Exterminate/Regenerate by John Higgs - ISBN: 9781399614771
Hardcover
Doctor Who’s wild off-screen story: change, mystery, and imaginary heroes.

Exterminate/Regenerate

The Story of Doctor Who

$49.05

  • Hardcover

    464 pages

  • Release Date

    8 July 2025

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Summary

AN INDEPENDENT BEST BOOK OF 2025

“Absolutely wonderful. The book I’ve been waiting to read since I was ten years old. Full of surprising and piercing insights … The first thing I’ve come across that absolutely nails the extraordinary nature of the cultural phenomenon that is Doctor Who” - JEREMY DYSON

On screen, Doctor Who is a story of monsters, imagination and mind-expanding adventure. But the off-screen story is equally extraordin…

Book Details

ISBN-13:9781399614771
ISBN-10:1399614770
Author:John Higgs
Publisher:Orion Publishing Co
Imprint:Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Format:Hardcover
Number of Pages:464
Release Date:8 July 2025
Weight:692g
Dimensions:240mm x 162mm x 42mm
What They're Saying

Critics Review

Rich with trivia … Higgs is an engaging, entertaining guide. Exterminate/Regenerate captures much of the warmth, wit and worthiness of this thoroughly British institution * THE TIMES *Crammed with fascinating nuggets … Surprisingly candid … Exterminate/Regenerate is a cracking read * INDEPENDENT, Biography of the Month *Engrossing … anyone interested in television or cultural history will find it fascinating – Neil Armstrong * MAIL ON SUNDAY *Higgs does a meticulous job … The sort of capsule study that uses this genuinely odd and enduring show as a means to probe the travails of TV land and British society itself over the past 60 years – Travis Elborough * SPECTATOR *A cultural history of one of the most enduring creations of the 1960s … Unmissable * THE HERALD *A TARDIS of a book. On the outside it’s about a TV show, but open it up and you’re plunged into the space-time continuum. John Higgs is your man for seeing eternity in a grain of sand – FRANK COTTRELL-BOYCEAbsolutely wonderful. The book I’ve been waiting to read since I was ten years old. Full of surprising and piercing insights, and fascinating meditations on the nature of mystery. The first thing I’ve come across that absolutely nails the extraordinary nature of the cultural phenomenon that is Doctor Who. Like its subject, it’s about so much more than it appears to be – JEREMY DYSONWith his usual mix of cultural savvy and sharp philosophical insight, John Higgs frees Doctor Who from the rubber tendrils of fandom to reveal an unkillable British myth which millions of us helped create together – JOEL MORRISFull of interesting tidbits and perfect for the Doctor Who fan in your life – JENNY COLGANEpic, pacey and blisteringly insightful. Higgs is a masterful guide to one of the weirdest elements in British pop culture. This is an adventure in time and space which manages to be thrilling, laugh-out-loud funny and oddly melancholic, often on a single page. He gives us the full authoritative story of Doctor Who. And along the way, we learn a great deal about modern Britain, our weird relationship with change, and the haunted corridors of our own childhood – IAN DUNTWonderful! You do not need to be a Whovian to delight at John Higgs’s journey through Doctor Who, but you may well be one by the end of the book – ROBIN INCEOne of the greatest books on a cultural phenomenon ever written … I found myself giggling and chortling throughout, heard myself make little gasps of recognition and at certain points, there were even tears. It is brilliantly insightful [and] absolutely essential reading for anyone interested in pop culture and modern storytelling. Read this book – NICK ABADZISAstute … there are engaging new theories to share and fascinating connections to trace. A fitting biography * SFX magazine *Though chronological, the book takes a suitably ‘timey-wimey’ approach, with frequent diversions into the lives of its stars, writers and producers, its narrative parallels with English and Norse folklore, Dickens, Tolkien and Buddhism, and the political and cultural forces that have guided its evolution … Illuminating * RADIO TIMES *I was very taken with Higgs’s “biography of the infamous Time Lord”. As well as being a study of the famous science fiction character, [Higgs] offers telling insights into British society and the failings of the BBC. There are shocking accounts of bad-tempered, homophobic, heavy-drinking, sexist actors and corporate bigwigs in the mix of a book that is also crammed with fascinating nuggets about the Doctor Who villains * INDEPENDENT, Books of the Year *An absorbing, engaging and gossipy history of Doctor Who, full of new insight and detail - both comprehensive and breezy, and so bigger on the inside. A joyous celebration of a British institution – SIMON GUERRIER, author of DAVID WHITAKER IN AN EXCITING ADVENTURE WITH TELEVISION

About The Author

John Higgs

John Higgs is the author of I HAVE AMERICA SURROUNDED, THE KLF, STRANGER THAN WE CAN IMAGINE, WATLING STREET, THE FUTURE STARTS HERE, WILLIAM BLAKE NOW, WILLIAM BLAKE VS THE WORLD and LOVE AND LET DIE. He lives in Brighton.

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