Dr Who: Borrowed Time (2011)
256pp, Fiction
Notes
2019-03-07
I used to watch Dr Who as a child. I remember some later Tom Baker episodes (and being disappointed in the length of my scarf ever since) and I probably watched all the Peter Davidson ones (recorded and viewed on the village’s only VHS machine at the vicar’s house because I had to do swimming lessons on the day it aired), and a bunch of Colin Baker ones before leaving the UK in 1987.
I watch a few episodes whenever theres a new actor playing the doctor but never really get into it (my favourite of the recent seasons remains the Christopher Eccleston/ Billie Piper combo). All of which is to say that whilst I’m a massive nerd I wouldn’t normally read a Dr Who novel, but…
I spotted one in our local Oxfam that had been written by one Naomi A. Alderman, a quick google confirmed it was indeed she of The Power and Disobedience fame so I thought I’d check it out. Very enjoyable. “Much better than it needs to be” is the typically dismissive way to talk about these kind of products but that just buys into the logic of capitalism where for maximum efficiency one should spend the amount of time, effort and skill on the production of cultural artefacts up to the point where any further effort will not reap further ROI (return on investment) – “these Whovian losers are gonna buy whatever crap we give them anyway so what the hell”. If our artists subscribed to this logic we’d be screwed. Alderman thankfully does not. She clearly has a deep affection for and understanding of Doctor Who and writes a great science fiction story with all the required wierdness and flamboyant fun of the show. As an added bonus there’s some sharp commentary on exactly the kind of capitalist extraction time/money logic mentioned above.