Who's Next: An Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to Doctor Who

by Eddie Robson, Jim Smith, Mark Clapham

The BBC describes Doctor Who as the most poular ongoing series it has ever made. More than 40 years after the first episode aired, the cult series returned to the small screen with a huge budget and with acclaimed writer/producer Russell T. Davies at the helm. A new generation of viewers adopted Christopher Eccleston as their Doctor, just as previous generations embraced William Hartnell, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, and Peter Davison. The unofficial guide, covering every aspect of Doctor Who broadcast to date, details not just the 700-plus episodes of the TV series (1963–1989) but also the radio serials, TV movie, charity specials, and internet-broadcast animated serials that have been transmitted while the television series has been off the air. Providing transmission dates, trivia, opinions, and commentary, Who's Next will inform and entertain the series' newest viewers as well as providing long-term fans with a fresh and indispensable set of critical perspectives.

Genres: Doctor Who, Reference, Nonfiction

400 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2005

About the author

Eddie Robson is a comedy and science fiction writer best known for his sitcom Welcome To Our Village, Please Invade Carefully and his work on a variety of spin-offs from the BBC Television series Doctor Who. He has written books, comics and short stories, and has worked as a freelance journalist for various science fiction magazines. He is married to a female academic and lives in Lancaster.

Robson's comedy writing career began in 2008 with material for Look Away Now. Since then his work has featured on That Mitchell and Webb Sound, Tilt, Play and Record, Newsjack, Recorded For Training Purposes and The Headset Set. The pilot episode of his sitcom Welcome To Our Village, Please Invade Carefully was broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on 5th July 2012. It starred Katherine Parkinson and Julian Rhind-Tutt.

His Doctor Who work includes the BBC 7 radio plays Phobos, Human Resources and Grand Theft Cosmos, the CD releases Memory Lane, The Condemned, The Raincloud Man and The Eight Truths, and several short stories for Big Finish's Doctor Who anthologies, Short Trips. He has contributed comic strips to Doctor Who Adventures.

Between 2007 and 2009, Robson was the producer of Big Finish's Bernice Summerfield range of products, and has contributed four audio plays to the series. He has also written books on film noir and the Coen Brothers for Virgin Publishing, the Doctor Who episode guide Who's Next with co-authors Mark Clapham and Jim Smith, and an illustrated adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula.

Reviews

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable guide that coincided with the relaunch of Doctor Who back in 2005, this very informative look back at the classic series was a perfect way to delve into the past as I was starting to collect the DVDs of the stories mentioned and most importantly in which order to store them on the shelf!

[Eliza Clara Hemming · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't always agree with the opinions shared in this book, but it remains a fantastic review and analysis of our favourite show, just prior to its grand return in 2005. Featuring insights, obscure knowledge and nerdy details, it's a great starting-point for new fans, but with plenty for us seasoned Whovians to enjoy as well.

[Marcas de B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

9/10—Invaluable to any fan of Old Who, the authors provide a comprehensive review of, account of, and facts about, every episode of Doctor Who and extra material before the reboot of the show in 2005. Packed with all sorts of information about their actors, writers, and directors of each episode and their other work, broadcast dates, summaries, reviews, and my favourite portion, bloopers and inconsistencies in the story. Not an official guide, as the front cover declares, but as good as.

[Nicholas Whyte]

http://nhw.livejournal.com/965281.html[return][return]Published by Virgin in 2005 just before New Who started. Includes very brief summaries and extended critiques of all the classic series, plus the two Pertwee audios, Slipback, the BBC webcasts, and the Children in Need specials. (Why no Pescatons?) Rates Peter Davison much higher than Tom Baker, and fiercely critical of some of the most popular Hinchcliffe/Holmes stories. The authors acknowledge Cornell, Day and Topping's Discontinuity Guide which seems eminently fair, as it's much the better book.[return][return]

[Chuck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nerdy in the extreme, but fun for any fan of the orginial series. The critical commentary of each story is clear-eyed and, usually, dead on. Reading is somewhat hampered by the rigid format the authors use. Each story analysis (about two pages) is broken down into ten or so catagories. As a result it can be difficult to get a sense of what stories you aren't familiar with are about. Also, some note of which cast members are in each serial would be helpful for anyone not reading the book straight through. New fans looking for an introduction to the orignal series would be better off looking elsewhere.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had originally purchased this when I was first really getting into Doctor Who. Not when I first started watching it, which was around 2008, but when I decided I really wanted to dive into the classic series and was becoming a fan … a Whovian. So, this was a guide book to delivering what happened when and Who came first. at some point I lent it out to a friend and never got it back, so I ended up purchasing a second copy (in 2020). Why? This is a handy, quick reference guide and a wonderful tool for untangling all that wibbly-wobbly timey-whimey … stuff.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the wake of Doctor Who's return in 2005, came this new book...

It’s the latest revised guide to the original television series, and it’s worth it for some new categories such as Things Fall Apart, as well as some nicely substantial (and often very drool) reviews. It’s certainly a bit stronger and more forthright than some of the other Doctor Who guides, but it was never boring, and I tore through it with pleasure. It’s the kind of book that makes you happy to be a geek. ;-)

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent guide to the classic series. Includes the TV movie, animated webcasts and a few things that slipped through the cracks. You probably won't agree with it everywhere, but it's worth looking at. People just getting into the classic episodes might not find it as useful.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book isn't perfect, but it's the one I used to get to grips with all of Classic Who. Great to use as a reference book!