Anthologies / Short Stories
- 50th Anniversary
- BBC Books
- Big Finish: Short Trips 1-10
- Big Finish: Short Trips 11-20
- Big Finish: Short Trips 21-29
- Virgin Publishing
BBC Books
Although Doctor Who fans had been spoilt for choice when it came to novels and comic strips based on their favourite television series, it wasn't until 1994 that the first anthology of short stories actually arrived on shelves.
Edited by Mark Stammers and Stephen James Walker, Decalog contained nine stories linked together by a tenth which was written by Walker himself. A follow-up was published in 1995, with Andy Lane and Justin Richards taking over for the third and final volume in 1996. Although Virgin had lost their licence to publish Doctor Who novels, two further volumes in the Decalog series were to appear in 1997. Re: Generations followed the exploits of former Doctor Who book companion Roz Forrester's family, while the largely stand alone Wonders had only one connection to the world of Doctor Who in the form of Lawrence Miles' The Judgement of Solomon, which featured Bernice Summerfield.
The next Doctor Who release would come from BBC Books in 1999 with the release of Short Trips. Edited by Stephen Cole, the volume proved successful enough for a further two titles in the series to be released over the following two years. However, the time and cost involved in compiling an anthology led to the range being dropped after Short Trips and Side Steps.
Fans of short fiction weren't to be left hanging for too long, however, as Big Finish Productions acquired a licence to publish a series of hardback anthologies, beginning with Short Trips: Zodiac in December 2002.
With the runaway success of both the new television series and their New Series Adventures range of novels featuring the Ninth Doctor, the BBC's regular ranges of Doctor Who books were cancelled in 2005, leaving Big Finish as the sole publisher of stories based on the original television series. Their Short Trips anthologies finally came to an end in May 2009 with Re: Collections, a best-of release containing one story from each of their previous twenty-eight collections.
More recently, a volume collecting together a series of stories which had previously been published in the Files series of books has been released by BBC Children's Books.
Edited by Mark Stammers and Stephen James Walker, Decalog contained nine stories linked together by a tenth which was written by Walker himself. A follow-up was published in 1995, with Andy Lane and Justin Richards taking over for the third and final volume in 1996. Although Virgin had lost their licence to publish Doctor Who novels, two further volumes in the Decalog series were to appear in 1997. Re: Generations followed the exploits of former Doctor Who book companion Roz Forrester's family, while the largely stand alone Wonders had only one connection to the world of Doctor Who in the form of Lawrence Miles' The Judgement of Solomon, which featured Bernice Summerfield.
The next Doctor Who release would come from BBC Books in 1999 with the release of Short Trips. Edited by Stephen Cole, the volume proved successful enough for a further two titles in the series to be released over the following two years. However, the time and cost involved in compiling an anthology led to the range being dropped after Short Trips and Side Steps.
Fans of short fiction weren't to be left hanging for too long, however, as Big Finish Productions acquired a licence to publish a series of hardback anthologies, beginning with Short Trips: Zodiac in December 2002.
With the runaway success of both the new television series and their New Series Adventures range of novels featuring the Ninth Doctor, the BBC's regular ranges of Doctor Who books were cancelled in 2005, leaving Big Finish as the sole publisher of stories based on the original television series. Their Short Trips anthologies finally came to an end in May 2009 with Re: Collections, a best-of release containing one story from each of their previous twenty-eight collections.
More recently, a volume collecting together a series of stories which had previously been published in the Files series of books has been released by BBC Children's Books.
Doctor Who: Short Trips
Edited by Stephen Cole
- UK
- Paperback
- BBC Books
- March 1998
Back Cover Blurb
From Neolithic Earth to the furthest reaches of the universe in the far future, Short Trips brings together established Doctor Who authors and first-time writers in a collection of stories exploring the ever-changing worlds of the Doctors and his friends.
Witness the last days of the siege of Masada with the First Doctor and meet the Fourth Doctor's extraordinary 'old flame'. An evil enemy makes life difficult for the Seventh and Third Doctors, and while the Fifth Doctor is under attack on a sinister ship shrouded in fog, the Second may soon be guilty of a grave error of judgement... The Sixth Doctor's hopes of a holiday are dashed when he discovers a pleasure planet is hiding a shocking secret, and the Eighth Doctor is caught up in a deadly drama played out during the construction of Stonehenge.
And, of course, that's just the beginning...
Edited by Stephen Cole, this collection features short stories by Jonathan Blum, Simon Bucher-Jones, Guy Clapperton, Paul Grice, Matthew Jones, Paul Leonard, Sam Lester, Steve Lyons, Paul Magrs, Daniel O'Mahony, Robert Perry & Mike Tucker, Evan Pritchard and Tara Samms.
