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Past Doctor Adventures #21
Doctor Who: Players
In turn-of-the-century South Africa, an aspiring young war correspondent called Winston Spencer Churchill is befriended by two strangers -- the Doctor and Peri. Suspecting mysterious forces at work behind the scenes, the Doctor determines to keep a close eye on Churchill's career.
251 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 26, 1999
12 people are currently reading
717 people want to read
About the author
Terrance Dicks
326 books219 followersTerrance Dicks was an English author, screenwriter, script editor, and producer best known for his extensive contributions to Doctor Who. Serving as the show's script editor from 1968 to 1974, he helped shape many core elements of the series, including the concept of regeneration, the development of the Time Lords, and the naming of the Doctor’s home planet, Gallifrey. His tenure coincided with major thematic expansions, and he worked closely with producer Barry Letts to bring a socially aware tone to the show. Dicks later wrote several Doctor Who serials, including Robot, Horror of Fang Rock, and The Five Doctors, the 20th-anniversary special.
In parallel with his television work, Dicks became one of the most prolific writers of Doctor Who novelisations for Target Books, authoring over 60 titles and serving as the de facto editor of the range. These adaptations introduced a generation of young readers to the franchise. Beyond Doctor Who, he also wrote original novels, including children’s horror and adventure series such as The Baker Street Irregulars, Star Quest, and The Adventures of Goliath.
Dicks also worked on other television programmes including The Avengers, Moonbase 3, and various BBC literary adaptations. His later work included audio dramas and novels tied to Doctor Who. Widely respected for his clarity, imagination, and dedication to storytelling, he remained a central figure in Doctor Who fandom until his death in 2019, leaving behind a vast legacy in television and children's literature.
In parallel with his television work, Dicks became one of the most prolific writers of Doctor Who novelisations for Target Books, authoring over 60 titles and serving as the de facto editor of the range. These adaptations introduced a generation of young readers to the franchise. Beyond Doctor Who, he also wrote original novels, including children’s horror and adventure series such as The Baker Street Irregulars, Star Quest, and The Adventures of Goliath.
Dicks also worked on other television programmes including The Avengers, Moonbase 3, and various BBC literary adaptations. His later work included audio dramas and novels tied to Doctor Who. Widely respected for his clarity, imagination, and dedication to storytelling, he remained a central figure in Doctor Who fandom until his death in 2019, leaving behind a vast legacy in television and children's literature.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 96 reviews
April 21, 2015
Terrence Dicks’ prose style yanks me right back to childhood. I used to, as a small lad, lie beneath the duvet reading his adaptations of William Hartnell or Patrick Troughton or Jon Pertwee stories, wondering what the TV programmes themselves were like. Actually if I’d been shown the episodes right then I’d probably have been truly disappointed, as no matter how much I like ‘Doctor Who’ a cheaply put together TV programme was going to be no match for a small boy’s imagination when combined with Terrence Dicks’ brilliantly direct and pacey prose. Reading this newer ‘Doctor Who’ story not only took me back, it made me appreciate quite how brilliant a writer Terrence Dicks is. He’s a master of a straightforward and uncomplicated style which constantly propels a story forward. That sounds like damning with faint praise, but I’m really not. What he does looks disarmingly simple, many would think it was easy to emulate, but really it’s beyond the reach of most. Most people wouldn’t write so unobtrusively; most wouldn’t be able to vividly create a place, a character, a time with just a few well chosen sentences; most couldn’t make the whole thing so gripping and thoroughly entertaining. Reading him is a constantly pleasing and exciting pleasure, and I’m evidence that children of ten or grown men of nearly forty can both be truly entranced.
Here he is tackling Colin Baker as The Sixth Doctor, one of the few periods of old Who that Dicks himself never worked on. Clearly he remained an appreciator of the show as he absolutely captures the bumptious arrogance of this Doctor, as well as the chippy spark of Peri. Indeed he actually makes their relationship work in a way that it rarely does on the TV, losing the unpleasantness of the sniping so that it becomes a humorous and caring relationship. Imagine Hepburn and Tracey with a time-ship and less sexual tension and you’re not far away. Dicks is here proving – as numerous audios have already done – that The Sixth Doctor and Peri can be made to work in a way that the cack-handed TV version rarely achieved.
What’s really interesting about this book though, is how much of a subverting of the second Baker era it is. I remember the stories as permanently taking place in a neon darkness, with violence and decay a constant. Here though we have garden parties, lunch in the Kent countryside, shoot outs in the bright South African sunshine. Of course there are shadows and darkness too, this is a Doctor Who story there’s going to be danger, but it isn’t unremitting and remorseless. Furthermore The Sixth Doctor spends most of the story not wearing his famous multi-coloured travesty of a coat; instead he’s decked out in more sober and restrained Edwardian and pre-war styles. Even on the page, it makes a nice relief. I said earlier that Dicks was clearly still an appreciator of the show in this era, and I chose the word carefully over ‘fan’. Yes, he captures The Sixth Doctor, but this is so far removed from what we had on screen in The Sixth Doctor’s reign, that clearly he had no great liking for what the Sixth Doctor’s era actually looked like, and what’s more is showing that with a few changes it could have been so much better.
Any flaws? Well, the most glaring is The Players themselves. They’re celestial chess masters who play elaborate games with the fates of people (and possibly other species). As a threat they’re mostly so reluctant to come to the foreground that they’re ciphers in their own story, which is more than a tad frustrating, particularly when the book is named after them. It’s a whopper of a problem, but I don’t care, I raced through ‘The Players’ like the grown-up small boy I am.
Here he is tackling Colin Baker as The Sixth Doctor, one of the few periods of old Who that Dicks himself never worked on. Clearly he remained an appreciator of the show as he absolutely captures the bumptious arrogance of this Doctor, as well as the chippy spark of Peri. Indeed he actually makes their relationship work in a way that it rarely does on the TV, losing the unpleasantness of the sniping so that it becomes a humorous and caring relationship. Imagine Hepburn and Tracey with a time-ship and less sexual tension and you’re not far away. Dicks is here proving – as numerous audios have already done – that The Sixth Doctor and Peri can be made to work in a way that the cack-handed TV version rarely achieved.
