Michael Moorcock Multiverse
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The Michael Moorcock Multiverse was a shared continuity encompassing the oeuvre of Michael Moorcock, with nearly every story written by Moorcock taking place within the setting termed "Renark's multiverse" by the novel The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. Numerous more specific connections existed between the various threads of Moorcock's continuity. The term "multiverse" was allegedly originated in its science fiction context by Moorcock in his early novel The Sundered Worlds, with the concept becoming central to his continuity.
The Moorcock Multiverse is relevant to Tardis Wiki due to its crossovers with the Doctor Who universe.
Connections with the DWU
The primary connection between the Moorcock Multiverse and the Doctor Who universe was the novel The Coming of the Terraphiles. This was a Doctor Who novel written by Moorcock which took place in the Moorcock Multiverse continuity and notably furthered some of the ongoing lore of the setting.
The Moorcock character Seaton Begg crossed over with several Doctor Who universe characters in the Obverse Sextet.
Additionally, several franchises which the Moorcock Multiverse had crossovers with also had crossovers with Doctor Who:
- The Moorcock Multiverse crossed over with the Marvel Multiverse in the 1972 Conan the Barbarian story A Sword Called Stormbringer. The Marvel version of Conan later appeared alongside Doctor Who characters in COMIC: The Incomplete Death's Head [+]Loading...["The Incomplete Death's Head (comic story)"].
- The graphic novel series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen by Alan Moore had several licensed connections to the Moorcock Multiverse, featuring the characters Michael Kane of Old Mars and Jerry Cornelius. This series also had several unlicensed references to Doctor Who.
- Zenith the Albino, a public domain character who inspired Elric and was integrated into the Moorcock Multiverse through the Seaton Begg stories, has appeared in several stories related to Doctor Who.
Stories by Moorcock set in the Multiverse
Before The Eternal Champion (1957 - 1969)
For the first decade of Moorcock's career, continuity between his various stories was less foregrounded than in later periods. A notable instance of continuity were the Ghost Worlds that featured in The Eternal Champion (1962) and The Sundered Worlds (1962). Additionally, several of Moorcock's prominent series of the 1960s heavily paralleled each other, with elements from ''Elric of Melniboné being echoed in Jerry Cornelius and Dorian Hawkmoon.
The idea of the Eternal Champion was introduced in a standalone novelette titled The Eternal Champion (1962) which subtly referenced Elric as a potential incarnation of the Champion. However, the concept of the Eternal Champion was not directly put at the centre of Moorcock's continuity until the 1970 novel reworking of The Eternal Champion and its sequel.
| Title | Type | Series | Notes | Original release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daughter of a Warrior King | Short story | Sojan the Swordsman | Introduces Sojan, later established as an Eternal Champion in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 22 31 August 1957 |
| Mission to Asno | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 25 21 September 1957 | |||
| Revolt in Hatnor | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 34 23 November 1957 | |||
| The Hordes Attack | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 38 21 December 1957 | |||
| The Purple Galley | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 47 22 February 1958 | |||
| The Sea Wolves | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 48 01 March 1958 | |||
| Sojan at Sea | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 49 08 March 1958 | |||
| The Sea of Demons | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 50 15 March 1958 | |||
| Prisoners in Stone | Tarzan Adventures Vol 7 51 22 March 1958 | |||
| Sojan and the Plain of Mystery | Tarzan Adventures Vol 8 9 31 May 1958 | |||
| Sojan and the Sons of The Snake God | Tarzan Adventures Vol 8 12 21 June 1958 | |||
| Sojan and the Hunters of Norj | Tarzan Adventures Vol 8 15 12 July 1958 | |||
| The Dreaming City | Novelette | Elric of Melniboné | Introduces Elric, established as an Eternal Champion in The Eternal Champion (1962). Elric uses the parasitic rune-covered sword Stormbringer, which is established as a form of the Roogalator in PROSE: The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. Introduces Melniboné, a powerful prehistoric Earth civilisation; the Eleventh Doctor refers to the existence of similar prehistoric civilisations in PROSE: The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. | Science Fantasy 47 June 1961 |
| While the Gods Laugh | Introduces the forces of Law and Chaos, as well as their battle, here named "the Eternal struggle". | Science Fantasy 49 October 1961 | ||
| The Stealer of Souls | Science Fantasy 51 February 1962 | |||
| The Eternal Champion | N/A | Introduces the concept of the Eternal Champion, here explained as a function of eternal return. Introduces the recurring Champions John Daker and Erekose; other mentioned Champions include Ulysses, Roland, and "Alric". Introduces the Ghost Worlds. | Science Fantasy 53 June 1962 | |
