The Terrible Zodin Issue 25 . . . 15 years in the making! Now available for download!

Happy anniversary, Doctor Who!  It's been 60 years since Doctor Who first appeared on our screens.  

It's also been 15 years since The Terrible Zodin fanzine debuted.  Download our last issue here--there's plenty to enjoy!  

Featuring 

 

• Interviews with FailWhale34 and Dr. Erin Macdonald
• 60 Great Things about Doctor Who as decided by our contributors
• Material on Terrance Dicks and his writing career outside of Doctor Who
• Short fiction by Matthew Kilburn, Matthew Kresal, Nathan Mullins, and Mike Morgan 
• What it's like to get inside a Dalek
• What do younger fans think about Doctor Who?:  interviews with four young fans
• a TTZ retrospective
• Doctor Who and employment law
• The Pigbin Josh Collection on DVD
  
• Front cover by Leslie McMurtry, back cover (and tons of art!) by Steven Sautter  

 

& much more!

 

Thanks to all of our contributors over the years, and we hope you enjoy this issue! 

The Terrible Zodin issue 24 (Spring 2023)

"Time profresor, it is all a matter of time" - Count Scarlioni aka Scaroth, City of Death (1979)

We're back and it's about time too. With apologies for the lengthy wait, please find below a brand new issue of The Terrible Zodin.

Here you can find the mythology of Doctor Who canon, musings on the Thirteenth Doctor's relationship with The Fam, two original fanfics and a look at hats in Doctor Who.

Enjoy this penultimate issue of the zine and if you'd like to be involved in the final edition please get in touch

The Terrible Zodin issue 24

The Terrible Zodin Issue 23 Summer 2021

Out of lockdown, into some (?) kind of normalcy, we bring you issue 23 of The Terrible Zodin!  Marvel at the fantastic artwork (including the return of the paper dolls)!  Find out what makes the mind of a Big Finish writer tick in our interview with Rob Valentine!  We have reviews of TV, books, and audio dramas.  Jamie Beckwith takes Doctor Who around the world, and Matthew Kresal tells Virginia that yes, there are pre-Hartnell Doctors (and foregrounds what is possibly Steven Sautter's best piece of artwork for TTZ yet!).  Come on, Fam, join us in downloading issue 23!

The issue can be downloaded (right click, save as) here. 

The Terrible Zodin 22 - Summer 2020

It's back and it's about time too!

Issue 22 of The Terrible Zodin is now available to download for free here.

This issue takes an in depth look at the Thirteenth Doctor era to date as well as giving a fresh look at some classic series episodes. We talk about how Doctor Who and its fandom has kept us going during lockdown, and we present to you the best in original artwork and fanfiction.

In these pages you will find Space Bees from Mars, Hospital Ghosts, lots of statistics, Burn Gorman's chickens, Brigadier Sir Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart, spectrox toxemia, "Power of the Daleks" and even a pub quiz!

Please enjoy and please let us know what you think.

TTZ 21--ready to download!

Here is the newest issue!

The Terrible Zodin 21 (right click to save)

In this issue, we anticipate Jodie Whittaker's tenure as the Doctor.  The rest is short and sweet!

Inside you can find tachyons, Target, and "Twice Upon a Time" . . . and much more besides!

Call for contributors for 55th anniversary special edition

Issue 21 of The Terrible Zodin is being worked on as we speak and likely to be available to download for free in August.

Meanwhile we're looking ahead to the 55th anniversary and we're looking to produce a special edition side issue of classic series reviews aimed at interested people who have not yet or have only tentatively dipped in to the original stuff.

For the purposes of this edition our definition of classic series is every broadcast story between An Unearthly Child through to Survival, plus Shada and as a bonus Dimensions in Time, K9 & Company and the two Peter Cushing movies. Please also note that we count The Trial of a Time Lord as one 14 episode story.

Review length as a guideline should be minimum 500 words and maximum 2000 for a standard 4 - 6 part story, with leeway given for stories longer than this if needed.

Reviews will be assigned on a first come first served basis so if you're interested in writing something please also give us one or two back up choices as well.

We want this special edition to appeal to people who might be coming to the original series for the first time, especially off the back of falling in love with the Thirteenth Doctor, though we of course hope that more seasoned fans will also get something out of this.

