Shada: The Lost Adventure
by Gareth Roberts
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Professor Chronotis has carelessly loaned an immensely powerful book to a clueless graduate student. It cannot be allowed to fall into the wrong hands. The hands of the sinister Time Lord Skagra are unquestionably the wrongest ones possible. Skagra is a sadist and an egomaniac, bent on universal domination. Having misguessed the state of fashion on Earth, he also wears terrible platform shoes.Tags
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We've waited a long time for this, the lost novelisation of the lost Doctor Who story, brought to life from the final version of Adams' script by one of the best-placed of the current Who authors. And it is pretty damn good. Having watched both the 1992 video of the surviving parts of the original 1979 filming, and the webcast version with Paul McGann, and also read a previous fan-produced novelisation, the single most important thing about this new version is that it actually makes sense. Roberts has teased out threads of narrative left him by Adams, thickened them up and knitted them into a warm colourful and much longer scarf of story. I often find myself complaining about sf stories - and I show more think I have previously made this complaint about Shada - that the means and motivation of the characters, especially the bad guys, is inadequately explained. But now we actually understand who Skagra and Salyavin are, and why they behave as they do. In addition, we have the extra romantic depth we had always hoped must be there between Clare and Chris, nicely contrasted with the relationship between the Doctor and Romana. And Roberts delights with his love of the work, with several entertaining references to the Hitch-Hiker's Guide thrown in (I particularly liked a vignette at the end riffing off both a Hitch-Hiker's joke from the final radio episode, and the earliest moments of Who continuity). Not sure that this would be a good place to start for people who know nothing about Doctor Who, but I think anyone with even the vaguest knowledge of the Tom Baker years will enjoy it immensely. show less
We've waited a long time for this, the lost novelisation of the lost Doctor Who story, brought to life from the final version of Adams' script by one of the best-placed of the current Who authors. And it is pretty damn good. Having watched both the 1992 video of the surviving parts of the original 1979 filming, and the webcast version with Paul McGann, and also read a previous fan-produced novelisation, the single most important thing about this new version is that it actually makes sense. Roberts has teased out threads of narrative left him by Adams, thickened them up and knitted them into a warm colourful and much longer scarf of story. I often find myself complaining about sf stories - and I show more think I have previously made this complaint about Shada - that the means and motivation of the characters, especially the bad guys, is inadequately explained. But now we actually understand who Skagra and Salyavin are, and why they behave as they do. In addition, we have the extra romantic depth we had always hoped must be there between Clare and Chris, nicely contrasted with the relationship between the Doctor and Romana. And Roberts delights with his love of the work, with several entertaining references to the Hitch-Hiker's Guide thrown in (I particularly liked a vignette at the end riffing off both a Hitch-Hiker's joke from the final radio episode, and the earliest moments of Who continuity). Not sure that this would be a good place to start for people who know nothing about Doctor Who, but I think anyone with even the vaguest knowledge of the Tom Baker years will enjoy it immensely. show less
This is a full length novelisation of Douglas Adams's original scripts for the famous "lost" Tom Baker Doctor Who TV story Shada, partly filmed in autumn 1979 but never completed due to a strike. It apparently includes a lot of original ideas by Adams that were not realised in the final version, or could not be with the state of TV technology at the time. There are also a number of new ideas and scenes inserted by Roberts, who has written a number of original Who novels in the 1990s and later and TV scripts for the modern show. The whole thing hangs together convincingly, though there were a few lines that I could not imagine the 4th Doctor saying. Much more is made of the characters of and relationship between Chris and Claire, though show more strangely, they are hardly physically described at all, whereas the descriptions of the Doctor and Romana are very good. It's interesting to see how a Doctor Who TV story can be reimagined over the course of a nearly 400 page novel. The story itself is very much classic Douglas Adams and, while enjoyable, isn't in my view the classic it is sometimes made out to be due to its unique partly-filmed-never-shown status. show less
This is Gareth Roberts' very fine novelization of the lost Doctor Who story Shada. Douglas Adams wrote the original scripts but was also busy with other things at the time, so there were delays, and he was unhappy with how they turned out, and a BBC strike halfway through filming ensured that it would never be part of the original run of shows. A cobbled-together TV version and a reworked audio version (produced by Big Finish) exist, but this is the first proper novelization. And what a rollicking romp it is! Told in six parts to mirror Adams' original idea of six episodes, it contains short, snappy chapters, breathlessly fun dialogue and clever narration that, while not quite on the same level as Douglas Adams, is close enough to be show more enjoyable for an Adams fan.
