List of Doctor Who novelisations


Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC since 1963. Hundreds of novelisations of the series have been published by various publishers, the majority based on the original 1963–1989 run of the series.

History

Frederick Muller Ltd.

Frederick Muller Ltd. commissioned David Whitaker to novelise the first Dalek serial under the title Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure with the Daleks, which was published November 1964 in hardcover just in time for the second Dalek serial, The Dalek Invasion of Earth to be transmitted. The success of this book warranted two reprintings by 1965 and led Frederick Muller to commission two further novelisations, Doctor Who and the Zarbi and Doctor Who and the Crusaders, which were published in 1965 and 1966 respectively. Sales of these books did not live up to the first and so the short range was brought to an end.
Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure with the Daleks was reissued in paperback October 1965 by Armada Books, an imprint of May Fair Books, with new illustrations. Doctor Who and the Crusaders was reissued in paperback in 1967 by Green Dragon, an imprint of Atlantic Books, again with new illustrations. All three books with reissued in hardcover in 1975 by White Lion, all featuring Tom Baker's Fourth Doctor on the cover while retaining the First Doctor illustrations inside.

Target Books

In 1972 Universal-Tandem Publishing was looking to create a children's book imprint, Target Books. In a visit to Frederick Muller's offices, the three 1960s Doctor Who books were optioned, and then the BBC was contacted with a view to publish new books. This call to the BBC met with enthusiastic support from the current script editor, Terrance Dicks. The Doctor Who novelisations quickly became a backbone of the imprint, surviving corporate acquisitions and novelising almost every Doctor Who television story. New novelisations under the Target imprint came to an end in 1991. Reprints under the Target imprint continued through 1994.
A short series entitled The Companions of Doctor Who comprised the novelisation of K-9 and Company along with the original works Turlough and the Earthlink Dilemma and Harry Sullivan's War. In addition to the television serials, three scripts from the cancelled Season 23—The Nightmare Fair, The Ultimate Evil and Mission to Magnus—were novelised. The former sold less well than the usual novelisations, while the latter sold as well. Target also novelised two additional non-televised stories: the radio play Slipback and the audio story The Pescatons.

Doctor Who Books

Virgin Books created a new imprint, Doctor Who Books, for their Doctor Who novels and non-fiction books. This imprint published the last three books in the Doctor Who Library established by Target. (The Power of the Daleks, The Evil of the Daleks, and the radio play The Paradise of Death.
Further novelisations were published as part of their monthly novel lines. Barry Letts's radio drama, The Ghosts of N-Space was published as part of the Virgin Missing Adventures range in 1995, as was the novelisation of the independent spin-off Downtime in 1996. The Virgin New Adventures range published a novelisation of Shakedown: The [Return of the Sontarans] in 1995.

BBC Books

In 1996 the BBC chose not to renew Virgin's license for publishing Doctor Who fiction, preferring to bring the novels back in house. BBC Books published a novelisation of the 1996 Doctor Who television movie. They also published a novelisation of the webcast Scream of the Shalka as part of the Past Doctor Adventures range in 2004. From 2012 to 2019, BBC Books published novelisations of the 1970s and 1980s serials Target was unable to publish. Novelisations of the unproduced scripts Doctor Who and the Krikkitmen and Doctor Who Meets Scratchman were published in 2018 and 2019 respectively. A new adaptation of The Evil of the Daleks written by Frazer Hines was released in 2023.
BBC Books began reprinting selected Target novelisations starting in July 2011.

''The Target Collection''

Starting in 2018, BBC Books published novelisations of selected episodes of the revived series as part of a range dubbed The Target Collection featuring the Target logo. Paperback editions of City of Death, The Pirate Planet, Resurrection of the Daleks, Revelation of the Daleks, and the 1996 television movie were also added to the revived Target range. In 2022, print versions of the previously audiobook-only adaptations by David Fisher of The Stones of Blood and The Androids of Tara were also added to the range, as was a print edition of the expanded audiobook version of Warriors Gate in 2023. The Target Collection was subsequently divided into two series: the Classic Era, comprising books based on stories from the original television series and the revived series through 2022, and the New Era, comprising books based on television stories broadcast since 2023, starting with the three 2023 specials.

