1960's Publisher Declares "I Own Rights To The Daleks"!

[Si Hunt]

An interesting story this - apologies if it's been reported elsewhere, but it was news to me.

The BBC has won a court battle over the copyright to the Daleks.

A High Court judge yesterday ruled BBC Worldwide had not infringed copyright by publishing a book, the Dalek Survival Guide, on the theme of the Doctor Who characters.

Publisher JHP printed four books containing stories by Dalek creator Terry Nation in the 1960s. Paul Fishman, its current boss, had looked at working with the corporation on a new book in 2001, but the two fell out.

After the Survival Guide came out a year later, Fishman - the son of one of Nation's friends and collaborators - claimed his company owned the copyright to the Daleks.

He claimed the BBC's book was "cheap and nasty" and contained material copied from one of JHP's publications, the Dalek Pocketbook.

However, Mr Justice Norris ruled that, though JHP had a licence to the old original, it was "inherently improbable" that Nation would have given his copyright to the company.

"The Daleks first became known to humankind in 1963 when they appeared in the first series of Doctor Who," he said. "They were some of the most engaging and enduring creations of the fertile mind of the late Terry Nation."

BBC Worldwide welcomed the ruling: "BBC Worldwide has vigorously defended this litigation and we're pleased the matter has now concluded."

They got the "cheap and nasty" bit right though!

Si.

[SiHart]

"Inherently impossible"... absolutely right! Has the Judge had previous dealings with the Estate of Terry Nation then?

It's a bizarre story isn't it? It's not even as if The Dalek Survival Guide was particularly good.

Si xx

[Pip Madeley]

I never bothered with any of the books. I'm sure a certain Mr Jefferies has!

[Dave Tudor]

It was a bit of an odd book, wasn't it? Am I right in thinking that it was published just before the series returned? It was like another example of the BBC cashing in on the memory of the series while it wasn't on air, while at the same time getting in a spot of pre-emptive cashing-in in the run up to the new series.

Either way, it was hardly an essential purchase.

[Zbigniev Hamson]

I never really understood how Terry Nation managed to get such massive control over the Daleks compared to all the other writers on the show.

[Pip Madeley]

I never really understood how Terry Nation managed to get such massive control over the Daleks compared to all the other writers on the show.

It wasn't that rare for the writers to have massive control over their creations, Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln for instance. There were plans for a season six story (Jamie's departure) entitled "The Laird Of McCrimmon". It was going to be the third Yeti serial, but whilst they were working on the script, the writers became embroiled in a dispute over copyright with the BBC regarding the Quarks. The story was abandoned as a result of this argument.

[Wayne]

I never bothered with any of the books. I'm sure a certain Mr Jefferies has!

No i haven't. But i've seen both, & neither of 'em are all that.

[Alex Me]

Very strange story, especially as no one seems to have heard of it before the end of the court case :-s don't these things normally get released to the press whilst the case is going on.

And the book was very odd too, I think it would meant to be very funny and tongue in cheek but it did not succeed very well. Wonder if i still have my copy somewhere

[Zbigniev Hamson]

I actually got two copies as presents and gave one away. It's not a great book but there's some very nice illustrations of lots of different types of Daleks. However, you can tell it was written by 5 or 6 different people who were just told something like "write whatever you want that's roughly about Daleks for about 20 pages".

[Larry]

"
It's a bizarre story isn't it? It's not even as if The Dalek Survival Guide was particularly good.

Si xx

I thinko it's just a case of this publisher seeing how hugely successfull and popular the Daleks, have been since the new series returned and are brining this law suit against the BBC in a gruby attempt to get a percentage of the proffit being made from all the merchandise.

[SiHart]

A pretty full set of judgements on the case have just been made available, should anyone be interested...

You can read them here.

Si xx

[Si Hunt]

It wasn't that rare for the writers to have massive control over their creations, Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln for instance.

Their control also is minute in comparison to Terry Nation, however (which is why any old f**k can use the Brigadier for example). The REAL reason Nation has such control is that he has a demon of an agent - Roger Hancock, now Tim Hancock Inc (or whatever). I'm sure Hancock made sure the rights were watertight at the time. Not many other writers seem to have bothered employing someone ruthless to look after their interests in the same way, probably because few other creations were instantly as successful and marketable as the Daleks were. Even the Cybermen have never really been raped commercially as the Daleks were in the sixties.

Si.