What’s really interesting about this book though, is how much of a subverting of the second Baker era it is. I remember the stories as permanently taking place in a neon darkness, with violence and decay a constant. Here though we have garden parties, lunch in the Kent countryside, shoot outs in the bright South African sunshine. Of course there are shadows and darkness too, this is a Doctor Who story there’s going to be danger, but it isn’t unremitting and remorseless. Furthermore The Sixth Doctor spends most of the story not wearing his famous multi-coloured travesty of a coat; instead he’s decked out in more sober and restrained Edwardian and pre-war styles. Even on the page, it makes a nice relief. I said earlier that Dicks was clearly still an appreciator of the show in this era, and I chose the word carefully over ‘fan’. Yes, he captures The Sixth Doctor, but this is so far removed from what we had on screen in The Sixth Doctor’s reign, that clearly he had no great liking for what the Sixth Doctor’s era actually looked like, and what’s more is showing that with a few changes it could have been so much better.
Any flaws? Well, the most glaring is The Players themselves. They’re celestial chess masters who play elaborate games with the fates of people (and possibly other species). As a threat they’re mostly so reluctant to come to the foreground that they’re ciphers in their own story, which is more than a tad frustrating, particularly when the book is named after them. It’s a whopper of a problem, but I don’t care, I raced through ‘The Players’ like the grown-up small boy I am.
September 8, 2014
"First I will tell you what YOU are," said the Doctor sternly. "You call yourselves Players, Masters of Time? I call you vandals. Evil children who throw a slab of concrete on the track, derailing the train of history for the pleasure of hearing the smash and the screams of the dying. Moronic hooligans who throw grit in the machinery of history for the fun of hearing it grind screaming to a halt." The Doctor's voice was filled with withering scorn. "Don't humans cause each other agony enough, without you adding to it for your own amusement?"
When Peri begins to complain about the nature of their recent adventures, the Doctor decides to take them back to England in the early 1900's to give her a chance to see some lavish extravagance. But they soon become embroiled within a plot where unknown figures conspire to change history, particularly the history of Winston Churchill. They must get to the bottom of the mystery before history changes and all of Europe is plunged into darkness.
I loved this book! I know the 6th Doctor isn't particularly well-loved due to his brash and cantankerous nature, but in my opinion that is what makes him so wonderful! He saves the world, but grumpily! ;) But love him or hate him, he truly shines in this story. The author depicted him and Peri perfectly as they traipse through decades to try and solve the conundrum of the mysterious Players. I though the story itself was very engaging, with just enough action and historical figures and facts to make it very enjoyable indeed!
When Peri begins to complain about the nature of their recent adventures, the Doctor decides to take them back to England in the early 1900's to give her a chance to see some lavish extravagance. But they soon become embroiled within a plot where unknown figures conspire to change history, particularly the history of Winston Churchill. They must get to the bottom of the mystery before history changes and all of Europe is plunged into darkness.
I loved this book! I know the 6th Doctor isn't particularly well-loved due to his brash and cantankerous nature, but in my opinion that is what makes him so wonderful! He saves the world, but grumpily! ;) But love him or hate him, he truly shines in this story. The author depicted him and Peri perfectly as they traipse through decades to try and solve the conundrum of the mysterious Players. I though the story itself was very engaging, with just enough action and historical figures and facts to make it very enjoyable indeed!
June 11, 2014
Peri asked the Doctor to take her somewhere elegant, Victorian London is chosen. Shame they land in the middle of the Boer War where they meet a young Churchill.
This is a fun book that has the Doctor meeting Churchill at different times, and even one when he was in his 2nd incarnation. Someone is playing a dangerous game trying to change established history for fun. The Doctor and Peri are characterised really well, and the plot rocketed along. It is a bit of a one for continuity buffs though, Dekker from 'Blood Harvest' turns up, and characters from 'The War Games'. A really great read.
This is a fun book that has the Doctor meeting Churchill at different times, and even one when he was in his 2nd incarnation. Someone is playing a dangerous game trying to change established history for fun. The Doctor and Peri are characterised really well, and the plot rocketed along. It is a bit of a one for continuity buffs though, Dekker from 'Blood Harvest' turns up, and characters from 'The War Games'. A really great read.
August 10, 2016
This is the Terrance Dicks fanwank to end all fanwank...and it's one of the best ever. It's the ultimate pick-and-mix from Uncle Terry's favourite hits...and manages to be both a prequel to "Timewyrm Exodus" and a sequel to both "The War Games" and "Blood Harvest". Throw in some history hopping across the early 20th century, some fun with the "season 6B" concept, and an astonishingly superb characterization of the 6th Doctor and Peri (who gets some great material), and the end result is one of the most satisfying & thrilling stories you could ask for from the pen of "Doctor Who's" prose laureate. This isn't just comfort food...it's the ultimate comfort food buffet.
March 29, 2014
A Sixth Doctor story AND a Second Doctor story with characters from The War Games in one story. There's a hint of an unrelated Seventh Doctor story at one point, so I'll have to see if Terrence Dicks wrote another novel with Seven/Ace that has some of the same characters. The characterizations of Six, Peri, and Two were spot on. This is probably the best one of the 50th Anniversary Editions I've read so far (read them in Doctor order).
August 30, 2018
One of my favourites from the Past Doctor Adventure’s as The Sixth Doctor and Peri meet Winston Churchill during the Boer War.
An alien race known as ‘The Players’ are attempting to change history, it’s a fun alien historical that Doctor Who does best.
Terrance Dicks throws in tons of continuity references, it also confirms the Series 6B theory.
An alien race known as ‘The Players’ are attempting to change history, it’s a fun alien historical that Doctor Who does best.
Terrance Dicks throws in tons of continuity references, it also confirms the Series 6B theory.
March 2, 2025
After not having read as much lately, it was fun returning to what has become a recipe for salvation for me; whenever there's the slightest inclination of doubt surrounding what I will read next, a 6th and Peri story will never fail me in that regard. This book belonging in the Past Doctor Adventure range surprisingly delivered some great insight on the theory of 'Season 6B's related universe to the main timeline, a crisscross between the adventures in ‘War Games’ as well as linking up some contextual details for the possible outcomes that are a result of that tragic period of the Doctor's travels. Terrence does a good job hooking the readers early on with some easy-to-follow prose and imaginative ideas/executions, although I wanted more from the book towards the end; yet, nonetheless, it was pretty fun for what it offered. Having found it hard to continue with 6th-centered stories recently because of the major impact that 'Times Champion' had on me, this read did me good; to be able to take a step back and enjoy once again how much good Sixie content there is, that I've yet to scratch the surface with.
