DWM Chronicles: 1972

The next Chronicles release from DWM has been announced, and it takes us back to 1972 and Season 9. It's out on 5th November but you can pre-order now from Panini.

DWM Legends: Patrick Troughton

New this week from Doctor Who Magazine is the latest Special Edition - Legends: Patrick Troughton.

The cover says it all really, so I won't bother you with the contents - other than to say I've already got my copy and it is highly recommended. Here's some random pages to hopefully whet your appetite:

DWM 629

I know a lot of people have given up on DWM but if you are one of those people who still buy the occasional one because there's something specific in it, then I'd recommend the latest issue. Too late to be included in last month's, other than a small news item, this one has a major amount of material about the return of the two missing episodes of The Daleks' Master Plan. 39 pages of it as a matter of fact. As well as the story behind the recovery, and the work done to conserve the episodes, we have an interview with Peter Purves as well as a piece about how he came to see them again recently - tricked, in a nice way, into thinking he was going to be discussing something else - and reviews of the episodes. A number of Doctor Who figures also give their reactions. Quite a few screengrabs from the episodes illustrate the articles, as well as images we may have seen before - though a number of these have been colourised.

If you're a fan of the classic era in general, and the monochrome years in particular, then I'd certainly seek this one out.

DWM Chronicles - update

I recently posted that the next edition of DWM's 'Chronicles' was going to cover 1966, to be released some time in May. Having received a copy of the latest Special Edition - the 2026 Yearbook - I can now confirm that the next one will actually cover 1984, and it will be in shops from 12th February. It does now seem that these are being released to coincide with Blu-ray Collection season box-sets, assuming that those years haven't already been Chronicled (we've had issues covering 1963-65, and 1967).

Update / DWM

A few odds and ends from whilst I was away before the blog gets back underway later this week.

First of all, there's been a lot of publicity regarding The War Between The Land And The Sea - and we now have episode titles: Homo Aqua, Plastic Apocalypse, The Deep, The Witch and the Waterfall and The End of the War.

For those outside the UK, I will be reviewing the episodes as they come along - so beware spoilers. I'll post the reviews on the Tuesday evening following broadcast - just so I have enough time to watch them myself.

On the night of the first two episodes, there will be a new omnibus version of The Sea Devils made available on the i-player. Unfortunately it comes from the team behind the colourisation stories, so if you have the Season 9 Blu-ray box-set then probably best ignore this and stick to the original 1970's omnibus.

The new spin-off features UNIT prominently, and this week (Thursday 4th) sees DWM publish their latest bookazine which dedicated to the organisation. Above is the cover exclusive to Panini themselves, whilst the shop-bought cover is below, though the previous quartet of bookazines had blue / white cardboard slipcases:

Lastly, if you haven't already got it then I'd recommend the latest DWM Special Edition, which is dedicated to Terry Nation and is the first of a "Doctor Who: Legends" series. There's a look at each of his TV stories, as well as his non-Doctor Who work.

I'll be taking a look at 73 Yards on Thursday, and then we cover the opening instalment of The Enemy of the World on Sunday.

DWM Terry Nation Special

 

According to the Cultbox site, the next DWM special edition is dedicated to Dalek and Blake's 7 creator Terry Nation.

It is due out on Thursday 6th November. 

That "Legends" subheading suggests this might be the first of a series. They are running out of more general subjects to cover after all, which the bookazines seem to have taken over.

I have read elsewhere that the next bookazine will be dedicated to UNIT, but nothing confirmed so far.

DWM Gothic Horror Special Edition

The latest Special Edition of DWM is based around the forthcoming Blu-ray release of Season 13, and the majority of features relate directly to those six stories. However, we also get a general introduction to the Gothic in the series, which goes up to more recent stuff like the Weeping Angels and episodes like The Haunting of the Villa Diodati.

There's an article on the old movies which inspired Season 13, from Forbidden Planet via The Mummy and Frankenstein to The Thing From Another World, and this extends to later stories of the genre such as The Hand of Fear (disembodied hand films) and The Talons of Weng-Chiang (Fu Manchu films).

Image of the Fendahl gets a article to itself - costume design - and naturally there's a piece on Robert Holmes. 

(We also have one on his nemesis Mary Whitehouse). 

A feature on the new model shots of the Skarasen provides an image from the Blu-ray optional replacement sequence where the creature emerges from the Thames. Looks a bit plasticky to me, but we'll have to see it in action.

There's another item on the restoration of the unused TARDIS arrival sequence from Terror of the Zygons.

