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Following is a list of books and websites which may prove useful in researching articles for the TARDIS Index File. You may also post requests for information regarding an article you are working on at the Reference Desk page. Feel free to add any additional resources you may be aware of to this list.
Books
Some works listed here may be out-of-print. For books published in multiple editions, the one listed is the most recent.
General Non-fiction
- Doctor Who: A Celebration, by Peter Haining, Virgin Publishing, Ltd., 1995. ISBN 0-86369-932-4 Research current as of 1983, now superceded.
- The Doctor Who File, by Peter Haining. Virgin, 1989. ISBN 0-86379-169-7
- Doctor Who: The Time-Travellers' Guide by Peter Haining. Virgin, 1995. ISBN 0-86369-927-8
- Companions, by David J. Howe and Mark Stammers, Virgin, 1996. ISBN 0-86369-921-9 Has no relation to the similarly named work by John Nathan-Turner.
- The Terrestrial Index, by Jean-Marc Lofficier. Target, 1991. ISBN 0-426-20361-5
Continuity
Works most concerned with the fictional universe of Doctor Who.
- The Doctor Who Technical Manual, by Mark Harris. Various UK, AUS, and US editions, 1983.
- The Universal Databank, by Jean-Marc Lofficier. Virgin, 1992. ISBN 0-426-20370-4 Often regarded as inaccurate.
- Doctor Who: A History of the Universe, by Lance Parkin. Virgin Publishing, Ltd., 1996. ISBN 0-426-20471-9
- AHistory by Lance Parkin
- Encyclopedia of The Worlds of Doctor Who: A-D, by David Saunders, Knight, 1988. ISBN 0-340-42842-2
- Encyclopedia of The Worlds of Doctor Who: E-K, by David Saunders, Knight, 1989. ISBN 0-340-51106-0
- Encyclopedia of The Worlds of Doctor Who: L-R, by David Saunders, Picadilly, 1990. ISBN 1-85340-081-5
Primarily factual
- Travel Without the TARDIS: The Doctor Who Fan's Guide to England, Scotland, and Wales, by Jean Airey and Laurie Haldeman. Target, 1986. ISBN 0-426-20240-6 Guide primarily aimed at American fans; some information inaccurate.
- Doctor Who: The Key to Time, by Peter Haining. Virgin, 1987. ISBN 0-86379-153-0
Guidebooks
- The Doctor Who Programme Guide, by Jean-Marc and Randy Lofficier. iUniverse, 2003. ISBN 0-595-27618-0 Original edition often cited as inaccurate.
- Doctor Who: The Television Companion, by David J. Howe and Stephen James Walker. (1st ed.) BBC Books, 1998. ISBN 0-563-405-880.
- (2nd ed.) Telos Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-903389051-0.
- Doctor Who: The Sixties, by David J. Howe, Mark Stammers and Stephen James Walker. Virgin, 1993. ISBN 0-86369-707-0
- Doctor Who: The Seventies, by David J. Howe, Mark Stammers and Stephen James Walker. Virgin, 1994. ISBN 0-85227-444-1
- Doctor Who: The Eighties, by David J. Howe, Mark Stammers and Stephen James Walker. Virgin, 1997. ISBN 0-7535-0128-7
- Doctor Who: Regeneration, by Philip Segal with Gary Russell. HarperCollins, 2000. ISBN 0-00-710591-6 In-depth study of the 1996 TV Movie
- I, Who: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels, by Lars Pearson. Sidewinder Press, 1999. ISBN 0-9673746-0-X
- I, Who 2: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels and Audios, by Lars Pearson. Mad Norwegian Press, 2002. ISBN 1-57032-900-1
- I, Who 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels and Audios, by Lars Pearson. Mad Norwegian Press, 2003. ISBN 0-9725959-1-0
- Who's Next: An Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to Doctor Who, by Mark Clapham, Eddie Robson and Jim Smith. Virgin, 2005. ISBN 0-7535-0948-2
Television, Video, and DVD Documentaries
Television Specials
- Whose Doctor Who? (BBC, 1977) - Made in response to charges the show had become too violent, this special includes behind-the-scenes footage.