Winston Churchill stories are either the funniest ones out of the lot or the most bizarre, and this book was honestly a bit of both with multiple timelines explored and seeing the gradual change in the perspective of Churchill as he grows older and wiser with the Doctor's interference ultimately saving his life and world. Excited to read of more of these PDAs in the near future.
𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝟔.𝟓-𝟕
Winston Churchill stories are either the funniest ones out of the lot or the most bizarre, and this book was honestly a bit of both with multiple timelines explored and seeing the gradual change in the perspective of Churchill as he grows older and wiser with the Doctor's interference ultimately saving his life and world. Excited to read of more of these PDAs in the near future.
𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝟔.𝟓-𝟕
January 15, 2025
Terrance Dicks dives into his usual grab bag of things he likes to bring us Players, a novel about time travelling malcontents who want to divert history for their own amusement, specifically where it concerns Winston Churchill.
Dicks is clearly having the time of his life writing/fawning over Churchill, and the book has the kind of pace you can thankfully take for granted with this author, but it’s thin, pulpy stuff which I found myself forgetting as it went along.
The mysterious Players of the title are mainly here as sequel bait, but that would work rather better if he put any effort into who they are and what they want in this instalment. He doesn’t, opting instead to spin a yarn about Churchill with the thinnest of SF backdrops. It’s all passable fun, but we know from books like Exodus that he can do better.
**1/2
Dicks is clearly having the time of his life writing/fawning over Churchill, and the book has the kind of pace you can thankfully take for granted with this author, but it’s thin, pulpy stuff which I found myself forgetting as it went along.
The mysterious Players of the title are mainly here as sequel bait, but that would work rather better if he put any effort into who they are and what they want in this instalment. He doesn’t, opting instead to spin a yarn about Churchill with the thinnest of SF backdrops. It’s all passable fun, but we know from books like Exodus that he can do better.
**1/2
June 29, 2013
This novel delves into some real history with the life of Churchill, the rise of the Third Reich, and some real facts behind Edward VIII's relationship with Wallis Simpson. The novel also allows the Second Doctor to make an appearance when the Sixth Doctor shares a memory with Peri. For fans who have seen the Second Doctor serial, The War Games, this book also provides some great continuity. With the amount of ground this book covers, I was very impressed by how well it weaves in and out of time periods without letting the pace flag. The Doctor and Peri moves through time, cleverly adapting to the challenges the mysterious target on Churchill and later the Doctor and Peri presents. What I was also impressed with in this book was the subtle way the author made the Sixth and the Second Doctor so distinct in the storytelling. And having more than one Doctor in one story felt like a great bonus! For a Doctor Who fangirl like me, I was so thrilled to have some great characters from The War Games reappear and again help the Doctor.
I've always loved the playful antagonism between the Sixth Doctor and Peri, and their interactions in this book perfectly captured that. Peri's quiet resignation as she plays along with Sixie's extravagant gestures was so funny! There were some scenarios that I thought very interesting to put the Doctor and Peri in - one was the Doctor's efforts to become integrated in the social circles of 1930s London and the other is a rather hazardous situation Peri finds herself in. There are twists and turns I didn't see coming in this book, that kept me eagerly turning pages.
And then there's the main villains, the Players. While it is understandable that they are shrouded in mysteries as that is their nature, they aren't very convincing as bad guys because you really don't know anything about them. I didn't think the Players were really evil but they just had no regard for life and justice and they felt because of their nature they felt entitled to that. But because they are supposed to work indirectly I felt more antipathy for the misguided people who helped them. The Players were a necessary device to make the story work, and in that I think I was disappointed because that was all they functioned as.
But that didn't dampen my enjoyment of this adventure because it moves so quickly and has some great comedic moments. The Doctor and Peri were both realized so well, and this book also gave me a very interesting history lesson, especially with the life of Winston Churchill.
(I received this book from the publisher or author for a fair and honest review. I was not compensated for this review.)
I've always loved the playful antagonism between the Sixth Doctor and Peri, and their interactions in this book perfectly captured that. Peri's quiet resignation as she plays along with Sixie's extravagant gestures was so funny! There were some scenarios that I thought very interesting to put the Doctor and Peri in - one was the Doctor's efforts to become integrated in the social circles of 1930s London and the other is a rather hazardous situation Peri finds herself in. There are twists and turns I didn't see coming in this book, that kept me eagerly turning pages.
And then there's the main villains, the Players. While it is understandable that they are shrouded in mysteries as that is their nature, they aren't very convincing as bad guys because you really don't know anything about them. I didn't think the Players were really evil but they just had no regard for life and justice and they felt because of their nature they felt entitled to that. But because they are supposed to work indirectly I felt more antipathy for the misguided people who helped them. The Players were a necessary device to make the story work, and in that I think I was disappointed because that was all they functioned as.
But that didn't dampen my enjoyment of this adventure because it moves so quickly and has some great comedic moments. The Doctor and Peri were both realized so well, and this book also gave me a very interesting history lesson, especially with the life of Winston Churchill.
(I received this book from the publisher or author for a fair and honest review. I was not compensated for this review.)
July 14, 2014
I will also do a video review here at my channel: http://www.youtube.com/magicofbooks
In "Players" by Terrance Dicks, the sixth Doctor is joined by his companion Peri as they try to figure out who is interfering with the future of Winston Churchill's historic career. To the people messing with history, it is all just an amusing game. It's up to the Doctor and Peri to protect Churchill and insure that history continues on its destined path.
After "Festival of Death" by Jonathan Morris, I think "Players" is, so far, my next favorite in the 50th anniversary collection. All of the books previous to this have taken place either in the future, in space, on other planets, or on Earth in the present (the present as when those Doctors existed). This is the first one that's had a historical setting and the period piece episodes of "Doctor Who" are actually some of my favorites. So this edition in the series was a refreshing change of pace after all of the sci-fi lingo and technology that dominates the other books.