Louis Marks is profiled, as are a number of the actors who were heard but not seen in the series around this time - Martin Friend (Styggron), Michael Spice (Morbius and Magnus Greel), Gabriel Woolf (Sutekh) and Peter Pratt (the Master).

Some fans revisit the village of Devesham to see if it's still full of androids (spoiler: it isn't) and we delve into the personal archive of director Christopher Barry and the production of The Brain of Morbius. (He really, really didn't want to do it...).

There's loads more, and the magazine is rounded off by some original fiction from Louise Jameson.

Plus, you get a free CD which features 15 extracts from audiobooks of TV stories, from The Daleks up to Rose.

The monthly magazine might not be up to much these days, but the Special Editions and the occasional bookazines remain well worth getting hold of.

Before I go, the Doctor Who official YouTube channel is going to be streaming the upscaled version of Terror of the Zygons tomorrow evening (Saturday 30th) to mark its 50th Anniversary.

PS: I've got some family birthday business to attend to this weekend which will inevitably mean that the next "Episodes" post will be delayed until Monday. See you then.

Cybermen: The Ultimate Guide

Just a reminder that the latest bookazine from Doctor Who Magazine is published on 22nd May (which means it might be in the shops by July - so order on-line) and we have an updated cover image. 

This one concentrates on the Cybermen, and looks like it has the same layout as the earlier Dalek publication: four pages on each story - the first about the development of the subject in terms of the story itself, the second a full page CG image relating to it, then two pages of behind the scenes stuff. Between each story piece is another feature on some other aspect of the subject - comic strips, audios, novels, writers, actors, artworks, design, etc.

They're not cheap, but if the Dalek guide was anything to go by then definitely recommended.

DWM Chronicles Return?

Just when it looked like DWM had discontinued the "Chronicles" publications, which take an in depth look at one particular year in the history of Doctor Who, they announce in the latest issue that 13th February sees the publication of the next edition. This one covers 1970 and Season 7 - Jon Pertwee's first year in the role and Caroline John's year as companion, as well as the arrival of Barry Letts as producer.

Presumably this ties in with the imminent release of Season 7 on Blu-ray.

This is the second consecutive Chronicle covering the Pertwee era, and we've had a very long wait since the 1971 one.

Daleks- The Ultimate Guide

DWM have been producing a new range of bookazines since the 60th Anniversary. They have a uniform format and design - smaller than A4, with blue text on a white background for their covers, and coming in a cardboard slipcase. They are substantial volumes, with 224 glossy colour pages.

We had a long wait for the second release - "Into The Vortex" - which had a lengthy gap between publishing date and appearances in shops. However, this was quickly followed up with another release which I mentioned a few weeks back- "Daleks - The Ultimate Guide".

This volume runs through each Dalek story from The Daleks in 1963/4 to Eve of the Daleks in 2022, giving each a four page spread. 

The first page gives some background information about the making of the story, whilst the second features a full page CG image of a Dalek from that particular story - either the basic model or one unique to that particular adventure.

The other two pages outline the development of the creatures over time in narrative terms, highlighting how each story has added to their mythos.

The accompanying photographs are a mix of publicity stills and telesnaps.

The two 1960's Dalek movies have a couple of pages each to themselves, one of which is a big CG image (the Red Dalek from the first, and the Black Dalek from the second).

Stories in which Daleks cameo - from The Space Museum to Flux - get a smaller box-out to themselves.

In between each story feature we have a Dalek-related documentary item, of 2 - 4 pages, depending on the subject. Everything is covered from the spin-off items like toys, comics, audios, novels, action figures / figurines, comic strips and annuals to behind the scenes material - actors who have portrayed Davros, Dalek voice artistes, or how different directors have handled the props over the years. Naturally we have items on Terry Nation and Ray Cusick, and the Mechonoids get a feature to themselves as well. There are a few miscellaneous features as well, such as the story of how one particular movie prop was recently refurbished, or an item on the new CGI VFX on the recent Season 25 Blu-ray special edition of Remembrance of the Daleks.

Hopefully we will see more of them in the coming months. Obvious candidates for a bookazine include the subjects already covered by the previous range which began to appear from the 50th Anniversary onwards (Cybermen, Companions etc).

Sadly, it looks like the "Chronicles" range has been discontinued (perhaps due to a lack of Nu-Who, whereas these new publications can cover the full 60-odd years and therefore please fans of either era).

You may find it hard to spot these in the shops, but they can be ordered directly from Panini or an online retailer. 

I would highly recommend.

