Doctor Who Magazine (special issues)


 * You may also be looking for the separate Panini publication, Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition'', or various unique publications

"Special issues" of Doctor Who Magazine were those published by Marvel UK which did not have a number. Instead, they were identified by a season and a year, as "Doctor Who Magazine Winter 1981". For this reason, they are someimes called seasonal issues or holiday specials. It is clear, however, that they were a part of the regular run of DWM, rather than a standalone publication. In addition to evidence gleaned from the indicias, the issues were at least originally incentives used to grow the subscriber base of DWM. Although available for separate purchase on newsstands, most seasonals were free with home delivery of DWM.

Overview of the Specials
The very earliest specials consisted mostly of reprinted comic material from the regular magazine. Most issues, however, offered all-new material. At least one comic strip was started in a numbered issue of DWM only to be concluded in a seasonal issue. Indeed, some of the new comic material is particularly noteworthy. A number of televised companions got their comic debuts in the pages of a DWM seasonal.

Over time, their format changed somewhat. Though the majority of these issues do look like ordinary issues of DWM, some later specials tended towards particular themes, with exhaustive research done, largely by Andrew Pixley of both production history and fictional "facts".

The 1985 Summer Special was exceptional in that while being presented as a Doctor Who Special, to all intents and purposes it qualifies as a graphic novel.

Anniversary Specials to celebrate anniversaries of Doctor Who or Doctor Who Magazine have sometimes appeared.