From Neolithic Earth to the furthest reaches of the universe in the far future, Short Trips brings together established Doctor Who authors and first-time writers in a collection of stories exploring the ever-changing worlds of the Doctors and his friends.
Witness the last days of the siege of Masada with the First Doctor and meet the Fourth Doctor's extraordinary 'old flame'. An evil enemy makes life difficult for the Seventh and Third Doctors, and while the Fifth Doctor is under attack on a sinister ship shrouded in fog, the Second may soon be guilty of a grave error of judgement... The Sixth Doctor's hopes of a holiday are dashed when he discovers a pleasure planet is hiding a shocking secret, and the Eighth Doctor is caught up in a deadly drama played out during the construction of Stonehenge.
And, of course, that's just the beginning...
Edited by Stephen Cole, this collection features short stories by Jonathan Blum, Simon Bucher-Jones, Guy Clapperton, Paul Grice, Matthew Jones, Paul Leonard, Sam Lester, Steve Lyons, Paul Magrs, Daniel O'Mahony, Robert Perry & Mike Tucker, Evan Pritchard and Tara Samms.
Short Stories
Model Train Set — Jonathan Blum
Old Flames — Paul Magrs
War Crimes — Simon Bucher-Jones
The Last Days — Evan Pritchard
Stop the Pigeon — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
Freedom — Steve Lyons
Glass — Tara Samms
Mondas Passing — Paul Grice
There Are Fairies at the Bottom of the Garden — Sam Lester
Mother's Little Helper — Matthew Jones
The Parliament of Rats — Daniel O'Mahony
Rights — Paul Grice
Wish You Were Here — Guy Clapperton
Ace of Hearts — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
The People's Temple — Paul Leonard
Model Train Set — Jonathan Blum
Old Flames — Paul Magrs
War Crimes — Simon Bucher-Jones
The Last Days — Evan Pritchard
Stop the Pigeon — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
Freedom — Steve Lyons
Glass — Tara Samms
Mondas Passing — Paul Grice
There Are Fairies at the Bottom of the Garden — Sam Lester
Mother's Little Helper — Matthew Jones
The Parliament of Rats — Daniel O'Mahony
Rights — Paul Grice
Wish You Were Here — Guy Clapperton
Ace of Hearts — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
The People's Temple — Paul Leonard
Notes
- Short Trips was the first in a new series of Doctor Who short story anthologies from BBC Books. Like their predecessors, the Decalog books from Virgin, they would be published at the rate of one a year and would contain a mix of stories from established authors and new writers.
Newcomers in 1998 included Paul Magrs (his debut Doctor Who novel, The Scarlet Empress, was published in September 1998), Paul Grice, Sam Lester and Guy Clapperton.
Special mention should also be made of Tara Samms and Evan Pritchard — pseudonyms for Stephen Cole and Rebecca Levene respectively.
As well as being their debut pieces of published Doctor Who fiction, both writers had worked behind the scenes on the Doctor Who novels. Levene had started out as assistant editor on the New Adventures range before taking over from Peter Darvill-Evans, while Stephen Cole was, at the time, the editor of BBC Books' two ranges of Doctor Who novels.
Cole would go on to be a regular contributor to the various ranges of Doctor Who books after leaving BBC Worldwide, while Levene would be an occasional contributor to the various Doctor Who and Bernice Summerfield anthologies from Big Finish Productions, including as editor of the 2007 anthology Bernice Summerfield: Missing Adventures. Later in 1998 she was to co-write the Benny novel Where Angels Fear with Simon Winstone, and was due to have written a novel titled Freaks for the Eighth Doctor Adventures range in 2000, but had to pull out due to other work commitments. - A number of stories from Short Trips were later narrated and released by BBC Worldwide.
Short Trips was a double-cassette release which came out the same month as the book, and which contained abridged versions of Freedom, Model Train Set, Glass, Stop the Pigeon and Old Flames, as well as the original story Degrees of Truth which was written exclusively for the release by David A McIntee. Freedom, Degrees of Truth and Old Flames were narrated by Nicholas Courtney, while the remaining three stories were read by Sophie Aldred.
Earth and Beyond, narrated by Paul McGann, was another double-cassette release, published in September 1998, and contained three complete Eighth Doctor stories, which comprised The People's Temple, Dead Time — an advance glimpse of a story which was due to be published in More Short Trips in January 1999, and Bounty by Peter Anghelides which was exclusive to the release.
