''Matrix'' is a

BBC Books BBC Books (also formerly known as BBC Publishing) is an imprint majority-owned and managed by Penguin Random House through its Ebury Publishing division. The minority shareholder is BBC Studios, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasti ...

original novel written by Mike Tucker and Robert Perry and based on the long-running British

science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...

series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

''.

Summary

It features the

Seventh Doctor The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', and the final incarnation of the original Doctor Who series. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy. W ...

and

Ace An ace is a playing card, Dice, die or domino with a single Pip (counting), pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit (cards), suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large a ...

. It also includes appearances by the

Wandering Jew The Wandering Jew is a mythical immortal man whose legend began to spread in Europe in the 13th century. In the original legend, a Jew who taunted Jesus on the way to the Crucifixion was then cursed to walk the Earth until the Second Coming. Th ...

and

Jack the Ripper Jack the Ripper was an unidentified serial killer active in and around the impoverished Whitechapel district of London, England, in the autumn of 1888. In both criminal case files and the contemporaneous journalistic accounts, the killer wa ...

. Part of it is set in an alternate timeline, featuring parallel universe versions of

Ian Chesterton Ian Chesterton is a fictional character in the British science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and a companion (Doctor Who), companion of the First Doctor. He was played in the series by William Russell ( ...

and Barbara Wright. The villain is the

Valeyard The Valeyard () is a fictional character from the long-running British science fiction television series, ''Doctor Who''. He is described by the Master as an amalgamation of the Doctor's darker sides from between his twelfth and final incarn ...

Inspiration

Perry and Tucker originally pitched ''Matrix'' as a Virgin New Adventure, but were advised by range editor

Rebecca Levene Rebecca Levene is a British author and editor. She is the author of ''The Hollow Gods'' fantasy novel series. In the 1990s, she was an editor at Virgin Books, including notably of the New Adventures series. Biography Levene had a sitcom optione ...

that the idea was unworkable.

References

As well as the obvious references to ''

Trial of a Time Lord The twenty-third season of British television, British science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', known collectively as ''The Trial of a Time Lord'', aired in weekly episodes from 6 September to 6 December 19 ...

'' and the

First Doctor The First Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor William Hartnell. Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time L ...

's era, the Valeyard's schemes bring the Doctor face-to-face with dark alternate versions of his other selves who have been corrupted by the Valeyard; these include a First Doctor who murdered other Time Lords to depart

Gallifrey Gallifrey () is a fictional planet in the long-running British science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It is the original home world of the Time Lords, the civilisation to which the protagonist, The Doct ...

in the first place, a

Fourth Doctor The Fourth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Tom Baker. Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from the ...

who destroyed the Daleks at their beginning (''

Genesis of the Daleks ''Genesis of the Daleks'' is the fourth serial of the twelfth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was written by Terry Nation and directed by David Maloney, and originally broadcast in six weekly parts from ...

'') and a

Fifth Doctor The Fifth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Peter Davison. Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from t ...

who allowed

Peri In Persian mythology, peris (singular: peri; from fa, پَری, translit=parī, , plural , ; borrowed in European languages through ota, پَری, translit=peri) are exquisite, winged spirits renowned for their beauty. Peris were later ado ...

to die while taking the antitoxin for himself (''

The Caves of Androzani ''The Caves of Androzani'' is the sixth serial of the 21st season of the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four twice-weekly parts on BBC1 from 8 to 16 March 1984. In the serial, the Doctor ...

'').

Notes

External links

* {{Jack the Ripper media 1998 British novels 1998 science fiction novels Past Doctor Adventures Seventh Doctor novels British science fiction novels Novels by Mike Tucker Novels by Robert Perry Novels about Jack the Ripper