The premise of "Players" was fascinating. I'm not familiar with every episode of "Doctor Who," but I'm not recalling an episode that is like this book. This group of people, who go by the name of the Players, are basically rewriting history just for the amusement of it and they don't care about the consequences. Anyone who knows anything about the Doctor knows that the Doctor doesn't like to meddle in the affairs of history and he likes to leave things as they are and let nature take it's course. So the Players are a big foe with the Doctor and they represent everything he is against. I liked the idea of the Players trying to kill Churchill, and keeping King Edward VIII on the throne instead of him abdicating to his younger brother who later becomes King George VI. And of course with Edward VIII comes Wallis Simpson who was just as fascinating to read in this book as well. That's what I love about alternative history when you can ask the question, if one detail changed, what would be different? How would history, as a whole, change? Terrance Dicks did a fantastic job on putting this plot together and interweaving the Doctor and Peri into Churchill's history. I didn't know where this story was going and I was on the edge of my seat to know if the Doctor would succeed or fail.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. If you're a "Doctor Who" fan and some of your favorite episodes are the historical based ones, I think you'd enjoy this one just as much as me.
In "Players" by Terrance Dicks, the sixth Doctor is joined by his companion Peri as they try to figure out who is interfering with the future of Winston Churchill's historic career. To the people messing with history, it is all just an amusing game. It's up to the Doctor and Peri to protect Churchill and insure that history continues on its destined path.
After "Festival of Death" by Jonathan Morris, I think "Players" is, so far, my next favorite in the 50th anniversary collection. All of the books previous to this have taken place either in the future, in space, on other planets, or on Earth in the present (the present as when those Doctors existed). This is the first one that's had a historical setting and the period piece episodes of "Doctor Who" are actually some of my favorites. So this edition in the series was a refreshing change of pace after all of the sci-fi lingo and technology that dominates the other books.
The premise of "Players" was fascinating. I'm not familiar with every episode of "Doctor Who," but I'm not recalling an episode that is like this book. This group of people, who go by the name of the Players, are basically rewriting history just for the amusement of it and they don't care about the consequences. Anyone who knows anything about the Doctor knows that the Doctor doesn't like to meddle in the affairs of history and he likes to leave things as they are and let nature take it's course. So the Players are a big foe with the Doctor and they represent everything he is against. I liked the idea of the Players trying to kill Churchill, and keeping King Edward VIII on the throne instead of him abdicating to his younger brother who later becomes King George VI. And of course with Edward VIII comes Wallis Simpson who was just as fascinating to read in this book as well. That's what I love about alternative history when you can ask the question, if one detail changed, what would be different? How would history, as a whole, change? Terrance Dicks did a fantastic job on putting this plot together and interweaving the Doctor and Peri into Churchill's history. I didn't know where this story was going and I was on the edge of my seat to know if the Doctor would succeed or fail.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. If you're a "Doctor Who" fan and some of your favorite episodes are the historical based ones, I think you'd enjoy this one just as much as me.
September 23, 2019
When his companion Peri demands elegance for their next destination, the Doctor sets the coordinates for London in 1900 to enjoy the season there. Instead the TARDIS arrives in South Africa, just in time to witness a Boer ambush of a train containing British soldiers accompanied by a young war correspondent named Winston Churchill — whose life the Doctor saves after he is nearly assassinated by a mysterious man with a rifle. Captured along with Churchill by the Boers, the Doctor and Peri soon discover a second unknown individual, this one working to aid in Churchill's escape. Realizing that there are people involved whom he encountered when he met Churchill during his second incarnation, the Doctor travels to London in 1936 to get to the bottom of the mystery, one that soon involves stopping a plot that threatens the course of all of human history!
I must confess that I approached this novel with a degree of ambivalence, given that the Sixth Doctor is by far my least favorite version of the character and a storyline involving Winston Churchill was one primed to fail. This was a mistake on my part, as I should have taken into consideration that the author was Terrance Dicks, arguably the most prolific writer of Doctor Who media in the history of the franchise. In his experienced hands what could have been a name-checking tale involving an off-putting central character is instead a rollicking adventure spanning across four decades of one of the most adventurous lives in human history. In this it represents everything that a first-rate Doctor Who novel should be, and one that other authors in the franchise should turn to when dealing with some of the more awkward elements in the long-running series.
I must confess that I approached this novel with a degree of ambivalence, given that the Sixth Doctor is by far my least favorite version of the character and a storyline involving Winston Churchill was one primed to fail. This was a mistake on my part, as I should have taken into consideration that the author was Terrance Dicks, arguably the most prolific writer of Doctor Who media in the history of the franchise. In his experienced hands what could have been a name-checking tale involving an off-putting central character is instead a rollicking adventure spanning across four decades of one of the most adventurous lives in human history. In this it represents everything that a first-rate Doctor Who novel should be, and one that other authors in the franchise should turn to when dealing with some of the more awkward elements in the long-running series.
August 23, 2013
Players is about a group of time travelers (not Time Lords) who are playing games using characters important to Earth's history as pawns. The Dr. Who played by Colin Baker and his American companion Peri travel from one major event to another -- all involving Winston Churchill at pivotal times in his life -- to save the day.
I thought the book started out well but it became less believable, further in and there's a section when Dr. Who is reflecting back to when he was the 3rd Doctor that is a bit confusing. It took a while to figure out that we went from reflection to first person through the eyes of a different Doctor. But, my biggest problem was that everything seemed too easy. Things went wrong and Dr. Who always knew exactly what to do, sometimes knew who was chasing them without actually seeing anyone. So, the book ended up being a disappointment.
I don't regret the reading but by the end I was pushing myself to read faster. I just wanted to get it over with.
I thought the book started out well but it became less believable, further in and there's a section when Dr. Who is reflecting back to when he was the 3rd Doctor that is a bit confusing. It took a while to figure out that we went from reflection to first person through the eyes of a different Doctor. But, my biggest problem was that everything seemed too easy. Things went wrong and Dr. Who always knew exactly what to do, sometimes knew who was chasing them without actually seeing anyone. So, the book ended up being a disappointment.
I don't regret the reading but by the end I was pushing myself to read faster. I just wanted to get it over with.
November 12, 2016
Another exceptional book by Terrance Dicks. I love his concept of the "Players," picking up the characters created for the original series episode "The War Games." This compliments his book "World Game" and I suspect ties into others I've not yet read. If you are a fan of Classic Who you need to read this book.
July 25, 2013
Full review here: http://cjsnotebook5.blogspot.com/2013...
