by Matt Barber 

Obverse Books, out now

Obverse Books digs deep into the Devil’s Hump and unearths some fascinating influences on the final story of Doctor Who’s eighth season.

Matt Barber’s book on the daemonic 1971 5-parter is one of the series’ shorter books at 119 pages, but that’s not to say it doesn’t pack in plenty. I always assumed that this was regarded as a bona fide classic so was surprised to read that it picked up a backlash in some quarters in the 90s. True, it’s a mishmash of so many elements typical of this season, but what fun it is.

Barber holds an MA in History and Literature of Witchcraft, giving him the perfect credentials to dig deeper than just saying it’s typical 70s ‘folk horror’ fare. He contextualises then-contemporary concerns in The Guardian about the growing popularity of black magic before assessing the wicca’s world that Olive Hawthorne was casting her spells in.

There’s significant asides into real-life reverends who were secret Satanists, the legend of Faust, ‘would-be necromancer’ Aleister Crowley and the popular Dennis Wheatley novels. The author also points out that the serial was filmed in close proximity to the real-life excavation of Silbury Hill and a number of other sites of magical significance. And it’s all rounded off with some facts around Nigel Kneale, John Wyndham and M R James.

Verdict: There’s a moment where Matt Barber describes his feelings about a visit to Aldbourne in 1995 as akin to a visit to a ‘Doctor Who theme park.’ Having made my own pilgrimage there last summer I can totally relate to the emotions he shares of what’s clearly a story that’s dear to him. He has an affection for this classic story, and his added facts and references only bolster this fan’s similar love for it. 9/10

Nick Joy