running-through-corridors-2By Toby Hadoke and Robert Shearman

Mad Norwegian Press, out now

The daily dose of Doctor Who reaches the 1970s…

The first volume of Running Through Corridors is one of those books that I’ve gone back to when I’m rewatching (or listening to) an episode of the show on a number of occasions over the past few years. It’s humorous, insightful and the genuine love that both writers have for Doctor Who shines through every page. (Shearman’s companion volume on The X-Files is perhaps a tad more cynical, but still highly enjoyable.) As with the best analysis, you come away with fresh perspectives which inform your own subsequent viewing… and sometimes, you think that they’re just plain wrong.

The same applies to this second volume, a book that many people (including, one suspects, the authors) never thought would see print. There are so many things pointed out that you might have missed the import of (for example the Doctor and Liz’s scene in The Ambassadors of Death episode 6) that you just know you’ll look for next time round. (If, that is, you’re not part of the Online Community that wouldn’t have the good taste to watch The Ambassadors of Death – apparently…!) That doesn’t mean they’re not critical (read the comments on the opening episode of Invasion of the Dinosaurs, as an example, or the cliffhanger to the first instalment of The Sun Makers), or that they’re always in sync: one may love elements of a story that the other hates… and it’s that conversation that gives the book its edge.

It’s not a volume that you’re likely to read in one go – although certain themes are more apparent if you do. Just like the show it’s discussing, it’s divided into its own discrete sections… and leaves you regularly on a cliffhanger wanting more. About 2025 on the current publication rate, I’m guessing…

Verdict: Witty, erudite, and captivating – a book all Doctor Who fans should enjoy. 9/10

Paul Simpson

Click here to order Running Through Corridors from Amazon.co.uk