"Into the Vortex" Bookazine

DWM is publishing a new bookazine (magazook?) titled Into the Vortex. It had a publishing date of 26th September, but you'll be hard pushed to actually find it in a shop - so probably best order from Panini or some other on-line seller. (It's on e-bay already).

Still waiting for mine to arrive but it appears to act as very good beginners guide to the series. There's a brief word about every single story up to the S14 finale.

Other chapters consider the popular monsters, whilst others cover genres of story - making recommendations as to where you might want to dip in if new to Doctor Who. 

As a bookazine, rather than one of the occasional Special Editions, it is more expensive - RRP £19.99 - but it has more than 200 pages. 

Expect all the best stuff to be crammed into the first 100 pages, with far too much emphasis on more recent material. Sadly, that's what we get from officially sanctioned publications these days. Was horrified to see that the 2025 Official Calendar forces Hartnell / Troughton and Davison / C Baker to share months, whilst the Fourteenth gets a whole one to himself, despite only appearing in three episodes.

DWM Novelisations Bookazine

There's a new bookazine from DWM out this week - primarily an in-depth look at the novelisations of all of the televised stories from An Unearthly Child to The Church on Ruby Road. 

This means mainly the Target range, but we also get the various foreign versions plus some spin-off material like Downtime, Scream of the Shalka and The Pescatons.

Novels of The Sarah Jane Adventures episodes which were televised are also included.

It goes right up to date with the recent novelisations of the 60th Anniversary Specials and Ncuti Gatwa's Christmas debut.

The main focus, however, are the books of the classic era, as everyone of these was published - often more than once.

Each story is covered, with the different reissue covers. Some of the newer authors give their favourites of the classic releases.

We also have larger features on a few of the main writers for the Target range - David Whitaker, Donald Cotton, Gerry Davis, Terrance Dicks, Malcolm Hulke, Ian Marter, Philip Hinchcliffe, Eric Saward, Chris Bidmead, Peter Grimwade and Pip & Jane Baker.

Towards the back there's a brief look at the audiobooks as well.

If you have The Target Book, you'll love this. Unlike that tome, this covers non-Target versions of the novels. It's certainly a visual treat, with some larger versions of the cover art (including some unused covers).

As a bookazine, it isn't covered by any subscription so you'll have to order it separately like the yearly Chronicles. RRP is £11.99.

The publication comes with a free audiobook. Bizarrely, mine was a non-televised adventure, and not even one of the semi-canonical spin-offs - so nothing to do with the content of the bookazine. 

It's a Thirteenth Doctor story - presumably one which failed miserably to sell - which will be headed, unopened, straight to a local charity shop.

DWM 600

The 600th issue of Doctor Who Magazine arrives on Thursday. Mainly looking at recent episodes, it will also have a tribute to Richard Franklin, as well as Planet of the Daleks in the Fact of Fiction.

PS: the recent DWM Yearbook let slip that the next Chronicles special edition might be covering 1971.

Whilst I'm here, we now know that the DVD of The Church on Ruby Road is released on 12th February, and The Daleks in Colour follows two weeks later.

The US Amazon claims the animated The Celestial Toymaker is due 26th March - which if true means the UK gets it before then.

Lastly, Feb 4th sees the screening of Horror of Fang Rock at the BFI in London. These screenings always herald the imminent releases of the Collection box sets, so shouldn't be very long to wait for the Season 15 set.

DWM Yearbook 2024

The latest Special Edition of DWM is the annual Yearbook, which is published this week (25th Jan). Naturally the trio of anniversary episodes plus the Christmas instalment dominate, but it will cover the Series across all media over the last 12 months. 

The colourised The Daleks, Tales from the TARDIS and other 60th offerings will feature.

One feature I always look forward to, not wishing to sound morbid, is the In Memoriam section, remembering everyone front of camera and behind the scenes who have passed.

New Year, New Doctor, New Series, New DWM

By way of wishing you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year, here is an interesting link to a breakdown of the Series 14 trailer. 

No spoilers, but it does also provide a rundown of the expected shape and content of the 2024 season.

Doctor Who: 2024 series trailer breakdown (cultbox.co.uk)

Thanks to the Unleashed show, we know that the next series will debut in May - presumably the Bank Holiday weekend at the start of the month.

I'll state this now, but as far as this blog is concerned it will be Series 14. I am not in the least interested in RTD2's desire to kowtow to Disney by titling this Season One. Moffat tried these games back in 2010 and no-one then took a blind bit of notice, and I suspect that other than the producers no-one will take notice again this time.

