Doctor Who and the Daleks
David Whitakerwas the first Story Editor for Doctor Who, and was responsible for finding and commissioning writers, and it was Whitaker as much as anyone who defined the narrative shape ofDoctor Who.He wrote for theDoctor Whoannuals, novelised the first Dalek story and worked with Terry Nation on various Dalek-related material including the hugely successful comic stripThe Daleks. David Whitaker died in 1980.Terry Nationstarted as a comedy writer and performer, and was approached with an offer to work onDoctor Who, providing the seven episodes of the first ever Dalek story. After inventing the Daleks, Nation moved on to work onThe Saint,The ChampionsandThe Avengers. In the 1970s he scripted four more Dalek series - includingGenesis of the Dalekswhich has been voted the best ever story in the series. Nation later devised the hugely popular BBC science fiction seriesBlake's 7. Terry Nation died in Los Angeles in 1996.