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Collected edition of Vworp Vworp!, Britain’s best Doctor Who fanzine, features lost Brian Bolland strip

By John Freeman on June 17, 2023

If you’re new to the brilliant Doctor Who fanzine Vworp Vworp!, then you may like to know about a new collected edition of the long out-of-print first two volumes.

Vworp Vworp! Volumes One and Two Collected (2023)

Priced at £16.99, plus postage, the new collection, available to order now, offers a new artist jam cover that now includes the Fifteenth Doctor, Ncuti Gatwa, and a new free gift. It weighs in at a staggering 192 pages, delving into the making of some of the TV series most-loved comic strips, offering superb interviews with creators including Dave Gibbons, David Lloyd, the late Steve Dillon, and many more.

Also included in this edition, too, is a lost Doctor Who spec strip from 1978 drawn by Brian Bolland, restored and coloured, and an article on “The Star Beast”, the inspiration for an upcoming 60th anniversary TV special: was Beep the Meep the only guilty party?

Be aware that only the cover of this collection is new, and if you bought the previous re-release of these earlier editions, this new version is, we’re told, unchanged inside.

Other highlights of this compilation include:

Interviews with comic art legends the late Steve Dillon, Dave Gibbons and David Lloyd, recounting in detail their time on so many seminal early Doctor Who Weekly strips
The last word on the mid 1990s Cybermen strip with its creators Adrian Salmon, Alan Barnes and Gary Russell

Abslom Daak – Dalek Killer explored in detail, including conversations with all his creators including the late Steve Moore, and an approved recreation of the lost Daak script “World of the War-King” drawn by Martin Geraghty and, for the first time in print, the complete script to part one of the Doctor Who Weekly backup strip, “Abslom Daak… Dalek-Killer”

An exclusive chat with industry legend Mick McMahon, together with an artist-led analysis of his legacy
The creation of the weekly comic that would become Doctor Who Magazine, plus interviews with every editor from Dez Skinn to Sheila Cranna

The compilation also comes with a free gift – two A2 posters featuring a clean copy of the artist jam artwork, and newly restored and coloured Abslom Daak artwork by the legendary Steve Dillon.

This poster replaces the gifts previously offered with the original issues.

• Head to the Vworp Vworp! Web site and order your copy here

This item was updated after clarification about content. Special thanks to Reuben Willmott and Vworp Vworp! Editor Colin Brockhurst

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.