Audiobooks

In 2005, BBC Audio released unabridged audiobook versions of the first three Frederick Muller novelisations, read by actor William Russell. Beginning in September 2007, they began releasing further unabridged audiobooks of the Target novelisations at a regular rate.
An Unearthly Child was set to receive a new novelisation exclusive to audio, read by William Russell, written by Nigel Robinson, and released by AudioGo. The audiobook was originally scheduled to be released November 2013, but the release was cancelled due to AudioGo's bankruptcy in the same month. Rights issues are currently preventing its release.

Pearson Education

Pearson Education published adaptations of four Eleventh Doctor stories in 2011 and six Twelfth Doctor stories in 2018 for use in schools.

Publication details

Writing

Although Target endeavoured to commission the original scriptwriters to novelise their own stories, this was not always possible. As a result, many books in the Target line were written by Terrance Dicks. During the late 1970s to early 1980s, Target, which classified the novelisations as children's fiction, imposed a page limit of 128 pages. Some books even fell short of this limit. By the late 1980s, however, the page cap had been lifted, although John Peel was still required to split his novelisation of the epic 12-episode The Daleks' Master Plan into two volumes because the manuscript was too long.

Titles

For the first few years of the Target line, it was common practice for the novels to have titles that differed from the adapted serials: for example, Doctor Who and the Auton Invasion, which was based upon the serial Spearhead from Space. This practice was dropped in the mid-1970s. Another tradition established by the books was to prepend the words "Doctor Who and..." to the titles, except in a few cases where impractical. This practice continued until the early 1980s. From 1990 onwards reprints of the books generally dropped "Doctor Who and..." from the title and changed titles back to the original television story, although some of the reprints merely rejacketed earlier stock.

Illustrators

The first of the Target reissues featured new cover artwork by Chris Achilleos, who went on to illustrate over 30 of the novelisations throughout the 1970s.
British artist Andrew Skilleter created much of the cover art from 1979 to 1994, along with video covers and other merchandise. His work on Doctor Who was showcased in his 1995 volume Blacklight: The Art of Andrew Skilleter.

Numbering

Target began numbering its novelisations from 1983, with almost all of the first seventy-three books being numbered as reprints came out. The first new book to be numbered was Time-Flight. Target's numbering did not initially reflect original publication order or the production or broadcast order of the original stories, but rather was conducted in alphabetical order, so that the novelisation of The Abominable Snowmen was numbered "1". Due to print delays and last-minute reordering of publication schedules, some of the later books were released out of numeric order. The revived "Target Collection" from BBC Books is not numbered on the covers. However, the Penguin website lists the books based on stories prior to 2023 as Doctor Who Target Novels – Classic Era and numbers them 1-20, but this list omits "Twice Upon a Time" and the Doctor Who Magazine exclusive Target of Frazer Hines's The Evil of the Daleks. The website also groups the books based on stories since 2023 as Doctor Who Target Novels – New Era, but does not number them.

Novelisations of television stories

First Doctor

Featuring William Hartnell's First Doctor


Second Doctor

Featuring Patrick Troughton's Second Doctor


Third Doctor

Featuring Jon Pertwee's Third Doctor.


Fourth Doctor

Featuring Tom Baker's Fourth Doctor.


Fifth Doctor

Featuring Peter Davison's Fifth Doctor.


Sixth Doctor

Featuring Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor.