| Caribbean Crisis | Novel | Sexton Blake | Precursor to the Seaton Begg stories. Moorcock references The Sexton Blake Library in The Coming of the Terraphiles. | The Sexton Blake Library 501 18 June 1962 |
| Kings in Darkness | Novelette | Elric of Melniboné | Science Fantasy 54 August 1962 | |
| The Flame Bringers | Science Fantasy 55 October 1962 | |||
| The Sundered Worlds | N/A | Introduces Jon Renark and Asquiol of Pompeii, the latter of whom is later revealed as an Eternal Champion in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). First usage of term "multiverse" and the first appearance of Renark's multiverse, the Rim, Guide Sensors, Limbo, the centre of the multiverse, and the Galactic Union. Features the Ghost Worlds, first named here the "Shifter system". The Ghost Worlds are close to the planet "Migaa", which the star Miggea in The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"] is named in reference to. "The Hole" from this story is reimagined as a super-black hole in The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. In this story, Renark discovers that the Ghost Worlds were created in a war between two alien races, with the planets being impacted by a weapon which forever propelled them sideways through the multiverse. Renark discovers a dying race called the Originators who use each plane of the multiverse like a womb to create species (such as humanity) to become their successors. Renark ascends his consciousness to become one with the multiverse, touching the minds of every human in his universe and initiating an exodus into a new universe so that they may escape the imminent death of their universe and perhaps succeed the Originators. The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"] indicates that similar events occur in the Doctor's universe. |
Science Fiction Adventures 29 November 1962 | |
| To Rescue Tanelorn | Elric of Melniboné | A story in the Elric universe without Elric. Features the Lords of Law and Chaos, introducing the neutral Grey Lords, who are referenced in The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"] as the Grey Council. Introduces the Realm of Chaos, Realm of Law, and the city of Tanelorn. | Science Fantasy 56 December 1962 | |
| The Blood-Red Game | N/A | Sequel to The Sundered Worlds, with the return of Asquiol of Pompeii. Features the multiverse. | Science Fiction Adventures 32 May 1963 | |
| Dead God's Homecoming | Novella | Elric of Melniboné | Beginning of the four-part final battle of Elric. Features the Lords of Law and Chaos. | Science Fantasy 59 June 1963 |
| Flux | Short story | N/A | A time travel story, in which a time traveller discovers that Nietzche’s eternal return is false and time is a chaotic flux. Limbo appears. | New Worlds 132 July 1963 |
| Not by Mind Alone | A multiverse story establishing that relativity means that among the infinite dimensions occupying the space of Earth, each person experiences private dimensions rationalized as dreams and hallucinations. | New Worlds 134 September 1963 | ||
| Black Sword's Brothers | Novella | Elric of Melniboné | Features Lords of Law and Chaos, and first mentions the Balance. The Realm of Chaos overtakes Earth. | Science Fantasy 61 October 1963 |
| The Time Dweller | Short story | The Time Dweller | Introduces the Scar-Faced Brooder, established as an Eternal Champion in [which?]. Depicts the final years of Earth, in which it is ruled by “Lords of Time” known as the “Chronarchy” who use the Great Regulator to control Time the same way one controls matter. The Chronarchy’s descendants will become “Time Dwellers”, travellers in time. | New Worlds 139 February 1964 |
| Sad Giant's Shield | Novella | Elric of Melniboné | Features the Lords of Law and Chaos. Introduces the eight-pointed "Sigil of Chaos" and the single-arrowed "Sigil of Law". Has an appearance by Arrows of Law, possibly related to the "Arrow of Law" seen in The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. | Science Fantasy 63 February 1964 |
| Doomed Lord's Passing | Features the death of Elric and the death and rebirth of the universe in the final battle between Law and Chaos; these events echo throughout the multiverse and are indicated to be parallel with the events of The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. Introduces the Cosmic Balance, which is indicated to be a form of the Roogalator in The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. Introduces Jermays the Crooked, who is revealed as an Eternal Champion in [which?]. In this story, Elric travels to the potential future world of Roland, who was previously mentioned in The Eternal Champion (1962); Roland is described as Elric's counterpart, reaffirming that Elric is the Eternal Champion. Roland's sword Durendel is indicated to be a form of the Eternal Champion's weapon. | Science Fantasy 64 April 1964 | ||
| The Dream of Earl Aubec | Short Story | A prequel to Elric of Melniboné, set long before Elric's time. Introduces Aubec of Kaneloon, revealed as an Eternal Champion in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). Discusses Law, Chaos, and the Cosmic Balance. | Fantastic Stories of Imagination May 1964 | |
| Stormbringer | Novel | Fixup novel assembled from Dead God's Homecoming, Black Sword's Brothers, Sad Giant's Shield, and Doomed Lord's Passing | 1965 | |
