Doctor Who Ghost Light Marc Platt 1990 First Edition Paperback Target

⚡ **Doctor Who: Ghost Light by Marc Platt — 1990 First Edition Target Paperback**

*The novelisation of the last produced serial of classic Doctor Who, set in a haunted Victorian mansion where evolution itself is the villain*

**THE STORY**

Published by Target Books in 1990, this is the first edition novelisation of Ghost Light, the second serial of Season 26 (1989). Written by Marc Platt, who also authored the original television script, the novel expands on the broadcast version with additional scenes and internal monologue. The Seventh Doctor and Ace arrive at Gabriel Chase, a sinister Victorian mansion in 1883 Perivale, where reclusive naturalist Josiah Samuel Smith conducts disturbing experiments. What they uncover is an alien spaceship buried beneath the estate, its sleeping master about to wake with plans to destroy all organic life on Earth. The dual timeline — 1883 and 1983 — reveals that the burning of this house is already written in the future.

**THE AUTHOR AND PRODUCTION**

Marc Platt was one of only two writers in Doctor Who history (the other being Andrew Smith) to have a script accepted with no professional writing background. Working as a BBC radio archivist, Platt drew on his knowledge of broadcasting history to craft a story about evolution, alien biology, and a haunted house that Sylvester McCoy later named his favorite serial. Script editor Andrew Cartmel called it “the jewel in the crown” of the Seventh Doctor era. The novel was published by Target Books, the Virgin Publishing imprint responsible for the entire Doctor Who novelisation library of 149 titles.

**THE BOOK**

This Target paperback is number 149 in the series, the final novelisation published. The cover art features the distinctive collage style typical of late Target releases: portraits of key characters, a silhouetted haunted house with lightning, mathematical equations, and the intense blue eye motif that runs through the story. The interior is 160 pages of black-and-white text on standard paperback stock, with the original £2.50 UK price and $3.95 US price on the back cover. ISBN 0-426-20351-8.

**WHY IT MATTERS**

– Novelisation of the last produced serial of classic Doctor Who (Season 26, 1989)
– Marc Platt expanded the novel beyond the TV script with additional scenes
– Target Books #149 — the final entry in the Target novelisation series
– Features the Seventh Doctor and Ace at Gabriel Chase in 1883
– Sylvester McCoy named this his favorite serial; Andrew Cartmel called it “the jewel in the crown”
– Platt described the story as “The Addams Family on acid”

**FOR COLLECTORS**

Ghost Light is one of the scarcer Target novelisations, and first edition copies in very good condition are increasingly sought after by Doctor Who collectors. The Target Books line of 149 novelisations is considered complete, making each individual title a fixed point in Doctor Who publishing history.

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**CONDITION:**
This is a “very good”. The spine is tight and square, the covers close tight and flat. No writing, no loose, torn or folded pages. The upper portion of the text block is tanned and there is foxing inside the covers. Mild surface wear to glossy covers, a little wear at cover edges.

Please review accompanying images for full condition details.

What will Ace and the Doctor find in the ancient Victorian mansion?

Find out in this wonderful vintage paperback!

Will ship to you promptly, carefully packaged.

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