BBC Books: Adventures in Lockdown Review
All throughout Lockdown, Doctor Who writers have been coming up with stories to keep us entertained. Now, they've all been collected together for Children in Need...
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| The cover for the "Adventures in Lockdown" collection, with artwork designed by Sophie Cowdrey. |
Written by Chris Chibnall, Steven Moffat, Russell T Davies, Neil Gaiman, Joy Wilkinson, Viney Patel, Pete McTighe, Paul Cornell & Mark Gatiss.
Artwork designed by Valentina Mozzo, Sonia Leong, Mike Collins, Adrian Salmon, Lee Binding, Chris Riddell, Sophie Cowdrey, David Wardle, Anthony Dry & Richard Wells.
At the height of the Coronavirus pandemic, Doctor Who fans from across the world came together in order to support each other through the crisis. From the Doctor Who: Lockdown tweetalongs organised by Emily Cook, to the fundraising livestreams of fans like Billy Garratt-John and Sophie Iles, the fanbase all pulled together at this most desperate hour. And even those who make and produce our favourite show played their part, with free short stories released on the official Doctor Who website from the likes of Russell T Davies, Pete McTighe, Steven Moffat and even Chris Chibnall himself. A number of these stories have now been collected together, along with material from the tweetalongs and even original content, in an effort to raise money for Children in Need, as well as to put this material in one place. And, while I don't think all of the efforts displayed here are really that great, the cause for this kind of puts it beyond reproach, and there are some really great stories as well.
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| The artwork that accompanies "Things She Thought While Falling" in "Adventures in Lockdown", drawn by Mike Collins. |
As I mentioned above, the stories in this collection fall into two categories. The first are short stories that debuted on the BBC Doctor Who website, from the likes of Chris Chibnall, Joy Wilkinson and Paul Cornell. Often these are pretty short, no more than 15 pages long, and they pretty much all feature the current Doctor, as played by Jodie Whittaker. The book opens with "Things She Thought While Falling" by current showrunner Chris Chibnall, which reads a little like the opening chapter to a novelisation of "The Woman Who Fell to Earth". For those people who like little minisodes that sit alongside the show, this will be right up their street, but, to me, I found it a little rambley and incoherent for my tastes. I don't often enjoy stories that get into the Doctor's head, unless they are done really well, and this just doesn't quite pull it off for me. At least there are some Douglas Adams-ish touches to the prose that prevent this from being totally dull. Another former showrunner that presents an alternate take on a Doctor Who story we know well is Russell T Davies, who, in the first of three contributions, brings us "Doctor Who and the Time War", which is a very sideways take on "The Day of the Doctor" and the end of the Time War. Originally written in 2013, this is the story that would have originally depicted the end of the Time War, as well as the regeneration of the Eighth Doctor into the Ninth Doctor. Planned for inclusion in the book "The Doctor: His Lives and Times", this story was kyboshed when Steven Moffat asked if they could steer away from the Time War, for obvious reasons. And, while it is well-written and filled with the Lovecraftian horror than many associate with the Time War, the simple fact is that, despite all the wriggling and twisting Davies has tried, the story is utterly redundant. We've seen the end of the Time War, we know the circumstances of the Eighth Doctor's regeneration, and its half-finished nature means it sort of exists in a world that is no longer there. However, for those who still cling to the old idea of the Time War, this will be a treat. There are more substantial stories, however, from the website stories: "The Shadow Passes" by legendary Who scribe Paul Cornell puts the current TARDIS team in a nice parallel to the Coronavirus lockdown, as well as giving some much-needed focus to Yaz and the Doctor's relationship. "The Simple Things", meanwhile, is a slightly lighter affair, basically functioning as one extended joke. I like the story, but "The Witchfinders" writer Joy Wilkinson places the Draconians (the noble race of warrior lizards from 1973's "Frontier in Space") in the role of traditional monsters, something that really doesn't sit right with me. They are one of the most interesting creations of the classic series, yet, for some reason, they have been thrust into the role of a standard 'monster of the week'. A story with more reverence for the classic series history is "Press Play" by Pete McTighe. Another sweet little take on the lockdown situation, this features one HUGE reference to the show's earliest years, and a lot of other sweet references to the show's past. Finally, there's "The Terror of the Umpty Ums", which is total genius from Steven Moffat, as you would expect. Playing on the perception of the reader, we are guided through the story by a totally unreliable narrator, and, its only towards the end do we get to see what is really going on. Out of the website releases, this is easily the highlight, and it standouts as one of the finest Doctor Who short stories in recent memory.