| The Sundered Worlds | Multiverse Trilogy | Fixup novel assembled from The Sundered Worlds and The Blood-Red Game. | 1965 | |
| The Fireclown | Introduces Alan Powys, later revealed as an Eternal Champion in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). | 1965 | ||
| Warriors of Mars | Kane of Old Mars | Introduces Michael Kane, established as an Eternal Champion in [which?]. This setting was heavily inspired by John Carter; relevantly, The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"] features several mentions of Barsoom. | 1965 | |
| Blades of Mars | 1965 | |||
| Barbarians of Mars | 1965 | |||
| Escape from Evening | Short story | The Time Dweller | A native of the Moon, named a “Moonite”, journeys the House of Time where the Chronachy rules. Introduces the Megaflow, a dimension similar to the Time Vortex in which time travellers travel. | New Worlds 148 March 1965 |
| Preliminary Data | Jerry Cornelius | Introduces Jerry Cornelius, later revealed to be an Eternal Champion in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). Cornelius uses the needlegun, one form of the Eternal Champion's weapon. Shows one possible fate of Cornelius, merging with his rival Miss Brunner to become a hermaphroditic harbinger of the end of mankind. | New Worlds 153 August 1965 | |
| The Pleasure Garden of Felipe Sagittarius | N/A | Introduces Minos Aquilinas, metatemporal detective. | New Worlds 154 September 1965 | |
| The Golden Barge | N/A | Introduces Jephraim Tallow. | New Worlds 155 October 1965 | |
| The Wrecks of Time | Novella | N/A | Introduces John Faustaff, later revealed as an Eternal Champion in the 1996 revision of the story. The plot concerns a multiversal crisis affecting a series of alternate Earth with numerical designations from "Earth-1" to "Earth-15". | New Worlds 156-158 November 1965 - January 1966 |
| The Girl Who Shot Sultry Kane | Short story | N/A | This story was written by Moorcock for Golden Nugget, an unsuccessful adult magazine. It was later rewritten to have continuity with the multiverse. | Golden Nugget 1966 |
| The LSD Dossier | Novel | Nick Allard of SMASH | Co-written with Roger Harris. This series was later rewritten to be connected to Jerry Cornelius. | 1966 |
| Somewhere in the Night | 1966 | |||
| Printer's Devil | 1966 | |||
| Phase Three | Short story | Jerry Cornelius | A loose adaptation of the Elric story While the Gods Laugh (1961). | New Worlds 160 March 1966 |
| Behold the Man | Novelette | N/A | Introduces Karl Glogauer, later revealed as an Eternal Champion in [which?]. This is a time travel story in which Glogauer goes to ancient Judaea to find Jesus Christ, discovering Christ's non-existence as a contemporary religious figure and accidently creating the myth himself, ending in his crucifixion. | New Worlds 166 September 1966 |
| The Ice Schooner | Novel | N/A | Introduces Konrad Arflane, later revealed as an Eternal Champion in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). Features the mariner Urquart, a version of whom appears in The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. | SF Impulse 9-11 November 1966 - January 1967 |
| The Jewel in the Skull | Novel | Dorian Hawkmoon | Introduces Dorian Hawkmoon, later revealed as an Eternal Champion in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). Hawkmoon wields the Runestaff, which is revealed as a form of the Roogalator in PROSE: The Coming of the Terraphiles [+]Loading...["The Coming of the Terraphiles (novel)"]. | 1967 |
| The Singing Citadel | Novelette | Elric of Melniboné | The Fantastic Swordsmen May 1967 | |
| Sorcerer's Amulet | Novel | Dorian Hawkmoon | 1968 | |
| The Sword of the Dawn | 1968 | |||
| The Final Programme | Jerry Cornelius | Expanded from the previous Jerry Cornelius stories in New Worlds. | March 1968 | |
| The Delhi Division | Short story | New Worlds 185 December 1968 | ||
| Behold the Man | Novel | N/A | An expansion of the 1966 novella. | 1969 |
| The Black Corridor | N/A | A stand-alone science fiction story. | 1969 | |
| The Runestaff | Dorian Hawkmoon | 1969 | ||
| The Winds of Limbo | N/A | A variation of The Fireclown. | 1969 | |
| The Tank Trapeze | Short story | Jerry Cornelius | New Worlds 186 January 1969 | |
| A Cure for Cancer | New Worlds 188-91 March-June 1969 | |||
| The Dodgem Arrangement | Speculation 23 July 1969 | |||
| The Peking Junction | The New SF: An original anthology of modern speculative fiction November 1969 | |||
| The Distant Suns | Novella | Illustrated Weekly of India June-November 1969 | ||
| The Adventures of Jerry Cornelius: The English Assassin | Comic | Written with M. John Harrison | International Times 57-71 June 1969-January 1970 |
Establishment & first ending of the Eternal Champion saga (1970 - 1975)
With the Eternal Champion novels of 1970, the continuity between Moorcock's stories was more firmly and literally established, with nearly every significant work of the prior decade recontextualized as being part of the saga of the Eternal Champion. From this point forwards, the Eternal Champion saga was a consistent background element of Moorcock's works. Moorcock wrote his first conclusion to the Eternal Champion saga in the Count Brass trilogy of novels featuring Dorian Hawkmoon, which ended with the 1975 novel The Quest for Tanelorn.
