Roving Reporter: From the Files - Sarah Jane Smith

Zine
Title:	Roving Reporter: From the Files - Sarah Jane Smith
Publisher:	The Elisabeth Sladen Information Network (ESIN)
Editor(s):	Kevin Parker
Date(s):	1990-1995
Series?:
Medium:	print
Size:
Genre:
Fandom:	Doctor Who
Language:	English
External Links:	Fanzine info online (earlier)
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Roving Reporter: From the Files - Sarah Jane Smith is a gen anthology of fiction and artwork dedicated to companion Sarah Jane Smith as played by Elisabeth Sladen.

There are four issues, published by The Elisabeth Sladen Information Network. It was "optional" members to purchase, whereas the newsletter The South Croydon LIStener, was included in the club membership.

Summaries are from [1].

Issue 1

cover of issue #1

Roving Reporter: From the Files - Sarah Jane Smith 1 was published 1990 (reprinted a second time in Summer 1991, reprinted for a third time in April 1993 with 25 copies) and contains 135 pages.

From a July 1993 ad in GAZ: "Yes, we can do a high-quality zine devoted to a single DW companion and with a remarkable variety of stories in which Sarah Jane: contemplates leaving the TARDIS ("Crossroads" by Susan M Garrett), gets involved in murder ("The Vardeman Incident" by Michael Ratcliffe), visits the Ministry of Silly Walks ("Take a Walk on the Silly Side" by Tom Beck), has to foil a sinister high-tech plot ("With a Little Help From My Friends" by Kevin W Parker) and more. Copiously illustrated (65 illos total) by Martin Proctor (Including an 8 page portfolio representing his work over the years), Marty Siegrist, Anne Davenport, Nan Nelson, Christopher Cook, Judi Boguslawski and Cynthis J Guido."

Cover and spot illustrations by Martin F. Proctor.

• "Crossroads," by Susan M. Garrett. Sarah Jane contemplates leaving the TARDIS. Illustrated by Marty Siegrist.
• "The Templar Investigation," by Michael Ratcliffe. Sarah Jane gets caught up in a murderous plot. Illustrated by Judi Boguslawski.
• "A Woman Ahead of Her Time," by Joelle Augustine. Sarah returns home to find that much has changed since she's been gone. Illustrated by Nan Nelson.
• "Croydon Correspondence," by Mark Owen. An encounter with terrorists, told entirely in the form of letters. Illustrated by Anne Davenport.
• "The Valley, the Plains, and the Far Mountains," by Roxie Ray and Kevin W. Parker. The Doctor and Sarah must help a primitive people who are being enslaved. Illustrated by Cynthia J. Guido.
• "Take a Walk on the Silly Side," by Tom Beck. Sarah visits the Ministry of Silly Walks. (crossover with Monty Python)
• "With a Little Help From My Friends," by Kevin W. Parker. The pilot for The New K9 and Company. Sarah Jane investigates a mysterious series of computer breakdowns in the south of England. Meanwhile, K9 has broken down, and she has had to entrust him to an eccentric American computer engineer currently consulting at a local think tank. But can he be trusted?
• two filks and an fanart portfolio

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  inside page from issue #1

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  inside page from issue #1

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  inside page from issue #1

Issue 2

Roving Reporter: From the Files - Sarah Jane Smith 2 contains 135 pages and was published in 1991 (second printing in March 1991, 50 copies). Cover by Martin F. Proctor. Cartoons by Christopher Cook.

It was the winner of the Fan-Q award for the favorite Doctor Who fanzine of 1991.

cover of issue #2, Martin Proctor

From an ad in Zine Scene: " This seems to be turning into the crossover issue as: Susan M. Garrett [introduces] Sarah Jane to Aslan (The Narnia Chronicles), Jeff Morris introduces her to Max Headroom, Sue Greene has her meeting the gang at MASH, and Roxie Ray gets her involved in Quantum leaping. Plus, much more."

• Feature story: "Labyrinth," an illustrated novelette in comic-book form in five parts by Martin F. Proctor. Strange happenings in the Underground lead Sarah Jane straight to a Yeti. But that's only the first sign that something is terribly wrong.
• "The Funny Lady at 57," written and illustrated by Yvonne S. Hintz. That strange woman down the street is collecting police boxes again. (reprinted from Companions #6)
• "Silver Jubilee," by Autumn Lee. There are other eccentric Time Lords in the universe, and they're good at finding trouble, too. Illustrated by Sue Law.
• "The Lion, the Wardrobe, and Sarah Jane," by Susan M. Garrett. There are some tasks for which our favorite journalist is uniquely qualified, or at least Aslan thinks so. Illustrated by Marty Siegrist. (crossover with Narnia)
• "Return Engagement," by Roxie Ray and Jennifer Smallwood. And there are other time travelers around, as Sarah Jane finds when she visits Project Quantum Leap. Illustrated by Judi Boguslawski. (crossover with Quantum Leap)
• "From the Journal of Sarah Jane," by Kevin W. Parker. A diary's-eye view of "Time Warrior." Illustrated by Martin F. Proctor.
• "Ghost Town," by Hiram Doup and Kevin W. Parker. Sarah Jane is trapped in a life-and-death game in a strange town from the old West. Illustrated by Ken Horan.
• "R-r-rival Reporter," by Jeff Morris. According to Jeff, when the Doctor "blew it" getting Sarah Jane home, he really "blew it," as she ends up in Max Headroom's world. Illustrated by Martin F. Proctor. (crossover with Max Headroom)
• "In Space, No One Can Hear You Interview," by Tom Beck. Sarah regrets having taken a fluffy happy-news assignment on a TV program called Entertainment Britain and wishes for some excitement. When the Brigadier goes missing and Doris Lethbridge-Stewart asks for her help, she gets more than she bargained for. Illustrated by Martin F. Proctor.