February 16, 2018
Wenn Terrance Dicks im Vorwort schreibt, er habe den 6. Doctor aus seiner häßlichen Kleidung sozusagen "befreit" - dann trifft das in zweierlei Hinsicht zu. Einmal ist der Doctor hier tatsächlich ohne seine buntschrillen Jacken und Hemden und Krawatten unterwegs und der Zeitperiode nach gekleidet. Dann allerdings ist der Doctor auch weder scharf, noch unfreundlich, noch irgendwie so wie man ihn kennt. Das Bild des 6. Doctors wandelt sich ein wenig in der letzten Fernsehstaffel, ja, aber Dicks verfehlt den Kern des Doctors in diesem Buch.
Ansonsten haben wir ein historisches Abenteuer mit Winston Churchill vor uns, das etliche Längen hat. Die üblichen "Doctor wird gefangen"- oder "Doctor muss Companion"-Retten-Szenen überfrachten den Roman. Ein wenig Kürze hätte dem Roman gutgetan, das Tempo stimmt auch nicht: Kaum bleibt mal Zeit für den Leser, sich zu erholen, sofort gibts wieder Action. Dass Aliens mal wieder an allem Schuld sind: Nicht überraschend. Dass es einen Rückblick auf Charaktere aus "The War Games" gibt ist nett, dann müsste aber der 2. Doctor auch treffender beschrieben sein. So ist es halt - ja - nun - könnte irgendeiner sein.
Dick kann natürlich schreiben und seine Prosa ist auch unterhaltsam, er verliert sich aber in der Handlung und warum das zum 50. Jubiläum des Doctors neu aufgelegt wurde ist die Frage. Sicherlich ist der 6. Doctor keiner, der wirklich die Fans um sich versammelt hat. So generisch geschrieben aber verdient selbst er nicht zu werden. Und so amüsant die historischen Fakten sind: Packend ist dann doch anders.
Ansonsten haben wir ein historisches Abenteuer mit Winston Churchill vor uns, das etliche Längen hat. Die üblichen "Doctor wird gefangen"- oder "Doctor muss Companion"-Retten-Szenen überfrachten den Roman. Ein wenig Kürze hätte dem Roman gutgetan, das Tempo stimmt auch nicht: Kaum bleibt mal Zeit für den Leser, sich zu erholen, sofort gibts wieder Action. Dass Aliens mal wieder an allem Schuld sind: Nicht überraschend. Dass es einen Rückblick auf Charaktere aus "The War Games" gibt ist nett, dann müsste aber der 2. Doctor auch treffender beschrieben sein. So ist es halt - ja - nun - könnte irgendeiner sein.
Dick kann natürlich schreiben und seine Prosa ist auch unterhaltsam, er verliert sich aber in der Handlung und warum das zum 50. Jubiläum des Doctors neu aufgelegt wurde ist die Frage. Sicherlich ist der 6. Doctor keiner, der wirklich die Fans um sich versammelt hat. So generisch geschrieben aber verdient selbst er nicht zu werden. Und so amüsant die historischen Fakten sind: Packend ist dann doch anders.
August 2, 2019
Having escaped death by slogging through some alien sewers, Doctor 6 promises Peri some hi-class relaxation. Aiming for London 1899, they arrive in South Africa 1899 just in time to save the life of a young, ambitious failed politician and war correspondent named Winston Churchill, and then get captured and sent to prison by the Boers. Somebody, however, is deliberately trying to kill Churchill himself, and this sets the Doctor to thinking about a time in his second incarnation when he again (before?) had to save Churchill from some strange people who might be time travellers of some sort. Using this memory as a jumping off point, The Doctor takes Peri to London 1936, where events are ramping up for the abdication crisis. Here, again, they meet some strange characters out to get Churchill. Dicks does a great job of inserting The Doctor and Peri into history, sticking closely to the known facts where he has to and being somewhat looser when can be. His story allows Doctor 6 to live the high life, a situation that might more comfortably have suited Doctor 3. The dialogue between Doctor 6 and Peri is spot on, giving the reader some insight into why Peri would continue travelling with the Doctor (hint: despite her protestations, she rather likes it). Dicks also has very little sympathy for Wallis Simpson, the cause of the king's abdication, and portrays her as fully a Nazi sympathizer and collaborator. As usual for a Terrance Dicks book, this is an enjoyable read, not too deep, and only a bit improbable in places.
November 5, 2013
*Special Content only on my blog, Strange and Random Happenstance during I ♥ ♥ The Doctor (October-December 2013)
While trying to show Peri a glamorous time after a particularly sewer based adventure, the TARDIS gets the right when not the right where and they end up smack in the middle of the Boer War. Not only in the middle of the strife in South Africa, but in the middle of an assassination attempt against a young Winston Churchill. Winston pooh-poohs the idea that the assassin was after him, but the Doctor knows how integral Churchill is to the coming century so he can't discount this theory. By eliminating Churchill the entire course of future history will be changed. What's more disconcerting is that this has happened before, in The Doctor's second incarnation, almost twenty years in Churchill's future, there was an odd assassination attempt during WWI that The Doctor thwarted. Could there be someone, or a group of someones, so invested in the death of Churchill that they would be willing to wait decades till the perfect opportunity to strike presented itself again?
The Doctor is disturbed by these events and decides to set himself and Peri up in London society in the 1930s. They're bound to run into Churchill, Peri will get her luxury and glamour, and The Doctor will get his answers. Not long after they arrive there is an attempt on their lives quickly followed by one on Churchill. The Doctor doesn't take any risks and hires some Pinkerton agents to see to their safety. But whomever their opponents and would-be killers are, determined and ruthless is how they operate. In the midst of the abdication crisis, could these mysterious assassins be playing some sort of game with The Doctor as their pawn and Churchill's death as a significant move?
One of the fun aspects of Doctor Who is that because he can go anywhen, well, we have the chance to run into some rather august personages, even previous versions of himself. So far in this series of books he hasn't run into anyone of note, but then again, he hasn't really been hanging around earth that much... in the television series he has met everyone from Dickens to Da Vinci, here we have someone who has even shown up on the show, Winston Churchill. I like that this gives a little bit of context and background to The Doctor's relationship with Churchill, because when the 11th Doctor gets that phone call at the end of "The Beast Below" there is obviously a prior and congenial relationship between the two. I like to think that this book is where it all started.
