Growing-Up With The Doctor, Part 1: The Seventies

One abiding childhood memory I

have is of corned-beef butties and

Horlicks. This was my bedtime treat

on Hazel Ward. I had several ENT

operations at St. Helens Hospital,

where one physician in particular

aided my recovery, the Doctor.

Now demolished, the children's ward

was famous locally for it's rocking

horse, but for me its biggest draw

was the book trolley.

Amongst the battered kids classics

and old annuals, were the well-

thumbed paperback versions of

 fabled Doctor Who stories.

The first Target books I read were
Day of the Daleks and The Cave 
Monsters. I also discovered a copy
 of the wondrous first edition of The 
Making of Doctor Who, where I first

learnt about the Doctor's adventures.

As soon as I joined my local library, I sought out their Target collection,

and quickly devoured every title. I even recall finding a hardback copy

of The Zarbi with Tom Baker on the cover!

My early favourites were such exotic, distant wonders like The

Cybermen, The Abominable Snowmen, The Crusaders and The

Daleks, with it's bizarre alternative premise to the series (set on

Barnes Common, and bypassing the events of that first monu-

mental television story. I'd finally get to watch An Unearthly Child

in 1981).

I bought my first Target novel, The Visitation in 1982, and this marks

the beginning of my obsession with this TV legend. This library of 156

titles was my introduction to the worlds of Doctor Who, and for me,

was one  of the most important aspects of growing-up in the 1970's.

Doctor Who Target Book Reprints #2

Following the success of last summer's re-issue of six vintage Target book titles, this May sees the second wave of classic Doctor Who novelisations, again published by BBC Books. The next six stories to be released are: The Ark in Space (by Ian Marter, first published in 1977), The Ice Warriors (by Brian Hayles, 1976), The Tenth Planet (by Gerry Davis, 1976), Day of the Daleks (1974), The Three Doctors (1975), and The Loch Ness Monster (based on Terror of the Zygons, from 1976) - the latter three all by the legendary Terrance Dicks. Each title again showcases the original stunning cover artwork of Chris Achilleos, and includes new forewords by series luminaries such as Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat.

Doctor Who: The Visitation Remembered

Part one of The Visitation aired exactly thirty years ago today. The Target novelisation (title #69 in the range) was published later in 1982. Not only was the book the first Target title that I bought, it's also the very first item of Doctor Who mrechandise in my ever expanding collection.

Many hundreds of pounds later, I still love this story, one of Peter Davison's finest, and cherish my dog-eared book. Richard Mace (Michael Robbins) makes a great (though cowardly) highwayman-cum-companion, and the Terileptil baddies really deserve a rematch with the Doctor, even if it's just for destroying the sonic screwdriver!

Doctor Who Target Book Reprints

An initial package of six classic Target book titles are to be republished this summer, all complete with their original and iconic Chris Achilleos covers. Currently long since deleted and much sought after, these reprinted Doctor Who novelisations will appeal to old and new readers alike.

Released by BBC Books in July and priced at £4.99 each, the titles are as follows: 

• The Daleks by David Whitaker was the first TV serial to be adapted as a novel, and was published in hardback in November 1964, less than a year after the story was shown. Paperback editions were then issued in 1965 (Armada) and 1973 (Target).
• The Crusaders (based on serial P) also by Whitaker was first published in 1966.
• The Cybermen (based on The Moonbase) by Gerry Davis, 1975.
• The Abominable Snowmen (based on serial NN) by Terrance Dicks, 1974.
• The Auton Invasion (based on Spearhead from Space) also by Dicks, 1974.
• The Cave Monsters (based on The Silurians) by Malcolm Hulke, 1974.

The novels include new forewords from writers Neil Gaiman, Charlie Higson, Gareth Roberts, Stephen Baxter, Russell T Davies, and Dicks, respectively.