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21 HAYAKAWA
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This Japanese publisher released translations of five Who novelisations in 1980, and the covers – clearly produced by someone who’d never seen the series – are wonderfully idiosyncratic. Our favourite? The cover for The Auton Invasion , which seems to promise all manner of manga amputee naughtiness.
22 MADAME VASTRA AND JENNY
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A lesbian lizard fighting crime in Victorian London with help from her trusty aide? Why is this not a series of its own? (We also love the Sontaran nurse in “A Good Man Goes To War” – another spin-off begging to be made.)
23 WILFRED MOTT
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This loveable old ex-para, unwitting cause of the Doctor’s tenth regeneration, started as a one-off cameo role in “Voyage Of The Damned”, but was upgraded to regular status after the sad death of actor Howard Attfield (Donna’s father, Geoff). We used to think of Bernard Cribbins as that bloke who sang “Right Said Fred”. Now we think of him as that fantastic actor who made us cry.
24 THE EXTERMINATION EFFECT
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As a Dalek screams its bloodcurdling war cry, the image flips into negative… such a simple, cheap idea, but so very effective. Over the years, the effect developed, becoming more focused on the living target (and from “Destiny Of The Daleks” onwards, a video effect death ray issued from the weapon) but we rather liked the way that in the old days when a Dalek fired it affected everything on-screen, as if it was exterminating the whole world. Because if they could, they would.
25 VWORP! VWORP!
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This sound effect has accompanied the TARDIS’s arrival in the official mag since part one of Steve Moore and Dave Gibbons’s “The Collector” (1980 – go and buy the Dragon’s Claw collection!). It fails as onomatopoeia – wouldn’t ARRUUUAH! ARRUUUAH! be nearer the mark? – but this is one case where familiarity has made the heart grow fonder.
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