Anyone who's read Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency will recognize Professor Chronotis; after Shada failed to air as a Doctor Who story, Adams repurposed the character. Fans of the Fourth Doctor will particularly enjoy Shada, where he's at his goofball best, and those who like useful female characters in science fiction will appreciate Romana II and Clare, one of the humans who comes along for the ride, not to mention "The Ship"!
I thoroughly enjoyed this and would recommend it if you're a fan of the Hitchhiker's Guide, the Fourth Doctor or science fiction with a droll English twist. show less
Anyone who's read Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency will recognize Professor Chronotis; after Shada failed to air as a Doctor Who story, Adams repurposed the character. Fans of the Fourth Doctor will particularly enjoy Shada, where he's at his goofball best, and those who like useful female characters in science fiction will appreciate Romana II and Clare, one of the humans who comes along for the ride, not to mention "The Ship"!
I thoroughly enjoyed this and would recommend it if you're a fan of the Hitchhiker's Guide, the Fourth Doctor or science fiction with a droll English twist. show less
The fourth Doctor, Romana, and K-9 answer a call from Chronotis, an aging and befuddled Time Lord, who is living out his retirement as a Cambridge professor. Unfortunately, Chronotis has forgotten why he called, although it soon becomes clear that it is for the Doctor to save the universe (again).
This time, the threat comes from Skagra, an overly ambitious fellow from the vacation planet of Dronid. He wants to be God, or the closest thing possible. To achieve this goal, he needs to absorb the mind of the legendary Gallifreyan criminal Salyavin who had the ability to replace or augment the minds of others with own. Salyavin, though, was reportedly placed in stasis and imprisoned thousands of years ago on the now lost and forgotten prison show more planet of Shada. The key to finding Shada is the book The Worshipful and Ancient Law of Gallifrey, which Professor Chronotis stole from the Time Lords’ archives and subsequently misplaced.
Got it? Good. Because that’s about as much of the plot as I’m going to try to summarize.
The story was originally written as a TV script by Douglas Adams, the late, great author of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galxay, and novelized by Gareth Roberts, a writer of other Doctor Who novels and TV scripts.
To me, the beginning sounds like Adams. See if you don’t agree.
‘At the age of five, Skagra decided emphatically that God did not exist. This revelation tends to make most people in the universe who have it react in one of two ways -- with relief or with despair. Only Skagra responded to it by thinking, Wait a second. That means there’s a situation vacant.’
Now I don’t know if Adams came up with this opening or if Roberts did, but it has a lot of Douglas Adams’ irreverent wit and whimsy. And so does the rest of the book. Now, I won’t say it reads exactly like a Douglas Adams book because it doesn’t. There are bits that do, probably because Adams wrote them as part of the script, but in other parts, the imagination is noticeably more constrained. It’s still quite good, enjoyable, and it hangs together very well. The melding of Roberts and Adams is virtually seamless.
The portrayal of the Doctor is exceptional, often sounding more like the later Doctors from the new series than the fourth Doctor from the 1970s/1980s. I don’t consider this a bad thing. (Don’t get me wrong, all of the Doctors were fun, but the new series has more polish.)
There was a certain element of nostalgia for me reading a ‘new’ Doctor Who adventure set in the 1980s featuring the Doctor’s campy, robot dog, K-9. I enjoyed it very much. I would recommend this book to all fans of Douglas Adams and Doctor Who. If you are not a fan, what’s wrong with you? show less
This time, the threat comes from Skagra, an overly ambitious fellow from the vacation planet of Dronid. He wants to be God, or the closest thing possible. To achieve this goal, he needs to absorb the mind of the legendary Gallifreyan criminal Salyavin who had the ability to replace or augment the minds of others with own. Salyavin, though, was reportedly placed in stasis and imprisoned thousands of years ago on the now lost and forgotten prison show more planet of Shada. The key to finding Shada is the book The Worshipful and Ancient Law of Gallifrey, which Professor Chronotis stole from the Time Lords’ archives and subsequently misplaced.