Yet at the same time I couldn't help be reminded of the first Thursday Next novel by Jasper Fforde, The Eyre Affair. While I know that this book came out after Players, the fact remains that it is more well known, and I can't help but keep thinking about Thursday's father showing up again and again and asking if she knew who Churchill was. Because, quite literally, if there's one person who was a force for good in the last century, it was Churchill.
And because we are dealing with Churchill, well, we are dealing with some of my favorite time periods. Africa, England, pulling together for the empire in times of crisis... ah, this book had me hooked from page one... but then it lost me. I wanted to love it, it was a fast read in a time period I love, but it just flat lined. The problem I had was with the anachronisms. In any historical fiction, and in particular in a story dealing with time travel and the ability to accidentally change the past, butterfly wings and all that, there are acceptable anachronisms and unacceptable anachronisms. There can be things played for laughs, like in Blackadder: Back and Forth when Edmund messes up the time lines and Shakespeare ends up being known as the inventor of the ballpoint pen. And there can be serious changes, like here if Winston Churchill were eliminated before England's hour of need.
But then there are things that just get under my skin and piss me off, aka, the unacceptable anachronisms. In this book there where two that just drove me crazy. One was the fact that while playing out the abdication crisis with Wallis Simpson and Edward VIII that Wallis was going to be there for his abdication broadcast. Now the clever and acceptable anachronisms is what was going to happen because of the Players... what annoyed me was Wallis's presence. She had fled the country at this point! You can mess with history, you just can't mess with it this much. It's keeping the details intact that make a story like this work. As for the Pinkerton Dekker, who is a little too much Harrison Ford in Bladerunner, well, he was too much of an earlier era. His tommy gun wielding prohi just felt so out of place, it's like Terrance Dicks was taking Boardwalk Empire and trying to force it to breed with the new Upstairs, Downstairs. It was so wrong, not all period dramas mesh, and it didn't surprise me in the least when I learned that Dekker was in a previous Terrance Dicks novel... sometimes you just need to let your characters go. And don't get me started with the Rebbecca joke or the fact Dicks then pulled a Dashiell Hammett and decided to bring in the Continental Op... sigh, sometimes less is more and it's best to separate styles.
As for our big bad? I really loved the Players and their nebulous unexplained nature. In the previous book with the 5th Doctor, Fear of the Dark , I felt that one of the failings was taking a mysterious entity and making it have too too solid flesh. By instead having this race of immortals from who knows where or when and them just playing a game with our history just for fun... well, I like it. I also like that they will obviously return. But what I loved is that at the end they let The Doctor live, not because he wasn't a threat to them, but because they saw his potential as either a player or a very powerful pawn.
While trying to show Peri a glamorous time after a particularly sewer based adventure, the TARDIS gets the right when not the right where and they end up smack in the middle of the Boer War. Not only in the middle of the strife in South Africa, but in the middle of an assassination attempt against a young Winston Churchill. Winston pooh-poohs the idea that the assassin was after him, but the Doctor knows how integral Churchill is to the coming century so he can't discount this theory. By eliminating Churchill the entire course of future history will be changed. What's more disconcerting is that this has happened before, in The Doctor's second incarnation, almost twenty years in Churchill's future, there was an odd assassination attempt during WWI that The Doctor thwarted. Could there be someone, or a group of someones, so invested in the death of Churchill that they would be willing to wait decades till the perfect opportunity to strike presented itself again?
The Doctor is disturbed by these events and decides to set himself and Peri up in London society in the 1930s. They're bound to run into Churchill, Peri will get her luxury and glamour, and The Doctor will get his answers. Not long after they arrive there is an attempt on their lives quickly followed by one on Churchill. The Doctor doesn't take any risks and hires some Pinkerton agents to see to their safety. But whomever their opponents and would-be killers are, determined and ruthless is how they operate. In the midst of the abdication crisis, could these mysterious assassins be playing some sort of game with The Doctor as their pawn and Churchill's death as a significant move?
One of the fun aspects of Doctor Who is that because he can go anywhen, well, we have the chance to run into some rather august personages, even previous versions of himself. So far in this series of books he hasn't run into anyone of note, but then again, he hasn't really been hanging around earth that much... in the television series he has met everyone from Dickens to Da Vinci, here we have someone who has even shown up on the show, Winston Churchill. I like that this gives a little bit of context and background to The Doctor's relationship with Churchill, because when the 11th Doctor gets that phone call at the end of "The Beast Below" there is obviously a prior and congenial relationship between the two. I like to think that this book is where it all started.
Yet at the same time I couldn't help be reminded of the first Thursday Next novel by Jasper Fforde, The Eyre Affair. While I know that this book came out after Players, the fact remains that it is more well known, and I can't help but keep thinking about Thursday's father showing up again and again and asking if she knew who Churchill was. Because, quite literally, if there's one person who was a force for good in the last century, it was Churchill.
And because we are dealing with Churchill, well, we are dealing with some of my favorite time periods. Africa, England, pulling together for the empire in times of crisis... ah, this book had me hooked from page one... but then it lost me. I wanted to love it, it was a fast read in a time period I love, but it just flat lined. The problem I had was with the anachronisms. In any historical fiction, and in particular in a story dealing with time travel and the ability to accidentally change the past, butterfly wings and all that, there are acceptable anachronisms and unacceptable anachronisms. There can be things played for laughs, like in Blackadder: Back and Forth when Edmund messes up the time lines and Shakespeare ends up being known as the inventor of the ballpoint pen. And there can be serious changes, like here if Winston Churchill were eliminated before England's hour of need.
But then there are things that just get under my skin and piss me off, aka, the unacceptable anachronisms. In this book there where two that just drove me crazy. One was the fact that while playing out the abdication crisis with Wallis Simpson and Edward VIII that Wallis was going to be there for his abdication broadcast. Now the clever and acceptable anachronisms is what was going to happen because of the Players... what annoyed me was Wallis's presence. She had fled the country at this point! You can mess with history, you just can't mess with it this much. It's keeping the details intact that make a story like this work. As for the Pinkerton Dekker, who is a little too much Harrison Ford in Bladerunner, well, he was too much of an earlier era. His tommy gun wielding prohi just felt so out of place, it's like Terrance Dicks was taking Boardwalk Empire and trying to force it to breed with the new Upstairs, Downstairs. It was so wrong, not all period dramas mesh, and it didn't surprise me in the least when I learned that Dekker was in a previous Terrance Dicks novel... sometimes you just need to let your characters go. And don't get me started with the Rebbecca joke or the fact Dicks then pulled a Dashiell Hammett and decided to bring in the Continental Op... sigh, sometimes less is more and it's best to separate styles.
