https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-doctor-his-life-and-times-by-james-goss-and-...

One of the glossy volumes produced by the BBC in the run-up to the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who – and isn't it weird that we'll get to the 60th anniversary next year? This is really very nice indeed. For each Doctor, we get an account of the TV stories written from the perspective of one or more of the characters – Susan, Ian Chesterton, the Brigadier, occasionally the Doctor himself – combined with a collage of other mocked-up material, of which one of my favourites is the Salamander election poster.

Each chapter then includes a box on the lead actor, and an assembly of quotes about the making of the show from those who were involved. There are also a few short commentaries on individual stories by guest commentators, most of whom have strong connections with the show, the exception being Sir Tim Berners-Lee on The War Machines. As my regular reader knows, I rate James Goss very highly as one of the best Who writers, and this really doesn't disappoint. It's the sort of thing that could, perhaps, be easily updated to include the next ten years and two Doctors for 2023; and would it be too much to hope that such an update could also include Torchwood, the Sarah Jane Adventures and Class? ( )

The premise of this book is that River Song has done a lot of research and put together a detailed file about the Doctor for the Silence, and the book very much reads like that. Its a collection of found material (with some behind the scenes information from the cast and crew) all about the Doctor from his first incarnation, all the way through “The Name of the Doctor”.

Rabid fans of the series will probably find nothing new here, aside from an easy way to view the information, but fans of the revived series will be offered an easy way to learn about and understand the Doctors from the classic series. ( )

This is an entertaining look over the Doctor's history up through the Eleventh Doctor's run. The conceit is that it's a collection of documents compiled by Madam Kovarian and River Song for a dossier on the Doctor, and the authors do some fun things with that idea. It's a very visually rich book, with lots of little odds and ends that supposedly come from the Doctor Who universe (some actually taken from the show and some completely made up), from newspaper articles to advertisements to bits of folklore. There is, for example, a bit of a souffle recipe in the Eleventh Doctor's section, a card with a recall notice for plastic daffodils in the Third Doctor's, a poster for the Psychic Circus in the Seventh's, and so on -- just lots of little references that hardcore Who nerds will get and appreciate.

Each section also features a longer piece that sort of recaps that particular Doctor's adventures in the voice of a character from the show, using a variety of clever formats: interviews, diaries, letters, villain monologues... The authors clearly have a very good feel for the characters' voices, and some of these are just absolutely delightful. One or two even made me laugh out loud, such as the transcript of the Master's trial in the Third Doctor's chapter. I do maybe have a quibble here or there, as with the fact that poor Sarah Jane Smith is really not represented at her best (although it is kind of hard to blame her for being kind of snarky after being abandoned in Aberdeen!). But in general, it's just great fun.

Each chapter also includes a few pages that drop the conceit and give us a glimpse into the real world of Doctor Who as a TV show with behind-the-scenes pictures, interesting soundbite quotes from people involved in making the show, and short, thoughtful reactions to specific episodes from various people connected to the history of Who.

Overall, it's an enjoyable little treat for the long-term Doctor Who fan. Whether more casual viewers or people who came on board with the modern series and lack much familiarity with the classic episodes will get as much out of it, I don't know, as there are a lot of jokes and references you really do have to be a pretty hardcore fan to get. But perhaps they might find it an interesting glimpse into the Doctor's history, too. ( )