Exterminate! Regenerate! The Story of Doctor Who with John Higgs
Books on the Rise, 80 Hill Rise, TW10 6UB
Culture
6 May 2026
Wednesday 6 May
Join us as we discuss the history of the longest running Sci-Fi show of all time Doctor Who at Books on the Rise!
About Exterminate! Regenerate! The Story of Doctor Who by John Higgs:
From the author of cult classics THE KLF and WILLIAM BLAKE VS THE WORLD, this is the stranger than fiction story of TV's favourite time traveller
On screen, Doctor Who is a story of monsters, imagination and mind-expanding adventure. But the off-screen story is equally extraordinary – a tale of failed monks, war heroes, 1960s polyamory and self-sabotaging broadcasting executives. From the politics of fandom to the inner struggles of the BBC, thousands of people have given part of themselves – and sometimes, too much of themselves – to bring this unlikeliest of folk heroes to life.
This is a story of change, mystery and the importance of imaginary characters in our lives. Able to evolve and adapt more radically than any other fiction, Doctor Who has acted as a mirror to more than six decades of social, technological and cultural change while always remaining a central fixture of the British imagination. In Exterminate / Regenerate, John Higgs invites us into his TARDIS on a journey to discover how ideas emerge and survive despite the odds, why we are so addicted to fiction, and why this wonderful wandering time traveller means so much to so many.
About John Higgs:
John Higgs is a writer who specialises in finding previously unsuspected narratives, hidden in obscure corners of our history and culture, which can change the way we see the world. His work has been described as "absolutely wonderful" by Terry Gilliam and "breathtakingly lucid" by Alan Moore. According to The Times, "Higgs's prose has a diamond-hard quality. He knows how to make us relate." His books include: The KLF, Watling Street, William Blake Vs The World, Exterminate/Regenerate and Love And Let Die: Bond, the Beatles and the British Psyche.
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