As for our big bad? I really loved the Players and their nebulous unexplained nature. In the previous book with the 5th Doctor, Fear of the Dark , I felt that one of the failings was taking a mysterious entity and making it have too too solid flesh. By instead having this race of immortals from who knows where or when and them just playing a game with our history just for fun... well, I like it. I also like that they will obviously return. But what I loved is that at the end they let The Doctor live, not because he wasn't a threat to them, but because they saw his potential as either a player or a very powerful pawn.
September 19, 2020
A delightful read!
I've always loved Terrance Dicks books, and have read so many of them. He was just THE quintessential Doctor Who author. Very sad to see that so few of his books are available on kindle, so I was happy to find The Players. It was a real page turner, and I enjoyed it from beginning to end. If feel I must give four stars because I think the action and characters could have been a bit more exciting in places - but wherever the characters were a bit lacklustre, the exciting story kept you reading, and wherever the plot free a little slow, the delightful characters kept you entertained. The two elements were often present together, of course. The first and last thirds of the book were the most exciting, but the middle still made a good read.
The Players are a delightful foe, though I could have wished to see them fleshed out a bit more. Also, I think it's great to have an adventure for the Sixth Doctor, whose television appearance was not one of the highlights of the series.
In short, this is a great Doctor Who read that can stand with the best of them. As you'd expect from Terrance Dicks. I look forward to reading the rest in the series!
I've always loved Terrance Dicks books, and have read so many of them. He was just THE quintessential Doctor Who author. Very sad to see that so few of his books are available on kindle, so I was happy to find The Players. It was a real page turner, and I enjoyed it from beginning to end. If feel I must give four stars because I think the action and characters could have been a bit more exciting in places - but wherever the characters were a bit lacklustre, the exciting story kept you reading, and wherever the plot free a little slow, the delightful characters kept you entertained. The two elements were often present together, of course. The first and last thirds of the book were the most exciting, but the middle still made a good read.
The Players are a delightful foe, though I could have wished to see them fleshed out a bit more. Also, I think it's great to have an adventure for the Sixth Doctor, whose television appearance was not one of the highlights of the series.
In short, this is a great Doctor Who read that can stand with the best of them. As you'd expect from Terrance Dicks. I look forward to reading the rest in the series!
July 10, 2024
A sequel of sorts to the episode "The War Games" -- and a predecessor to Endgame; in classic timey-wimey fashion, I have read these out of order. Six and Two are a delight, and Dicks even makes Peri tolerable -- she gets off a few good lines and hits a Nazi over the head with a chair, which will always put you in my good books. I do wish she knew anything about history, though. I perhaps know too much, at least about Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson -- even with the looming specter of fascism, it's hard to make them two of them seem like credible threats, so the book lost steam for me once the Doctor and Peri arrive in 1936. Before that, when they're trying to stop the mysterious Players from assassinating Winston Churchill in different eras, it's all very good fun. And it's nice to see Carstairs and Lady Jennifer again.
3.5, and overall a very solid outing. I wish Six and Peri had gotten material half this good on TV.
3.5, and overall a very solid outing. I wish Six and Peri had gotten material half this good on TV.
March 26, 2023
Classic Doctor Who writing legend Terrance Dicks imagines a new 6th Doctor adventure and expands the potential for a hidden era after the 2nd Doctors’ final episode.
It’s a fun, ‘timey-wimey’ story featuring multiple stops along Winston Churchill’s timeline, as semi-omniscient god creatures use WWI history as a game board for their sinister amusement. In a sartorial twist, Doctor 6 trades in his usual, color-bomb costume for surprisingly elegant attire, and Peri gets to go on a shopping spree in order to blend in with fashionable London society. Doctor 2 also makes an appearance, sent on a secret mission for the Time Lords, and checking up on his former supporting characters from ‘The War Games’ episode.
It’s a fun, extremely well written story that reads like a missing episode from Colin Baker’s run. Highly recommended for fans of the original series.
It’s a fun, ‘timey-wimey’ story featuring multiple stops along Winston Churchill’s timeline, as semi-omniscient god creatures use WWI history as a game board for their sinister amusement. In a sartorial twist, Doctor 6 trades in his usual, color-bomb costume for surprisingly elegant attire, and Peri gets to go on a shopping spree in order to blend in with fashionable London society. Doctor 2 also makes an appearance, sent on a secret mission for the Time Lords, and checking up on his former supporting characters from ‘The War Games’ episode.
It’s a fun, extremely well written story that reads like a missing episode from Colin Baker’s run. Highly recommended for fans of the original series.
May 9, 2017
This was one of the novels brought out especially for the 50th anniversary. It's set during world war II, and follows the Doctor and Perri as they do battle with a strange game-playing alien race that, in this instance, use the people of earth as pawns in a huge game; A war-game in this case, as it turns out. A few characters from history worth mentioning include Winston Churchill, who is portrayed as a real have-a-go hero type, and none other than Adolf Hitler himself as he plans to take England.
All of this is actually just a war-by-proxy and everything we see happening is planned and instigated by the mysterious Players. It's a wonderful premise and the world war setting with it's actual historical figures just add to the interest.
Very good.
All of this is actually just a war-by-proxy and everything we see happening is planned and instigated by the mysterious Players. It's a wonderful premise and the world war setting with it's actual historical figures just add to the interest.
Very good.
April 8, 2019
What a fun book! I was pleasantly surprised. Doctor Who books can be hit or miss. This was a hit. I have never actually seen a Colin Baker episode. He's the only one. He has such a bad rap though I didn't know if I would like it. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. There's a cameo from the second doctor. There's reference to the seventh doctor. I like how the books can make better use of the future as many are now written well after the time. I think if I took the book too seriously I wouldn't have enjoyed it but I just sat back and enjoyed the ride. Another help was I had just seen the film Young Winston only a few weeks ago on the telly which explained the Boer War years. The only downside is that there were too many Americans. Other than that, it was an enjoyable read.
