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Doctor Who: Aliens of London: 9th Doctor Novelisation
Camille Coduri reads this brand new novelisation of the 2005 BBC TV adventure.
The Doctor brings Rose home a year after she left…to find London in chaos. A spaceship has crashed into the Thames and an alien body lies in the wreckage.
The Doctor uncovers a chilling conspiracy at the heart of Downing Street as ruthless alien invaders take control – members of the Family Slitheen.
The Doctor, Rose and the MP for Flydale North must fight to expose the Slitheen infiltration – before Earth falls prey to a deadly interstellar con that will ignite World War Three.
Camille Coduri, who played Jackie in the BBC TV series, reads this adaptation of Russell T Davies’ blockbuster action-adventure, the first two-part story of the modern series in 2005. It is novelised by playwright and screenwriter Joseph Lidster.
Reading produced by Morrison Ellis
Sound design by David Darlington
Executive Michael Stevens
2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.
The Doctor brings Rose home a year after she left…to find London in chaos. A spaceship has crashed into the Thames and an alien body lies in the wreckage.
The Doctor uncovers a chilling conspiracy at the heart of Downing Street as ruthless alien invaders take control – members of the Family Slitheen.
The Doctor, Rose and the MP for Flydale North must fight to expose the Slitheen infiltration – before Earth falls prey to a deadly interstellar con that will ignite World War Three.
Camille Coduri, who played Jackie in the BBC TV series, reads this adaptation of Russell T Davies’ blockbuster action-adventure, the first two-part story of the modern series in 2005. It is novelised by playwright and screenwriter Joseph Lidster.
Reading produced by Morrison Ellis
Sound design by David Darlington
Executive Michael Stevens
2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.
- GenresDoctor Who
Audio CD
Published June 30, 2026
About the author
Joseph Lidster
85 books38 followersJoseph Lidster is an English television writer best known for his work on the Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures.
His debut work was the audio play The Rapture for Big Finish Productions in 2002. Numerous further audio plays and prose short stories followed for Big Finish, for their Doctor Who line, spin-offs and other series (Sapphire & Steel and The Tomorrow People).
In 2005, he started working for the BBC, writing tie-in material for the new Doctor Who television series. He made his television writing debut in 2008 on the second series of Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood and subsequently wrote three two-part stories for The Sarah Jane Adventures. He has written the two-part story "Rebel Magic" for the new CBBC series Wizards vs Aliens.
Lidster wrote the content for the tie-in websites relating to the fictional world of the television series, Sherlock. Alongside co-producer James Goss, he has produced Big Finish Productions' dramatic reading range of Dark Shadows audio dramas since 2011.
In 2012, he won the 'Audience Favourite Writer' award for his first play Nice Sally in the Off Cut Theatre Festival.
His debut work was the audio play The Rapture for Big Finish Productions in 2002. Numerous further audio plays and prose short stories followed for Big Finish, for their Doctor Who line, spin-offs and other series (Sapphire & Steel and The Tomorrow People).
In 2005, he started working for the BBC, writing tie-in material for the new Doctor Who television series. He made his television writing debut in 2008 on the second series of Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood and subsequently wrote three two-part stories for The Sarah Jane Adventures. He has written the two-part story "Rebel Magic" for the new CBBC series Wizards vs Aliens.
Lidster wrote the content for the tie-in websites relating to the fictional world of the television series, Sherlock. Alongside co-producer James Goss, he has produced Big Finish Productions' dramatic reading range of Dark Shadows audio dramas since 2011.
In 2012, he won the 'Audience Favourite Writer' award for his first play Nice Sally in the Off Cut Theatre Festival.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 28, 2026
If you asked me to name my favorite episodes from Doctor Who’s triumphant first series, it’s doubtful that the “Aliens of London” two-parter would rank very high on that list.
“Dalek”? Absolutely.
“The Empty Child” two-parter? No question.
But “Aliens of London” always felt like a swing and a miss for the new series—a feeling that hasn’t faded in the twenty-plus years since it first aired.
So when I heard it was getting a Target adaptation, my first reaction was a slightly whiny, “But why not one of the other two-parters from this season?!”
