Torchwood

Torchwood
Premiere	October 22, 2006
Finale	September 9, 2011
Creator	Russell T. Davies
Network/Provider	UK: BBC Three (season 1) BBC Two (season 2) BBC One (seasons 3–4) USA: BBC America (seasons 1–3) Starz (season 4)
Style	50-minute sci-fi crime drama
Company	BBC Worldwide Productions Starz Media (Season 4)
Seasons	4
Episodes	41
Origin	UK / US (season 4)

Torchwood is a sci-fi crime drama that aired on BBC in the UK and, in season four, Starz in the US.

The show follows the adventures of a team of investigators from the secretive Torchwood organisation, led by the enigmatic Captain Jack Harkness, played by John Barrowman. The Torchwood team's job is to neutralise alien threats while scavenging advanced technology in order to prepare humanity for the twenty-first century, "when everything changes". With the addition of WPC Gwen Cooper to the team, Torchwood also solve crime, both alien and human.

The show is a spin-off of long-running British science fiction series Doctor Who, which introduced the character of 'Captain Jack' during the latter half of its 2005 relaunch. The show's name is an anagram of Doctor Who, and actually originated during the early production of Doctor Who when preview tapes were being sent to London. According to executive producer Russell T. Davies, someone in the production office suggested that the tapes be labeled as Torchwood instead of Doctor Who to make them less likely to be stolen in transit by 'television pirates', and he liked the name so much that he kept it for the new show.

The third season consists of only five episodes telling one continuous story and was aired in both the UK and US as a miniseries event nightly over one week.

The fourth season was co-produced by the US premium cable network Starz and retooled to have more of an international feel.

Cast

Actor	Character	Duration
Main Cast
John Barrowman	Jack Harkness	1	2	3	4
Eve Myles	Gwen Cooper	1	2	3	4
Burn Gorman	Owen Harper	1	2
Naoko Mori	Toshiko Sato	1	2
Gareth David-Lloyd	Ianto Jones	1	2	3
Mekhi Phifer	Rex Matheson				4
Alexa Havins	Esther Drummond				4
Kai Owen	Rhys Williams	1	2	3	4
Bill Pullman	Oswald Jones				4
Season numbers in red indicate a recurring or guest role in that season.
Supporting/Recurring Cast
Tom Price	Andy Davidson	1	2	3	4
Paul Kasey	Weevils	1	2
Sharon Morgan	Mary Cooper		2		4
William Thomas	Geraint Cooper		2		4
Lauren Ambrose	Jill Kitzinger				4

Seasons

Season	Premiere	Finale	#
BBC3
Season One	October 22, 2006	January 1, 2007	13
BBC2
Season Two	January 16, 2008	April 1, 2008	13
BBC1
Season Three: Children of Earth	July 6, 2009	July 10, 2009	5
Starz/BBC1
Season Four: Miracle Day	July 8, 2011	September 9, 2011	10

In Depth

• At a Glance: Additional information about the series

DVD and Blu-ray Releases

DVD

Title	Release Date	#
Season Sets: Region 2
The Complete First Series	November 19, 2007	7	purchase
The Complete Second Series	June 30, 2008	5	purchase
Children of Earth Season Three	July 13, 2009	2	purchase
Miracle Day Season Four	November 14, 2011	4	purchase
Multiple Season Sets: Region 2
The Complete Series One & Two	November 10, 2008	12	purchase
Series 1 - 3	October 26, 2009	14	purchase
Series 1 - 4	November 14, 2011	18	purchase
Season Sets: Region 1
The Complete First Season	January 22, 2008	7	purchase
The Complete Second Season	September 16, 2008	5	purchase
Children of Earth (USA) Season Three	July 28, 2009	2	purchase
Miracle Day (USA) Season Four	April 3, 2012	4	purchase
Multiple Season Sets: Region 1
The Complete Original UK Series Seasons One thru Three	July 19, 2011	14	purchase

Blu-ray

Title	Release Date	#
Season Sets: Region B
The Complete First Series	June 30, 2008	6	purchase
The Complete Second Series	June 22, 2009	4	purchase
Children of Earth Season Three	July 13, 2009	2	purchase
Miracle Day Season Four	November 14, 2011	4	purchase
Multiple Season Sets: Region B
Series 1 - 3	October 26, 2009	12	purchase
Series 1 - 4	November 14, 2011	16	purchase
Season Sets: Region A
The Complete First Season	September 16, 2008	6	purchase
The Complete Second Season	July 28, 2009	4	purchase
Children of Earth (USA) Season Three	July 28, 2009	2	purchase
Miracle Day (USA) Season Four	April 3, 2012	4	purchase
Multiple Season Sets: Region A
The Complete Original UK Series Seasons One thru Three	July 19, 2011	12	purchase

External Sites

• Torchwood Episodes, TV Listings, News, Photos and More at TVGuide.com