About the Author

Andrew Cartmel was born in London and grew up in Canada. He studied at the University of London before taking a post graduate course in Canterbury and working for a computer firm in Cambridge.

Here he was head-hunted as script editor on Doctor Who, a post he held for three seasons.

Since leaving Doctor Who in 1989, he served as senior script editor on the BBC drama Casualty before working as an editor on several magazines.

He has written comic strips for 2000 AD and Doctor Who Magazine and a trilogy of SF novels in Virgin Publishing's New Adventures range: Warhead (1992); Warlock (1995); and Warchild (1996). His latest novel is The Wise (1999).

He edited Starburst Magazine from 1999 to 2000. Most recently he was script editor and lead writer on the sword & sorcery series Dark Knight.

He has also written a number of screenplays, including an adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's The Masque of the Red Death which has just been optioned.

Amongst other projects Andrew is currently working on a new play, a thriller called Dark Ride, which he hopes will be in production in London soon.

What they've said about Andrew's books:

Novels:

The Wise:

"a great, fun book, along the lines of Clive Barker or Peter Crowther ... Andrew Cartmel draws his characters with clarity and appreciation for the situations they find themselves in." Shivers

"Smart, sharp, and full of twists and surprises, The Wise is a dazzling debut and a terrific read." Stephen Gallagher, author of Valley of Lights

"Andrew Cartmel tells a highly original tale that's full of surprises. He makes it move at a cracking pace without losing background depth or character values. I can't recall a story in which fantasy is made to seem so rational." - Peter O'Donnell creator of Modesty Blaise

Doctor Who Novels:

Warhead:

"Warhead is certainly beyond the range of normal Doctor Who in terms of its exotic locations, the three-dimensional characters, and the adult, very depressing themes it encompasses. It is an ecological disaster story one can almost taste the filth and fumes of New York with elements of Stephen King's Firestarter thrown in, and the result is a thought provoking read." - Richard Houldsworth in TV Zone 30

"On the strength of Warhead, Andrew Cartmel has got a bright future as an author of science fiction thrillers ahead of him..." - Anthony Brown in DWB 101

"Warhead is a sort of sub-William Gibson cyberpunk novel. It's cynical, depressing, morose, uninviting and populated by three-dimensional, totally dislikable post(ish)-holocaust characters, every one of whom has a part to play although like a good mystery novel, you don't always realise this until the end … a superb book; thrilling and depressing in equal amounts." - Gary Russell in DWM 186

Warlock:

"an enjoyable book, where real issues are raised… " - Andrew Martin in TVZone 62

"against a powerful plot, Andrew has let loose a cast of characters that demand sympathy, loathing, hatred and pity; there isn't a single emotion that he doesn't wring out of the reader during the course of the book. Warlock is nasty. Warlock is unpleasant. Warlock is sick. And Warlock is a triumph for Andrew Cartmel." - Craig Hinton in DWM 222

Warchild:

"[a] book ... that keeps you thinking well after you put it down." - Craig Hinton in TV Zone 75