The Basics - Issue 163, August 1990. The last monthly issue has a photo from The Claws of Axos on the front cover.

News And Views - The Curse of Fenric has been provisionally scheduled for BBC Video release in February 1991, including material cut from the original transmission for timing reasons, making it the first tape to include previously unscreened footage. A decision on the future of the programme may now not be made until late Autumn. Series director and writer Peter Grimwade died in May.

New Fiction - With no comic strip this issue, there is a complete text story by Paul Cornell, Teenage Kicks!

Boxpops - BBC Radio 5 launches on August 27th. Drop The Dead Donkey debuts on C4 on August 9th. Top of the pop charts in August 1990 were the continuing Turtle Power and Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny by Bombalurina.

Skaro Says - Ant Cox remembers this run of covers quite vividly, but nothing about the contents - no doubt because he threw them all out a long time ago! Sidesk never really went for text stories, finding comic strips to be a lot better.

Critique - It's the end of an era (of sorts) with the last monthly issue, and little did I think at the time that there would be more four-weekly issues than weekly and monthlys combined! Sadly this last monthly is a rather uninspired issue for a couple of reasons. Firstly, like Si I prefer comic strips to text, so the new fiction here didn't interest me. Secondly, interviews have never been my favourite feature and as can be seen from the front cover, there are no less than three inside! Gary Downie writing about the making of The Two Doctors now makes for some poignant reading. Rather interestingly, the interview with Elisabeth Sladen (titled No More Sarah Jane?) does suggest that The Five Doctors would probably be her last appearance as Sarah Jane - as she said "I doubt very much that I could do another one - I don't really think I am that person now and I don't think you can play Sarah Jane so many years on." Hindsight can be a funny thing, can't it?!
Paying the Bills