The Secret History of Life Before Doctor Who Magazine! (comic story)

 was the twenty-fourth, special full-page edition of The Daft Dimension, published in DWM 500 in honour of the landmark issue.

Summary
The strip details the beginnings of the Doctor Who fandom and the events that lead to the creation of Doctor Who Magazine. As it explains: Doctor Who fandom officially began after the premiere of the first episode on the night of 23 November 1963, when a man called Arnold Grimsbottom argued with his brother over the significance of the unnamed policeman at the beginning of the story, whom Arnold believed to be central to the plot, with the clue being the use of the police box. Arnold decides to put his thoughts to paper, by creating the very first Doctor Who fanzine titled That Police Man in Episode One is the Main Character, I'm Sure of It!, using a gestetner stencil printer, unfortunately meaning it would take some time for the ink to dry.

A few weeks later, Mavis Tannerworth of Blackpool accidentally created the very first Dalek cosplay outfit whilst tidying up her kitchen and talking about her new boyfriend Nate.

Meanwhile, the first Doctor Who comic strip appeared in Televisual Comic. It strayed a little from the TV show in that it starred the First Doctor, his grandchildren, his best pal Sid, his neighbours Terry and June, and TARDIS conductor Jack.

Inspired by the success of the Dalek annuals, rival publisher Cheapun Nastoy launched the Menoptera annual, convinced it would be the top purchase of Christmas 1965. However, the distributor's van broke down, and the book never reached shops.

1966 was a grim year for the fandom, when Doctor Who fans clashed with Thunderbirds fans in a Brighton tea shop over who was going to have the last scone.

In 1971, new comic Countdoon sets a high quality for the Doctor Who comic strip, but the readership is not ready for it.

Later, Countdoon becomes TV Reaction, and then merges in Televisual Comic. Times are tough by this point, as budget cuts and the three-hour week mean that the Doctor Who comic strip must become a reprint. At one point the editor had to create new Doctor Who strips by pasting drawings of Tom Baker's face onto old Pink Panther comic strips.

By 1979, the ink is finally dry on Arnold Grimsbottom's fanzine, as he gleefully prepares to announce it as the world's first ongoing publication dedicated to Doctor Who. However, he is just been pipped to the post by Sir Derek Skinn launching Doctor Who Weekly Issue 1, and the rest is history. Arnold is annoyed to see the publication on store shelves, claiming it will never last.

Characters

 * Arnold Grimsbottom
 * Arnold Grimsbottom's brother
 * Mavis Tannerworth
 * Doctor Who fan
 * Thunderbirds fan
 * Countdoon reader
 * Editor