"Regeneration"
by Philip Segal and Gary Russell

Doctor Who: Regeneration, published in 2000, is a reference book that covers the genesis and development of the 1996 TV movie starring Paul McGann. The book is written by executive producer Philip Segal and regular tie-in author Gary Russell, who take turns in contributing, alternating between Segal's first-hand reminiscences from behind the scenes and Russell's colder factual summaries.

Splitting the text between the two writers and structuring the book chronologically give Regeneration a very narrative feel - there's a really strong sense of the authors acting as your guides and telling you the story bit by bit. On the one hand, this makes it hard to dip into the book at random, but it also makes it an enjoyable and engrossing read which contrasts with other similar publications.

Segal, perhaps due to the fact that this book was published four years after the Movie was released, is refreshingly honest and blunt in his writing. He doesn't hide the fact that he disliked Doctor Who in the eighties, that he only realised Sylvester McCoy had any sort of acting ability when meeting him in person, or that he had numerous creative differences with various other contributors to the project. Even when differences have been resolved and the conflicting parties are now reconciled, he doesn't shy away from detailing what things were like at the time.

Regeneration also features extracts from earlier versions of the movie, including the fascinating series bible created for John Leekley's initial idea for the show's reinvention - complete with pirate-like Cybermen, atrocious Spider Daleks and limp-sounding adaptations of previous episodes. The gradual evolution of these early proposals into what finally appeared onscreen is fascinating, and the sketches and art included are a nice insight.

Perhaps the best section of the book is the summary of the final movie itself, which is accompanied by a "commentary" from director Geoffrey Sax and actors Daphne Ashbrook, Sylvester McCoy and Yee Jee Tso. Their recollections and opinions are really good fun, and  it's great that the performers' perspective is included in what's otherwise quite a production-heavy book. My only disappointment with this segment is that I would have loved to hear from Paul McGann himself, but it stands up as strong nonetheless.

This is a detailed guide and a genuinely interesting read. "Unputdownable" is often applied to fiction, but Regeneration is a rare case where it could be applied to non-fiction too. A concise but varied chronicle of one of Doctor Who's most fascinating eras.