SeasonStory no.Library no.Novelisation titleAuthorHardcover
release date
Paperback
release date
Audiobook
release date
|| 136103The Twin DilemmaEric Saward10 October 198513 March 19865 January 2012-
137138Attack of the Cybermendata-sort-value="Saward, Eric"|Eric Saward || 20 April 19897 August 1995
1 February 2024
-
138106Vengeance on VarosPhilip Martin21 January 198816 June 19883 November 1997
7 November 2019
139107The Mark of the RaniPip and Jane Baker16 January 198612 June 19865 April 2018
140100The Two DoctorsRobert Holmes15 August 19855 December 19853 September 2015
141105TimelashGlen McCoy12 December 198515 May 19863 March 2022
142Revelation of the DaleksEric Saward14 November 201911 March 202114 November 2019
143127The Mysterious PlanetTerrance Dicks19 November 198721 April 19882 September 2013
143139MindwarpPhilip Martin15 June 19892 September 2013
143125Terror of the Vervoids[Pip and Jane Baker]17 September 198718 February 19883 October 2013
143131The Ultimate FoePip and Jane Baker21 April 198815 September 19883 October 2013


Seventh Doctor

Featuring Sylvester McCoy's Seventh Doctor.

SeasonStory no.Library no.Novelisation titleAuthor
Hardcover
release date
Paperback
release date
Audiobook
release date
144128Time and the RaniPip and Jane Baker17 December 19875 May 19886 January 2022
145134Paradise TowersStephen Wyattrowspan="113" 1 December 19885 April 2012
146135Delta and the BannermenMalcolm Kohll19 January 19891 June 2017-
147137DragonfireIan Briggs16 March 19895 December 2019-
148148Remembrance of the DaleksBen Aaronovitch21 June 199019 February 2015-
149146The Happiness PatrolGraeme Curry15 February 19902 July 2009-
150143Silver NemesisKevin Clarke16 November 19896 July 2023-
151144The Greatest Show in the GalaxyStephen Wyatt21 December 19891 August 2013-
152152BattlefieldMarc Platt18 July 19915 May 2022-
153149Ghost LightMarc Platt20 September 19902 June 2011-
154151The Curse of FenricIan Briggs15 November 19903 September 2015-
155150SurvivalRona Munro18 October 19907 September 2017
-


Eighth Doctor

Featuring Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor.


Ninth Doctor

Featuring Christopher Eccleston's Ninth Doctor.


Tenth Doctor

Featuring David Tennant's Tenth Doctor.


Eleventh Doctor

Featuring Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor.


Twelfth Doctor

Featuring Peter Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor.


Thirteenth Doctor

Featuring Jodie Whittaker's Thirteenth Doctor.


Fourteenth Doctor

Featuring David Tennant's Fourteenth Doctor.


Fifteenth Doctor

Featuring Ncuti Gatwa's Fifteenth Doctor.


Novelisations of audio dramas

Novelisations of audio dramas broadcast on radio or released on home audio.
Library no.Novelisation titleDoctorAuthorHardcover
release date
Paperback
release date
Audiobook
release date
Slipback6thEric Saward14 August 198615 January 19872 April 2026
153The Pescatons4thVictor Pembertonrowspan="3" 15 September 19911 January 2026
156The Paradise of Death3rdBarry Letts21 April 19942026-
The Ghosts of N-Space3rdBarry Letts16 February 19952026-
Jubilee6thRobert Shearman9 October 202514 May 2026rowspan="2"
The Chimes of Midnight8thRobert Shearman9 October 202514 May 2026-

Novelisations of unproduced stories

Novelisations of stories written, but not produced, for television or film.
Novelisations of the originally planned season 23
Novelisation title
style="width:6%;"| DoctorAuthor
! style="width:15%;" data-sort-type=date | Hardcover
release date
Paperback
release date
Audiobook
release date
-
The Nightmare Fair|| rowspan="3"| 6thGraham Williams || rowspan="3" 18 May 19891 June 2023--
The Ultimate EvilWally K. Daly17 August 19892 March 2010
2026
--
Mission to MagnusPhilip Martin19 July 19906 November 2025--
Doctor Who and the Krikkitmen4thJames Goss18 January 201814 February 201918 January 2018
Scratchman4thTom Baker
24 January 20199 April 202024 January 2019


