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Special reprint of Doctor Who novel Time’s Champion announced in aid of British Heart Foundation

By John Freeman on November 23, 2020

In celebration of all things Doctor Who, author and publisher David Howe has arranged a reprint of the novel Time’s Champion, with all profits to be donated to the British Heart Foundation.

“Time’s Champion is somewhat special to my heart,” says David.”The original idea for it came from the author Craig Hinton, and it was to be the final sixth Doctor adventure, featuring the Valeyard … but the book was not to be, as Craig died suddenly from a heart attack in December 2006, leaving a hole in everyone’s lives.

“Before his death, however, Craig had been discussing the book with a friend in the United States, Chris McKeon, and so Chris decided to take Craig’s notes and to complete the book. This he did, and when I heard about it, I offered to edit and to get the book published. This I did, and we had a lovely edition which emulated the Virgin Missing Adventures on the spine and back cover.
The title sold like the proverbial hot cakes, and we reprinted, and those sold out. All the while raising money for the British Heart Foundation.

“It’s been out of print now for a long time,” David notes, “and copies exchange hands on auction sites for a lot of money … And so a reprint, again raising money for the BHF seemed like a good idea for 2020 – the year of hell, to try and add a little lightness back in.

“Also, in 2015, I myself had a massive heart attack, but I survived thanks to the NHS and the skill of the people who saved me, so raising money for the British Heart Foundation has even more meaning for me now..

“The book is now available for pre-order on the Telos site. Telos have kindly agreed to handle all the financial aspects of this to ensure it all goes smoothly, and my great thanks to Stephen James Walker at Telos for his help with this.

All profits will be donated to the British Heart Foundation.

“As you can see, we have gone for a variant cover this time, reflecting the old Target Books,” David points out, “as this title comes following The Trial of a Time Lord …”

• If you want a copy of this special book, get in quick … order a copy … and then in about a week the print run will be decided to meet the demand, and hopefully get copies off to everyone in time for Christmas (at least in the UK).

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.