At this time, the multiversal aspect was not as central, with stories more frequently focusing on the concept of cyclical time.
| Title | Type | Series | Notes | Original release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Chinese Agent | Novel | Jerry Cornell | A rewritten version of the Nick Allard novel Somewhere in the Night. Introduces Jerry Cornell, a version of Jerry Cornelius and another incarnation of the Eternal Champion as established in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). | 1970 |
| The Eternal Champion | The Eternal Champion | An expansion of the 1962 novelette. | 1970 | |
| Phoenix in Obsidian | Many characters are named as incarnations of the Eternal Champion: Corum Jhaelen Irsei, Konrad Arflane, Asquiol of Pompei, Aubec of Kaneloon, Shaleen, Artos, Alerik, Erekose, Ryan, Dorian Hawkmoon, Alan Powys, Jerry Cornell, Brian, Umpata, Sojan, Klan, Clovis Marca, Pournachas, Oshbek-Uy, Ulysses, Ilanth, and Jerry Cornelius. Features a visit to an earlier era of the Chronarchy's universe from The Time Dweller (1964), introducing an Eternal Champion named Urlik Skarsol. |
1970 | ||
| The Sunset Perspective | Short story | Jerry Cornelius | The Disappearing Future 1970 | |
| Sea Wolves | Science Against Man 1970 | |||
| The Nature of the Catastrophe | New Worlds 197 January 1970 | |||
| Last Vigil | N/A | A dying world story set in the Rim. Deals with themes of the eternal cycle of death and rebirth. | Vision Of Tomorrow 11 August 1970 | |
| A Cure for Cancer | Novel | Jerry Cornelius | An experimental fixup novel combining all the Jerry Cornelius stories published between December 1968 and January 1970. Various contradictions exist between stories, with the multiverse mentioned in this novel as a possible explanation. | 1971 |
| The Knight of the Swords | Swords of Corum Trilogy | Introduces Corum Jhaelen Irsei, previously mentioned as an Eternal Champion in Phoenix in Obsidian (1970). Corum's full name is an anagram of "Jeremiah Cornelius", suggesting him to be another version of Jerry Cornelius. Features Law, Chaos, and the Cosmic Balance. | 1971 | |
| The Queen of the Swords | 1971 | |||
| The King of the Swords | First usage of the names "Million Spheres" and "Conjunction of the Million Spheres". The Eternal Champion Erekose features and the city of Tanelorn returns. | 1971 | ||
| The Sleeping Sorceress | Novella | Elric of Melniboné | Warlocks and Warriors 1971 | |
| The Warlord of the Air | Novel | A Nomad of the Time Streams | Introduces Oswald Bastable, revealed as an Eternal Champion in [which?]. Introduces recurring character Una Persson. Bastable travels to a version of 1973 where the British Empire still rules using airships, with this novel being a notable forerunner of the steampunk genre. | 1971 |
| The Nature of the Catastrophe | Anthology | Jerry Cornelius | An anthology of Cornelius stories, with original linking material providing a chronology of Jerry's life. | 1971 |
| Voortrekker | Short story | Quark 4 1971 | ||
| (All the) Dead Singers | Ink 19 October 1971 | |||
| An Alien Heat | Novel | The Dancers at the End of Time | Introduces the setting of Earth at the End of Time, which shares some similarities with the Chronarchy of The Time Dweller. Benefitting from the sum of human progress, the last humans have total control over matter and time but suffer from a deep ennui. Introduces Jherek Carnelian, a version of Jerry Cornelius and an incarnation of the Eternal Champion as established in [which?]. Also introduces Morphail and translation pills. The universe is about to end similarly to its ending in The Sundered Worlds (1962) and Last Vigil (1970) and the time machine from Behold the Man (1966) appears. |
1972 |
| Breakfast in the Ruins | N/A | Features Karl Glogauer from Behold the Man (1966). The concept of possible realities is explored, with 18 possible lives of Glogauer seen. | 1972 | |
| Elric of Melniboné | Elric of Melniboné | 1972 | ||
| The English Assassin | Jerry Cornelius | Introduces the Jerry Cornelius version of Una Persson. | 1972 | |
