Time and the Rani (novelisation)

 was a novelisation based on the 1987 television serial Time and the Rani. This first adventure of the Seventh Doctor was also the first novelisation of his era to be published; this was only also true of the Third, Fourth, Ninth and Tenth Doctors - all other Doctors had later stories published as their first novelisations.

This was the only Seventh Doctor novelisation to be released in a hardcover edition. Chronologically it is also the last in the series to be released in that format (the actual final hardcover release was The Smugglers, a First Doctor story).

1988 Target Books edition
Assailed by violent bolts of multi-coloured energy, the TARDIS is blasted off-course and forced to land on the barren planet of Lakertya.

The turbulence brings about the Doctor's sixth regeneration. But that is the least of his worries. He has been hijacked by that ruthless renegade Time Lady, the Rani.

Why has the Rani brought the Doctor to Lakertya? What are the hideous Tetrap guards? Who are the eleven geniuses she has imprisoned in her stronghold? What is the vital significance of the asteroid of Strange Matter? And can the Doctor stop the Rani's diabolical scheme before it affects the whole of creation throughout time and space?

1991 Target Books edition
HE GLARED BLEAKLY AT THE RANI. 'THAT ASTEROID'S COMPOSED OF STRANGE MATTER! WHAT MONSTROUS EXPERIMENT ARE YOU DABBLING IN NOW?'

Assailed by violent bouts of energy the TARDIS is blasted off course and forced to land on the barrent planet of Lakertya, and the violent buffeting triggers the Doctor's sixth regeneration. But that is the least of his worries. He has been hijacked by that ruthless renegade female Time Lord, the Rani.

Why has the Rani brought the Doctor to Lakertya? What are the hideous Tetrap guards? Who are the eleven geniuses she has imprisoned in her stronghold? What is the vital significance of the asteroid of Strange Matter? And can the Doctor stop the Rani's diabolical scheme before it affects the whole of creation throughout time and space?

Doctor Who - Time and the Rani is the first story to feature the seventh Doctor as played by Sylvester McCoy. This novelization is by Pip and Jane Baker, and is adapted from their original scripts.

Chapter titles

 * 1) Regeneration
 * 2) The New Doctor
 * 3) Death Is Sprung
 * 4) Identity Crisis
 * 5) Collaborators All
 * 6) On With The Fray
 * 7) Haute Couture
 * 8) Visions Of Greatness
 * 9) Face To Face
 * 10) A Kangaroo Never Forgets
 * 11) When Strangers Meet
 * 12) 'You Know, Don't You!'
 * 13) Rendezvous With A Tetrap
 * 14) The Centre Of Leisure
 * 15) Exchange Is A Robbery
 * 16) The Twelfth Genius
 * 17) Selective Retribution
 * 18) Too Many Cooks
 * 19) Star Struck!
 * 20) Holy Grail
 * 21) A Dangerous Break
 * 22) Countdown
 * 23) Goodbye, Lakertya

Deviations from televised story

 * The Sixth Doctor receives a "pre-regeneration" scene in the first chapter, which depicts his cause of death being a head injury he receives during the attack on the TARDIS.
 * Urak does not witness the Doctor's regeneration, as he does in the televised version, instead turning over the unconscious Doctor to reveal his new face; the Doctor having already regenerated.
 * Za Panato and Ari Centos are listed as two of the scientists kidnapped by the Rani.
 * It is explained that Sarn escapes because she is worried of being punished for helping the Doctor.
 * An explanation is given for how the Rani escaped her plight at the end of The Mark of the Rani: As the tyrannosaur grew to full size, its spine snapped against the roof of her TARDIS.
 * The Doctor uses several more garbled sayings, such as "A frowning man will clutch at a straw".
 * Mel slips through the hole in the bubble trap when Ikona removes the detonator, rather than it disappearing.
 * Mel threatens the Doctor with a burning laboratory instrument when they first meet.
 * It is stated that the Rani is still in her first incarnation, despite her being the same age as the Doctor.
 * The Doctor hangs up with the Tetraps in the eyrie to hide from the Rani, with Beyus trying to warn him not to go in there.
 * The Tetrap stumbles into the bubble trap instead of being pushed in by the Doctor.
 * The Tetraps' native language is revealed to be English backwards.
 * The Doctor gets out of his cubicle with a penknife.
 * A Tetrap is killed by a fungus released when it steps on a phial that the Rani had tried to use on the Doctor and Mel.
 * Mel hides from the Rani in the brain chamber rather than being at the Doctor's side throughout.
 * Faroon continues to go along with Beyus's policy after the Tetraps fit the Lakertyans with the exploding anklets, instead of accepting Ikona's decision to go to the Doctor for help.
 * Urak stuns the Rani after taking control of her TARDIS.

Writing and publishing notes

 * Prepared before transmission, the original cover illustration for this title by Tony Masero showed the Tetraps asleep standing up. The mistake wasn't realised until quite late and rather than turn the cover art upside-down, resulted in the one-off, specially commissioned photograph of the Tetraps hanging from the roof of the caves that was used instead. Proof copies featuring this artwork were circulated.
 * This book should be numbered 128, not 127 as it is.
 * Inside back cover includes colour advert for Fantastic Doctor Who Posters Offer.
 * This was the last Target novelisation to feature a photographic cover, and the only one not to be a Fifth Doctor story.

British publication history

 * Hardback (December 1987)


 * W.H.Allen & Co. Ltd. UK ISBN:0491031866, copies priced £7.95 (UK)
 * Paperback (May 1988)


 * Target / W.H. Allen & Co. Ltd. One single paperback edition, estimated print run: 23,000, priced £1.99 (UK).
 * Paperback (1991)


 * Target / Virgin Publishing New cover artwork by Alister Pearson, estimated print run: 10,000, priced £2.50 (UK).
 * Interior ISBN reads 0426202325 and the exterior ISBN 0-426-20331-3.

Editions published outside Britain

 * In Canada, the UK Target edition was distributed. Due to issues at the time involving trade tariffs and a weak Canadian dollar, the book initially carried a cover price above C$7, at a time when most paperbacks of the same format (and previous Target Doctor Who releases) were rarely more than C$4. This affected the next few Target releases before Canadian prices normalised.

Audiobook
This Target Book was released as an audiobook on 6 January 2022 complete and unabridged by BBC Audio and read by Bonnie Langford.

The cover blurb and thumbnail illustrations were retained in the accompanying booklet with sleevenotes by David J. Howe. Music and sound effects by Simon Power.