David Whitaker | |
|---|---|
 Whitaker in an image from a documentary on the DVD release ofThe Edge of Destruction | |
| Born | David Arthur Whitaker (1928-04-18)18 April 1928 Knebworth,Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom |
| Died | 4 February 1980(1980-02-04) (aged 51) |
| Occupation(s) | TVscript editor andwriter |
| Years active | 1957–1973 |
| Known for | FirstDoctor Who script editor |
| Spouse | June Barry |
David Arthur Whitaker (18 April 1928 – 4 February 1980) was an English television writer and novelist who worked on the early years of thescience-fiction TV seriesDoctor Who. He served as the programme's firststory editor, supervising the writing of its first 51 episodes from 1963 to 1964.
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Prior to joining the BBC, Whitaker worked as a writer, actor and director with the York Repertory Group. A play he wrote for them,A Choice of Partners (1957),[1] gained the attention of the BBC's script department. They commissioned Whitaker to work on the seriesGarry Halliday and the soap operaCompact.[2]
Whitaker was employed as the original story editor forDoctor Who, being appointed on or around 24 June 1963.[3] He had not planned to stay longer than a year in the position, as he thought the series might not be renewed. He had therefore agreed to take up a role working on another production.[4] After leaving the series as story editor on 31 October 1964,[5] he contributed his own scripts for a number ofDoctor Who serials, includingThe Crusade (1965),[6]The Power of the Daleks (1966),[7]The Evil of the Daleks (1967),[8]The Enemy of the World (1967–68) andThe Wheel in Space (1968, from a story concept byKit Pedler).[9] His final script for the show wasThe Ambassadors of Death (1970),[2] although this seven-parter was heavily rewritten by others and Whitaker wrote no further than the third episode.[10]
His other work included writing theDalek comic strip for the weekly children's magazineTV Century 21, in addition to the stage playThe Curse of the Daleks (1965).[11]
In 1964, Whitaker published the firstnovelisation of aDoctor Who serial; more than 150 other such books would be published in the course of the next 30 years. His own,Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure with the Daleks, was based onTerry Nation's script for thefirst Dalek TV serial.[12] He completed a second novelisation the following year, this time based on his own script forThe Crusade.[11] Both books were originally published by Frederick Muller, with the first also being given a paperback release byArmada.
In 1973, Whitaker's novelisations (along with a third, written byBill Strutton and based onThe Web Planet) were re-issued by Target Books as part of its launch of a new series of novelisations; Whitaker's Dalek story was re-titledDoctor Who and the Daleks.
From 1966 to 1968 Whitaker was the chairman of theWriters Guild of Great Britain.[1] He moved to Australia in the 70's and contributed to the seriesHomicide,The Drifter andElephant Boy before returning to the UK.
Before his death in 1980, Whitaker had been undergoing treatment forcancer. He died leaving his novelisation ofThe Enemy of the World unfinished[13] and his plans to adaptThe Evil of the Daleks unrealised. The adaptation ofThe Enemy of the World was ultimately written byIan Marter without using any of the material prepared by Whitaker, whileThe Evil of the Daleks was eventually novelised byJohn Peel and published in 1993.
A documentary,Finding David, is included onDoctor Who: The Collection - Season 2Blu-ray box set paired withThe Crusade and hosted byToby Hadoke. It features a screengrab of this article.
Although tasked with writing the serial that would later be produced asThe Invasion (1968), Whitaker was ultimately unable to contribute a script, leaving then-story editor and futureDoctor Who producerDerrick Sherwin to write it himself.
| Preceded by position created | Doctor Who Script Editor 1963–64 | Succeeded by |
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