While stranded in 1996 Birmingham, Professor Candy dictated to a certain Steven Moffat the afterword to a book containing fiction about the Doctor.
Candy knew that the book existed because the Doctor, in an effort to disguise their role in Earth history, had retconned themselves into a major figure in Earth's popular culture. He expected the Doctor would buy and read the book themselves, and used the opportunity to demand that the Doctor put an end to the "joke" and bring him back home. (PROSE: Afterword)
Behind the scenes[]
- Afterword is placed as the actual afterworld of the Doctor Who anthology Decalog 3: Consequences. The clear metafictional implication is that the book is the very one the reader is holding.