years of the world’s longest-running sci-fi TV show. For fans and casual viewers alike, this special in-world encyclopaedia will allow readers to free-roam the Doctor’s dimension as never before. They’ll get to join each Doctor as they tell their own story, will hear from the monsters’ own mouths what makes them tick, and explore the gadgets, robots, spaceships, computers and mind-blowing creations that crowd the never-ending corridors of the Whoniverse.
Pre-order ‘Whotopia: The Ultimate Guide to the Whoniverse’ here.
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