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| The artwork that promoted "The Shadow in the Mirror" on the Doctor Who Lockdown Youtube channel, designed by Christopher Jones. |
The second category the stories in the collection fall into is material taken from the tweetalongs organised by Emily Cook. Often designed to tie into a number of episodes broadcast between 2005 and 2017, these have become infamous due to the guest stars they have featured, including Lisa Bowerman, Anna Hope, Arthur Darvill and even David Tennant. Sadly, however, I would say that these are the least successful stories in the collection, as they often rely on the visual or audio element to make them succeed. "Shadow of a Doubt" is the most obvious example of this: without Lisa Bowerman, there's no reason for you to think the central narrator is Bernice Summerfield in any way, and its too short to really be notable in its own way. "Rory's Story" is another example: presented as a cold, clinical script, its devoid of any of the warmth in the original production. I think these pieces are excellent, but only when joined with the actors in a dramatic form. Some work better, like Russell T Davies' "The Secret of Novice Hame", which is quite a nice tribute to Davies' own 'New Earth' trilogy, even for someone who isn't a massive fan of the stories like myself. Steven Moffat's short poem "Listen" also works quite well here: again, it's divorced from the original context of the tweetalong, but it's still incredibly moody and effective. "The Shadow in the Mirror" is broadly similar, functioning as a sequel to three different stories ("Human Nature/The Family of Blood", "Shadow of a Doubt" and "The Shadow Passes"), making this grand, interconnected narrative featuring the character of the Daughter of Blood. I kind of understand why Cornell might be uncomfortable with the Daughter's fate now, but I always viewed it as a key part of the Tenth Doctor's journey, and a real reason why "Human Nature/The Family of Blood" works so well. "Revenge of the Nestene" also acts as a sequel to a TV story, namely "Rose" and depicts what happens to a small part of the Nestene after the Doctor destroys its base. The ending joke is pretty funny if you follow current politics, but otherwise, its just a harmless added chapter to the "Rose" novelisation (its even listed as such at the beginning). I like most of these, but, honestly, they don't really add much to the book than padding, and the free versions you can find on the Doctor Who Lockdown YouTube channel are infinitely better, and show a greater degree of creativity than just printing them in a book.
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| The artwork that accompanies "One Virtue, and a Thousand Crimes" in "Adventures in Lockdown", drawn by Chris Riddell. |
Finally, we have three original stories: "One Virtue and a Thousand Crimes" by Neil Gaiman, "The Tourist" by Viney Patel and "Fellow Traveller" by Mark Gatiss. These are exclusive to this collection, and, together with "The Terror of the Umpty Ums", are the highlights of the book. "One Virtue and a Thousand Crimes" features the Corsair, the Time Lord pirate character mentioned in the 2011 TV story "The Doctor's Wife", and depicts quite a monumental moment in the cannon history of the show: that being how the Doctor got hold of the Hand of Omega before his departure from Gallifrey. It's only half-way through you really start to realise what is going on, so, for the first-half, this is a fun treasure hunt with two quirky and unusual characters. I love the Corsair, and I have always found the concept a bit of an unusual one, so to get more stories with this most unusual of characters is a blessing. As I mentioned, the second half of the story goes in a number of exciting directions for Doctor Who fans, and Gaiman's sharp and witty prose shines through. "The Tourist", meanwhile, is a sideways sequel to 2020's "Fugitive of the Judoon", a story which I really wasn't that enamoured with, but this manages to act as its own entity, with a cheeky cameo from a certain character, who played a pivotal role in that story. The central character of George is likeable and relatable, and the story gives us a complete picture of his life in a remarkably short space of time, and actually makes Gloucester feel like a real, distinct place, rather than just the pretty backdrop of "Fugitive of the Judoon". It isn't perfect, but, for someone who really isn't a fan of the story this is a sequel to, this is actually pretty good, and shows how talented Viney Patel is, when he isn't being pulled in all directions by Chris Chibnall. Finally, we have "Fellow Traveller" by legendary Who writer Mark Gatiss, which indulges in a spot of fan wish-fulfillment with regards to its set-up. Opening with an unnamed woman walking to Bedford in the aftermath of a great conflict, it soon becomes clear where all this is going, and who this woman and the mysterious stranger she meets is. If you're a fan of the Big Finish Eighth Doctor audios, you may be able to guess where this is going: the woman is Susan Foreman, and the stranger is the Doctor (the Thirteenth, this time). It's certainly one of the stronger stories in the collection, but I did keep thinking to myself 'yeh, but Marc Platt did it better'. I do like some of the ideas surrounding Earth in the 22nd Century, such as there being a lot of dumped Dalek technology in Bedford, and Susan needing to take her anger about David out on one of them. It certainly makes for a better sequel to "The Dalek Invasion of Earth" than the novel "Legacy of the Daleks" ever did, and is a nice companion piece to "Press Play" and the most recent series of the TV show. The original material is probably worth picking up the collection for all on its own, and, together with "Terror of the Umpty Ums", make for some of the finest short Doctor Who fiction in recent times. There are also a number of illustrations from noted artists within the Who community, both in official capacities and in the fan community, and these are wonderful, really bringing the stories to life, as well as featuring a variety of different styles and flavours. They're wonderful, and they actually add more to the collection than you would expect.
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| The current Doctor, Jodie Whittaker, at the controls of her TARDIS. |
Overall, "Adventures in Lockdown" is pretty much a tale of two halves. The material written for the Doctor Who website (and, by extension, the exclusive-to-this-book stories) gets the chance to really shine here, and they are able to shine in the context of a print book. The content produced by Emily Cook for the tweetalongs, however, doesn't really work as well here, as, divorced from the visuals and audio that made the original pieces such a delight, they often don't quite work. But, for the context this book has been made for, this is very much a worthy purchase for any Doctor Who fan, and there are some stories in this book that will blow your socks off. "Adventures in Lockdown" is filled with quintessential Doctor Who goodness, and I think its well worth getting, even if its only for "Terror of the Umpty Ums".
"Adventures in Lockdown" is available from Penguin Random House Online, as well as book stores and other online retailers:
All images bar the third picture are copyright to the BBC, while the "Shadow in the Mirror" artwork is copyright to Emily Cook and Christopher Jones. Thank you very much for reading. You can subscribe by clicking the link at the top of the page to be notified of new content.
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