New Series Adventures

Series of novels based on the Doctor Who television series

The New Series Adventures are a series of novels relating to the long running BBC science fiction television series, Doctor Who. The 'NSAs', as they are often referred to, are published by BBC Books, and are regularly published twice a year. Beginning with the Tenth Doctor, a series of 'Quick Reads' have also been available, published once a year. With exception to the Quick Reads, all of the NSAs have been published in hardcover to begin with, and have been reprinted in paperback for boxed collections that are exclusive to The Book People and Tesco. Some of the reprints amend pictures of the companion of the novel from the cover. Some of the hardback editions have also been reprinted to amend pictures of Rose.

With the revival of the television series, BBC Books retired its paperback Eighth Doctor Adventures and Past Doctor Adventures fiction lines in 2005 in favour of a new range of hardback books featuring the Ninth Doctor and Rose. These have a reduced word count compared to the EDA and PDA lines, with an average page count of about 250. (Initially, the EDA and PDA lines overlapped with the New Series Adventures; the final EDA, The Gallifrey Chronicles, was published in June 2005, followed by the final PDA, Atom Bomb Blues, a Seventh Doctor adventure, being published in December 2005.) The 2005 series episode "Boom Town" makes a reference to the Doctor and Rose's trip to the Justicia system. This took place in The Monsters Inside, making it the first spin off novel to ever be explicitly referred to in the television series. All the Ninth Doctor novels except Only Human contain "Bad Wolf" references in common with the 2005 television series. Winner Takes All also features the recurring characters Mickey Smith and Jackie Tyler; Jackie also makes a cameo appearance in Only Human. Unlike many of the BBC's earlier spin off novels, no definite timeframe exists as to when each of the books take place, though the first three probably take place between "World War Three" and "The Empty Child". Of the latter three (which feature Captain Jack), Only Human and The Deviant Strain take place between "The Doctor Dances" and "Boom Town", while The Stealers of Dreams takes place after "Boom Town" as the events of that episode are referenced, although on screen dialogue in the episode "Bad Wolf" makes it a challenge to place this novel into the show's continuity. However, it is possible that after "Boom Town", the Doctor, Rose and Jack went somewhere else before returning the egg to Raxacoricofallapatorius. The first books in the series were popular in the UK. In Canada, the books were not carried by the same distributor as the BBC Books paperbacks, and were initially available only through comic book shops and online retailers when Diamond Comic Distributors took up the contract. During 2005, the New Series Adventures featuring the Ninth Doctor were published concurrently with the paperback Eighth Doctor and Past Doctor Adventures series. However, following the publication of the Past Doctor Adventure Atom Bomb Blues (featuring the Seventh Doctor) in November 2005, no new paperback releases were announced, with BBC Books choosing to focus on the New Series Adventures exclusively as the books moved on to featuring the Tenth Doctor.

With the departure of Christopher Eccleston from the role of the Doctor, BBC Books subsequently announced the publication of three novels featuring the Tenth Doctor and Rose, released on 13 April 2006. These books follow the same style and format as those featuring the Ninth Doctor, with a continuation of the spine numbering. Range consultant and commissioning editor Justin Richards told Doctor Who Magazine that there would be no Ninth Doctor novels in 2006, and the decision as to whether to continue to publish stories with the Ninth Doctor as a separate range has not yet been taken. Abridged audiobooks were released of all of the Tenth Doctor titles (except the Quick Read series). The first three are narrated by David Tennant (who plays the Tenth Doctor), and were released on 3 July 2006. The Nightmare of Black Island (read by Anthony Head), The Art of Destruction (read by Don Warrington), and The Price of Paradise (read by Shaun Dingwall), were released in November 2006. Four books in the series were released exclusively as paperback novellas under the Quick Reads scheme to inspire literacy among children. One of these novellas, Made of Steel, featured new companion Martha Jones before the character made her television debut ("Smith and Jones"). It was also the first New Series Adventure to be written by Terrance Dicks, a long time veteran of Doctor Who and former writer for the original series, making him the only writer who has written novels for every line of Doctor Who fiction with the exception of the Telos novellas. Despite the character of Martha Jones having left the television series at the end of the 2007 season (although she subsequently appeared in several episodes of the 2008 season), the novels released in early 2008 continued to feature her as a companion, rather than the Doctor's new companion, Donna Noble. Donna featured in all three of the novels released in late 2008. The Boxing Day 2008 release saw the series cover new ground with one book featuring Donna Noble, one book covering Martha Jones' adventures between the episodes "The Sound of Drums" (2007) and "Last of the Time Lords" (2007), and one book featuring the Doctor travelling without a companion following the events of "Journey's End" (2008). The 2009 releases (including 6 books in the main series, 1 novella and The Darksmith Legacy) all follow the mould of the Doctor travelling without a regular companion. These books also feature aliens from the New Series. Whilst this is not the first time this has happened (The Monsters Inside), it is the first time they are on the cover, or referenced in the title. In 2020 BBC Books released two new novels featuring the Tenth Doctor to tie in with the Time Lord Victorious multi platform storyline. The Eighth and Ninth Doctors also appeared in both books.

