SciFiAndTvTalk

Torchwood Returns!

Jack's back! John Barrowman is set to reprise his role of Captain Jack Harkness in a new series of Torchwood. Photo copyright of the BBC.

STARZ Entertainment has acquired U.S. television rights to the next installment of the BBC’s audience sensation Torchwood, developed and produced by BBC Worldwide Productions. Starz will debut the 10-episode series exclusively in the U.S., and BBC One will debut it in the U.K., both in summer, 2011. This is a co-production between Starz, BBC Cymru Wales and BBC Worldwide, and BBC Worldwide will distribute the show outside the U.S. The deal was jointly announced today by Starz, LLC, President and CEO Chris Albrecht and BBC Worldwide Productions EVP Jane Tranter.

The stars of the previous versions of Torchwood, notably John Barrowman (Captain Jack Harkness) and Eve Myles (Gwen Cooper), will return for the new version. Additional key cast, reflecting the more international scope of the series, will be announced soon.

Torchwood is a drama that puts extraterrestrial threats into a very real world, and asks how humanity deals with the danger - while fighting humankind’s darkest instincts. The series’ previous three seasons aired on BBC America in the U.S. and garnered record-breaking ratings for the network. Created by visionary writer/producer Russell T Davies, Torchwood has to date been located primarily in Cardiff, Wales. The new series will allow Davies and his writing team to tell a more explosive and global story, one that takes advantage of the unlimited narrative opportunities of a premium television service like Starz. Davies and BBC Worldwide Productions’ SVP Scripted Julie Gardner return as executive producers, with Davies also serving as show-runner for the new  Torchwood.

“We’re committed to programming exceptional television that is entertaining, imaginative and provides a premium TV experience, and by any measure the new concept for Torchwood fits that mandate,” Starz, LLC, President and CEO Chris Albrecht said. “I’ve been part of successful partnerships with Jane Tranter and the BBC previously, and I’m very much looking forward to working with them again.”

"Torchwood has attracted remarkable attention and loyalty in both the UK and U.S., and in this new partnership with Starz, the next chapter will not only reward our current fans, but also introduce new viewers to the most impressive installment yet,” said Jane Tranter, EVP, BBC Worldwide Productions. “Chris Albrecht and his team are committed to delivering quality premium programming to their subscribers, also a core attribute of the BBC, and we are excited to be working with them as the Torchwood adventure continues.”

“Russell, Jane and Julie came to us with a compelling vision for the evolution of the Torchwood saga that really takes the story into whole new areas,” added Carmi Zlotnik, Managing Director of Starz Media – the production and development division of Starz. “The compelling story and characters this trio created provide a strong template for driving this narrative in exciting ways.”  Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning said: "We have a long history of working with many U.S. networks, but it is incredibly exciting to be working with Starz for the first time, as well as to be reunited with the best of British in Russell, Jane and Julie.Torchwood will burst back onto the screen with a shocking and moving story with global stakes and locations that will make it feel bigger and bolder than ever."

Torchwood is the latest piece of notable programming from Starz. It follows on the heels of the recently concluded first season of the epic Spartacus: Blood and Sand, this summer’s highly anticipated event  series “The Pillars of the Earth, based on author Ken Follett’s international bestseller, and the recently announced series Camelot, which Starz is co-producing with GK-TV and will air early in 2011.

Torchwood originally debuted in the UK on BBC One in 2006. All five episodes of Torchwood: Children of Earth reached the Top 10 list in TV Episodes across the entire iTunes TV Store, with episode 1 of the series reaching the top spot the week of launch in August, 2009.

As noted above, photo copyright of the BBC, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