Out of the Darkness, released on double CD in November 1998, contained three stories featuring the Sixth Doctor and Peri. Wish You Were Here was taken from Short Trips, while Moon Graffiti was another story which was due to be published in More Short Trips. The final story was Vigil, a story exclusive to the release by Michael Collier, which was narrated by Nicola Bryant. Colin Baker narrated Moon Graffiti, with both actors narrating parts of Wish You Were Here.
That wasn't the last that was to heard of these three releases however, as the reading of Model Train Set was included on a BBC CD Audio Card released in 1998. The Tales from the TARDIS: Volume 1 MP3-CD contained all of the stories from the Short Trips and Out of the Darkness releases, while Tales from the TARDIS: Volume 2 included Earth and Beyond. More recently a CD, simply titled Short Trips, has been released which includes the readings of Old Flames and Freedom. This final release is part of a range of CDs available from discount stores such as Poundland and The Works.
Doctor Who: More Short Trips
Edited by Stephen Cole
- UK
- Paperback
- BBC Books
- January 1999
Back Cover Blurb
Here on Earth or out in the depths of the cosmos, the Doctor and his companions are never far from adventure. More Short Trips — the cleverly-titled follow-up to the popular Short Trips volume of short stories — takes the time travellers on another careering course of exciting escapades throughout time and space.
Showcasing the talents of both established authors and first-time writers, More Short Trips features every TV Doctor and a whole host of companions — plus a few surprises...
Discover things on Earth you were never meant to know. Get around the universe. Get short tripping.
Edited by Stephen Cole, this collection features stories by Peter Anghelides, Ian Atkins, Christopher Bulis, Paul Farnsworth, Simon Forward, Paul Leonard, Jason Loborik, Steve Lyons, Paul Magrs, David A. McIntee, Andrew Miller, Robert Perry & Mike Tucker, Gareth Roberts, Gary Russell, Tara Samms and Dave Stone.
Here on Earth or out in the depths of the cosmos, the Doctor and his companions are never far from adventure. More Short Trips — the cleverly-titled follow-up to the popular Short Trips volume of short stories — takes the time travellers on another careering course of exciting escapades throughout time and space.
Showcasing the talents of both established authors and first-time writers, More Short Trips features every TV Doctor and a whole host of companions — plus a few surprises...
Discover things on Earth you were never meant to know. Get around the universe. Get short tripping.
Edited by Stephen Cole, this collection features stories by Peter Anghelides, Ian Atkins, Christopher Bulis, Paul Farnsworth, Simon Forward, Paul Leonard, Jason Loborik, Steve Lyons, Paul Magrs, David A. McIntee, Andrew Miller, Robert Perry & Mike Tucker, Gareth Roberts, Gary Russell, Tara Samms and Dave Stone.
Short Stories
Totem — Tara Samms
Scientific Adviser — Ian Atkins
Missing, Part One: Business as Usual — Gary Russell
Moon Graffiti — Dave Stone
One Bad Apple — Simon A Forward
64 Carlysle Street — Gary Russell
The Eternity Contract — Steve Lyons
The Sow in Rut — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
Special Weapons — Paul Leonard
Honest Living — Jason Loborik
Dead Time — Andrew Miller
Romans Cutaway — Davis A McIntee
Return of the Spiders — Gareth Roberts
Hot Ice — Christopher Bulis
uPVC — Paul Farnsworth
Good Companions — Peter Anghelides
Missing, Part Two: Message in a Bottle — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
Femme Fatale — Paul Magrs
Totem — Tara Samms
Scientific Adviser — Ian Atkins
Missing, Part One: Business as Usual — Gary Russell
Moon Graffiti — Dave Stone
One Bad Apple — Simon A Forward
64 Carlysle Street — Gary Russell
The Eternity Contract — Steve Lyons
The Sow in Rut — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
Special Weapons — Paul Leonard
Honest Living — Jason Loborik
Dead Time — Andrew Miller
Romans Cutaway — Davis A McIntee
Return of the Spiders — Gareth Roberts
Hot Ice — Christopher Bulis
uPVC — Paul Farnsworth
Good Companions — Peter Anghelides
Missing, Part Two: Message in a Bottle — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
Femme Fatale — Paul Magrs
Notes
- The second of the three volumes of Doctor Who short stories to be published by BBC Books. New authors this time included Ian Atkins, Simon A Forward, Jason Loborik, Andrew Miller and Paul Farnsworth. As with the previous volume, More Short Trips included a story by Tara Samms, a pseudonym for editor Stephen Cole.
