Life is Life and then you die!

Torchwood: Children Of Earth

Captain Jack Harkness, Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones return for a brand-new adventure in Torchwood: Children Of Earth, a new five-part series for BBC One.




John Barrowman on Torchwood: Children Of Earth

"Anybody who loves science fiction or a good drama will fall in love with Torchwood," says John. "It's action-packed, it's sexy, it's exciting, it's an emotional roller-coaster and you just want to sit back and get ready for the ride of your life."

Torchwood are a team of people who are fighting for the best interest of humanity; they are no strangers to the daily threat alien forces pose to the safety of the Earth. But, this time, they must fight with every ounce of instinct and energy they have to survive.

Of the new format to this year's series, John Barrowman, who plays lead character Captain Jack Harkness, says: "It's changed in the respect that in series one we were crawling, series two we were walking and now series three we're running.

"We know what Torchwood is and we know what it's about – it's full of drama and action.

"This storyline is one of the darker Torchwood storylines. Every time you turn a corner you don't know what's going to happen. And when you watch episode one you're going to want to see two, and when you've seen two you'll want to see three. You're just going to want more and more and more.

"You'll learn a lot about the characters in ways that you've never known them before. If you like relationships then you're going to see the difference in Jack and Ianto's relationship and Gwen and Rhys's – but you're also going to see the similarities.

"The characters have evolved in ways because we're learning new things about them. It makes it really interesting for us to play as actors, and for the audience every episode will bring a new revelation."

The new show format is also something John thinks will prove entertaining to the audience.

"I think the one storyline works perfectly for this series – it's epic, it is pacy."

The series will also reveal that one of the Torchwood team is hiding a dark secret – a potential catalyst for even more action-packed drama.

"One of the team is hiding a secret that will be a revelation to a lot of people – not only to the viewers watching but to the team itself. It will be very uncomfortable for the characters. And people watching it will question why they did it. Will they be able to understand why they did it?

"But, as in all things with science fiction, as a series, we can touch on subjects that are not touched upon in a number of other dramas."



Gwen Cooper
Played by Eve Myles

Gwen Cooper played by Eve Myles

A former police officer, Gwen brings procedural skills to the team and a sensitivity that helps them greatly in dealing with victims. She is grounded, straightforward and very determined, and in the murky world of Torchwood she often acts as the team's conscience. Her ability to co-ordinate activity has led to her being recognised as the team's deputy leader. Gwen is married to Rhys Williams.

In Torchwood: Children Of Earth, Gwen finds all her familiar comfort zones ripped away and she must face a terrifying new future, with Rhys at her side, unsure who they can and cannot trust.
Eve Myles on Torchwood: Children Of Earth

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.

"I was so excited when I got the scripts," says Eve. "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. "The pace increases from the word go. The first episode is an establisher and, by the second episode, you don't know what the hell has hit you. The third, the fourth and the fifth go at such a pace."

For Eve, the new series and the single storyline across all five episodes felt like the right evolution for Torchwood as it makes its debut on BBC One.

"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."

Of Gwen's role in the team she says: "Gwen is still the heart and emotion of Torchwood, but also realises 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 policewoman in Cardiff. A couple of years later here she is saving the world with Captain Jack. One way or another something's got to give."

Viewers will see Gwen forge a close relationship with Clem, played by Paul Copley – the survivor of a horrific ordeal who is still haunted by his past.

The scenes she filmed with him proved to be a major highlight for the actress from Ystradgynlais. "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 that 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." 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, she says: "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 really were caught up in that. I'm an adrenalin junkie so it's the perfect job for me."




Ianto Jones
Played by Gareth David-Lloyd

Ianto Jones played by David-Lloyd

Ianto deals with all the team's administrative issues. His knowledge is eclectic, his attention to detail unrivalled and his ability to anticipate the team's needs before they have arisen is uncanny. He dislikes it when his remarkable efficiency is taken for granted, however, and when required, he is also more than capable of undertaking field work for the team.

In Torchwood: Children Of Earth, the quiet coffee maker finds himself out of his comfort zone. But it doesn't take him long to find his stride and he is soon right at the heart of the action.
Gareth David-Lloyd on Torchwood: Children Of Earth

"I absolutely loved filming this series – there are so many scenes that are memorable," says Gareth David-Lloyd, who plays Ianto. "But the one that does come to mind is crawling through the wreckage after a huge explosion.

"We filmed it in a quarry and used real pyrotechnics. It was really hot and I had to climb up the side of this quarry. It was the first time in my career I felt like a proper action hero.

"It's one big adrenalin rush after another. I enjoyed it more than ever as I had the chance to be a bigger part of the action." "I found the five-episode storyline effective – there's one emotional journey throughout. I think people will be more scared by this new series. There's a real seriousness to what's going on."

Although the format of the series has changed, the impact and effect of Torchwood remains the same.

"There's just as much human drama as there is sci-fi in this series," says Gareth.

"I can't wait to see the entire series. It has this race against time element to it. As each episode goes by, the pace increases and it gets faster and faster – like a roller coaster – and it's a real adrenalin ride."

As the series has developed, so has the character of Ianto Jones: "I think Ianto has changed quite a lot since the series first began because of everything that's happened to him.

"He lost everything he loved at one point, and then realised that all that was left for him was Torchwood and Jack – they had to replace the hole in his life. He's learnt to be less guarded and be more like himself – a bit more content with himself as a person."

The relationship between Captain Jack and Ianto also undergoes a transformation, with the two growing ever closer.

"It was nice to film those elements of the series. As it panned out across previous series, the relationship between Jack and Ianto has been quite organic. So it was nice that we get to the stage in series three where they are going through all the usual couple difficulties. I think the way it's been done is extremely real."

The alien threat facing the future of humanity, the 456, is nothing the team has ever encountered before. And hidden beneath the reality of the situation is the fact that one of the team is hiding a dark secret.

"I think every character goes through the process of thinking about giving up. We're lucky they don't all think about giving up at the same time! The good thing about the team is that they've got each other to pull them out of the darkness."

However fierce the alien threat, Torchwood has the additional threat of being targeted themselves – a threat that throws the team into chaos.

"I think Torchwood copes really well under threat and by episode three they're up and running again – proving how resilient they are. I think that's what makes them such a good team. They've been together for so long that they know each other inside out."