Eve Myles Talks About Torchwood: Children Of Earth

[caption id="attachment_1849" align="aligncenter" width="200" caption="Eve Myles as Gwen Cooper in Torchwood: Children Of Earth. Photo courtesy of and copyright of the BBC"][/caption] SPOILER ALERT!! - Continuing the Q & A leading up to the BBC America broadcast of Torchwood: Children Of Earth (July 20th @ 9 p.m. EST/PST). The show's leading lady, Eve Myles, who plays Gwen Cooper, sits down for a chat. Eve Myles landed her dream role in 2006, when she was given the part of feisty Gwen Cooper in Torchwood, which Russell T. Davies created especially for her. EVE MYLES - I was so excited when I got the scripts. It's a five-hour psychological action-packed thriller. With a movie, you're looking at maybe 90 minutes of action, but with this new series of Torchwood, we've got five hours. It's an event. It's not just the third series, where everybody is used to what Torchwood is, this series will actually terrify people. For Eve, the new series and the single storyline across all five episodes felt like the right evolution for Torchwood. EM - We've tipped the series on its head and given people a whole new format. It's a completely different style of Torchwood, and is exactly what we should have done. It feels brand new all over again. It's exciting and it's positive. [caption id="attachment_1851" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Gwen and Dr. Rupesh Patanjali (Rik Makarem) are on the run in Torchwood: Children Of Earth. Photo courtesy of and copyright of the BBC"][/caption] Of Gwen's role in the team she says: EM - Gwen is still the heart and emotion of Torchwood, but she also realizes the responsibility she has as a member of the team. Everybody's got to lose something to gain something, and as harsh as Gwen comes across sometimes, if she wasn't, people would die. She's got a huge responsibility on her shoulders. A few years ago she was working as a young police woman in Cardiff. A couple of years later, here she is saving the world with Captain Jack (John Barrowman). One way or the another something has to give. Viewers will see Gwen forge a close relationship with Clem, played by Paul Copley - the survivor of an horrific ordeal who is still haunted by his past. The scenes Eve Myles filmed with him proved to be a major highlight for the actress. EM - He's absolutely fantastic. I was completely overwhelmed - he's so right for the character. Gwen inevitably becomes his guardian because that's what Gwen does - she's Torchwood's social worker. She's a social worker who can run and fight and stand in her own corner and win. With Clem, she has this incredible desire to protect him. She's his protector and he's the key to what's going on. [caption id="attachment_1852" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Paul Copley as Clem in Torchwood: Children Of Earth. Photo courtesy of and copyright of the BBC"][/caption] In contrast to the tender moments of some of the scenes she filmed, there was still plenty of high-octane action for Eve - a self-confessed adrenalin junkie. Of the action-packed scenes, Eve Myles says: EM - It's the best part of the job for me. It's the only job where you can really push yourself. We've got the most amazing team - you know you're in safe hands. You go through things a thousand times before it ever happens. In rehearsals, you don't have the pyrotechnics, you don't have the explosions - so when you actually do the take, you get the realness of it - it's all genuine. It's real shock, fear - every kind of emotion you can think of that would come if you were really caught up in that. I'm an adrenalin junkie, so it's the perfect job for me. But for Eve, the adrenalin-fuelled action is on the back burner as she is five months pregnant. Having just completed filming for the new BBC One drama Framed, in which she stars opposite Trevor Eve, she is now taking time out to concentrate on her pregnancy.

EM - I'm not working now until the baby is born. I've worked continuously recently, but now it's my time to concentrate on the baby.

[caption id="attachment_1853" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Eve Myles with her co-stars Gareth David-Lloyd (Ianto Jones) and John Barrowman in Torchwood: Children Of Earth. Photo courtesy of and copyright of the BBC"][/caption] As noted above, all photos courtesy of and copyright of the BBC, so please no copying or duplicating of any form. Thanks!