Novelisations of webcasts

Novelisations of stories released via the web.
Novelisation titleDoctorAuthorOriginal publisherPaperback
release date
Audiobook
release date
Scream of the ShalkaShalkaPaul CornellBBC Books2 February 20042 June 2016
Adventures in Lockdown13th
8th
9th
1st
12th
10th
Chris Chibnall
Steven Moffat
Russell T Davies
Neil Gaiman
Joy Wilkinson
Vinay Patel
Pete McTighe
Paul Cornell
Mark Gatiss
BBC Books5 November 2020

Unofficial novelisations

A number of fan-run publications have published unofficial novelisations of stories Target was not able to secure rights to. Obverse Books has also published unofficial novelisations to raise money for charity. As well as novelisations of the two 1960s Dalek films, Obverse also published original novels presented as novelisations of further films based on other television stories featuring Peter Cushing's portrayal of Dr. Who and short story collections presented as novelisations of hypothetical episodes of the proposed 1960s radio adaptions, also featuring Cushing's Dr. Who.
TV
No.
TitleDoctorAuthorPublishedPublisherNotes
019, 021The Daleks' Master Plan1stRosemary HoweZerinzaUnlicensed Australian fanzine publication - issues 14-16. Later reprinted as single volume.
Doctor Who and Shada4thPaul ScoonesTSVUnlicensed fan club publication.
099Doctor Who and the Pirate Planet4thDavid BishopTSVUnlicensed fan club publication.
142Revelation of the Daleks6thJon PreddleTSVUnlicensed fan club publication.
105Doctor Who and the City of Death4thDavid LawrenceTSVUnlicensed fan club publication.
Shada4thJonathan WayDoctor Who Appreciation SocietyUnlicensed fan club publication published across six issues of Cosmic Masque, the Doctor Who Appreciation Society's fan fiction publication.
133Resurrection of the Daleks5thPaul ScoonesTSVUnlicensed fan club publication.
167Doctor Who and the Invasion of Christmas10thThe Midnight FolkObverse BooksUnlicensed novelisation strictly limited to 40 copies. "The Midnight Folk" is a pseudonym for Paul Magrs, Andrew Hickey, Stuart Douglas, Nick Campbell, James Gent, Ira Lightman, Ian Potter, Phil Craggs, and Matthew Bright. Proceeds went to aid the Cystic Foundation Trust.
Dr. Who and the DaleksDr. WhoAlan SmitheeObverse BooksUnlicensed novelisation of the 1965 film
Daleks Invasion Earth 2150ADDr. WhoAlan SmitheeObverse BooksUnlicensed novelisation of the 1966 film
Journey into TimeDr. WhoDavid Agnew Obverse BooksIncludes an unlicensed novelisation of the late 1960s radio pilot as well as original stories written as if the radio series had been produced.