For that reason we're also really asking you to step outside your comfort zone. Don't just pick your favourite story, that's too easy; pick one that you can champion and which lets you also see the story in a new light. If you love historicals pick one set in the future. If your favourite era is Pertwee, consider a Colin Baker and so on.

Deadline for submissions is Sunday 7 October 2018. You can email us at theterriblezodinezine@yahoo.com, DM us on twitter @TerribleZodin or interact with us on the Facebook group. We'll pin a thread on the Facebook thread with a live tally of which stories have already been picked.

Can't wait to hear from you

Tin Pod #33 - Interview with The Terrible Zodin

Leslie and Jamie were recently interviewed about The Terrible Zodin and all things Doctor Who for Tin Pod Radio. It's now available to stream online at Tin Pod #33

Our thanks to Brian Williams for reaching out to us and we hope to get invited back one day.

Enjoy

TTZ 20 is here at last!

Issue 20 of The Terrible Zodin is now online and free to download.  In it you will find reviews of season 10, pieces on the casting of Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, fiction by Matthew Kilburn, the "Zarbest" meeting with Peter Capaldi in San Francisco, and a host of other delectable reads and brilliant artwork. 

We hope you enjoy.  Please right click to download here.

British Science Fiction Association and the Terrible Zodin present ... Dr Edward Gomez!

One of our interviewees in TTZ19, Dr Edward Gomez, will be speaking at the British Science Fiction Association meeting on January 25th in London. I encourage all TTZ members in the area to come to the event which promises to be mind-expanding and probably quite funny too. Here are the details: 

Venue: The Artillery Arms
102 Bunhill Row
London EC1Y 8ND
6:30 pm start time

In addition to the talk and Q&A, there will be a book raffle, five tickets for £1. I hope to see you there!!

 

The Terrible Zodin 19

The Terrible Zodin 19 is finally here!

Find within interviews with Paul McGann, Dr Edward Gomez, and reviews of the BBC books by women writers and women readers.  There is some stunning art as per usual and articles on "Power of the Daleks," companions, the Past Doctor Adventures, and much more! 

Also enjoy the fact that it's only 31 pages!

You can download it here.

Please let us know what you think. 

Sixth Terrible Zodin Doctor Who Fans Meet Up (30/04/16)

The sixth annual Terrible Zodin Doctor Who fans meet up will be on Saturday 30th April 2016.

The itinerary is as follows

In the morning Leslie and I will be going to the Target Book Artwork exhibition at the Cartoon Museum. Anyone who would like to join us there is more than welcome.

The Cartoon Museum is on 35 Little Russell Street, WC1A 2HH. The nearest tube stations are Tottenham Court Road and Holborn.

For those not so familiar with the area we're happy to meet people between 11:00 - 11:30 and go to the Museum together. We'll be coming to Holborn but as that is an extremely busy station to stand outside our meeting point will actually be by the traffic lights in front of My Old Dutch pancake restaurant on 131 High Holborn, WC1V 6PS.

Tickts for the museum are £7 with £5 concession for seniors and £3 for students. According to the exhibition's Facebook there is discounted entry if you bring a copy of Doctor Who Magazine with you!

The pub meet up will be from 14:00 onwards at The Cittie of Yorke pub, 22 High Holborn, WC1V 6BN. The nearest tube station is Chancery Lane. The pub is about 10 minutes walk from the Cartoon Museum or one stop on the Central Line if you're really really lazy or it's still snowing!

I'll post my phone number on TTZ's Facebook Page on Saturday morning.

The most up to date information will be on on the Facdbook page so please visit https://www.facebook.com/events/864751613633689 for more details.

Are you a woman? Do you like Doctor Who?

If the answer is yes, consider this ... In the next issue of TTZ, we are looking for female reviewers for the following BBC Books.  If you think you might like to write a 200-word review of any of these, please drop us a line at theterriblezodinezine AT yahoo dot co dot uk.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Please note, you will have to get hold of the books yourselves, we cannot send review copies.

