Torchwood (Big Finish series)

Torchwood
Big Finish Productions audio drama
Series	2 (+ specials)
Featuring	Various
Written by	Various
Produced by	James Goss
Executive producer(s)	Jason Haigh-Ellery Nicholas Briggs
Music	Blair Mowat
Release date	15 September 2015 (2015-09-15) – Present

Torchwood is a series of audio dramas produced by Big Finish Productions based on the television series of the same name, an adult-oriented spin-off of the British science fiction drama Doctor Who which ran from 2006 to 2011. Nicholas Briggs and Jason Haigh-Ellery serve as executive producers, with James Goss as producer.

As with its television counterpart, Torchwood follows the exploits of the operatives who work for the institute of the same name; a secret organisation that defends Earth against supernatural and extraterrestrial threats.

The series premiered on 15 September 2015, with 14 releases so far: 12 plays spread across two series, a special and a boxset. A second boxset and a series of six further plays have been announced.

Premise

Torchwood follows the exploits of the operatives of the Torchwood Institute, a secret British organisation that defends Earth against supernatural and extraterrestrial threats. As with the television series, the audio dramas primarily focus on a team of alien hunters based at the institute's Cardiff branch, Torchwood Three. The main story arc revolves around an alien race called the Committee, who appear to have been secretly manipulating humanity since the turn of the twentieth century. Despite their existence being perceived as a conspiracy, Torchwood have made efforts in foiling their schemes, although it appears the Committee have larger plans in the works.

Each play typically centres on one or more members of the organisation or their associates, however, ensemble casts have appeared in certain stories. Time period-wise, each play is set at a different point in Torchwood's history, ranging from its founding in the Victorian Era to the present day and future. Certain plays also take place during events from the TV series.

Background

The original television programme Torchwood ran for four series broadcast between 2006 and 2011 on various BBC channels and the American network Starz before entering an infinite hiatus due to the personal commitments of creator and executive producer Russell T Davies.

In January 2015, John Barrowman, who played series lead Captain Jack Harkness, stated in an interview that there were plans for Torchwood to return as several BBC audio plays that could potentially lead into a fifth television series. He stated that both Davies and co-executive producer Julie Gardner were in discussion of the project, as well as the possibility of Barrowman and his sister Carole Barrowman writing one of the plays.^[1] Torchwood previously featured on the audio medium as several series tie-in plays that aired between 2008 and 2011 on BBC Radio 4.

In May 2015, Big Finish announced that they had been granted permission to produce audiobooks based on Torchwood as part of a licensing agreement between themselves and BBC Worldwide, allowing them to use characters and concepts from the new series of Doctor Who and its spin-offs in future productions.^[2] The company was formally only permitted to use concepts from the show's original 1963–89 series and its self-titled 1996 TV film. The new Torchwood plays also received the blessing of Davies,^[2] who had been working with Gardner and former Big Finish producer Gary Russell to bring the show to the company since 2013.^[3]

The first two series, each consisting of six plays, were announced in May and September 2015 respectively, and released between September 2015–August 2016 as monthly instalments. A special feature-length play, "The Torchwood Archive", was released in October 2016 to commemorate the tenth anniversary of Torchwood's TV debut. This was followed by the boxset, Torchwood: Outbreak, in November 2016. Another boxset, Torchwood One: Before the Fall, is set for a January 2017 release,^[4] while a third series of six plays is set for monthly release beginning March 2017.

Production

The series is produced by James Goss, with Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs serving as executive producers. A number of writers and directors contribute to the series regularly. Scripts are edited by Steve Tribe, while music is composed by Blair Mowat and all CD cover art is designed by Lee Binding. Plays have been recorded in studios across the UK and the U.S. These include Rancho Mirage Music, Bang Post Production, The Moat Studios, The Roundhouse Studios and Ladbroke Audio. Typically, one play is recorded in 1–2 days and released within the next six months, with post production taking place in the time between. Upon release, each play debuts through Big Finish's website for digital download and physical purchase for a certain amount of time, before being commercially released at a later date.

Several actors from the original television programme have reprised their roles for the audio series, the most notable being its lead, John Barrowman, as Captain Jack Harkness, and co-stars Eve Myles as Gwen Cooper and Gareth David-Lloyd as Ianto Jones, the three of which appear in most of the series. Other returning cast members include Kai Owen as Rhys Williams, Tom Price as Andy Davidson, Naoko Mori as Toshiko Sato and Indira Varma as Suzie Costello, the latter two reprising their characters for the first time on audio. Also to feature Tracy-Ann Oberman as Yvonne Hartman, a character who originally appeared in Doctor Who.

Releases

Series 1 (2015–16)

Series 2 (2016)

Special (2016)

Torchwood: Outbreak (2016)

Torchwood One: Before the Fall

Series 3

References