Following in the footsteps of volumes such as 2013’s ‘The Doctor – His Lives and Times’, BBC Books have concocted another interesting take on Doctor Who history.
‘The Time Lord Letters’ sheds light on previous adventures through over one hundred pieces of correspondence from the pen of the Doctor.
Remaining firmly within the fiction of the show, the premise of the book demands a healthy dollop of imagination; the indulgence of the idea that just prior to his exit from a televised tale, or sometime after, the Doctor finds the time to dash off a quick note or two. Of course, being fans, we have imagination to spare and if you are prepared to go with it some of the letters are a riot!
Each is presented with a brief introduction to provide context, and accompanied by photos’ a mix of screen shots or publicity stills. Broken up into sections, they deal with Gallifrey and the Time Lords, Planet Earth, Coal Hill School, The Daleks and Other monsters, UNIT and the TARDIS,
What Justin Richards has excelled at is finding logical gaps in stories where covering paperwork might have been required. Thus we have letters to introduce the Doctor’s presence in both ‘School Reunion’ and ‘The Caretaker’, and applications to UNIT.
On other occasions it is follow-up letters, such as a plea to H.G. Wells to embellish his adventures or an apology note to Shakespeare for the hasty departure. There is also a letter to Dodo, setting right the injustice of her cruel off-screen exit during ‘The War Machines’. A particular favourite of ours has the Third Doctor sending a cheque to towards the rebuilding cost of the church in Devil’s End after the events of ‘The Dæmons’.
Not all of the entries are letters per se, some show his annotation on other documents. We get to enjoy his comments on Clara’s recommendation to Coal Hill and a piece on Van Gogh by the museum curator from ‘Vincent and the Doctor’
There have been a few instances of letters in the show, notably Reinette’s final message to the Doctor from ‘The Girl in the Fireplace’, and this is presented verbatim. Others have been imagined here, such as a transcript of the Second Doctor’s telepathic plea for help which concluded ‘The War Games’ and resulted in his trial, and a translation of the Seventh’s calling card from ‘Remembrance of the Daleks’.
Richards has enjoyed a long association with the show, and these sorts of books, and yet this is a fresh approach to chronicling over fifty years of TARDIS travel. He also has a wonderful knack of capturing the different Doctor’s personalities in prose.
While it is definitely one for the keener fan, and will doubtless grace many a stocking this Christmas, ‘The Time Lord Letters’ will certainly entertain and might well launch a few enthusiasts, young and old, into investigating older stories too.
Published on 24 September 2015 by BBC Books.
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