Panini UK announced today that Tom Spilsbury will be stepping down from his position as editor of Doctor Who Magazine.
Spilsbury first joined the DWM team as an assistant editor in 2003. In 2007, he was promoted to the position of editor. Having served as editor of DWM for almost a decade, Spilsbury has taken charge of over 120 editions, including the milestone 400th and 500th issues.
Mike Riddell, Managing Director of Panini UK added: “Tom’s contribution to the magazine over the past 14 years has been immense and we will miss his passion and knowledge of the brand which is second to none. Marcus brings a fresh approach to the magazine as well as a wealth of experience in magazine publishing.”
Spilsbury now believes it’s someone else’s turn to have a go in the driver’s seat. He will be replaced by Marcus Hearn, a long-standing DWM writer who co-edited the title in the 1990s, and who recently edited the DWM Special Editions and the spinoff title The Essential Doctor Who.
Tom Spilsbury explained, “After 10 years as editor of Doctor Who Magazine, it’s time for a change – both for me and for the magazine. As the newly regenerated Second Doctor said in The Power of the Daleks, way back in 1966, ‘Life depends on change and renewal’, and I’ve made it a policy to always pay attention to my Doctor. Of course, it’s been a very difficult decision for me, to give up a job that I love so much. DWM has always been a part of my life – virtually my earliest memory of life on this planet was of my Dad buying a copy of issue 1 for me, way back in 1979, when I was just three years old. It was 2003 when I got the job of a lifetime as DWM’s assistant editor, and four years later, I finally got the top job. It’s been simply amazing to have had the honour to be producing the magazine over such a successful and eventful decade in Doctor Who’s history. However, having taken charge of 129 editions, including the 400th and 500th issues, it’s time for someone else to have a go in the driver’s seat. Marcus Hearn is a brilliant editor, and DWM is the greatest magazine in the galaxy. I’m so looking forward to being able to read it each month without already knowing what’s going to be in it! And I truly hope that I’ll still be around in the year 2054 to enjoy issue 1000, even if it’s beamed directly into our heads by then…”
The incoming editor, Hearn had nothing but praise for Spilsbury and the magazine. “This magazine is unique, and it’s a unique honour to be entrusted with it. We’re all grateful to Tom for his unparalleled dedication. I’d like to build on his achievements, and I can’t wait to start working with my colleagues at Panini. A new chapter is about to begin for the television series, and this will be a new chapter for DWM too.”
Spilsbury’s final issue, #515, will go on sale on Thursday, July 27.
All the best, Tom!
Tom has been fantastic for doctor who magazine.I wish him all the best.