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  inside page from issue #2

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  inside page from issue #2

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  inside page from issue #2

Issue 3

Roving Reporter: From the Files - Sarah Jane Smith 3 was published in November 1993 and contains 130 pages. It has a first print run of 50. Illustrated with front and back covers by Martin F. Proctor. Published 1993. Winner of the Fan-Q award for the favorite Doctor Who fanzine of 1993.

cover of issue #3, Martin Proctor

This was not, however, the original plan. In a spring 1992 issue of Zine Scene, a third issue was proposed, one which didn't make it off the ground in its original form:

Yes, we're going to try to keep going, but I'm going to need sane help Roving Reporter #2 has emptied the slush pile, so except for a ripping Martin Proctor yarn with Sarah Jane and a future Doctor, there's nothing definite for #3. . So get those cards and letters- -and stories and filks and illos -- comning. Planned publication date is spring 1993. (That may sound like a ways into the future, but being a zine editor has cured me of my procrastinating tendencies.)

What was to have been the cover of the proposed issue #3. See the artist's notes...

In 2014, Martin Proctor explained:

The story in question was a storyline that I originally produced as a script for the Web of Weston chapter of DWIN. The story was called 'Necropolis', and originally featured a 'future' Doctor (which I was slated to play - having taken on the roll in the chapter's second video venture 'Sentinel') and a companion named Pandora Regent. When Kevin Parker was looking around for material for Roving Reporter, I mentioned the script, and that Pandora was sort of a cross between Sarah Jane Smith and Emma Peel. Kevin asked me to rework it for Sarah, and I started work on the adaptation, deciding to have a future Doctor reuniting with a slightly older Sarah Jane Smith. I never finished the reworked storyline, but what was reworked exists in two forms; in standard prose, and in a comic book version. I was torn between which version to continue with which added to the delays, and as was too often the case, my workload on other peoples zines and stories got in the way of my finishing my own work. This is a rough version of the cover for Necropolis. I had yet to refine the likeness of the Doctor, but had I continued with the project I intended to base the likeness on a YOUNG Peter Cushing. Six pages of the comic were completed."

The contents of issue #3:

• This issue features a single novel, "The Mystery of Mandragora," the second story in The New K9 and Company series. Sarah Jane returns to San Martino in modern times on a routine assignment, only to encounter assassins, nuclear terrorists, and crazed mystics. Then things start to get really nasty.

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  detail of cover, issue #3

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  inside page from issue #3

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  inside page from issue #3

Issue 4

Roving Reporter: From the Files - Sarah Jane Smith 4 was published in 1995 and contains 125 pages. Front and back covers by Martin F. Proctor. Spot illustrations by Martin F. Proctor, Stefanie Kate Hawks, Alan Ivins, and Chris Collins.

• "The Adventure of the Visiting Doctor," by Joelle Augustine. The Doctor and Sarah Jane help Holmes and Watson foil an elusive mass murderer. Illustrated by Stefanie Kate Hawks.
• "Dark Rain," by Sheila Schneider. Sarah discusses vampires with a cab driver, only to learn a bit more than she bargained for. Illustrated by Judi Boguslawski.
• "Alien Wine," by Atlanta Lea Sheridan and Jill Stone. Sarah drinks some unusual wine, with embarrassing results. Illustrated by Ken Horan.
• "Fringe Benefits," another Max Headroom story, sequel to "R-R-Rival Reporter" by Jeff Morris. There are mysterious deaths in the Fringes, and Edison Carter has gone missing. Illustrated by Martin F. Proctor.
• "With Fans Like These," by Tom Beck. World-famous journalist Sarah Jane Smith finds that having a fan club isn't all it's cracked up to be. Illustrated by Martin F. Proctor.
• "Flight to Nowhere," by Kevin W. Parker. Sarah stows away aboard the flight of an experimental aircraft, only to encounter a mysterious and manipulative alien menace. The third story in The New K9 and Company series. Illustrated by Martin F. Proctor.
• "Judgment of the Yarthkins," by Rosemary Sullivan. The Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane, with some help from Isaac Newton, try to resolve a deadly conflict between stranded aliens and villagers in 17th-century England. Illustrated by Cynthia J. Guido.