Imagine my surprise when, ten minutes into the audiobook’s three-plus-hour runtime, I found myself grinning from ear to ear, thoroughly enjoying Joseph Lidster’s take on this alien invasion story from the new era.
By waiting twenty years to adapt the story for the printed page, Lidster can have a lot of fun with it. And by “fun,” I mean packing in a boatload of continuity references spanning the entire new series and its spinoffs. I quickly lost track of how many callbacks were woven in—not because they were overwhelming, but because the story itself was so entertaining that part of me didn’t want it to end. Lidster is clearly having a blast, and it shows throughout.
Beyond the continuity nods, he also delivers some genuinely strong character work across both major and minor players. Jackie and Mickey, in particular, benefit from a deeper exploration of how Rose’s year-long absence affected their lives, something the television version only had time to hint at. Even smaller characters get their moments to shine, including Barry the pig, who’s given a bit more presence and background as part of the Slitheen invasion plot.
All of it adds up to a delightful retelling of a familiar story, one that even manages to better clarify and develop the Slitheen’s overall plan than I remember from the screen.
Of course, that can only mean one thing: it’s time to dust off the DVDs and revisit this two-parter with fresh eyes.
Congratulations, Joseph Lidster. You pulled off what I thought was impossible and made me a fan of this story.
“Dalek”? Absolutely.
“The Empty Child” two-parter? No question.
But “Aliens of London” always felt like a swing and a miss for the new series—a feeling that hasn’t faded in the twenty-plus years since it first aired.
So when I heard it was getting a Target adaptation, my first reaction was a slightly whiny, “But why not one of the other two-parters from this season?!”
Imagine my surprise when, ten minutes into the audiobook’s three-plus-hour runtime, I found myself grinning from ear to ear, thoroughly enjoying Joseph Lidster’s take on this alien invasion story from the new era.
By waiting twenty years to adapt the story for the printed page, Lidster can have a lot of fun with it. And by “fun,” I mean packing in a boatload of continuity references spanning the entire new series and its spinoffs. I quickly lost track of how many callbacks were woven in—not because they were overwhelming, but because the story itself was so entertaining that part of me didn’t want it to end. Lidster is clearly having a blast, and it shows throughout.
Beyond the continuity nods, he also delivers some genuinely strong character work across both major and minor players. Jackie and Mickey, in particular, benefit from a deeper exploration of how Rose’s year-long absence affected their lives, something the television version only had time to hint at. Even smaller characters get their moments to shine, including Barry the pig, who’s given a bit more presence and background as part of the Slitheen invasion plot.
All of it adds up to a delightful retelling of a familiar story, one that even manages to better clarify and develop the Slitheen’s overall plan than I remember from the screen.
Of course, that can only mean one thing: it’s time to dust off the DVDs and revisit this two-parter with fresh eyes.
Congratulations, Joseph Lidster. You pulled off what I thought was impossible and made me a fan of this story.
Review of advance copy
The best Target novels don't just retell a televised adventure on paper, they expand on it as well. Lidster massively succeeds on both fronts here.
He adapts the story for prose perfectly, while also expanding on the supporting characters. A particular favourite inclusion of mine was how he took the Oliver Charles Slitheen's throwaway line about being "busy" with a wife, a mistress and a young farmer and spurns it into a whole soap opera style chapter.
There are also a couple of cameos/references from/to characters from other parts of the Whoniverse that didn't appear in the original story, which really helps to retroactively reimagine this first two-parter of the revived era as being more interconnected with the larger franchise.
Jackie is another character who benefits greatly from Target novel expansion, and I think in the audiobook reading her chapters are especially stellar given that Camille Coduri herself reads this one.
He adapts the story for prose perfectly, while also expanding on the supporting characters. A particular favourite inclusion of mine was how he took the Oliver Charles Slitheen's throwaway line about being "busy" with a wife, a mistress and a young farmer and spurns it into a whole soap opera style chapter.
There are also a couple of cameos/references from/to characters from other parts of the Whoniverse that didn't appear in the original story, which really helps to retroactively reimagine this first two-parter of the revived era as being more interconnected with the larger franchise.
Jackie is another character who benefits greatly from Target novel expansion, and I think in the audiobook reading her chapters are especially stellar given that Camille Coduri herself reads this one.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews