The Clockwise Man (novel)

The Clockwise Man was the first BBC New Series Adventures novel released. It was written by Justin Richards and featured the Ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler.

Publisher's summary
In 1920s London, the Doctor and Rose find themselves caught up in the hunt for a mysterious murderer. But not everything is what it seems. Secrets lie behind locked doors and inhuman killers roam the streets.

Who is the Painted Lady and why is she so interested in the Doctor? How can a cat return from the dead? Can anyone be trusted to tell -- or even to know -- the truth?

With the faceless killers closing in, the Doctor and Rose must solve the mystery of the Clockwise Man before London itself is destroyed...

Plot
Peter Dickson can see the cat from where he is standing. He watches it as it disappears. He is heading back to where he works.

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor says that they are heading for 1924, England. Rose is worried about her choice of clothes as she prepares for the new sights outside.

Dickson is sure he can hear something now, coming from all around him. A mystery figure pounces on him and he begins to choke.

Exiting the TARDIS, Rose sees the Doctor trying to open a locked gate that blocks their way out of an enclosed space. They can hear a man struggling for his life, choking and shouting in terror. They open the gate to see two figures locked in a fight. The Doctor charges at the attacker, but is winded by the collision. When Rose arrives, the assailant decides to leave. Dickson thanks them and with the help of the newcomers, leads them to his work place.

Two figures watch from the shadows as they walk down a street.

Sir George Harding and his wife, Lady Anna are preparing for their party tonight. Sir George is having trouble with his clothes. His wife just laughs. The maid arrives, flustered, and says that Dickson has been hurt.

The Doctor and Rose help Dickson into the house to the drawing room. There he explains to them and Sir George, about the assailant. He was asking about the evening's guests. His master orders him to gain some rest, but he is stubborn and wishes to help Rose find the lavatory to wash her hands after falling and drawing blood. All the guests are present except for the Painted Lady.

Rose loses her way in the corridors and finds a small boy called Freddie to help her to the library. He takes her to a gallery and explains who all the guests are. There's Colonel Oblonsky, a regular visitor; Uncle Alex and Auntie  Nadia; and a Lord Chitterington who works for the government. There are also two characters Freddie didn't know: Major Aske and Repple.

After returning Freddie to his room, Rose finds her way to the library and tells the Doctor about all the people Freddie has named. Feeling out of place, they head back to the TARDIS. It has disappeared.

They are searching for the TARDIS, when the Doctor realises that it was probably stolen. They should return to the house for dinner. A black car arrives at the house and Dickson appears on the threshold with an umbrella. He holds it for the woman from the car. She is obviously the Painted Lady. She announces that she is Melissa Heart. They enter the house.

Dessert is being served. Lord Chitterington and Koznyshevs have left. The Doctor seems keen to talk about the conspiracy. The room falls silent. Colonel Oblonsky thinks that the Doctor is an agent. Repple says he would know if the Doctor is an agent. To Major Aske's disappointment he announces that he wants his rightful country returned to him, some place called Dastaria.

Melissa Heart seems to be enjoying herself. The others are talking about Russia and how they can regain their titles, how Lady Anna returned from there with her first husband and child, Freddie. Rose concludes that the small boy is actually the Tsar of Russia.

Everything comes out now. Anna is actually Anastasia, a relative of Tsar Nicholas II and Queen Victoria. Her first husband was related to the late Tsarina. With the Tsar and others in his family dead, Freddie is the next in line. Colonel Oblonsky is head of the Tsar's personal guard, the Koznyshevs are supporters and Lord Chitterington gives help from the government, but merely diplomatic help. Repple is just another supporter who hopes to regain his title. Everyone moves to the drawing room. As Melissa Heart leaves, Rose notices Freddie wave to her and Melissa Heart return the wave.

In the drawing room, Rose decides the revolution is hopeless. Repple is talking with Oblonsky. Aske asks for a quiet chat with Sir George. Dickson arrives and the Doctor asks about the assailant. He is about to describe a noise when his master and Aske return. Suddenly there's a ticking noise. Dickson says it is the same as when he was attacked. The Doctor heads into the hallway and says two Latin words: Tempus fugit.

The Doctor is displeased to note that he has lost his leather jacket. Rose and Dickson agree that it has probably been tidied up by accident, so he is forced to walk to the Imperial Club, without an overall. Aske explains that if Rose and he are going to stay for a few nights, they will have to have proof that they are of noble birth. Inside, they are led by Repple and Aske to a larger room where a man is sitting. This is Lord Wyse.

Lord Wyse is playing a chess game against himself and asks for the visitors to sit down. He explains that Crowther will sort out the rooms for The Doctor and Rose. There's a cat sitting on another chair nearby, which has a triangular patch of lighter fur under its chin. Repple is beginning to feel sleepy and Wyse offers to take him to his quarters. Aske explains that it is his condition. The Doctor is curious.

First off, there is no Dastaria. Apparently, after performing in a play, Repple fainted. After waking, he was slightly mad and claimed that he was rightful King of Dastaria. Aske explains that he had to agree. Crowther arrives and says that the rooms are prepared.

The Doctor and Rose find their rooms comfortable and look very expensive. After Crowther leaves, they hear a knock on the door. Repple is there, not looking tired at all. He says he needed to get away from Aske. He is the King of Dastaria, but he is also Aske's prisoner. Aske apparently carries a gun or a knife with him. The Doctor asks what the flag of Dastaria is. Repple says that it's a white triangle. He leaves and Rose notices the cat with a white triangle under its chin. Either he is lying or completely out of his head. The Doctor and Rose decide they need to get some sleep.

The was leaning on the window sill, looking out at the 20th century London, which won't change that much. He stays awake all night, taking everything in, the buildings that would survive another century. Morning comes and he decides it's time to get some answers.

Rose is awakened by a maid who appears very apologetic as she realises that Rose is still in bed. She guesses it was the Doctor's idea of waking her up. The maid is Beth who answers Rose's questions thoroughly. She talks about a mysterious figure who strangles people for information on people they work with and so on. Rose remembers the night before and shudders. She then heads down for breakfast.

Rose arrives in the lounge to find the Doctor is playing Wyse in a chess game. She has disappointedly missed breakfast, but Wyse offers her bacon and eggs and leaves, realising he's about to lose.

While Rose enjoys her breakfast, Wyse explains that he believes neither Repple or Aske are speaking the truth. He also believes that Aske is the one with delusions and not Repple. Being qualified as a psychiatrist is the delusional part of his story. Wyse then leaves the room. Crowther enters and says that a Melissa Heart is requesting the Doctor's presence in the gallery. The Doctor and Rose both leave.

Melissa Heart has come because she was given the Doctor's leather jacket by Lady Anna. The Doctor cries happily as he puts it on. When the Doctor announces that he would thank Sir George and his wife for retrieving it, Heart hesitates enough for Rose and the Doctor to notice that it was not them that had found it.

Inside her car, Heart relays some instruction to blank-faced figure sitting next to her. The only sound is a ticking mechanism from within him.

more to be added

Characters

 * Ninth Doctor
 * Rose Tyler
 * Sir George Harding
 * Peter Dickson
 * Lady Anna
 * Freddie
 * Repple
 * Major Aske
 * Melissa Heart
 * Lord Wyse
 * Crowther
 * Colonel Oblonsky
 * Beth
 * Matty Black
 * Ronald Cheshunt
 * Count Alexander Koznyshev
 * Countess Nadia Koznyshev
 * Lord Chitterington
 * Wensleydale
 * Ranskill
 * Coleridge
 * Dilys

Bad Wolf

 * The Doctor and Rose are accused of turning up "Like A Bad Wolf"

Others

 * Katurian

Story notes

 * As Book 1 of the BBC New Series Adventures line, this book ushered in a new publication format for BBC Books. It released exclusively this and all future New Series Adventures featuring the Ninth and Tenth Doctors, as well as BBC Torchwood novels in hardcover format. The Quick Reads novellas were paperback releases and some limited-edition promotional paperback issues of Ninth and Tenth Doctor books would occur outside the UK. The Clockwise Man is the first Doctor Who novel to be released in hardcover since Target Books discontinued phardcover editions of its novelisations in the 1980s. It is the first original Doctor Who novel ever issued in the format.
 * Later reprints of this book removed the image of Billie Piper from the cover, presumably due to use-of-likeness issues after she had left the programme.
 * This story was also released as an ebook available from the Amazon Kindle store.

Continuity

 * Clockwork men also appear with the Tenth Doctor DW: The Girl in the Fireplace, the Eighth Doctor in EDA: Anachrophobia and BFA: Time Works, and the Second Doctor in DW: The Mind Robber.


 * There is a mention of Rose 'dressing up' while the Doctor only has a 'new shirt'. (DW: The Unquiet Dead)


 * Rose has a conversation with one of the servants in the Imperial Club, who makes her think of Gwyneth in DW: The Unquiet Dead.


 * In the club, the Doctor looks at a painting of the French Revolution and says "That's not right". In the first episode of Doctor Who, An Unearthly Child, the Doctor's granddaughter, Susan Foreman, reads a book about the French Revolution and says the same words.


 * The Doctor mentions to Rose at the end of the Season 2 episode DW: Tooth and Claw that Queen Victoria's descendants suffered from a condition called Haemophilia. This was also mentioned when The Doctor and Rose visit the British Empire Exhibition.


 * The Doctor mentions his second regeneration and his exile to Earth. (DW: The War Games, DW: Spearhead from Space)

Timeline

 * The Clockwise Man occurs after: DWAN: Mr Nobody
 * The Clockwise Man occurs before: NSA: The Monsters Inside

Audio release

 * The story was released as an audiobook read by Nicholas Briggs.
 * The audiobook only available as a download from the AudioGo website.