Got it? Good. Because that’s about as much of the plot as I’m going to try to summarize.
The story was originally written as a TV script by Douglas Adams, the late, great author of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galxay, and novelized by Gareth Roberts, a writer of other Doctor Who novels and TV scripts.
To me, the beginning sounds like Adams. See if you don’t agree.
‘At the age of five, Skagra decided emphatically that God did not exist. This revelation tends to make most people in the universe who have it react in one of two ways -- with relief or with despair. Only Skagra responded to it by thinking, Wait a second. That means there’s a situation vacant.’
Now I don’t know if Adams came up with this opening or if Roberts did, but it has a lot of Douglas Adams’ irreverent wit and whimsy. And so does the rest of the book. Now, I won’t say it reads exactly like a Douglas Adams book because it doesn’t. There are bits that do, probably because Adams wrote them as part of the script, but in other parts, the imagination is noticeably more constrained. It’s still quite good, enjoyable, and it hangs together very well. The melding of Roberts and Adams is virtually seamless.
The portrayal of the Doctor is exceptional, often sounding more like the later Doctors from the new series than the fourth Doctor from the 1970s/1980s. I don’t consider this a bad thing. (Don’t get me wrong, all of the Doctors were fun, but the new series has more polish.)
There was a certain element of nostalgia for me reading a ‘new’ Doctor Who adventure set in the 1980s featuring the Doctor’s campy, robot dog, K-9. I enjoyed it very much. I would recommend this book to all fans of Douglas Adams and Doctor Who. If you are not a fan, what’s wrong with you? show less
“The stranger looked between her and the spectrograph and seemed to come to a decision. He smiled suddenly and unexpectedly, with teeth like two rows of great gleaming tombstones. ‘Hello, I’m the Doctor,’ he said, extending a hand.”
Dum-dum-dum-dum-dum-dum-dum (etc.)… Ooo-ee-ooo OooEEooo… oooooEEooooo… OoooEoooo… oooeEoooo… Du Du Du Du… Du Du Du Du…
Sorry, I always get the urge to do that when I review a Doctor Who book (this is only my second one*, perhaps I can refrain from doing this by the third book). I imagine “teeth like two rows of great gleaming tombstones” is enough of a clue for most diehard Whovians to figure out which Doctor this book is about. I mean who can forget these pearly whites:
Shada is a show more novelization of [a: Douglas Adams|4|Douglas Adams|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1189120061p2/4.jpg]’s script for a six parts 1979 Doctor Who serial that was only partially filmed and never completed due to a writers strike at the time. The incompletely filmed script has been adapted several times for animated direct to video release, audio drama and whatnot (see Wikipedia’s Shada entry). The only adaptation that concerns is here is Gareth Roberts' novelization.
The basic plot of Shada concerns a psychopathic alien’s plot to find an ancient Gallifreyan book that will lead to his dominion of the universe (a minimal goal for most Who villains**). It is up to the toothy Fourth Doctor, cute Time Lady Romana II, and the wondrous tin dog K-9 to save the day; added by an elderly Time Lord and a couple of regular earthlings.
The Doctor, Romana II, and K-9, with these three names I already have no resistance to this book, if it was very bad I would probably still quite like it. Fortunately it is the polar opposite of very bad. The breezy, affable narrative tone through most of the narrative is reminiscent of Adams’ [b: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy|11|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #1)|Douglas Adams|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327656754s/11.jpg|3078186] books, and a bit of [a: Terry Pratchett|1654|Terry Pratchett|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1235562205p2/1654.jpg]. I have not read anything by [a: Gareth Roberts|257752|Gareth Roberts|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1367537218p2/257752.jpg] before so I don't know if this is how he normally writes, though I am quite familiar with his works on NuWho episodes, namely "The Unicorn and the Wasp", "The Lodger", "Closing Time" etc. These episodes clearly indicate that he is no stranger to comedic writing. However, beside being very funny Shada is also a proper Doctor Who adventure. It is not wall to wall jocular silliness, the stakes are high, there is death and destruction, and even moments of pathos. The humorous tone of the narrative during the first half of the book recedes noticeably in the second half to make room for the sci-fi thriller aspect befitting any well balanced Who story, though it is still there in the background.
