by Jon Arnold

Obverse Books, out now

Obverse Books’ ongoing series of monographs focusing on a Doctor Who serial or story hits 1974’s Season 11 six-parter, Invasion of the Dinosaurs.

There’s not a lot of fan love for Malcolm Hulke’s ‘dinosaurs in London’ yarn, and author Jon Arnold sensibly doesn’t try to convince us that we’re wrong in this shared condemnation. He addresses the elephant (actually, Tyrannosaurus rex) in the room early on by acknowledging that the special effects for the dinosaurs were poor, and indeed a distraction from what else is going on.

In chapter London Falling, Arnold reminds us of the other Doctor Who stories set in contemporary London, picking up The War Machines and Invasion en route. Post-Pertwee, we also explore Terror of the Zygons, and how 21st Century Doctor Who Is the era most London-centric, despite being made in Wales.

There’s a detailed examination of the politics of early 70s Britain, helping to set the context in which the serial would have been watched, as well as some well-researched examples of other movements that promoted a return to a ‘golden age’, coming right up to date with references to Brexit and Trump’s Make America Great Again campaign.

A chapter on Malcolm Hulke covers his career, with a focus on his Doctor Who serials, as well as Pathfinders in Space, The Avengers and the first edition of The Making of Doctor Who. Three useful appendices look at the dinosaur visual effects, Hulke’s Target novelisation and the Doctor’s futuristic car (aka the Whomobile).

Verdict: A solid Black Archive volume that probably won’t change your opinion on the serial it covers but rewards you with greater insight and context with which to ratify your opinion. 7/10

Nick Joy

Click here to order from Obverse