Dr. Third
by Adam Hargreaves (Penguin, 2018)
Doctor Who rendered in the distinctive Mr. Men style and with the same careless writing. Pertwee’s Doctor is well captured, as are the lighter aspects of the UNIT era more generally, but the text in no way does justice to the pictures.
Doctor Who: Heralds of Destruction
by Paul Cornell; ill. Christopher Jones (Titan Comics, 2017)
The character of Jo Grant appears to have morphed with Liz Shaw, but this is the only off-note in an otherwise well-scripted and paced, beautifully drawn, and above all faithful depiction of Doctor Who in the Jon Pertwee dandified exile UNIT days.
The Navy Lark, Series Six, Volume 1
(BBC, 1963)
Though tending to hammer the same nails over and over, radio sitcom The Navy Lark (any episode) showcased all the ingredients necessary to sustain a long-running comedy. Familiarity brought the audience close, breeding contentedness. Starring Jon Pertwee and Ronnie Barker, among others.
Doctor Who: The Ghosts of N-Space
by Barry Letts (BBC Radio, 1996)
Unfortunately the gratified nostalgia of having a new Third Doctor adventure after twenty-one years, even with strong performances by Jon Pertwee and Elisabeth Sladen, could not make up for the manifest shortcomings (namely, dire minor characters and plot) of this audio adventure.
Doctor Who and the Carnival of Monsters
by Terrance Dicks; read by Katy Manning (Bolinda, 2014)
[first published by Target, 1977]
Precious few Target novelisations reach heights anywhere near those of the original broadcasts; certainly none by Terrance ‘run-of-the-mill’ Dicks. Carnival of Monsters is elevated somewhat in audiobook form by voice artist Katy Manning, whose range encompasses even a husky Jon Pertwee imitation.
Doctor Who: Pest Control
by Peter Anghelides (BBC Audio, 2008)
Although read by David Tennant and featuring the Tenth Doctor and Donna, Pest Control harks back thematically to the Jon Pertwee era (and not just by namechecking ‘chitinous’). As such, the parasitic hatch-outs seem overly sanitised and the Doctor’s moralism somewhat underplayed.