Above is the cover for the next issue of DWM, out on Thursday.

Doctor Who Covers - RT and DWM

The latest issue of DWM is out on Thursday. On the same day Radio Times previews The Church on Ruby Road, and features Ncuti on the cover (likely a different image for non- subscribers).

RT has for a number of years covered the festive episode in the final issue before the double one which covers Christmas itself, usually with a Doctor Who cover.

DWM will also be previewing the Christmas Special as well as The Giggle, and reviewing the first two anniversary episodes with behind the scenes features. There's a piece on Bernard Cribbins and the "Fact of Fiction" looks at Hell Bent. We're also promised a Christmas quiz.

"60 Moments in Time"

In the absence of a Radio Times special edition (yet again), I would heartily recommend the latest bookazine from DWM - 60 Moments in Time.

It's the thickest volume they've ever produced, running to 224 pages (only 100 less than the lacklustre Whotopia book which is the official BBC Books contribution to the anniversary), and comprises a collection of 60 essays on different aspects of the programme.

Some are about the production of the series, some about its internal narrative, some about fans, some about merchandise. It's a real mix of material, with the essays varying from 2 - 4 pages each.

It is lavishly illustrated throughout with images from Hartnell to Whittaker stories, but the best stuff is the rare peripheral stuff (comedy spoofs, adverts, publicity images, fan photos etc).

The layout eschews the conventional chronological order, leaping instead from one subject to the next.

For example, the first three pieces are: Is Doctor Who actually a Sci-Fi series?; Doctor Who on Blue Peter; and a look at the DVD / Blu-ray Collections. The last three cover fluctuations in audience viewing figures; prop and costume auctions; and the role of continuity - and fan reaction to it - in the series.

The only chronological narrative is a small box-out for each essay which looks at a particular moment when the series attracted wider attention.

If you already love the DWM yearly "Chronicles", you'll be familiar with the visual style / content here - though this has to embrace all eras under each essay.

A bit pricey at a penny under £20, but well worth it in my opinion.

DWM: Colourful Daleks and the 60th Poll

I was going to take some pictures from the latest DWM which arrived a day early chez moi, but someone on FB had already taken a pic of the spread above. Our first glimpse of the colourised version of The Daleks, due to be screened along with a repeat of An Adventure in Space and Time on BBC Four on the evening of 23rd November. Not sure about Barbara's bright pink blouse, but the Daleks themselves look okay.

We really need to see what it looks like in video however, to really see if this has been a successful experiment. How they will condense seven episodes down to 75 minutes is the other unknown.

There had been rumours that the first story was to be colourised for the anniversary, but that's out of bounds at present.

You'll note that they have given the Daleks new CGI weapon effects. Interesting to note that if successful they may colourise other 60's material.

The other thing to say about the new DWM, which deals mainly with the forthcoming specials, is that it prints the final results of the anniversary poll.

You'll recall that the top two stories for each Doctor went into a further draw to pick the overall Top 10.

There are four stories from the classic era, two of which are from Tom Baker's tenure. Five are written by Steven Moffat.

The results are:

1. Heaven Sent

2. World Enough and Time / The Doctor Falls

3. Genesis of the Daleks

4. The Caves of Androzani

5. The Day of the Doctor

6. Blink

7. Human Nature / The Family of Blood

8. City of Death

9. Remembrance of the Daleks

10. Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead

I'd agree with most of this, but the way the poll was designed has meant a lot of Hinchcliffe-Holmes material didn't get a chance. I would have placed a number of their stories above three of these.

For my views on Heaven Sent, I'd point you towards the Countdown to 60 piece I posted on 4th November: TARDIS Musings: Countdown to 60: Heaven and Hell

DWM 597

DWM 597 is due in the shops this week. As well as previews of the first two Specials, and a couple of posters, it includes the final 60th Anniversary poll results, and the Fact of Fiction covers Heaven Sent. 

The "60 Objects in 60 Years" feature reaches 2018 - 2022, and the long-running comic strip finally concludes.

There will also be pieces on Tales from the TARDIS and the forthcoming colourised version of The Daleks.

Out the same day (9th November) is the magazine's 60th Anniversary Special Edition, which was delayed from last week.

New DWM

Beep the Meep is back where it started (DWM being the latest incarnation of what began life as Doctor Who Weekly, which gave us the original Star Beast comic strip).

The latest comic strip - the interminable Dalek one - does not come to an end this month. It was originally billed as 13 episodes long, but now they're saying it's 14.