The characterization work in this book is top notched, The Fourth Doctor, Romana II, and K-9 are exactly as I remember them on TV. It is very easy to imagine Tom Baker and Lalla Ward acting out the story and dear old K-9 the tin dog has some dialog to die for. The supporting characters are all very well written, with the befuddled Time Lord Professor Chronotis being particularly memorable. The trusty TARDIS, the sonic screwdriver, and the wibbly space-time vortex are all present of course.
Shada really is a blast to read from beginning to end and should not be missed by Whovians and other Earthlings. It is even better with a bag of Jelly Babies.
Do read it, and don’t wander off!
___________________________________
* The other one is Alastair Reynolds' [b:Doctor Who: Harvest of Time|17162398|Doctor Who Harvest of Time|Alastair Reynolds|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1365109462s/17162398.jpg|23587921] featuring the Third Doctor (Pertwee!). It is also brilliant, a ton of fun, but lighter in tone than Reynolds' legendary [b: Revelation Space|89187|Revelation Space (Revelation Space, #1)|Alastair Reynolds|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1405532042s/89187.jpg|219037] (non-Who) space opera series.
** The truly ambitious ones would seek to dominate all multiverses. show less
Dum-dum-dum-dum-dum-dum-dum (etc.)… Ooo-ee-ooo OooEEooo… oooooEEooooo… OoooEoooo… oooeEoooo… Du Du Du Du… Du Du Du Du…
Sorry, I always get the urge to do that when I review a Doctor Who book (this is only my second one*, perhaps I can refrain from doing this by the third book). I imagine “teeth like two rows of great gleaming tombstones” is enough of a clue for most diehard Whovians to figure out which Doctor this book is about. I mean who can forget these pearly whites:
Shada is a show more novelization of [a: Douglas Adams|4|Douglas Adams|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1189120061p2/4.jpg]’s script for a six parts 1979 Doctor Who serial that was only partially filmed and never completed due to a writers strike at the time. The incompletely filmed script has been adapted several times for animated direct to video release, audio drama and whatnot (see Wikipedia’s Shada entry). The only adaptation that concerns is here is Gareth Roberts' novelization.
The basic plot of Shada concerns a psychopathic alien’s plot to find an ancient Gallifreyan book that will lead to his dominion of the universe (a minimal goal for most Who villains**). It is up to the toothy Fourth Doctor, cute Time Lady Romana II, and the wondrous tin dog K-9 to save the day; added by an elderly Time Lord and a couple of regular earthlings.
The Doctor, Romana II, and K-9, with these three names I already have no resistance to this book, if it was very bad I would probably still quite like it. Fortunately it is the polar opposite of very bad. The breezy, affable narrative tone through most of the narrative is reminiscent of Adams’ [b: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy|11|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #1)|Douglas Adams|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327656754s/11.jpg|3078186] books, and a bit of [a: Terry Pratchett|1654|Terry Pratchett|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1235562205p2/1654.jpg]. I have not read anything by [a: Gareth Roberts|257752|Gareth Roberts|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1367537218p2/257752.jpg] before so I don't know if this is how he normally writes, though I am quite familiar with his works on NuWho episodes, namely "The Unicorn and the Wasp", "The Lodger", "Closing Time" etc. These episodes clearly indicate that he is no stranger to comedic writing. However, beside being very funny Shada is also a proper Doctor Who adventure. It is not wall to wall jocular silliness, the stakes are high, there is death and destruction, and even moments of pathos. The humorous tone of the narrative during the first half of the book recedes noticeably in the second half to make room for the sci-fi thriller aspect befitting any well balanced Who story, though it is still there in the background.
The characterization work in this book is top notched, The Fourth Doctor, Romana II, and K-9 are exactly as I remember them on TV. It is very easy to imagine Tom Baker and Lalla Ward acting out the story and dear old K-9 the tin dog has some dialog to die for. The supporting characters are all very well written, with the befuddled Time Lord Professor Chronotis being particularly memorable. The trusty TARDIS, the sonic screwdriver, and the wibbly space-time vortex are all present of course.
