The Art of... The Enemy of the World

The Enemy of the World was in the process of being novelised by its original writer, David Whitaker, when he sadly passed away in February 1980. Artwork had been prepared by Steve Kyte for this release. The book was then put on hold for a few months before being picked up by Ian Marter, and it finally arrived in April 1981. The Kyte artwork (below, from The Target Book, by David J Howe) was dropped and a new (inferior) cover commissioned by Bill Donohoe.

This features Astrid and Giles Kent, taken from BBC publicity images. Kent is given a militaristic uniform, and Astrid some decolletage. A volcanic landscape forms the background. 

The fact that Salamander doesn't feature - despite the doppelganger aspect of the story being its biggest selling point - is probably down to the policy of the time that only the image of the current Doctor could be used on cover art.

Overall, it doesn't really fit the broadcast episodes at all. A bit too Gerry Anderson.

This was the last time that the Bernard Lodge logo was used on a new Target Doctor Who novelisation.

Kyte also used Astrid - this time with helicopter - and the volcanic backdrop, but there were a couple of rough sketches using a blue logo which he made prior to this, one of which centred purely on the TARDIS.

Whitaker placed the story in 2030, and gave many of the characters first names not used on screen. Salamander was Ramon, Fedorin was Nicholas, and Benik was Theodore. Young Colin, meanwhile, was given the surname Redmayne - but friend Mary was only a Smith.

Most of the scenes with Griffin the chef were omitted. Whitaker also chose to amend the ending to make Salamander's expulsion into the Vortex a deliberate act by the Doctor, whilst it is more accidental on screen - and the would-be dictator is most definitely destroyed by this (whereas the Doctor suggests he might have survived at the opening of the following episode). Another version had the Doctor strand Salamander on Earth to face justice from its people for his crimes.

Marter's adaptation was criticised for the use of the word "bastard", uttered by Benik, as swearing hadn't featured in the range at all before then. The writer was asked to cut his manuscript down to the fixed Target page count and was subsequently unhappy at how disjointed it then became. He cited it as the least favourite of his adaptations.

The novelisation was reissued in 1993, with a new cover by Alister Pearson, this time depicting Salamander backed by a world map. The cover states that the story was first broadcast in 1968, though it began transmission in 1967.

The orphan Episode 3 was released onto VHS on The Troughton Years tape (June 1991), and then on DVD as part of the Lost in Time set (November 2004).

The full story could be enjoyed on audio as part of the BBC Radio Collection, released in August 2002. It manages to cram a number of incidental characters onto its mostly photomontage cover - Denes, Fedorin and Fariah - plus a volcano and helicopter, along with Astrid and Salamander. The map design also features, similar to the one on the reissue of the novelisation (Mercator Projection). I like the little salamander wrapped round the centre of the "O" in "WHO".

Linking narration was by Frazer Hines.

Then, in October 2013, it was announced that the missing five instalments had been rediscovered, along with a new copy of the third episode. A DVD release was swiftly arranged for 25th November, after the episodes had first appeared on iTunes. The cover design - Salamander, Doctor, volcano - was the work of Lee Binding.

A limited edition, utilising the same three visual elements, was also available. The Troughton portrait is clearly one of his earlier ones, from the Power of the Daleks photoshoot.

To mark the return of the episodes, Radio Times commissioned a movie-style poster, designed by Stuart Manning.

The original DVD release had been such a rushed job that there were no extras, so a Special Edition was packaged for release in March 2018. The main making-of documentary was a sort of treasure hunt conducted by Toby Hadoke, and the set also included a touching tribute to Debbie Watling.

The artwork was once again by Lee Binding. As well as the Doctor at the controls of the TARDIS, we see poor Salamander being ejected from the ship in the background. Jamie and Victoria also get to appear this time.

The Target novelisation of the story was released as an audiobook in July 2019, read by David Troughton. He had made his television debut in the story, playing a guard in the penultimate episode whilst on his school holidays. Artwork is as the original novelisation, from Donohoe, but the colours have been dialled down and aren't so garish. A pity they didn't use the reissue cover.