The series of Eleventh Doctor novels began in April 2010, with a new cover design, amending the Gallifreyan numbering system on the spine. The titles quickly reached sales numbers of the previous Tenth Doctor novels, and a further batches of three books have been released on a regular basis since July 2010. In October 2009 Michael Moorcock confirmed that he would be writing a one off, supersize novel, combining prose with hand drawn sketches, images and exclusive artwork. The title was confirmed as The Coming of the Terraphiles, and it was released in November 2010. It did not form part of the usual range of novels, and featured characters from Michael Moorcock's Second Ether books. Two further books followed in the hardback range, The Silent Stars Go By, released in September 2011, and Dark Horizons, the only novel released that year, in July 2012. In April 2011 BBC Books launched a new range of "chapter books" that offer readers aged 8–12 two stories in one publication (or "2in1", which appears on the books' covers). The first two releases had flippable covers and a divided spine design. In late August 2011 the second batch of releases was published with a surtitle applied to the two stories and a shared cover with a more traditional blurb for each of the two stories on the back of the books. The next batch of 2in1 stories was released in February 2012.

In May 2014, it was revealed that New Series Adventures would release books starring the Twelfth Doctor and Clara Oswald, which were released in September 2014. The titles of the released books are Silhouette, The Crawling Terror, and The Blood Cell. The next wave was released in September 2015, with each book under the name of the Glamour Chronicles. The stories featured were Deep Time, Royal Blood and Big Bang Generation; first two of these feature the Twelfth Doctor and Clara, and the latter marking first New Series Adventure appearance of Bernice Summerfield, alongside the Twelfth Doctor. A new wave was released in April 2017 with the arrival of Bill Potts and Nardole making a presence to prose. The stories featuring are Diamond Dogs, The Shining Man and Plague City.

In July 2017, it was revealed that Penguin Random House would publish books featuring the Thirteenth Doctor. The Good Doctor was released on 25 October 2018. Molten Heart was released on 8 November 2018. Combat Magicks was released on 22 November 2018. In 2018, it was announced that author David Solomons would write two novels featuring the 13th Doctor to be published by BBC Children's Books with the first book, The Secret in Vault 13, set to be released on 1 November 2018. The second, The Maze of Doom, was published on 30 April 2020. In 2020, actress Sophie Aldred released a brand new novel featuring the Thirteenth Doctor and Ace called At Childhood's End.

In April 2024, it was announced that novels featuring the Fifteenth Doctor with Ruby Red and Caged due to be released in June 2024, and Eden Rebellion in November 2024.