Year	Author	Title	Doctor/Companion	reviewer
2009	Jacqueline Rayner	The Sontaran Games (Quick Read)	Ten
2009	Jacqueline Rayner	The Darksmith Legacy:  Pictures of Emptiness	Ten
2010	Una McCormack	The King’s Dragon	Eleven/Rory/Amy
2011	Una McCormack	The Way Through the Woods	Eleven/Rory/Amy
2012	Richard Dungworth/Jacqueline Rayner	Step Back in Time (2 in 1)	Eleven/Rory/Amy
2012	Jacqueline Rayner	Magic of the Angels (Quick Read)	Eleven/Rory/Amy

The Terrible Zodin #18 (Spring 2016)

*Vworp, Vworp, Vworp, Vworp*

The brand new Spring 2016 issue of The Terrible Zodin is now available to download for FREE! Isn't life great?

In this issue as well as a full review of every episode of Season 9 we have a an indepth look at the Missing Adventures range of novels from the so called Wilderness Years. We also have articles on the Sixth Doctor, the Black Guardian, the Merchandise that Never Made It (Thankfully!), Season 6(b) and sprained ankles!

In our regular features we show some PDA for the PDAs, Delta and the Bannermen gets the No! Not the Mind Probe! treatment, there are Romana paperdolls and thanks to that wibbly wobbly time/space vortex the Back2theWhoture team watch The Magician's Apprentice and The Witch's Familiar.

We're also bringing you original Third Doctor fiction and all the best artwork from you creative Whovians out there, much of it exclusive to TTZ.

Oh and there's a surprise appearance from Gene Hunt and Alex Drake too!

It's 98 pages of Doctor Who flavoured fun. We really hope you enjoy this issue and we would love to get your feedback. Many many woman hours go in to putting this all together and we couldn't do it without our contributors and we wouldn't do it without dear readers. Get in touch via email at theterriblezodinezine@yahoo.co.uk, via Twitter @TerribleZodin and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/34701043842/?fref=ts



Click here to download The Terrible Zodin #18 (Spring 2015)

TTZ Doctor Who Fans Meet Up on 01/08/15

Dear all,

We'll be hosting the fifth Terrible Zodin Doctor Who fans meet up on Saturday 1st August 2015 at The Mitre in Lancaster Gate, W2 3QH from 2pm till whenever they kick us out.

The nearest tube station is Lancaster Gate on the Central Line and the nearest train station is Paddington (which is also has a tube station served by the Bakerloo, Circle, District and Hammersmith & City Lines). If you're not a native to London, don't be fooled by the tube map which makes them seem miles apart, Lancaster Gate and Paddington are actually just a 5 - 10 minute walk from each other.

Stay in touch via the Facebook Event Page

The Terrible Zodin #17 (Summer 2015)

**ETA Alies' article**

Like they said back in 1996, we're back "and it's about time too!"

Issue 17 of The Terrible Zodin is now all yours to download and it's totally free of charge!

In this jam packed issue we've got reviews of the most recent Doctor Who episodes from Day of the Doctor through to Last Christmas. We look back on 50+ years of our favorite show and taking in everything from Dennis Spooner to the truth about the Valeyard with a thesis on Torchwood and Welsh National Identity along the way!

Not only that but we have instructions on how to build your own Special Weapons Dalek, listen to some outer space hip hop and there's guest appearances from Professor Brian Cox and Broadchurch's DI Hardy.

Oh and didn't we mention the Dinosaurs?

All this and more packed in to 84 pages of Who flavored fun. We really hope you like this issue and we welcome your feedback. Get in touch via theterriblezodinezine@yahoo.co.uk, join the discussions on the Facebook page and follow us on Twitter.

Sorry for the delay in getting this issue to you (we did originally say we were aiming for August 2014!) but in that time our Editor Leslie McMurtry has graduated from Swansea University with her PhD which means 1.) she now has a lot more free time and work has already started on issue 18 and 2.) we get to call her Doctor!

Click here to download The Terrible Zodin #17 (Summer 2015)

Eeek!

There is still life!

Watch this space for a new issue coming soon!

How Fanzines Helped Put Doctor Who Fans in Charge of Doctor Who

Enjoy! 

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/12/how-fanzines-helped-put-em-doctor-who-em-fans-in-charge-of-em-doctor-who-em/282631/

An Adventure in Time and Space vs Verity Lambert, 28

a subjective review of the recent film for television by the editor of The Terrible Zodin (so don't blame anyone else for it)

Back when I'd heard about An Adventure in Time and Space being written by Mark Gatiss, I had bittersweet feelings, because I knew this TV version would hog all the glory and everyone would think I had ripped it off to write Verity Lambert, 28, even though I knew in my heart my audio play version would be just as good and at least as original (haha, if you can't big yourself up, who else will?). AAiTaS was quite enjoyable, and I'm glad to report that though it shared many things in common with VL28, it's quite obvious to say that AAiTaS is William Hartnell's story and VL28 is, obviously, Verity Lambert's story. It's obviously taken advantage of Jessica Carney's moving and interesting biography of her grandfather, William Hartnell, which is no bad thing at all—in fact, I do hope someone (ME!) writes a biopic of Hartnell that covers the period leading up to Doctor Who, in particular his earliest years through his 30s, which are quite fascinating.


