David Whitaker’s novel “Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure with the Daleks” was first published on 12 November 1964 by Frederick Muller, Ltd. before Target Books reprinted it as “Doctor Who and the Daleks” on 2 May 1973. The novel adapts Terry Nation’s script for “The Daleks,” the second “Doctor Who” serial that aired between 21 December 1963 and 1 February 1964, starring the First Doctor (as portrayed by William Hartnell), his granddaughter Susan Foreman (played by Carole Ann Ford), and her schoolteachers, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton (portrayed by Jacqueline Hill and William Russell, respectively). The story portrays the Doctor and his companions traveling to Skaro, where they encounter the Daleks and their enemies, the Thals.
As the first “Doctor Who” novel, Whitaker reimagines how Ian and Barbara meet the Doctor in the beginning of the story: Ian encounters Barbara at a car crash in the fog and tries to help her locate her missing student. The Doctor appears and makes Ian suspicious, so he follows him back to a police box, which the Doctor tries to enter without being noticed. Ian forces his way in, discovering the box’s larger interior dimensions before he passes out. In capturing the early era of “Doctor Who,” the TARDIS’s name alternates between Tardis, like a traditional ship’s name, or characters referring to it as the Ship (pgs. 22, 34). Further, in order to get around the Doctor’s reluctance to discuss personal matters, Ian christens him “Doctor Who” (pg. 52). In another odd change, Whitaker gives Susan’s last name as “English” rather than “Foreman,” thereby departing from the show (pg. 30). While future stories added details and depth and Davros to the Daleks’ origins, the early version of divergent mutation following an atomic blast, causing the Thals to become physically perfect and peaceful as the Daleks grew hideous and hateful, resembles the Morlocks and Eloi in H.G. Wells’ “The Time Machine” (pg. 99). Taking advantage of the options available to a novel and not a television series, Whitaker includes a climax involving sea monsters, cave-climbing, and a more dramatic battle that also features a glass Dalek like the one later seen in the 1985 serial, “Revelation of the Daleks.”
At times, the story betrays its era of origin. Since Whitaker writes in the first person from Ian’s perspective, he occasionally demonstrates the gendered view of the world typical of the early 1960s. The style and content of the book also recalls science-fiction of that era more than later “Doctor Who” tie-in novels. In this, it serves as an interesting time capsule for Whovians who are interested in mid-century science-fiction. The story also inspired the 1965 film, “Dr. Who and the Daleks,” in which director Gordon Flemyng adapted Nation’s script for a standalone film not connected to the television series. The film did well enough to earn a sequel in 1966, “Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 A.D.,” which adapted another of Nation’s scripts, this time for the second serial of the second season, “The Dalek Invasion of Earth.” In this edition, BBC books presents the novel in a facsimile of the 1964 edition complete with Arnold Schwartzman’s illustrations.
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Classic Dr. Who The 1st Daleks
The 2nd Dr. Who BBC episode introduced the Daleks for the first time. The Doctor's most iconic and deadly adversaries. Thank you Terry Nation and BBC!
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The 2nd Dr. Who BBC episode introduced the Daleks for the first time. The Doctor's most iconic and deadly adversaries. Thank you Terry Nation and BBC!
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S. Morgan
Substantial, beautifully illustrated retelling of The Doctor’s first encounter with the Daleks.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 11, 2023
Pedro
Meu Primeiro Target Book!
Reviewed in Brazil on March 5, 2021
Pedro
Reviewed in Brazil on March 5, 2021
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