Omnibus and two in one releases

A number of novelisations were released in omnibus editions, mostly by book clubs.
TitleNovelisations includedAuthorPublisherPublished
Doctor Who and the Daleks OmnibusDoctor Who and the Planet of the Daleks Terrance DicksArtus BooksSeptember 1976
Doctor Who and the Daleks OmnibusDoctor Who and the Genesis of the Daleks Terrance DicksArtus BooksSeptember 1976
The Doctor Who OmnibusDoctor Who and the Space WarMalcolm HulkeBook Club Associates1977
The Doctor Who OmnibusDoctor Who and the Web of FearTerrance DicksBook Club Associates1977
The Doctor Who OmnibusDoctor Who and the Revenge of the CybermenTerrance DicksBook Club Associates1977
The Adventures of Doctor WhoDoctor Who and the Genesis of the DaleksTerrance DicksNelson DoubledayOctober 1979
The Adventures of Doctor WhoDoctor Who and the Revenge of the CybermenTerrance DicksNelson DoubledayOctober 1979
The Adventures of Doctor WhoDoctor Who and the Loch Ness MonsterTerrance DicksNelson DoubledayOctober 1979
Dalek OmnibusThe Dalek Invasion of EarthTerrance DicksW. H. Allen23 June 1983
Dalek OmnibusThe Planet of the DaleksTerrance Dicks--
Dalek OmnibusThe Day of the DaleksTerrance Dicks--
The Further Adventures of Doctor WhoDoctor Who and the Deadly AssassinTerrance DicksNelson DoubledayJanuary 1986
The Further Adventures of Doctor WhoDoctor Who and the Face of EvilTerrance DicksNelson DoubledayJanuary 1986
The Further Adventures of Doctor WhoDoctor Who and the Robots of DeathTerrance DicksNelson DoubledayJanuary 1986
Remembrance of the Daleks/''Prisoner of the DaleksRemembrance of the DaleksBen AaronovitchBBC Books15 July 2016
Remembrance of the Daleks/Prisoner of the DaleksPrisoner of the Daleks Trevor BaxendaleBBC Books15 July 2016
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 1Doctor Who and the Dalek Invasion of EarthTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 1Doctor Who and the Abominable SnowmenTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 1Doctor Who – The Wheel in SpaceTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 1Doctor Who and the Auton InvasionTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 1Doctor Who and the Day of the DaleksTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 2Doctor Who and the Genesis of the DaleksTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 2Doctor Who and the Pyramids of MarsTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 2Doctor Who and the Talons of Weng-ChiangTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 2Doctor Who and the Horror of Fang RockTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021
The Essential Terrance Dicks Vol. 2Doctor Who – The Five DoctorsTerrance DicksBBC Books26 August 2021

In 1988–1989, W. H. Allen's Star imprint published a number of the Target novelisations in a format of two novelisations in one book in a range titled Doctor Who Classics. These were produced by fixing together two Target books with a new front page and outer cover. The pairings were:
Title 1AuthorTitle 2AuthorPublished
The Dalek Invasion of EarthTerrance DicksThe CrusadeDavid WhitakerAugust 1988
The GunfightersDonald CottonThe Myth MakersDonald CottonAugust 1988
The DominatorsIan MarterThe KrotonsTerrance DicksSeptember 1988
The Mind of EvilTerrance DicksThe Claws of AxosTerrance DicksMarch 1989
The DæmonsBarry LettsThe Time MonsterTerrance DicksMarch 1989
The Seeds of DoomPhilip HinchliffeThe Deadly AssassinTerrance DicksMay 1989
The Face of EvilTerrance DicksThe Sun Makers''Terrance DicksMay 1989

Spin-off novelisations

''The Companions of Doctor Who''

The Companions of Doctor Who was a series of original full-length novels, the first original novels based on Doctor Who. The books were based on characters who had appeared in the television series as the Doctor's companions, and explored their lives after leaving the Doctor's company.
The first two books were Turlough and the Earthlink Dilemma by Tony Attwood, based upon the character played by Mark Strickson in the early 1980s, and Harry Sullivan's War, written by Ian Marter, who had played Harry Sullivan in the series a decade earlier. These books sold well, but after a third attempt the series ended due sale not matching the same level as Doctor Who novelisations. Other novels would have featured Tegan, Sarah Jane Smith, Victoria, Jamie McCrimmon, UNIT, and a sequel to Harry Sullivan's War.
Book titleAuthorPaperback
release date
Audiobook
release date
Turlough and the Earthlink DilemmaTony Attwood15 May 1986
Harry Sullivan's WarIan Marter16 October 19865 December 2024
K-9 and CompanyTerence Dudley15 October 19873 December 2015

''The Sarah Jane Adventures''