| A Sword Called Stormbringer | Comic | Conan the Barbarian | Co-written by Moorcock and Roy Thomas, this story in the Marvel Comics Conan series featured Elric. Elric and Conan are depicting as existing in the same time zone in separate universes, with Elric travelling between them using magical runes. Conan's universe is shown to have agents of Law and Chaos. | Conan the Barbarian 14-15 March-May 1972 |
| The Swastika Set-Up | Short story | Jerry Cornelius | Corridor 4 Winter 1972 | |
| Count Brass | Novel | Hawkmoon: Count Brass Trilogy | 1973 | |
| The Champion of Garathorm | 1973 | |||
| The Bull and the Spear | Corum: The Silver Hand trilogy | 1973 | ||
| The Oak and the Ram | 1973 | |||
| Elric: The Return to Melniboné | Elric of Melniboné | 1973 | ||
| The Jade Man's Eyes | Novella | 1973 | ||
| Environment Problem | Short story | N/A | A story set in Hell. One demon references the "time-cycles" of the universe. | Space: A Collection of Science Fiction Stories 1973 |
| The Longford Cup | Jerry Cornelius | Penthouse Magazine 1973 | ||
| A Dead Singer | N/A | Factions 1974 | ||
| The Entropy Circuit, An Index of Possibilities | Jerry Cornelius | 1974 | ||
| The Hollow Lands | Novel | The Dancers at the End of Time | 1974 | |
| The Land Leviathan | A Nomad of the Time Streams | 1974 | ||
| The Sword and the Stallion | The Chronicles of Corum | 1974 | ||
| The Stone Thing: A Tale of Strange Parts | Short story | N/A | Triode October 1974 | |
| Pale Roses | The Dancers at the End of Time | New Worlds 7 December 1974 | ||
| The Quest for Tanelorn | Novel | Hawkmoon: Count Brass Trilogy | The original conclusion to the Eternal Champion saga. | 1975 |
| White Stars | Short story | The Dancers at the End of Time | New Worlds 8 March 1975 | |
| Ancient Shadows | New Worlds 9 November 1975 |
Between the sagas (1976 - 1990)
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Between 1975 and 1991, Moorcock returned to mostly writing stories which did not advance the larger setting of the Eternal Champion mythos. Moorcock continued several of his core series, finishing several of the novel trilogies began in the early 1970s and writing numerous one-off returns to earlier characters as he had been doing with Elric since 1964. He also wrote several standalone novels in this period.
| Title | Type | Series | Notes | Original release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Adventures of Una Persson and Catherine Cornelius in the Twentieth Century | Novel | Jerry Cornelius | 1976 | |
| The Sailor on the Seas of Fate | Elric of Melniboné | A crossover wherein Elric teams up with three other Eternal Champions: Dorian Hawkmoon, Corum, and Erekosé. | 1976 | |
| The Time of the Hawklords | N/A | A tie-in novel to the band Hawklords, in which the band members are space travellers. A novel by Michael Butterworth developed from an outline by Moorcock, with Moorcock only writing the first page. The antagonist of the novel is described in a prophecy as being associated with the forces of Chaos. A sword features which could be related to Elric's sword. | 1976 | |
| The End of All Songs | The Dancers at the End of Time | The end of the Dancers at the End of Time novel trilogy. | 1976 | |
| Constant Fire | Short story | New Worlds 10 August 1976 |
Multiversal Eternal Champion saga (1991 - 2005)
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Starting with The Revenge of the Rose, Moorcock began establishing a new version of the Eternal Champion mythology which incorporated elements from his novels of the 1980s and was focused on new aspects of the multiverse.
Into the mid 1990s, almost the entirety of Moorcock's works were re-released in The Tales of the Eternal Champion with revisions to adapt them to the Multiverse cosmology established in the Second Ether trilogy
Continued stories in the Multiverse (2006 - present)
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Following the third conclusion to the Eternal Champion saga in 2005, Moorcock continued to write stories set in the now-established Multiverse continuity.
Stories by other writers
Alan Moore's graphic novel series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, which has several references to Doctor Who, includes a licensed appearance by Jerry Cornelius.
