Whitaker, David
Entry updated 12 September 2022. Tagged: Author, Theatre, TV.
(1928-1980) UK Television scriptwriter and editor who as the first story editor of Doctor Who oversaw the writing of this series' first 51 episodes (1963-1964) and contributed several scripts of his own in the mid- to late 1960s. Whitaker wrote the first Doctor Who novelization, Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure with the Daleks (1964; vt Doctor Who and the Daleks 1973). This well-crafted narrative was closely based on Terry Nation's script for the first Daleks storyline, broadcast as The Mutants (1963-1964) and later generally known as The Daleks; though Whitaker was given as sole author on the title page, copyright was shared with Nation. Another Tie followed, Doctor Who and the Crusaders (1965), novelizing his own script for The Crusade (1965). With Terry Nation he scripted the Dalek stage play The Curse of the Daleks (first performed 1965), which omitted other television series elements such as the Doctor and the TARDIS. The one-page Daleks strip that ran 1965-1966 in the weekly UK Comic TV Century 21 was credited to Nation but written by Whitaker. [DRL]
David Whitaker
born Knebworth, Hertfordshire: 18 April 1928
died London: 4 February 1980
works
series
Doctor Who
- Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure with the Daleks (London: Frederick Muller, 1964) [tie to Doctor Who: Doctor Who: illus/hb/Arnold Schwartzman]
- Doctor Who and the Daleks (London: Target Books, 1973) [tie to Doctor Who: vt of the above: Doctor Who: pb/Chris Achilleos]
- Doctor Who and the Crusaders (London: Frederick Muller, 1965) [tie to Doctor Who: Doctor Who: illus/hb/Henry Fox]
- The Curse of the Daleks with Terry Nation [play: first performed 21 December 1965 Wyndham Theatre, London: technically not Doctor Who]
Doctor Who: The Scripts
- Doctor Who: The Scripts: The Power of the Daleks (London: Titan Books, 1993) [Doctor Who: The Scripts: pb/]
- Doctor Who: The Scripts: The Crusade (London: Titan Books, 1994) [Doctor Who: The Scripts: pb/]
links
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