''Sometime Never...'' is a

BBC Books BBC Books (also formerly known as BBC Consumer Publishing and BBC Publishing) is an imprint majority-owned and managed by Penguin Random House through its Ebury Publishing division. The minority shareholder is BBC Studios, the commercial subsidia ...

original novel written by

Justin Richards Justin Richards (born 14 September 1961) is a British writer. He has written science fiction and fantasy novels, including series set in Victorian or early-20th-century London, and also adventure stories set in the present day. He has written ...

and based on the long-running British

science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...

series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

''. It features the

Eighth Doctor The Eighth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Paul McGann. The character was introduced in the 1996 TV film ''Doctor Who'', a back-door p ...

Fitz Fitz (pronounced "fits") was a patronymic indicator used in Anglo-Norman England to help distinguish individuals by identifying their immediate predecessors. Meaning "son of", it would precede the father's forename, or less commonly a title held ...

Trix Trix may refer to: Brands and products * Trix (cereal), a breakfast cereal made by General Mills ** Trix yogurt, branded Yoplait yogurt * Trix (company), the German company that produced Trix construction and model train sets * Trix (construct ...

, and Miranda.

Plot summary

The Council of Eight have set plans for all of time and space. The Doctor's travels are causing difficulties for this plan, so the Council sets off to attack him, and his dear friends.

Continuity

The

epilogue An epilogue or epilog (from Greek ἐπίλογος ''epílogos'', "conclusion" from ἐπί ''epi'', "in addition" and λόγος ''logos'', "word") is a piece of writing at the end of a work of literature, usually used to bring closure to the ...

of the novel offers a possible explanation to the fan asked question of how the Doctor can still exist after the destruction of

Gallifrey The Time Lords are a fictional ancient race of extraterrestrial people in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Time Lords are so named for their command of time travel technology and their non-linear perception of t ...

in ''

The Ancestor Cell ''The Ancestor Cell'' is a novel by Peter Anghelides and Stephen Cole, based on the science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It features the Eighth Doctor, Fitz Kreiner, Compassion, and Romana III, as well as a brief appearance of t ...

''. In that novel, time is reversed to stop Gallifrey or the

Time Lords The Time Lords are a fictional ancient race of extraterrestrial people in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Time Lords are so named for their command of time travel Time travel is the hypothetical activity o ...

from ever existing, provoking confusion among fans. This novel shows the Doctor giving one of the council of Eight (Soul) some of his life energy to keep him alive. When Soul and Miranda's daughter Zezanne leave in Sabbath's time ship (the ''Jonah''), Soul takes on the form of an old man who resembles the

First Doctor The First Doctor is the original incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor William Hartnell in th ...

. They both lose their memories, but believe they are the First Doctor and

Susan Susan is a feminine given name, the usual English version of Susanna or Susannah. All are versions of the Hebrew name Shoshana, which is derived from the Hebrew ''shoshan'', meaning ''lotus flower'' in Egyptian, original derivation, and severa ...

. The ''Jonah'' arrives, disguised as a

Police Box A police box is a public telephone kiosk or callbox for the use of members of the police, or for members of the public to contact the police. It was used in some countries, most widely in the United Kingdom throughout the 20th century from th ...

in 1963, with Octan's Starkiller (replacing the

Hand of Omega ''Remembrance of the Daleks'' is the first serial of the Doctor Who (season 25), 25th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. The serial was first broadcast in four weekly episodes from 5 to 26 October 1988. It was ...

). This potentially

retcons Retroactive continuity, or retcon for short, is a literary device in fictional story telling whereby facts and events established through the narrative itself are adjusted, ignored, supplemented, or contradicted by a subsequently published work ...

the entire series, giving an alternative explanation to the Doctor's origins without the Time Lords. This however contradicts the revelations about Gallifrey's destruction in '' The Gallifrey Chronicles'', where it is revealed that while Gallifrey was destroyed, the Time Lords were not erased from history. However, the cataclysm set up an event horizon in time that prevented anyone from entering Gallifrey's relative past or travelling from it to the present or future. The Time Lords also survived within the Matrix, which had been downloaded into the Eighth Doctor's mind, with the intention of restoring the Time Lords and Gallifrey.

Continuity

*While talking to the image of the

Master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

, the Doctor mentions that "Somewhere... the tea will be getting cold", a reference to the

Seventh Doctor The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy. Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-o ...

's final speech in ''

Survival Survival or survivorship, the act of surviving, is the propensity of something to continue existing, particularly when this is done despite conditions that might kill or destroy it. The concept can be applied to humans and other living things ...

''. *In the end of this novel

Jo Grant Josephine "Jo" Grant, later Jo Jones, is a fictional character played by Katy Manning in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Jo was introduced by Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks in the first episode of '' ...

is seen alive and well, indicating that all the companions that the Council of Eight killed have returned to their normal time lines.

Notes

*Sabbath's allies were originally

Daleks The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Na ...

, but legal issues prevented this and the Council of Eight were a last-minute replacement. This means that the black eye sun mentioned in earlier novels, originally meant to tie in with the revelation of Sabbath's allies being Daleks, has not been explained. However, it is implied that the Daleks are watching Soul and Zezanne leaving the station, hinting at a new version of ''

Remembrance of the Daleks ''Remembrance of the Daleks'' is the first serial of the 25th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. The serial was first broadcast in four weekly episodes from 5 to 26 October 1988. It was written by Ben Aaronov ...

''.

References

External links

The Cloister Library - ''Sometime Never...''
* {{Master stories, selected=Books 2004 British novels 2004 science fiction novels Eighth Doctor Adventures Novels by Justin Richards Sometime