AAiTaS is also a big cheese-fest, and in that sense it feels more Christmas-y to me than many a Doctor Who Christmas Special. This is due in part to the syrupy music by Edmund Butt which goes for overkill many-a-time when it should be calming the hell down. Despite the inherent sadness in the story they've chosen to tell (which, let's face it, hits a Who fan in the core of his or her heart; calculated tugging-o'-the-heartstrings), much of the programme has a light touch. Certainly there are dramatic moments, but, aside from the Hartnell conflicts, things waft along with hardly an obstacle (aside from a few racist and sexist minor characters). However, I, too, wafted along with a glazy-eyed smile most of the time—it was entertainment. And mostly true, too—at least from the research I've done.


I liked that there was a pally relationship envisioned between Verity and Waris Hussein, something in my gut I felt existed, too, and indeed Jessica Raine and Sacha Dhawan, respectively, were exactly as I had imagined the characters in my mind when I wrote them. Indeed, there are two scenes from AAiTaS that really stick out because, if I didn't know better, I would have said Mark Gatiss was reading my script from over my shoulder. These are the party scene that introduces us to both Verity and Jackie Hill (Jemma Powell), similar in a lot of ways to the party scene I had written in VL28. Amazingly similar—down to lines of dialogue like “We've got to stick this out together”--was the scene at the pub in which Verity and Waris bond to fight the Establishment. Granted, Gatiss' Verity reacts a lot more lightheartedly to hints that Waris is gay than my Verity did. I enjoyed their camaraderie in AAiTaS and could sense that the programme-makers didn't want this partnership to end after “Marco Polo” either.


I loved all the scenes set in the Hartnells' house, which looked exactly like I pictured it (though that must be due to Carney's photos in the book). I loved that Carney herself was there with her Sanpaw, and I loved the way the relationship with Heather Hartnell was established. Okay, for all the cheese, I did get a tear in my eye when Hartnell broke down with an “I don't want to go.” David Bradley made an excellent Hartnell. I do hope Carney's book is getting back in print because she is going to make a mint after this programme.


As did VL28, AAiTaS had to make judicious choices about cutting down its production team cast. It foregrounded Carole Ann Ford (Claudia Grant) and her relationship with Hartnell (as did VL28), though it's a shame we didn't get to see this relationship extended with Maureen O'Brien. Jeff Rawle was great fun as Mervyn Pinfield, the voice of reason (“My dear lady”), though where on Earth was Donald Wilson? And for that matter, David Whitaker? As Verity herself said in AAiTaS, so many people were there for Doctor Who's birth—flying credits due to Brian Hodgson, Delia Derbyshire, and Bernard Lodge—that not everyone could get crammed in. However, upon one thing I think we can agree: Brian Cox's was a star turn as Sydney Newman. And yes, he did say Verity was full of “piss and vinegar,” he did take them to lunch at a Chinese restaurant and tell them to shoot the pilot again, he did call up Verity and ask her what she knew about children. And Rex Tucker, at least from Verity's recollections, was a real jerk; and the sprinklers did go off in Studio D Lime Grove if it got too hot; Peter Brachacki did drag his feet on designing the TARDIS interior (though, to be fair, that was a brilliant scene). So, as far as I can tell, Gatiss didn't have much to invent. The story is a good one, and it's there to begin with. But certainly the framing narrative and the ability to condense four years into a few moments was a good way to summarize the heart of the Hartnell story.


