8. Theatre of War
Justin Richards has written many Doctor Who titles over the years, both fiction and factual, as well as his own original novels. But his Doctor Who debut Theatre of War remains one of his most ingenious ideas. The Doctor and Ace are summoned by their old friend Bernice Summerfield to help an embattled archaeology expedition on the dead planet of Mexaus. They are excavating an ancient theatre that closely linked to the famous playwright Stanoff Osterling, a writer considered the equal of Shakespeare. But not only are expedition members being killed in mysterious circumstances, but the Doctor and Ace soon find themselves inside a lethal recreation of Hamlet. Even when the Doctor seems to have solved the mystery of Mexaus and its deadly ghosts, a big plot twist sends the story in a left turn involving the future of Earths galactic empire. This novel is an embarrassment of riches, with plenty of world-building of the future and humanitys galactic future and strong characterisations of the academics in the ill-fated team. Its a supernatural horror, a funny tale about the search for lost stories with some clever in-jokes, a homage to Shakespeare and a political thriller too. Possibly its strengths are more suited to a novel than the screen. The Hamlet sequence cut be cut out to concentrate the action on Mexaus, as could the third act back in the imperial court, where the lost Osterling play called The Good Soldiers is performed but goes murderously wrong. Strange ghosts made of living clay and the revelation of what the whole archaeological site is really intended for however, are good tentpoles for a gripping base-under-siege adventure in style of Waters of Mars, except with added Shakespearian colour. Now that sounds like Doctor Who.
Gareth Preston
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Freelance writer and Learning Support university techie. He's been writing fiction and reviews since the 1980's fanzine boom.
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