December 4, 2020
ボーア戦争の最中に日が照りつける南アフリカの草原におりたった6代目ドクターは直ぐさま、従軍記者であり、悪戦苦闘中の政治家ウイストン・チャーチルの冒険に巻き込まれる。ドクターは当然、チャーチルが偉業を成し遂げる運命にあることを知っていたが、見ない力がチャーチルの歴史的功績を妨害しているように思えた…。ドクターは背後に人間の歴史を単なるゲームとして退屈しのぎにしている見えざる手の存在を疑いだす。時間切れになりながら、ドクターは彼らを倒す方法を見つけられるか。
ドクターはペリを喜ばせるために1899年のロンドンにターディスを飛ばす。ところが、ターディスから一歩踏み出した途端に銃撃戦に巻き込まれる。2人が到着したのは1899年の南アフリカ。イギリス軍の兵站車両がボーア軍に襲われ立ち往生しているところだった。そこで若き日のチャーチルに出会う。暗殺されそうだったチャーチルを救った2人は無事にターディスに戻る。ペリにせがまれて、ドクターは昔、もう少し後の時代、1915年にチャーチルに会ったことがある話をする。まだ二回目の転生の頃のことで、タイムロードとして伯爵夫妻に誘拐されそうなチャーチルを救う任務を遂行した結果のことだった。その後チャーチルのがどうなるのか知りたがったペリのためにさらに先、1936年のチャーチルに会いに行く。そこで、1899年にチャーチルをねらった暗殺者と全く同じ風貌の暗殺者に命を狙われる2人。人間でない存在の干渉を疑いだしたドクターはチャーチルを全く守りつつ敵の正体を探る。
リッチなドクターがなんだか新鮮だった今回。作者のチャーチル大好きぶりが炸裂した一品。チャーチルの本が読みたくなりました。
ドクターはペリを喜ばせるために1899年のロンドンにターディスを飛ばす。ところが、ターディスから一歩踏み出した途端に銃撃戦に巻き込まれる。2人が到着したのは1899年の南アフリカ。イギリス軍の兵站車両がボーア軍に襲われ立ち往生しているところだった。そこで若き日のチャーチルに出会う。暗殺されそうだったチャーチルを救った2人は無事にターディスに戻る。ペリにせがまれて、ドクターは昔、もう少し後の時代、1915年にチャーチルに会ったことがある話をする。まだ二回目の転生の頃のことで、タイムロードとして伯爵夫妻に誘拐されそうなチャーチルを救う任務を遂行した結果のことだった。その後チャーチルのがどうなるのか知りたがったペリのためにさらに先、1936年のチャーチルに会いに行く。そこで、1899年にチャーチルをねらった暗殺者と全く同じ風貌の暗殺者に命を狙われる2人。人間でない存在の干渉を疑いだしたドクターはチャーチルを全く守りつつ敵の正体を探る。
リッチなドクターがなんだか新鮮だった今回。作者のチャーチル大好きぶりが炸裂した一品。チャーチルの本が読みたくなりました。
April 3, 2022
Dr Who has always given us various semi - immortal beings seemingly meddling with life and history to alleviate boredom as much as for power. The toymaker, the queen of time, Fenric, the Eternals, the guardians , the gods of Ragnarok . The books tied these together by suggesting they are beings from a previous universe like Lovercraft’s great old ones .
The Players are a good addition and this is a fun story of an attempt to prevent the abdication of Edward viii and have Britain head into WW2 with a Nazi sympathising monarch. We get to see some characters from the war games and Dicks’s vampire gangster era novel Blood Harvest again too, and one of the more ambiguous doctors gets to shine morally and escape the idiotic costume he was lumbered with on tv.
The Players are a good addition and this is a fun story of an attempt to prevent the abdication of Edward viii and have Britain head into WW2 with a Nazi sympathising monarch. We get to see some characters from the war games and Dicks’s vampire gangster era novel Blood Harvest again too, and one of the more ambiguous doctors gets to shine morally and escape the idiotic costume he was lumbered with on tv.
July 6, 2025
I read this one a while ago. Great characterization of Six and Peri, some other cool familiar faces and the Players themselves are actually a well-written villain, so thankfully they appear in two other novels later as well.
I've always admired the mind of Terrance Dicks, whether it be his Target novelisations or his original Who fiction such as this, however, as fun as the scenes with the Second Doctor were here, it did feel like Dicks was really forcing us to remember that he wrote The War Games.
Oh, one more note, this book is also technically a spiritual prequel to "Victory Of The Daleks" along with "A Shadow In The Glass", via Winston Churchill.
I've always admired the mind of Terrance Dicks, whether it be his Target novelisations or his original Who fiction such as this, however, as fun as the scenes with the Second Doctor were here, it did feel like Dicks was really forcing us to remember that he wrote The War Games.
Oh, one more note, this book is also technically a spiritual prequel to "Victory Of The Daleks" along with "A Shadow In The Glass", via Winston Churchill.
October 2, 2019
Dicks, who died in Summer 2019, was a major contributor to the original run of Doctor Who , writing TV episodes, novelizations and original novels. This is one of the latter, part of a trilogy. This book features the Sixth Doctor and Peri, although there is also a lengthy appearance by the Second Doctor. Dicks addresses some continuity questions, and does some things that he couldn't do on the show. It's better than most, maybe all, of the Sixth Doctor's TV adventures.
February 16, 2019
I have never liked the 6th Dr. (Colin Baker), but Dicks does him justice. The book was well written, though a bit disappointing at the ending. Nice plot, enjoyed the weaving in of the 2nd doctor. I would have liked a better ending, it left a lot of loose ends. But over all it was a good story by one of the best Dr. Who writers.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 10, 2017
I really, really enjoyed this one. It's a semi-historical story, filled with lots of good period details. My almost-10 yr old son also really liked this, even though he only knew some brief historical context that I explained along the way.
May 18, 2018
The Beginning is Good the Ending is Great it's just the Middle, It just goes on and barely anything happens. and to be Honest the sequence with the Second Doctor is not necessary. I don't think it needed to be added.
June 22, 2019
Slightly stretched plot and no real denouement around the so-called “Players”. Nice to see the Sixth Doctor and Peri not just as their on-TV selves. An interesting Easter egg right at the end with the mention of Doctor Kriegsleiter.
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