Kklak! The Doctor Who Art of Chris Achilleos

by Chris Achilleos

In his five decades as an illustrator, painter and conceptual artist, Chris Achilléos has four best-selling books of his art. He worked with the likes of George Lucas, as well as producing the iconic promotional art for the cult film Heavy Metal. But it is probably his work for Doctor Who that is the most enduringly popular. His covers for the official Target novelizations, which began in the early 70s, defined a generation s image of the Doctor and his adventures particularly after the show disappeared from British screens in the late 80s. Lavishly detailed, with psychedelic overtones and an unapologetically pulpy sensibility, these covers perfectly captured the eccentric appeal of the classic series. To this day, Doctor Who luminaries tip their hat to the influence of Achilléos work. The opening of a 2016 exhibition of Target s cover artwork at the Cartoon Museum, London, attracted the series then showrunner Steven Moffat, as well as twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi.

With the Doctor long back on our screens, and more popular than ever, it is perhaps surprising that Achilléos Whovian oeuvre (or Whoeuvre, if you will) has never been collected in one place. Kklak!: The Doctor Who Art of Chris Achilléos, an upcoming title from award-winning independent publisher Candy Jar Books, aims to address this. For the first time, it collects the entirety of Achilléos Doctor Who artwork in chronological order, along with commentary from Achilléos himself (as well as some fans) presenting the definitive guide to his seminal work. The book also includes a small contribution from twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi and a foreword from Achilléos long-time friend and collaborator, the late Terrance Dicks.

Genres: Doctor Who, Art

122 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2023

Reviews

[Scott Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very well presented showcase of Chris Achilléos' art for Doctor Who novel covers. It not only includes all the art from the 1970s and 3 new editions published in 2016, but also 4 new pieces created specially for this book.

[John Peel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chris Achilleos is rightly known as one of the best English book cover artists. This volume collects all of his wonderful "Doctor Who" artwork. It's an absolute joy, especially if (like me) buying these books was a part of growing up.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

For many a child in the '70s, the book cover art of Chris Achilleos was 'Doctor Who', it spoke of strange, alien worlds without the restrictions of BBC budgets or gravel pit locations and hooked me - and many others - into the show's magic, capturing it time and again in the covers of the Target books. Childhood me would seek out the latest editions on the shelves of Woolworths and WH Smith and, once brought home, the pages were read and re-read - teaching me much about the rhythms of writing as well as confirming me as a life-long reader - but the covers? These were reproduced time and time again, in felt-tip pen on scraps of paper. So, thanks to this book, those images of yesteryear remain as fresh as ever: happy times spent in other-worldly places: a lasting tribute to the memory of Chris Achilleos who passed away in late 2021.

[Jason Arbuckle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 240 - Chris Achilleos - Kklak!: The Doctor Who Art of Chris Achilleos

Have been letting my nerdy Doctor Who-ness out more and more on here and am ok with that. When I was growing up I almost taught myself to read using three sets of books - Enid Blyton’s ‘The Secret Seven’, Robert Arthur’s ‘Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators’ and the original Target Doctor Who Novel adaptations.

Chris Achilleos’ superb covers would always pull me in. His skill in encapsulating the whole story in a single image on the cover was breathtaking. When Chris passed away in December 2021 the world of fantasy art lost a giant and Doctor Who lost its illustrator….its window to the world of every heart of every Doctor Who fan who grew up in the 70s.

Stunning work from a remarkable man. Unforgettable…unmissable…