Starting with The Stone Rose, all of the New Series Adventures featuring the Tenth Doctor have been released as abridged audio books, normally around three months after the print publication. The first three stories in the range were narrated by David Tennant, with subsequent stories narrated by different members of the cast. In January 2010, it was decided that the stories would be released, unabridged, as download only exclusives, and that no further stories were to be published on CD. This affected the last five Tenth Doctor novels, and continued with the release of the Eleventh and Twelfth Doctor novels. There has also been a separate range of audio only stories. These are linked to the novels, but are available on CD and download formats. The range began in July 2008 with Pest Control, and has since contained seven stories featuring the Tenth Doctor, fourteen stories about the Eleventh Doctor, and continue with the Twelfth Doctor. In August 2011, the Ninth Doctor Adventures started being released as unabridged downloadable audiobooks. The first book was released in August 2011 and the next one will be released in September. It is not known when the following books will be released as audiobooks, but they presumably will at some point.

# Title Author Doctor Featuring companion Published ISBN Audiobook narrator Notes1 The Clockwise ManJustin RichardsNinthRose Tyler 19 May 2005Nicholas Briggs2 The Monsters InsideStephen ColeCamille Coduri3 Winner Takes AllJacqueline RaynerRose Tyler & Mickey SmithCamille Coduri4 The Deviant StrainJustin RichardsRose Tyler & Captain Jack Harkness8 September 2005Stuart Milligan5 Only HumanGareth RobertsAnthony Head6 The Stealers of DreamsSteve LyonsCamille Coduri7 The Stone RoseJacqueline RaynerTenthRose Tyler & Mickey Smith13 April 2006David Tennant8 The Feast of the DrownedStephen ColeDavid Tennant9 The Resurrection CasketJustin RichardsRose TylerDavid Tennant10 The Nightmare of Black IslandMike Tucker21 September 2006 Anthony Head11 The Art of Destruction Stephen ColeDon Warrington12 The Price of ParadiseColin BrakeShaun Dingwall13 Sting of the ZygonsStephen Cole Martha Jones 19 April 2007 Reggie Yates14 The Last DodoJacqueline RaynerFreema Agyeman15 Wooden HeartMartin DayAdjoa Andoh16 Forever AutumnMark Morris 6 September 2007 Will Thorp17 Sick BuildingPaul MagrsWill Thorp18 WetworldMark MichalowskiFreema Agyeman19 Wishing Well Trevor Baxendale 27 December 2007 Debbie Chazen20 The Pirate Loop Simon Guerrier Freema Agyeman21 Peacemaker James Swallow Will Thorp22 Martha in the Mirror Justin Richards 1 May 2008 Freema Agyeman23 Snowglobe 7 Mike Tucker Georgia Tennant24 The Many Hands Dale Smith David Troughton25 Ghosts of India Mark Morris Donna Noble 4 September 2008 David Troughton26 The Doctor Trap Simon Messingham Russell Tovey27 Shining Darkness Mark Michalowski Debbie Chazen28 The Story of Martha Dan Abnett Martha Jones 26 December 2008 Freema Agyeman This is the first novel to not to feature the Doctor as the main character.29 Beautiful Chaos Gary Russell Donna Noble & Wilfred Mott Bernard