Shada really is a blast to read from beginning to end and should not be missed by Whovians and other Earthlings. It is even better with a bag of Jelly Babies.
Do read it, and don’t wander off!
___________________________________
* The other one is Alastair Reynolds' [b:Doctor Who: Harvest of Time|17162398|Doctor Who Harvest of Time|Alastair Reynolds|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1365109462s/17162398.jpg|23587921] featuring the Third Doctor (Pertwee!). It is also brilliant, a ton of fun, but lighter in tone than Reynolds' legendary [b: Revelation Space|89187|Revelation Space (Revelation Space, #1)|Alastair Reynolds|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1405532042s/89187.jpg|219037] (non-Who) space opera series.
** The truly ambitious ones would seek to dominate all multiverses. show less
In 1979, Douglas Adams wrote an episode of Doctor Who that was never finished, due to a strike at the BBC. The story has since appeared in various iterations: there was a video release featuring narration by Tom Baker to summarize the unfilmed scenes and, later, an animated webcast version featuring the Eighth Doctor in place of the Fourth. Adams himself also cannibalized bits of the plot, integrating them into Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency. Well, here's the latest version: a full-length novel adaptation by Gareth Roberts, who has fleshed out Adams' script significantly, as well as making a few changes. (Reasonably enough, I think, especially as Adams apparently wrote the original script very quickly and was reportedly not show more entirely happy with it.)
I enjoyed this, honestly, rather more than I was expecting to. Roberts writes in an amusing, often noticeably Adams-eque style (complete with Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in-jokes), but he largely manages to avoid making this feel like a forced or overly imitative Adams pastiche. And some of the dialog is both pure Adams, and pure Doctor Who. The result is a lot of fun, even (or perhaps especially) for those of us already familiar with the story. show less
I enjoyed this, honestly, rather more than I was expecting to. Roberts writes in an amusing, often noticeably Adams-eque style (complete with Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in-jokes), but he largely manages to avoid making this feel like a forced or overly imitative Adams pastiche. And some of the dialog is both pure Adams, and pure Doctor Who. The result is a lot of fun, even (or perhaps especially) for those of us already familiar with the story. show less
Not much to say really. Classic Dr Who, Romana, K9 and a worthy villain, in equally classic Adams style. Gareth Roberts did a great job, it's not easy to see the seams, and with someone as distinctive as Adams that is quite a compliment.
As daughter who gave it to me for my b'day said "I saw this and had a nerdgasm".
Definitely reminiscent of Dirk Gently, which is actually my favourite Adams book, but shades of H2G2 as well (and a homage in the second to last chapter that truly made me smile.)
Very close to a 5, only not getting one because it's not quite up to Dirk or H2G2. But it's darn close.
As daughter who gave it to me for my b'day said "I saw this and had a nerdgasm".
Definitely reminiscent of Dirk Gently, which is actually my favourite Adams book, but shades of H2G2 as well (and a homage in the second to last chapter that truly made me smile.)
Very close to a 5, only not getting one because it's not quite up to Dirk or H2G2. But it's darn close.
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- Canonical title
- Shada: The Lost Adventure
- Original publication date
- 2012-06-26
- People/Characters
- The Doctor (4th); Romana (2nd); K-9 (Mark II); Urban Chronotis; Chris Parsons; Clare Keightley (show all 8); David Taylor; Salyavin
- Important places
- Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK
- Epigraph
- The radical evil: that everybody wants to be what they might and could be, and all the rest of mankind to be nothing, indeed, not to exist at all.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Maxims and Reflections
...flat eyes that only turned toward the stars to estimate their chemical tonnage.
Truman Capote, Breakfast at Tiffany's
Concern with other people is a mistake.
Quentin Crisp, Resident Alien
Does the body rule the mind or does the mind rule the body?
I dunno...
The Smiths, 'Still Ill' - Dedication
- For Clayton Hickman, whose role in the creation of this book was larger than Queen Xanxia's transmat engine, and whose role in my life is more precious than oolion.
And in memory of Douglas Adams. - First words
- At the age of five, Skagra decided emphatically that God did not exist.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Which was just how the Doctor liked it.
- Original language
- English
- Disambiguation notice
- This is the 2012 novelisation. It should not be combined with the TV serial, the script, or the audio drama.
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