Spiral Scratch (Doctor Who)
Encyclopedia
Spiral Scratch is a BBC Books
original novel written by Gary Russell
and based on the long-running British
science fiction television
series Doctor Who
. It features the Sixth Doctor
and Mel
. The debut adventure of the Seventh Doctor
, Time and the Rani
, begins with the Doctor regenerating
with little explanation given; Russell's novel attempts to provide a "final story" for the Sixth Doctor and effectively serves as a prequel
to Time and the Rani.
BBC Books
BBC Books is an imprint majority owned and managed by Random House. The minority shareholder is BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation...
original novel written by Gary Russell
Gary Russell
Gary James Russell is a freelance writer and former child actor. As a writer, he is best known for his work in connection with the television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs in other media...
and based on the long-running British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television
Science fiction on television
Science fiction first appeared on a television program during the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary world not limited by the constraints of reality; this makes television an excellent medium...
series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. It features the Sixth Doctor
Sixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is the sixth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by Colin Baker...
and Mel
Melanie Bush
Mel, also sometimes referred to as Melanie, is a fictional character in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A computer programmer from the 20th Century who is a companion of the Sixth and Seventh Doctors, she was a regular in the programme from 1986 to 1987...
. The debut adventure of the Seventh Doctor
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is the seventh incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by the actor Sylvester McCoy....
, Time and the Rani
Time and the Rani
Time and the Rani is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 7 September to 28 September 1987. This story was the first to feature Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor. It also features the last appearance of the Sixth...
, begins with the Doctor regenerating
Regeneration (Doctor Who)
Regeneration, in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, is a biological ability exhibited by Time Lords, a race of fictional humanoids originating on the planet Gallifrey. This process allows a Time Lord who is old or mortally wounded to undergo a transformation into a new...
with little explanation given; Russell's novel attempts to provide a "final story" for the Sixth Doctor and effectively serves as a prequel
Prequel
A prequel is a work that supplements a previously completed one, and has an earlier time setting.The widely recognized term was a 20th-century neologism, and a portmanteau from pre- and sequel...
to Time and the Rani.
Continuity
- The end of the novel suggests another explanation for the Doctor's regeneration into his seventh incarnationSeventh DoctorThe Seventh Doctor is the seventh incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by the actor Sylvester McCoy....
rather than the crash landing seen at the start of Time and the RaniTime and the RaniTime and the Rani is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 7 September to 28 September 1987. This story was the first to feature Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor. It also features the last appearance of the Sixth...
, with the Doctor being forced to sacrifice much of his energy to stop a pan-dimensional being from destroying creation, thus leaving him in a weakened condition prior to the Rani's attack; rather than injuries sustained by the Rani's attack causing the regeneration, he was already dying and the Rani's attack simply finished the job. There is also a reference to the Sixth Doctor meeting a future version of himself in the TARDISTARDISThe TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
, although which incarnation is not specified. Russell also includes further suggestions that the BBC books range and the Big Finish ProductionsBig Finish ProductionsBig Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
audio range take place in parallel universeParallel universe (fiction)A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
s, and even has brief appearances from PeriPeri BrownPeri Brown, full name Perpugilliam Brown, is a fictional character played by Nicola Bryant in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who....
, Evelyn SmytheEvelyn SmytheDr. Evelyn Smythe is a fictional character played by Maggie Stables in a series of audio plays produced by Big Finish Productions based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A professor of history from the 20th century with a fondness for chocolate, she is a...
, the Cyber-enhancedCybermanThe Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs who are amongst the most persistent enemies of the Doctor in the British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. Cybermen were originally a wholly organic species of humanoids originating on Earth's twin planet Mondas that began to implant more...
Evelyn from Real Time and FrobisherFrobisher (Doctor Who)Frobisher is a fictional character who appeared in the Doctor Who Magazine comic strip based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who in the 1980s. He was a companion of the Sixth and Seventh Doctors...
, as well as an alternate version of Mel who is a half-SilurianSilurian (Doctor Who)The Silurians are a fictional race of reptile-like humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The species first appeared in Doctor Who in the 1970 serial Doctor Who and the Silurians...
hybrid.
- The unofficial novel Time's ChampionTime's ChampionTime's Champion is a work of Doctor Who fan fiction, written by Chris McKeon on the basis of an original novel outline by the late Craig Hinton, and incorporating fragments of text by Hinton...
, written by Chris McKeon based on notes by the late Craig HintonCraig HintonCraig Paul Alexander Hinton was a British writer best known for his work on various spin-offs from the BBC Television series Doctor Who....
, implies that The Doctor's endeavour there is a new timeline created by The Sixth Doctor in his first act as "Time's Champion" as he attempts to save Mel from the clutches of Death, who would become a frequent nemesis to the Seventh Doctor in the Virgin New AdventuresVirgin New AdventuresThe Virgin New Adventures were a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who...
novels.