There were some excellent moments from director Terry McDonogh: gazing up inside the Dalek shell will no doubt have delighted many, as will the Daleks on Westminster Bridge and the many views of BBC Television Centre. Playful blink-and-you'll-miss-them touches abounded, “Tenth Planet” Cybermen and Menoptera smoking being but a few. It was great fun to see the cameos (Carole Ann Ford, Anneke Wills, Jean Marsh, Nicholas Briggs, Tony Robinson, though I confess I completely missed the William Russell one—shame on me!). And certainly the BBC knows how to recreate the BBC from 1963 as only the BBC can! Definitely going to need to do some Verity Lambert paper dolls; as she said herself, the woman could shop for England! And oh yes, managed to figure out that the farewell party to Verity was filmed in the Tivoli Ballroom, near where I live.


Though I get the drift of trying to describe visually and in a few seconds the way Hartnell said he knew Doctor Who would go on forever, Matt Smith making a guest appearance was like so much cheese as to make a cheese-vomit sandwich. IMHO. And the Patrick Troughton bits felt very alien; that's a whole different story, surely? (A dramatisation of Michael Troughton's biography would make a bombshell companion piece of AaiTaS.)

I hope it doesn't seem like sour grapes that I keep bringing up the parallels to VL28 (I'm only human, after all). I guess I should take it as a compliment that Gatiss and I had many similar ideas of how to tell this story. Time will tell (haha!) if this dramatisation cloys with age, but I found it to be an ego-caressing (mine!) enjoyable piece of entertainment.

Doctor Who Day at the Dylan Thomas Centre in Swansea

The Dylan Thomas Festival to be invaded by Daleks

To celebrate the 50th anniversary, the 2013 Dylan Thomas Festival in Swansea, Wales will be hosting a Doctor Who Day on Saturday 2 November.  Yours truly (TTZ's editor) is organising it, and we'd love to see you there.  

We have historians Matthew Kilburn and Alwyn Turner talking about 1963 and Terry Nation.  We have Peter Miles, he of many villainous Who roles but especially remembered for Nyder from "Genesis of the Daleks," in conversation with Phil Parsons and his Dalek collection.

We have comics mastermind Mike Collins giving an art workshop for kids (it's practically sold out so get your tickets now!).  

We have a Writers' Panel with Phil Ford of The Sarah Jane Adventures, James Moran, Joseph Lidster, Una McCormack, David Llewellyn, and Simon Guerrier.

We have an evening celebration with the one and only Louise Jameson reading Dylan Thomas poetry (you don't get that very often!).

It looks to be a fun and interesting event, a little different from your traditional conventions and a little different from the other events during the Festival.  It's also a fair bit more affordable than the average convention.   

We would love to see you there! 

The Dylan Thomas Festival runs from 27 October – 9 November. 
 
Visit www.dylanthomas.com for more information on the Dylan Thomas Centre.


2014 will mark the centenary of the birth of Dylan Thomas in Swansea and a series of events are being planned to commemorate one of the world’s greatest poets.

The Terrible Zodin #16 (Fall 2013)

We’re back! And it’s about time too!

Issue 16 of The Terrible Zodin is now available for your delight and edification.

As the only issue we’re putting out this year TTZ16 clocks in at 125 pages, full of Doctor Who goodness as we approach the 50th anniversary of the show.

In this celebratory issue we bring you 50 Brilliant Things About Doctor Who (And 11 More!) Our review panel tackle Season 7.2 and we bring you interviews with Nick Briggs, India Fisher and Marnix van den Broeke. We also bring you the results of our Classic Series poll – find out which story our readers voted their favorite and we didn’t just stick to the TV show, the wider Whoniverse is celebrated in audio, novel and comic strip form.

We’re pleased to bring you a brand new column focusing on the Past Doctor Adventures novels and the Back2theWhoture team tackle The Aztecs. In these pages you’ll also find a reappraisal of Dodo Chaplet, Captain Jack’s Guide to the Second Doctor, the politics of the Swampies and the Case for the Return of the Rani. All that and Richard Hurndall too!

With just under 50 days to go until the anniversary itself and with rumors abound that a stash of missing episodes have been found we live in exciting times. We hope TTZ16 will tide you over until the big day itself and we would really love to have your feedback, good or bad on what you think of the new issue. We’ve listened to your comments before and you’ll see we’re debuting a new font and column style in response.

Plans are already afoot for TTZ17 (But as the PHD ramps up in to the final stages, it probably won’t be any time before August 2014); if you want to be a part of it please drop us an email at theterriblezodinezine@yahoo.co.uk or join us over on Facebook and Twitter.

GERONIMO!

Click here to download The Terrible Zodin #16 (Fall 2013)