This is one of five Doctor Who serials that were never novelised by Target Books (the others being City of Death, Shada, Resurrection of the Daleks, and Revelation of the Daleks), in this case because they were unable to come to an agreement with Douglas Adams that would have allowed him or another writer to adapt the script. BBC Books published a novelised version of the serial, written by James Goss, on 5 January 2017. An abridged Target Books edition titled Doctor Who and the Pirate Planet was published in paperback 11 March 2021.
This is one of five Doctor Who serials that were never novelised by Target Books (the others being City of Death, Shada, Resurrection of the Daleks, and Revelation of the Daleks), in this case because they were unable to come to an agreement with Douglas Adams that would have allowed him or another writer to adapt the script. BBC Books published a novelised version of the serial, written by James Goss on 5 January 2017. An abridged Target Books edition titled Doctor Who and the Pirate Planet was published in paperback 11 March 2021.