Beginning in 2007, Penguin Books under its Penguin Character Books imprint began publishing novelisations based upon the spinoff series The Sarah Jane Adventures.
No.TitleAuthorPublishedPublisher
1Invasion of the BaneTerrance DicksPenguin Character Books
2Revenge of the SlitheenRupert LaightPenguin
3Eye of the GorgonPhil FordPenguin
4Warriors of KudlakGary RussellPenguin
5Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?Rupert LaightPenguin
6The Lost BoyGary RussellPenguin
7The Last SontaranPhil FordPenguin
8The Day of the ClownPhil FordPenguin
9The Wedding of Sarah Jane SmithGareth RobertsPenguin
Judoon AfternoonTrevor BaxendalePearson Education
The Haunted HouseTrevor BaxendalePearson Education
Painting PerilTrevor BaxendalePearson Education
Blathereen DreamTrevor BaxendalePearson Education
The Nightmare ManJoseph LidsterePenguin
Death of the DoctorGary RussellePenguin

Direct to video spinoffs

Novelisations of spin off productions that were released direct to video.
Novelisation titleAuthorOriginal publisherPaperback
release date
Audiobook
release date
ShakedownTerrance DicksDoctor Who Books5 May 2016
DowntimeMarc PlattDoctor Who Books
The Dæmons of Devil's EndSuzanne Barbieri, Debbie Bennett, Raven Dane, Jan Edwards, David J Howe, and Sam StoneTelos Publishing
Dæmos RisingDavid J. HoweTelos Publishing
Sil and the Devil Seeds of Arodor Philip MartinTelos Publishing
MindgameDavid J. HoweTelos Publishing
CyberonJames HornbyArcbeatle Press21 September 202021 September 2020
AutonDavid BlackBBV10 September 2024
WartimeStephen James WalkerTelos Publishing

Audio spinoffs

TitleAuthorPublishedPublisherNotes
Erimem - Return of the QueenClaire BartlettThebes PublishingAdaptation and expansion of the episode of the same name from Imagination Theatre's Kerides the Thinker radio series featuring Erimem
RepublicaMicah K. SpurlingBBVNovelisation of the BBV audio featuring "The Professor and Ace" written by Mark Gatiss.
Cyber-HuntCallum PhillpottBBVNovelisation of the BBV audio featuring "Fred" and the Cyberons written by Martin Peterson. An unabridged audiobook of this novelisation was released May 2025.
CybergeddonLupan EvezanBBVNovelisation of the BBV audio featuring the Cyberons written by Paul Ebbs.
The Rani Reaps the WhirlwindMicah K. SpurlingBBVNovelisation of the BBV audio written by Pip and Jane Baker. An unabridged audiobook of this novelisation was released 26 November 2024.
The Root of All EvilPaul MountBBVNovelisation of the BBV audio featuring the Krynoids written by Lance Parkin.
The ChoiceJames MulhollandBBVNovelisation of the BBV audio featuring K9 written by Nigel Fairs. In this novelisation, the character of K9 has been changed to "B.E.S.", a bionic ferret.
The Minister of ChanceDan FreemanArcbeatle PressNovel of the Radio Static series.
Children of the CircusKenton HallOak Tree BooksNovelisation of the audio play that is a sequel to The Greatest Show in the Galaxy

Adaptations

Generally, Doctor Who stories that have been broadcast will be adapted into print, rather than vice versa. There have been three occasions where print media has been adapted for the screen or formed inspiration for television episodes.
The 1995 New Adventures novel Human Nature, written by Paul Cornell and featuring the Seventh Doctor, was adapted by the same author for the 2007 series of Doctor Who as a two part story with the episode titles "Human Nature" and "The Family of Blood", with David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor.
Steven Moffat based his 2007 episode "Blink" upon his 2005 short story, "What I Did on My Christmas Holidays by Sally Sparrow", originally published in Doctor Who Annual 2006.
Gareth Roberts reused his concept from a 2006 Doctor Who Magazine comic strip story as the basis for an episode of the same name "The Lodger", which was transmitted as part of Series 5, featuring Matt Smith.