Test Set Magazine Series

The Battles in Time test series was conducted in the Westcountry and Grampian regions of the UK, as evidenced by questionnaires that stated which areas they were for, including all first issues. This test aimed to gauge the popularity of Battles in Time in a test market before it was released to the public. The test series consisted of 7 pilot magazines distributed through newsagents, with the first issue released on the 19th of April 2006 and the last released on the 12th of July 2006. These magazines contained articles, puzzles, games related to the Doctor Who series, and an exclusive set of collectable trading cards, which were the first 85 cards of the main release Exterminator card set. In addition to the pilot magazines, a "test set" Super Rose was also released, now the rarest and most exclusive card in the Battles in Time series.

The Test set magazine "variants" had covers that were different from those in the main release. Internally, some changes were also made, which are explained in the "Main Magazine Series" tab. An eighth issue was planned but never published, as evidenced in the rear of Issue 7 in the Test Run. The Test Set magazines also came with a questionnaire, not included in the main set versions. The additional printouts supplied with these early magazines were slightly altered to a preferred design. For the main set versions, please take a look at the Main Magazine tab.

Overall, the test series of Battles in Time was a success, and it paved the way for the successful launch of the main series. The test series allowed the creators to gather feedback from the test market before releasing the main series to the public. This feedback helped them make necessary changes and improvements to the main series, ultimately making it more popular among Doctor Who fans.

Test Set Issue 1

Here, you can see a high-definition scan of Test Release Issue 1 as it was when you bought it. By clicking the directional buttons on the image, you can see the issue without the magazine and the reverse of the cardboard backing. Although this looks similar to the Main release, there are subtle differences.

The "£1.50" corner is yellow rather than the red seen on the main set.

The column where the packs are attached is a red bar.

Cards are shown without rarity symbols.

The blue background is the time vortex rather than the radial blur seen on the main set.

The included poster is of a different design.

The leaflets inside also have subtle differences.

Test Set Issue 2

The picture shows what the sealed Test Issue 2 appeared like when purchased. To clarify, the cellophane packaging used for Test Issue 2 was repurposed for the main release, which explains why the cards on the packaging do not have rarity symbols.

There are some notable differences between the Test Issue 2 and the main release, Issue 2. Firstly, the Tardis requires cut-outs to keep the cards in place, which you can see in the attached image. This design feature was added to the main release but not in Test Issue 2.

Secondly, the front cover design of Test Issue 2 is different from the main release.

Test Set Issue 3

The final "special" in the test run was Issue 3, similar to the Main Release version. However, it came with the Test Set Tardis Lid, which had a more rigid design than the Main Set version. This design difference resulted in a more stable Tardis Lid that could withstand more wear and tear. Additionally, the Tardis Lid's cover differed from the Main Set version.

The Test Set and Main Set versions were otherwise similar, with only a few differences.

Differences between Test Issues 1-7 and Main Release

The first seven re-launched magazines are a mixture of covers and contents of the pilot issues as follows...

No. 1 contains pages 6 and 7 from pilot No. 3 as pages 4 and 5, pages 20 and 21 of pilot No. 5 and a remix on page 23 from pilots 1 and 2.

No. 2 has the cover and pages 10-15 of pilot No. 6, page 22 as a re-work from pilot No. 3 and a remix on page 23 from pilot 5 and new material. Additionally, the cover was changed from Cyberleader to Cyberman. 3 has the cover and pages 10-15, 20 and 21 of pilot No. 7, pages 4 and 5 from pilot No. 1 as pages 6 and 7, pages 22 and 24 from pilot 5 and new material on page 23.

No 4 has the cover, pages 10-15 of pilot No 2, and new material on page 23.

No 5 has the same cover and content as pilot No 5 except for pages 20 and 21 from pilot 1, new material on pages 22 and 23 and page 24 from pilot 3.

No 6 has the cover, pages 10-15 of pilot No 4, and new material on page 23.

No. 7 has the body, pages 10-15, 20 and 21 of pilot No. 3, and new material on pages 22 and 23.

Additionally, the characters are shown as character cut-outs on the rear of the Test Set magazines, which character are you page. On Main Set releases, they are shown on their respective cards.

Leaflets

Many leaflets were given with the first five issues in the Battles in Time Series, both with the Test Set and the Main Set. The Test Set had a few differences. However, the main difference was that all Test Set issues had a questionnaire for children to complete with their parents and send back to GE Fabbri (GE Fabbri, 2006c).

These questionnaires were separated by area, one for the West Country and one for the Grampian Area. The area was noted on the bottom right of the front cover, shown in the photos in this section.

Another notable difference was that two separate leaflets seemed to be printed for each area. Those with the West Country questionnaire had the leaflet, featuring card packs on the front. The Grampian area only had the Dalek. It is unknown why this was (ibid).

Notification of National Release

With every Test Set issue 7, there was an additional insert which, in short, announced the national main release of Battles in Time. The initial paragraph detailed that they would begin their release in Autumn, and would begin again with Issue 1.

This also confirmed that what we now know as the Test Set magazines and cards would feature the same material but in a different order, as well as a larger set of cards with subtle differences. This confirmed that the original 85 cards would be unique and never issued in the same form again. While stocks lasted, you could buy Test Set Packs from the website.

If you did not want to continue, GE Fabbri offered a refund on all bought issues if you sent them back to the company. If you did want to continue they also offered the first issue completely free, which is why this leaflet had not been seen by myself untill now.