21 (series)

21
Otherwise called:	21 Special Agent, Secret Agent 21, Mister Magnet, Contact 21
Publisher:	City Magazines
Type:	Comic series Prose feature
Release date:	23 January 1965

21, later renamed 21 Special Agent, Secret Agent 21, and briefly Mister Magnet, and known in its weekly prose format as Contact 21, was a long-running series published in TV Century 21. It starred Brent Cleever, codenamed Twenty One, at varying times an agent for the Universal Secret Service or a freelance operative.

At TV21's inception, Contact 21 was the letters and competition page of the publication, with the character of Twenty One being used to reply to any correspondence received from the readership as well as set missions for them to complete. Beginning in TV21 21, 21 was spun-off into a comic strip. Initially set in the 2040s, the strip fleshed out the shared universe of the magazine by depicting the earlier years of the World Government and organisations such as the World Space Patrol and World Aquanaut Security Patrol, originally created for the television series Fireball XL5 and Stingray respectively. Although Twenty One was eventually replaced as the steward of the letters page by the personnel of Spectrum as part of the promotion for the new TV series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, the comic strip survived multiple major changes to TV21 and was only dropped after its numbering was reset in September 1969.

Crossovers with the DWU

As the conceit of TV Century 21 was that all its series took place in a single universe, several 21 stories from its pages crossed over freely with the Doctor Who universe. This included references to 21's characters and ongoing storylines in the prose "cover stories" and "Stop Press" panels at the end of The Daleks.

In the comic strip, the DWU character of World President Nikita Bandranaik recurred in some of the earlier stories while the location of Unity City remained a semi-regular fixture of the series long after its introduction in Duel of the Daleks. Additionally, Andromeda Or Die began a story arc partly set on the planet Astra, originally created by David Whitaker for the First Doctor television story The Rescue. Meanwhile, the 21 short stories were most notable for furthering the story of the 2060s Dalek invasion of Earth, with the forces of the Daleks and the Universal Secret Service explicitly interacting on multiple occasions. 21-branded competitions sometimes featured the Daleks as well, albeit rarely as part of a narrative.

The following 21 stories and features involved DWU elements and are thus covered on this Wiki:

Comic stories

Title	Issue	Released
Down With The Director	TV21 42-51	6 November 1965 - 8 January 1966
Andromeda Or Die	TV21 58-66	26 February - 23 April 1966
The Bitter Cold Dish	TV21 67-75	30 April - 25 June 1966
The Long Road Back	TV21 76-80	2 - 30 July 1966
Blood Over Unity City	1966 Summer Extra	1966
Deadly Fly	TV21 90-93	8 - 29 October 1966
An Eye For An Eye	TV21 94-104	5 November 1966 - 14 January 1967
Revolution	TV21 125-131	10 June - 22 July 1967
Tough At The Top	TV21 132-135	29 July - 19 August 1967
The Assassin	TV21 141-145	30 September - 28 October 1967
Sharper Than the Serpent's Tooth	TV21 175-180	25 May - 29 June 1968
Cold Comfort Camp	TV21 181-185	6 July - 3 August 1968
Terror of the Titans	TV21 198-205	2 November - 21 December 1968
The Space Pirates	TV21 226-230	17 May - 14 June 1969
The Syndicate of the Faceless Ones	TV21 231-237	21 June - 2 August 1969

Short stories

Title	Issue	Released
Graham Page	TV21 7	6 March 1965
From Howard Whitehead	TV21 17	15 May 1965
Earth Declares War!	TV21 18	22 May 1965
From Special Agent Peter Ayliffe	TV21 21	12 June 1965
From D. Connell of Essex	TV21 23	26 June 1965
From J. Webster	TV21 27	24 July 1965
From D. Corley	TV21 28	31 July 1965
From R. Miles
From Philip Bevan	TV21 29	7 August 1965
J. Gray	TV21 30	14 August 1965
E. Oglesby	TV21 33	4 September 1965
Senior Special Agent No. 2	TV21 35	18 September 1965
From Agent 671107	TV21 42	6 November 1965
This is 2065	TV21 45-46	27 November - 4 December 1965
Agent Inventor	TV21 48	18 December 1965
TV 21's Time Machine	TV21 50	1 January 1966
Password Report on Red Dalek	TV21 68	7 May 1966
Biography — 21	1966 Annual	1966
Spy Bait
Have Daleks Invaded Scotland?	TV21 90	8 October 1966
Agents In Action	TV21 91	15 October 1966
Agents In Action	TV21 96	19 November 1966
Information Service	TV21 121	13 May 1967
Information Service	TV21 122	20 May 1967
Information Service	TV21 125	10 June 1967
Joe Meesh	TV21 126	17 June 1967
Hendricks Flame	TV21 127	24 June 1967
Attempt to Assassinate World President!	TV21 128	1 July 1967
Dalek Disguise
Friendly Dalek	TV21 134	12 August 1967
Flashback...	TV21 209	18 January 1969
Flashback...	TV21 211	1 February 1969
Flashback...	TV21 212	8 February 1969
Mission from Colonel White!	TV21 213	15 February 1969
Contact 21	A21 4	January 1989
Letters Special	A21 6	March 1989
Mark Sydney, Exeter	A21 7	July 1989

Competitions

Title	Issue	Released
100 Dalek Bagatelles To Be Won!	TV21 27	24 July 1965
200 Anti-Dalek Neutralisers for Special Agents!	TV21 31	21 August 1965
70 Friction Daleks for Special Agents!	TV21 33	4 September 1965
100 Fireball XL5 Annuals for Agents!	TV21 35	18 September 1965
Fantastic Weapon Blasts Daleks	TV21 45	27 November 1965
100 Dalek Bagatelles Must Be Won!	TV21 52	15 January 1966
50 Cluedo Games To Be Won!	TV21 58	26 February 1966
100 Thunderbird Rocket Guns To Be Won	TV21 72	4 June 1966
75 Dalek Pencil Craft Sets Offered As Prizes	TV21 76	2 July 1966

Other features

Title	Issue	Released
Quick Quiz	1965 Summer Extra	1965
A Message from Steve Zodiac to Special Agents	TV21 20	5 June 1965
Agents' Merit Award Test 3	TV21 78	16 July 1966
Agents Observation Test	TV21 103	7 January 1967