- Doctor Who in America (PBS, 1983)
- Doctor Who's Who's Who (PBS, 1986)
- Doctor Who: A New Dimension (BBC, 2005)
Video
Single features
- Resistance Is Useless (1992)
- Lust in Space (1998)
- Carnival of Monsters (1999) - not, of course, to be confused with the Third Doctor television story of the same name
The "Years" Series
Myth Makers series
- Myth Makers Vol. 4: Jon Pertwee (1988)
- Myth Makers Vol. 6: Sarah Sutton/Peter Grimwade (1989)
- Myth Makers Vol. 7: Myth Runner (1989)
- Myth Makers Vol. 8: Tom Baker (1989)
- Myth Makers Vol. 12: Ian Marter (1994)
- Myth Makers Vol. 19: Colin Baker (1989)
- Myth Makers Vol. 7: Wendy Padbury (1994)
- Myth Makers Vol. 30: Caroline John (1994)
- Myth Makers Vol. 32: Peter Purves (1995)
- Myth Makers Vol. 16: Richard Franklin (1996)
- Myth Makers Vol. 50: Elisabeth Sladen (2000)
- Myth Makers: Jacqueline Pearce (2000)
- Myth Makers Vol. 9: Patrick Troughton in America (2003)
- Patrick Troughton Mythmakers (2002)
DVD special features
Since the advent of DVD editions of various serials, the amount of audio and and video material about the production of Doctor Who has risen dramatically. Any information found on any official BBC release may of course be considered a valid resource for the writing of real world articles. Documentaries, commentaries and info text are all appropriate.
However, care must be taken to avoid using information that appears in these resources, but not within the narrative itself. Thus, if Philip Hinchcliffe were to hypothetically claim in the commentary to Terror of the Zygons that the Brigadier was actually a Dalek in disguise, this information could not be added to the in-universe portion of the article about the Brigadier or the article about Daleks, as there is no narrative evidence to support Hinchcliffe's claim. It could, however, be added to the behind-the-scenes sections of those articles.
Some care must be taken to balance views expressed in DVD commentaries against those seen in reference works. For instance, what William Russell might say in a 2009 commentary about the production of The Keys of Marinus can certainly be included in the article about that serial. But it must be remembered that Russell was at a considerable distance from the 45-year-old production, and was not reading from notes when he took part in the commentary. Thus, if a reference work like Doctor Who: The Sixties or even the DVD info text give alternative views on the same subject, these other accounts should be presented alongside Russell's. It is important, though, that Russell's views not be discounted as wrong. While it is certainly possible that Russell is misremembering, it's equally possible that he isn't. It may simply mean that Russell's view of things, as an actor who was there on the day, may be different to that of whatever other sources the researcher uncovered.
Websites
- The BBC's official Doctor Who site, focusing on the new series, and
- The BBC's official Classic Doctor Who site, focusing on the "classic" series
- Nitro 9 Doctor Who Homepage, one of the oldest Doctor Who websites on the Web
- A Brief History of Time (Travel), a detailed history of Doctor Who on television
- Doctor Who Reference Guide, a complete list of Doctor Who stories from every medium
- The WHOniverse, featuring a biography of the Doctor and a chronology of the Doctor Who universe and also includes The WHOniverse Wiki
- The Doctor Who Image Archive, Steve Hill's impressive collection of Doctor Who images
- The TARDIS Library, a guide to Doctor Who books, videos, DVDs, CDs and cassettes
- The Doctor Who Transcript Project, containing transcripts for many episodes of the original series, especially the lost and incomplete stories from the 1960s
- Doctor Who Locations Guide, containing film locations for Doctor Who (Classic and New Series), Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures
Forums
Forums can be useful places to find discussions of topics, however they are usually difficult to cite as they are usually not accessible without an account with the forum.
However, they may still prove affective as a launch pad for research and further information. Additionally some forums are often frequented by authors, writers or producers of Doctor Who related content and therefore give a rare insight that may not be found elsewhere.