- Audio readings of both Dead Time and Moon Graffiti were released by BBC Worldwide, although in an unusual move they were both released prior to the publication of More Short Trips. See Short Trips above for full details of the audiobooks concerned.
Doctor Who: Short Trips and Side Steps
Edited by Stephen Cole & Jacqueline Rayner
- UK
- Paperback
- BBC Books
- January 1999
Back Cover Blurb
How many lives has the Doctor had? Perhaps more than you think...
Follow the Doctor and his companions as they take short trips around the universe — perhaps to a Wild West overrun with dinosaurs, to a land where robot rabbits roam, or a planet where the Doctor must marry or die — and then step sideways into other universes — worlds full of song and dance; planets made entirely of sweets; lands of movie monsters; places where the Doctor as we know him may never have existed at all...
This collection includes stories by Peter Anghelides, Trevor Baxendale, Steve Burford, Graeme Burk, Miche Doherty, Harriet Green, Jason Loborik, Steve Lyons, Paul Magrs, Daniel O'Mahony, Lance Parkin & Mark Clapham, Justin Richards, Gareth Roberts & Clayton Hickman, Gary Russell, Tara Samms, Mike Tucker & Robert Perry, Christopher M Wadley and the last ever Doctor Who fiction of Lawrence Miles.
How many lives has the Doctor had? Perhaps more than you think...
Follow the Doctor and his companions as they take short trips around the universe — perhaps to a Wild West overrun with dinosaurs, to a land where robot rabbits roam, or a planet where the Doctor must marry or die — and then step sideways into other universes — worlds full of song and dance; planets made entirely of sweets; lands of movie monsters; places where the Doctor as we know him may never have existed at all...
This collection includes stories by Peter Anghelides, Trevor Baxendale, Steve Burford, Graeme Burk, Miche Doherty, Harriet Green, Jason Loborik, Steve Lyons, Paul Magrs, Daniel O'Mahony, Lance Parkin & Mark Clapham, Justin Richards, Gareth Roberts & Clayton Hickman, Gary Russell, Tara Samms, Mike Tucker & Robert Perry, Christopher M Wadley and the last ever Doctor Who fiction of Lawrence Miles.
Short Stories
The Longest Story in the World — Paul Magrs
A Town Called Eternity (Part One) — Lance Parkin & Mark Clapham
Special Occasions: 1. The Not-So-Sinister Sponge — Gareth Roberts & Clayton Hickman
Nothing at the End of the Lane (Part One: The Valiant Woman) — Daniel O'Mahony
Countdown to TV Action — Gary Russell
The Queen of Eros — Trevor Baxendale
The Android Maker of Calderon IV — Miche Doherty
Revenants — Peter Anghelides
Please Shut the Gate — Stephen Lock
Turnabout is Fair Play — Graeme Burk
Special Occasions: 2. Do You Love Anyone Enough? — Norman Ashby
Nothing at the End of the Lane (Part Two: The Watchers on the Walls) — Daniel O'Mahony
The House on Oldark Moor — Justin Richards
Gone Too Soon — Christopher M Wadley
Reunion — Jason Loborik
Planet of the Bunnoids — Harriet Green
Monsters — Tara Samms
Special Occasions: 3. Better Watch Out, Better Take Care — Steve Burford
Face Value — Steve Lyons
Storm in a Tikka — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
Nothing at the End of the Lane (Part Three: The Only Living Thing) — Daniel O'Mahony
A Town Called Eternity (Part Two) — Lance Parkin & Mark Clapham
Special Occasions: 4. Playing with Toys — David Agnew
Vrs — Lawrence Miles
The Longest Story in the World — Paul Magrs
A Town Called Eternity (Part One) — Lance Parkin & Mark Clapham
Special Occasions: 1. The Not-So-Sinister Sponge — Gareth Roberts & Clayton Hickman
Nothing at the End of the Lane (Part One: The Valiant Woman) — Daniel O'Mahony
Countdown to TV Action — Gary Russell
The Queen of Eros — Trevor Baxendale
The Android Maker of Calderon IV — Miche Doherty
Revenants — Peter Anghelides
Please Shut the Gate — Stephen Lock
Turnabout is Fair Play — Graeme Burk
Special Occasions: 2. Do You Love Anyone Enough? — Norman Ashby
Nothing at the End of the Lane (Part Two: The Watchers on the Walls) — Daniel O'Mahony
The House on Oldark Moor — Justin Richards
Gone Too Soon — Christopher M Wadley
Reunion — Jason Loborik
Planet of the Bunnoids — Harriet Green
Monsters — Tara Samms
Special Occasions: 3. Better Watch Out, Better Take Care — Steve Burford
Face Value — Steve Lyons
Storm in a Tikka — Robert Perry & Mike Tucker
Nothing at the End of the Lane (Part Three: The Only Living Thing) — Daniel O'Mahony
A Town Called Eternity (Part Two) — Lance Parkin & Mark Clapham
Special Occasions: 4. Playing with Toys — David Agnew
Vrs — Lawrence Miles
Notes
- Short Trips and Side Steps, as its name implies, takes some of its inspiration from the various off-shoots of the Doctor Who television series which have been produced over the years.
