Customer Reviews
The Enthusiast's Guide to Uncle Tom - By: Bob Marlowe, 18 Jan 2008 
This is a fairly weighty tome from the guys who used to do popular Dr Who magazine The Frame.
The information to the stories from all of Tom Baker's stories barring his last season is pretty detailed & much seems definitive. If You're a fan there will inevitably be stuff that you already know but for each few bits of stuff I knew, there were nuggets like Micheal Wisher being a late choice for Davros & a discussion about which type of the children's play muck "slime" was to be used to make a cheap mutant (this happened during Destiny of the Daleks). There is a short review titled a "critique" at the end of each story's entry & the writers wisely stick to their own opinions & defend their viewpoints, some of which are against so-called established classics. Even when they were dissing my favourite story (The Deadly Assassin), I found what they had to say interesting. Some stories like "Deadly", see the writers fight it out with both a prosecution & a defence.
There are sidebars exploring chronology between stories & continuity issues that are done with humour & no where near as anoraky as the "Star Trek Nitpicker" tomes of Phil Farrand.
Their observation that Davros & Nyder have a touch of Smithers & Burns from the Simpsons gives you an idea of how funny they can be.
A strongly recommended book.
The best book so far about the Pertwee era - By: A. A. Moodie, 15 Jan 2006 
In this outstanding book, Lawrence Miles & Tat Wood analyse the Jon Pertwee era of Doctor Who story by story. I must admit to having some misgivings beforehand, as Tat Wood is not exactly renowned as a Pertwee fan. I needn't have worried. The authors are overwhelmingly enthusiastic & fairin their assessment of the period. They also follow the example of the now-classic 'Discontinuity Guide'in their approach, combining a great love of the programme with a complete willingness to take the mickey - there are quite a few genuine laugh-out-loud momentsin this book.
Above all I really must applaud the authors for the freshness of the book; I've been reading this kind of thing for twenty years now & I really thought that with the Pertwee era having been pored over for so long there wouldn't be anything new to say about it. I was utterly wrong - & there are even some fascinating bits of trivia I'd never read before. There's also a transcription of part of what Pigbin Josh says, & that's worth the price of the book alone.
There are some less welcome aspects. Firstly, the proofreading of this book appears to have been practically non-existent, leading to a lot of irritating mistakes & some unintentional humour such as a "continent" of Daleks attacking Auderley House rather than a contingent. Secondly, there are some alarming errors of fact that the authors really ought to have checked. For instance, Reginald Maudling wasn't Edward Heath's Chancellor, nor was he ever imprisoned, but both howlers are confidently asserted herein the section dealing with 'The Green Death'.
However, these shortcomings are easily outweighed by the wealth of fresh insights Miles & Wood bring to a much-discussed subject. To really prove its worth, reading this book prompted me to dig out Colony In Space & take another look - that's how thought-provoking it is. In my opinion this is the best book ever written about the Jon Pertwee era. On the basis of my enjoyment of this volume I've already ordered their next instalment about the early Tom Baker years & I believe their Hartnell volume is due soon. Let's hope enough DW fans buy them all to ensure that Miles & Wood get to cover the entire series & don't become the David Saunders of the Noughties. I recommend this book unreservedly to fans of Doctor Who, & especially to fans of the Pertwee years.
An excellent guide - By: , 25 Jun 2005 I purchased this book on the recommendation of a reviewin a magazine & I didnt regret it.
As a Dr Who fan I round muchin this book (and the othersin the series) to interest & inform.
Perhaps not the type of book to sit & readin one go, but what episode guide is?
A feature of 'About time' I really enjoy are the essays on a variety of subjects surrounding the series ranging from 'Why is the music so important?' to 'A history of UNIT'.
A most enjoyable series of guides. Recommended for die hards & casual fans alike.