Torchwood - We-Are-Coming

[caption id="attachment_1305" align="aligncenter" width="206" caption="John Barrowman, Eve Myles and Gareth David-Lloyd star in Torchwood: Children of Earth. Photo courtesy of and copyright of the BBC"][/caption] KICKING off the first of BBC America's HD offerings in July is Torchwood: Children Of Earth premiering over five consecutive nights. The series re-joins Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman), Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles) and Ianto Jones (Gareth David-Lloyd) as they are still coming to terms with the death of two of their closest friends. Despite their pain, they know they have a job to do. This time they are faced with their fiercest threat to date - one which throws the future of Torchwood and the entire human race spiraling into danger. Battling against the odds, do they stand a chance of saving mankind? Series creator, lead writer and executive producer Russell T. Davies on the concept of Torchwood: Children Of Earth - "I wanted to tell a story in which civilization snaps, in which we turn on ourselves, in which nothing is safe. Plenty of people live like that, on this planet. In this story, it's Britain's turn." An ordinary day becomes a world of terror as every child around the globe stops - stops playing, laughing, stops doing anything. Then, as one, they begin to speak with the same voice, announcing to the governments of Earth, "We are coming." As Torchwood investigates, a trap closes around Captain Jack and sins of the past return as long-forgotten events from 1965 threaten to reveal an awful truth. Torchwood is forced underground, as the government takes swift and brutal action. With members of the team being hunted down, Britain risks becoming a rogue state, with the mysterious and powerful 456 drawing ever-closer. Jack, Gwen and Ianto are helpless as events escalate, with humankind ultimately facing the end of civilization itself. Special guest-stars in Torchwood: Children Of Earth are Peter Capaldi (In The Loop, The Thick Of It, Skins) as Mr. Frobisher, a government official hiding a terrible secret, Paul Copley (Coronation Street, The Bill) as Clem, a survivor still haunted by his past, and Liz May Brice (Bad Girls, The Bill) as Johnson, the cynical government agent determined to expose Torchwood. The new season promises to be Torchwood's most disturbing and intense adventure to date. The first episode of Torchwood: Children Of Earth airs on Monday, July 20th @ 9 p.m. EST/PST, with a new episode premiering each subsequent night from Monday, July 2oth through Friday, July 24th @ 9 p.m. EST/PST. Prior to the premiere of Torchwood: Children Of Earth, BBC America takes a behind-the-scenes look at the series as a whole with Torchwood: Inside The Hub. This original premiere features everything there is to know about Captain Jack and the rest of the Torchwood team. Using exclusive interview footage and clips from earlier seasons, revisit the history of this top-secret group, relive some of their greatest victories and get a sneak peak at what Torchwood: Children Of Earth holds in store for our heroes. Torchwood: Inside The Hub premieres Monday, July 20th @ 8 p.m. EST/PST.

About Torchwood

Torchwood is separate from the government, outside the police, beyond the United Nations, more secret than MI5 or MI6. Not even the government is supposed to know about them.

The Torchwood hub is situated deep beneath the Cardiff Millennium Centre.

Torchwood was formed in 1879 by the Royal decree of Queen Victoria as a result of her experiences in the season two Doctor Who episode Tooth and Claw.

Torchwood is an anagram of Doctor Who. When the first season of the new Doctor Who (2005) was being made, TV pirates were desperate to acquire the preview tapes. one of the people in the office had the idea of labeling the tapes with the anagram Torchwood rather than Doctor Who as a security measure to disguise the tapes when they were delivered from Cardiff to London. Writer Russell T. Davies liked the idea so much that it later inspired him to use it as a title when creating this spin-off series.

John Barrowman first appeared as Captain Jack Harkness in Episode Nine (The Empty Child) of the first season of Doctor Who. He also appeared in The Doctor Dances, Boom Town, Bad Wolf and The Parting of the Ways in the same season, and again, in the season two stories Army of Ghosts and Doomsday.

The part of Gwen in Torchwood was written specially for Eve Myles. She first appeared as Gwyneth in Episode Three (The Unquiet Dead) of the first season of Doctor Who.

Gareth David-Lloyd's character of Ianto Jones began as the team's assistant who always sports a finely-tailored suite while ensuring the rest of the team has everything it needs, including a fresh pot of coffee. Ianto has since come to be an integral part of the team, especially after the loss of Tosh (Naoko Mori) and Owen (Burn Gorman) in season two.

Torchwood fans can get an additional fix of their favorite program with a special Torchwood weekend. Captain Jack, Gwen Cooper, Ianto, Tosh and Owen Harper are all back on BBC America with a marathon leading up to the premiere event of Torchwood: Children Of Earth. Enjoy an action-packed, adrenalin-fueled weekend with every single episode of the Sci-Fi smash hit from seasons one and two. The Torchwood weekend starts with Season one on Saturday, July 18th beginning @ 7 a.m. EST/4 a.m. PST, and season two on Sunday, July 19th beginning @ 7 a.m. EST/4 a.m. PST. Last but not least, if you miss installment of Torchwood: Children Of Earth, you can watch the entire five-episode run again in yet another special marathon on Sunday, July 26th starting @ 1 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST. As noted above, photo courtesy of and copyright of the BBC, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any form. Thanks!