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The Time Machine was a science fiction novel by H. G. Wells.
- You may wish to consult
time machine (disambiguation)for other, similarly-named pages.
The First Doctor's companion Oliver Harper had seen the film adaptation of the novel. He connected the Doctor's TARDIS with the time machine in the story, and initially thought that the TARDIS could move in time but not space. He expected to see Shoreditch in the "time of the dinosaurs" or the 21st century. (AUDIO: The Cold Equations)
The Fifth Doctor read a first edition of this book before visiting a peaceful planet not unlike prehistoric Earth. (PROSE: Warmonger)
Will Arrowsmith was fairly sure that the Victorian-esque TARDIS console room used by the Seventh Doctor towards the end of his life was inspired by The Time Machine. (AUDIO: Persuasion) The Seventh Doctor relaxed by reading a copy of this book during his aborted mission to return the Master's remains to Gallifrey. A skipping record interrupted him, followed by the escape of the Master's Deathworm and the TARDIS crash-landing in San Francisco on 30 December 1999. (TV: Doctor Who)
After his regeneration, the Eighth Doctor attempted to start the novel where his previous self had left off; again, a skipping record interrupted him. (TV: Doctor Who) He finished it some time later. (PROSE: The Eight Doctors) He tried to read the novel at least once in every incarnation and was surprised by how different it looked each time. (PROSE: Interference - Book Two) He told Forster that he would recommend the book to anyone looking for "original and stimulating reading matter" and noted the concept to be "quite enthralling." (PROSE: Casualties of War)
The Time Machine had been adapted to film several times, including a 1960 version by George Pal; a 91st century version starring a Silurian as the protagonist and spoken in haiku; and a version featuring Quarks and Giant Wasps, which according to the Sixth Doctor "hadn't even been bad enough to be good". (PROSE: Synthespians™)