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''Time's Champion'' is a work of ''
Doctor Who''
fan fiction, written by Chris McKeon on the basis of an original novel outline by
Craig Hinton
Craig Paul Alexander Hinton (7 May 1964 – 3 December 2006) was a British writer best known for his work on various spin-offs from the BBC Television series '' Doctor Who''.
He also wrote articles for various science fiction magazines, a ...
, and incorporating fragments of text written by Hinton before his death. It features the
Sixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Colin Baker. Although his televisual time on the series was comparatively brief and turbulent, Ba ...
,
Melanie Bush
Mel, also sometimes referred to as Melanie, is a fictional character played by Bonnie Langford in the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. A computer programmer from the 20th century who is a companion of the ...
and
Sergeant Benton
Sergeant John Benton is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', played by John Levene. He was the senior non-commissioned officer, NCO of the British contingent of UNIT, an international organisati ...
, and is an exploration both of the origins of 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 incar ...
and the concept of the Doctor's role as "Time's Champion" in the
Virgin New Adventures
The ''Virgin New Adventures'' (NA series, or NAs) are a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British science-fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. They continued the story of the Doctor from the point at which the televisio ...
. It also features plot elements from Hinton's earlier book ''
The Quantum Archangel
''The Quantum Archangel'' is a BBC Books original novel written by Craig Hinton and based on the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. It features the Sixth Doctor and Mel, the Master, and an appearance by an a ...
''.
It was published in paperback form in 2008, as a charity venture in aid of the
British Heart Foundation
The British Heart Foundation (BHF) is a cardiovascular research charity in the United Kingdom. It funds medical research related to heart and circulatory diseases and their risk factors, and runs influencing work aimed at shaping public policy ...
. The
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
, who hold the copyright in ''Doctor Who'' and had rejected Hinton's original proposal in 2004, were not involved.
Plot
2008: John Benton is celebrating his birthday by having a few friends round to his house at Hilsley Halt. But the monsters are lurking.
1908: Writer George Mackenzie-Trench is suffering from writer's block unable to foresee the ending of his novel, ''Time’s Champion'', nor the consequences of its completion.
9908: The planet Caliban is under attack from Cyber-forces, and governor George Mackenzie-Trench intends to save their world by unleashing Abaddon, a powerful computer virus. But Abaddon has other instructions.
Meanwhile, Gallifrey is under attack and the Keeper is seeking answers within the Matrix. President Romana is helpless: no-one is who they seem and the conspiracy goes even deeper than she can imagine. She needs the Doctor...
But the Doctor is on Earth in 2008, fighting to save the life of a child who must survive at all costs.
As Gallifrey is attacked by ghosts from the past, the Doctor, Mel and Benton find themselves in the middle of an epic and final battle as the ancient gods choose their Champions and allow chaos to reign across all of time and space.
Continuity
* Although Mel and Sgt. Benton are the chief companions for the novel, many others are mentioned or have brief cameos, including:
The Brigadier,
Sarah Jane Smith
Sarah Jane Smith is a fictional character played by Elisabeth Sladen in the long-running BBC Television science fiction on television, science fiction series ''Doctor Who'' and two of Doctor Who spin-offs, its spin-offs. Sarah Jane is a dogged in ...
,
Jo Grant
Josephine "Jo" Grant, later Jo Jones, is a fictional character played by Katy Manning in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Jo was introduced by Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks in the first episode of ''D ...
,
Romana,
Leela,
Mike Yates
Captain Mike Yates is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', played by Richard Franklin. He was adjutant of the British contingent of UNIT, an international organization that defends Earth from al ...
,
Susan,
Ace
An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the c ...
,
Adric
Adric is a fictional character played by Matthew Waterhouse in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was a young native of the planet Alzarius, which exists in the parallel universe of E-Space. A compan ...
,
Katarina and
Kamelion
In the long-running BBC television science fiction programme ''Doctor Who'' and related works, the term "companion" refers to a character who travels or shares adventures with the Doctor. In most ''Doctor Who'' stories, the primary companion act ...
.
* Co-ordinator Vansell appears in ''
The Sirens of Time
''The Sirens of Time'' is a 1999 audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. It was the first Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the series and became the first in the company's '' ...
'', ''
The Apocalypse Element
''The Apocalypse Element'' is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. It forms the second serial in the Dalek Empire arc, following on from events in '' The Genoc ...
'', ''
Neverland
Neverland is a fictional island featured in the works of J. M. Barrie and those based on them. It is an imaginary faraway place where Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, Captain Hook, the Lost Boys, and some other imaginary beings and creatures live.
Altho ...
'' and ''
He Jests at Scars...''.
* This book offers a different explanation for the Sixth Doctor's regeneration from both the televised series of events in ''
Time and the Rani
''Time and the Rani'' is the first serial of the 24th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 7 to 28 September 1987. It was the first to feature Sylvester McCoy ...
'', the audio drama ''
The Sixth Doctor: The Last Adventure'' and the Missing Adventures novel ''
Spiral Scratch
''Spiral Scratch'' is an EP and the first release by the English punk rock band Buzzcocks. It was released on 29 January 1977. It is one of the earliest releases by a British punk band (preceded by The Damned's " New Rose" in October 1976, a ...
''. It is explained that the events of ''Spiral Scratch'' were an alternate reality experienced by Mel.
* The Valeyard appears as the Keeper, which sets the events of this novel some fifty years after ''
The Trial of a Time Lord
The twenty-third season of British 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 1986. It contained four adventures: ''The Mysterious ...
''.
Authorship
The book is credited to "Craig Hinton & Chris McKeon". Speaking in the
podcast
A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio or video files that a user can download to a personal device to listen to at a time of their choosin ...
''
DWO WhoCast'' Episode 84, McKeon said:
Audio adaptation
In 2015, work began on an audio adaptation featuring
John Levene
John Levene (born John Anthony Woods; 24 December 1941) is an English actor, producer, entertainer and singer. Although he has appeared in a large number of films and television series, Levene's best-known role is that of Sergeant Benton, of UNI ...
reprising his role as Sergeant Benton.
The project remained dormant for several years until August 2021, where the fan audio drama group Black Glove Studios teased an interest in furthering the idea on twitter
Notes
External links
Official ''Time's Champion'' BlogThe novel's missing epilogue
Reviews
Total Sci Fi review of ''Time's Champion''
{{Fan fiction
2008 British novels
2008 science fiction novels
Fan fiction works
Sixth Doctor novels
The Master (Doctor Who) novels