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Third Dimension: The Unofficial And Unauthorised Guide To Doctor Who 2007 by Stephen James Walker
01/01/2008 . Source: Geoff Willmetts 
pub: Telos. 325 page illustrated hardback. Price: £12.99 (UK). ISBN: 978-1-84583-017-5. Buy The Unofficial And Unauthorised Guide To Doctor Who 2007 in the USA - or Buy The Unofficial And Unauthorised Guide To Doctor Who 2007 in the UK  check out website: www.telos.co.uk
As I've commented in the past and still hold true with this book, Telos do a neat range of unauthorised books looking at TV SF programmes. The title about should give the basic clue that this book covers the third of the new 'Doctor Who' seasons and the second to feature David Tennant as the Time Lord.
Page counts don't always give the truth about the size of a book. When the font is smaller, you end up having anything from a third more text than you first realise. As such, books of this nature are a far longer read and I found it easier to read a couple chapters or episodes a day to absorb all the information rather than attempt to wade through the book quickly and miss something. The Who fans who will be buying this will no doubt do the same or being continually re-reading things they missed the first time. This alone should indicate the amount of attention and detail that a book such as this needs.
Oddly enough, I found a couple odd things missed this time. Stephen Walker missed out on the connection to Rolf Harris' song 'Two Little Boys' in the finale of the episode 'The Family Of Blood' which was somewhat lay it on with a trowel. The only serious mistake was confusing the stuttering Claudius as played by Derek Jacobi in the BBC TV series 'I, Claudius' with the psychotic drumbeat hearing Caliguia as played by John Hurt. If anything, I thought the drumbeat actually came from the original theme music from 'Dr. Who'. Sometimes you can get too close to the forest and miss a couple trees. To have only two mistakes in such a big book as this isn't such a crime when so much else is right.
It's interesting that Walker spends so much time examining the differences between the series and the fiction tie-ins and to their relative value. Over the years, I've stopped reading tie-ins. Mostly because if the TV production companies don't regard them as canon and can be ignored then from a researcher point of view, I have to concur. Having said that, if it swings your boat, he also documents all the tie-in releases last year if you need to track them down.
Apart from the episode guide, pro and fan comment, there is a look at the promotional development leading up to the series, all credits info and the viewing statistics. It covers everything you need to know about Who in the past year. Books such as this are so useful from a historical perspective and are invaluable if you are a fan if you want a decent factual look at 'Doctor Who' assuming you haven't got the book already.
GF Willmetts
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