Countdown to TV Action features the version of the Third Doctor who appeared in the Countdown and TV Action comic strips of the 1970s.
Justin Richards' The House on Oldark Moor features the character of Dr. Who, played so memorably in the two 1960s movies by Peter Cushing. In this instance, the story is set after Dr. Who, Susan, Barbara and Ian have escaped from the Romans seen at the conclusion of Dr. Who and the Daleks.
Face Value sees the Sixth Doctor travelling with Crystal, Jason and Zog, the three characters who were created for the Doctor Who stage play The Ultimate Adventure, which ran from March 1989 — initially with Jon Pertwee in the lead role and later Colin Baker. The play itself has recently been dramatised by Big Finish Productions.
Storm in a Tikka, by Robert Perry & Mike Tucker, is set between the Children in Need sketch Dimensions in Time, broadcast on BBC1 in 1993, and the educational game show Search Out Science which was shown on BBC2 in 1992.
Finally, although it is not directly connected to its predecessor, note should also be made of The Not-So-Sinister Sponge which is named after The Sinister Sponge, a story which first appeared in The Dr Who Annual 1976 from World Distributors, and which was later reprinted in the Amazing World of Doctor Who book. - As in previous years, a number of the stories were written under pseudonyms.
Tara Samms (aka Stephen Cole) appears in a Short Trips anthology for a third time, Harriet Green is a pseudonym for Jacqueline Rayner, while Norman Ashby and David Agnew both make their debut.
Old-school fans should recognise the latter two names, however, as Norman Ashby was the name credited on The Dominators after Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln had a falling-out with the BBC, and David Agnew was used on both The Invasion of Time and City of Death when the production staff had to step in with either a radically re-written story or a completely new one when there was no time to commission a script from outside writers.
To date, no one has yet identified the real authors behind these pseudonyms.
Doctor Who: The Doctor Who Stories
by Various
- UK
- Hardback
- BBC Books
- September 2009
Short Stories
The Hero Factor — Stephen Cole
Stamp of Approval — Jacqueline Rayner
No Fun at the Fair — Jacqueline Rayner
The Final Darkness — Stephen Cole
Taking Mickey — Justin Richards
A Dog's Life — Justin Richards
Mission to Galacton — Justin Richards
Going Off the Rails — Justin Richards
Needle Point — Martha Jones
Best Friends — Justin Richards
Birth of a Legend — Justin Richards
The Seceret of the Stones — Justin Richards
Blind Terror — Justin Richards
Disappearing Act — Justin Richards
Speech Day — ???
The Hero Factor — Stephen Cole
Stamp of Approval — Jacqueline Rayner
No Fun at the Fair — Jacqueline Rayner
The Final Darkness — Stephen Cole
Taking Mickey — Justin Richards
A Dog's Life — Justin Richards
Mission to Galacton — Justin Richards
Going Off the Rails — Justin Richards
Needle Point — Martha Jones
Best Friends — Justin Richards
Birth of a Legend — Justin Richards
The Seceret of the Stones — Justin Richards
Blind Terror — Justin Richards
Disappearing Act — Justin Richards
Speech Day — ???
Notes
- The fifteen stories contained within The Doctor Who Stories were originally released in the series of Doctor Who Files books, published in hardback by Penguin Character Books between June 2006 and July 2008. Each of the titles concentrated on a different character or alien race from the television series, with each one also containing an original short story. A fifteenth title, based around the Master, was written but never released. The short story from that title, Speech Day, is published for the very first time in this compilation.
- Somewhat surprisingly, this is the first anthology of Doctor Who fiction to be published by the BBC in over ten years. A license to publish original Doctor Who anthologies was granted to Big Finish Productions in 2002, and they subsequently published twenty-eight volumes, finally bringing things to a halt in May 2009 with Re: Collections, a "best of" collection. To date it has not been revealed whether the end of the Big Finish line is connected with the release of The Doctor Who Stories.