Cribbins30 The Eyeless Lance Parkin None Russell Tovey31 Judgement of the Judoon Colin Brake Nikki Jupiter 2 April 2009 Nicholas Briggs32 The Slitheen Excursion Simon Guerrier June Walsh Debbie Chazen33 Prisoner of the Daleks Trevor Baxendale Jon Bowman Nicholas Briggs34 The Taking of Chelsea 426 David Llewellyn Jake & Vienna Carstairs 17 September 2009 Christopher Ryan35 Autonomy Daniel Blythe Kate Maguire Georgia Tennant36 The Krillitane Storm Christopher Cooper Emily Parr Will Thorp37 Apollo 23Justin RichardsEleventhAmy Pond 22 April 2010 James Albrecht38 Night of the HumansDavid LlewellynArthur Darvill39 The Forgotten ArmyBrian MinchinOlivia Colman40 Nuclear TimeOli SmithAmy Pond & Rory Williams 8 July 2010 Nicholas Briggs41 The King's DragonUna McCormack Nicholas Briggs42 The Glamour ChaseGary Russell Arthur DarvillS1 The Coming of the TerraphilesMichael MoorcockAmy Pond 14 October 2010 Clive Mantle43 Dead of WinterJames GossAmy Pond & Rory Williams 28 April 2011 Clare Corbett44 The Way Through the WoodsUna McCormack Clare Corbett45 Hunter's MoonPaul Finch Arthur Darvill46 Touched by an AngelJonathan Morris 23 June 2011 Clare Corbett47 Paradox LostGeorge Mann Nicholas Briggs48 Borrowed TimeNaomi Alderman Meera SyalS2 The Silent Stars Go ByDan Abnett 29 September 2011 Michael MaloneyS3 Dark HorizonsJ T ColganNone 7 July 2012 Neve McIntosh49 Plague of the CybermenJustin Richards 11 April 2013 David Warner50 The Dalek GenerationNicholas Briggs Nicholas Briggs51 Shroud of SorrowTommy DonbavandClara Oswald Frances BarberS4 Engines of WarGeorge MannWarCinder 31 July 2014 Nicholas Briggs52 The Blood CellJames GossTwelfthClara Oswald 11 September 2014 Colin McFarlane53 SilhouetteJustin RichardsClara Oswald, Madame Vastra, Jenny Flint and Strax Dan Starkey54 The Crawling Terror Mike TuckerClara Oswald Neve McIntosh55 Royal BloodUna McCormack 10 September 2015 David Warner56 Big Bang Generation Gary RussellBernice Summerfield, Peter Summerfield, Ruth, Jack Lisa Bowerman57 Deep TimeTrevor BaxendaleClara Oswald Dan StarkeyS5 In the BloodJenny T. ColganTenthDonna Noble 12 May 2016 58 The Shining ManCavan ScottTwelfthBill Potts 20 April 2017 59 Diamond DogsMike Tucker 60 Plague CityJonathan MorrisBill Potts & Nardole 61The Good DoctorJuno DawsonThirteenthGraham O'Brien, Ryan Sinclair, & Yasmin Khan25 October 2018 Clare Corbett62Molten HeartUna McCormack Dan Starkey63Combat MagicksSteve Cole Mandip GillS6At Childhood's EndSophie AldredGraham O'Brien, Ryan Sinclair, Yasmin Khan, & Ace6 February 2020Sophie Aldred—The Knight, The Fool and The DeadSteve ColeRose Tyler1 October 2020Ties into the Time Lord Victorious storyline.—All Flesh is GrassUna McCormackNone10 December 2020S7The Ruby's CurseAlex KingstonNoneNone20 May 2021Alex KingstonThis is the second novel to not to feature the Doctor as the main character.64Ruby RedGeorgia CookFifteenthRuby Sunday13 June 2024Millie Gibson65CagedUna McCormack27 June 2024 Jacqueline Rayner Eleventh Amy Pond & Rory Williams 2 February 2012 7 The Silurian Gift Mike Tucker Eleventh None 7 February 2013

