Doctor Who Short Trips: The Centenarian by Ian Farrington

Doctor Who Short Trips: The Centenarian Reviews

• 
  France-Andrée

  This is my fourth short trips read, and for now, it's my favorite. There's always a theme in this anthology series of short stories and this one is about one man, Edward Grainger, whom we follow through the years and his encounters with The Doctor. I liked having somebody else chronology to follow than The Doctor's because the thing that got me in my last short trips read was 5 stories in a row with the Fifth incarnation; in The Centenarian, the different incarnations are well represented and there's a good balance (about 2 stories per Doctor). We really get to experience all the major events of Edward's life: birth, marriage, children, career. The only story that I found very confusing was the last one: Forgotten by Joseph Lidster, but at the same time, it makes sense it is like that because the main character is old and confused himself; and we come full circle too since the last story explains the first (I had to reread the first, Prologue by J.L. too, to really understand the premise). A really good read for fans out there who love all of the faces of The Doctor - not forgetting though that this series deals only with the First to the Eighth incarnations.
• 
  Billy Martel

  Rating by Story…
  
  Childhood Living: I have a real soft spot for stories that are just the Doctor and Susan before the series begins. This one is a particularly great alien invasion/submarine war story. I dug the hell out of it. 4/5 stars
  
  The Lost: terrible. Badly written nonsense. 1/5 stars
• 
  Nicholas Whyte

  
  http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1431920.html
  
  This is one of the better volumes I have read in the series. Edward Grainger, born in 1906, find himself bumping into the Doctor repeatedly over the following century. Poor chap, he often seems to be on the spot when alien invasion threatens Earth, but he is not the only character in the Whoniverse of whom this is true, and at least he spends part of his career as a spy so there is some excuse. The standount story for me was 'The Church of Football', by Benjamin Adams, an account of the Fifth Doctor's visit to a Sheffield United v. Arsenal match in 1936 told in the first person by Peri Brown. I was a little disappointed that Grainger didn't pop up in the background of any of the Old Who stories with contemporary settings - the one reference to UNIT seemed anachronistic to me - but it's generally a good collection.
• 
  Mary

  This was the first short trips book I read and I loved it. I have been collecting all of them. They are short stories written about the doctor however they are not regurgitating the episode stories. Some of them are written by the authors that are directly envovled with the Doctor who classic episodes.
  The only thing I am not too thrilled with is the short trip antholoigies are limited to the 1st eight doctors. I think there are legal reasons for this.
  Any way the Centurian follows the doctors envolvement with one man thru out his life.
  It was really interesting to see how they had them cross paths at crucial points in Edward Grainger's life.
  Like I said I enjoyed this one so much it made me hunt down all the ones I could find of the others.
• 
  Gayle

  An anthology of Doctor Who stories centring on one person who encounters the Doctor (and companions) at different stages of his life. A few good stories, others didn't really hold my interest that much. Probably will have to reread it again sometime.