Since 2014 BBC books have published a number of anthologies featuring all The Doctors and various other characters from the TV show, unlike earlier anthology book The Story of Martha these have been put out as special releases separate from the main New Series Adventures range. Title Author(s) Doctor Published ISBN Notes Tales of Trenzalore: The Eleventh Doctor's Last StandJustin Richards, George Mann, Paul Finch, Mark MorrisEleven3 July 2014 The Shakespeare NotebooksJustin RichardsN/A12 June 2014 The Dangerous Book of Monsters: The Doctor's Official GuideJustin RichardsTwelfth1 October 2014 How to be a Time LordCraig DonaghyEleventh2 October 2014 A History of Humankind: The Doctor's Official GuideJustin RichardsTwelfth6 October 2014 12 Doctors, 12 StoriesEoin Colfer, Michael Scott, Marcus Sedgwick, Philip Reeve, Patrick Ness, Richelle Mead, Malorie Blackman, Alex Scarrow, Charlie Higson, Derek Landy, Neil Gaiman, Holly BlackFirst, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth23 December 2014 Time TripsCecelia Ahern, Jake Arnott, Trudi Canavan, Jenny T Colgan, Stella Duffy, Nick Harkaway, Joanne Harris, A. L. KennedySecond, Third, Fourth, Sixth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth5 March 2015 The Scientific Secrets of Doctor WhoSimon Guerrier, Marek Kukula, Mark Wright, George Mann, James Goss, Jonathan Morris, Jenny Colgan, James Swallow, L. M. Myles, Una McCormack, Justin Richards, Jacqueline Rayner, Marc Platt, Mark Morris, Andrew Cartmel, David Llewellyn, Andrew SmithFirst, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth4 June 2015 The Time Lord LettersJustin RichardsFirst, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh24 September 2015 Time Lord Fairy TalesJustin RichardsN/A1 October 2015 The Legends of AshildrJames Goss, David Llewellyn, Jenny T. Colgan, Justin RichardsN/A10 December 2015 The Legends of River SongJenny T. Colgan, Jacqueline Rayner, Steve Lyons, Guy Adams, Andrew LaneN/A2 June 2016 Twelve Doctors of ChristmasJacqueline Rayner, Colin Brake, Richard Dungworth, Mike Tucker, Gary Russell, Scott HandcockFirst, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth8 March 2018 The American AdventuresJustin RichardsTwelfth25 October 2016 Myths & LegendsRichard DinnickFirst, Sixth, Twelfth29 June 2017 Tales of TerrorJacqueline Rayner, Mike Tucker, Paul Magrs, Richard Dungworth, Scott Handcock, Craig DonaghyFirst, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth7 September 2017 The Companion's CompanionCraig DonaghyN/A6 April 2017 The Missy ChroniclesJames Goss, Cavan Scott, Paul Magrs, Peter Anghelides, Jacqueline Rayner, Richard DinnickN/A22 February 2018 The Day She Saved the Doctor: Four Stories from the TARDISJacqueline Rayner, Jenny T. Colgan, Susan Calman, Dorothy KoomsonFourth, Ninth, Eleventh, Twelfth8 March 2018 Twelve Angels WeepingDave RuddenFourth, Fifth, Sixth, War, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth11 October 2018 The Day She Saved the Doctor: Four Stories from the TARDISJacqueline Rayner, Jenny T. Colgan, Susan Calman, Dorothy KoomsonFourth, Ninth, Eleventh, Twelfth8 March 2018 Thirteen Doctors, 13 StoriesEoin Colfer, Michael Scott, Marcus Sedgwick, Philip Reeve, Patrick Ness, Richelle Mead, Malorie Blackman, Alex Scarrow, Charlie Higson, Derek Landy, Neil Gaiman, Holly Black, Naomi AldermanFirst, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth7 March 2019 The Target StorybookJoy Wilkinson, Simon Guerrier, Terrance Dicks, Matthew Sweet, Susie Day, Matthew Waterhouse, Colin Baker, Mike Tucker, Steve Cole, George Mann, Una McCormack, Jenny T Colgan, Jacqueline Rayner, Beverly Sanford, Vinay PatelFirst, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, War, Ninth, Tenth, Metacrisis Doctor, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth24 October 2019 Star TalesJenny T Colgan, Paul Magrs, Jo Cotterill, Steve Cole, Trevor Baxendale, Mike TuckerEleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth5 Dec. 2019The Wintertime ParadoxDave RuddenFourth, Fifth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth, The Curator15 October 2020Canaries was written to tie in with the Time Lord Victorious story and was published on the official Doctor Who website and in the E copy of the book however it did not feature in the print copy. Adventures in LockdownChris Chibnall, Steven Moffat, Russell T Davies, Neil Gaiman, Joy Wilkinson, Vinay Patel, Pete McTighe, Paul Cornell, Mark GatissFirst, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Twelfth, Thirteenth, Fugitive5 November 2020This book featured stories previously published on the Doctor Who website and stories and transcripts from the Doctor Who Lockdown project. It also featured original stories. I Am The MasterPeter Anghelides, Mark Wright, Jacqueline Rayner, Mike Tucker, Beverly Sanford, Matthew SweetN/A5 November 2020