Torchwood series three filming underway
Filming is now underway on the third series of Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood as the show prepares to make the jump to BBC One.
Despite the second 13-part series receiving strong viewing figures and good reviews the corporation has decided to cut the the new series to just five episodes which will air across a single week.
Due to transmit in 2009 Torchwood: Children Of Earth sees the team embarking on a single action-packed adventure as they battle for the future of the human race against the fiercest force they have encountered.
John Barrowman is joined by series regulars Eve Myles as Gwen Cooper and Gareth David-Lloyd as Ianto Jones for the adventure which also stars Peter Capaldi and Paul Copely.
Series creator and Executive Producer Russell T Davies said: “The new series of Torchwood is hugely bold and promises to be bigger and better than ever – the audience is in for an amazing ride. “This series is one big serial and the most ambitious story we’ve ever made, and we’ve got plenty of surprises in store.”
Julie Gardner, Head of Drama, BBC Wales, said: “We hope to make Torchwood a gripping and surprising TV event with storylines that push our team into greater danger and sacrifice. Joining our main cast are some fantastic guest artists who will only add to making this unmissable TV.”
New Star Wars Game Demo Announced
Console playing Star Wars fans will be able to unleash the Force in the comfort of their own homes this Thursday when a demo of the latest franchise tie-in game, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed will be available to download via both Xbox Live or the PlayStation Network.
The demo gives players a taste of one of the early levels in the game: the TIE Fighter Construction Facility, under siege by a Jedi General named Rahm Kota. The Secret Apprentice has been sent by Darth Vader to hunt down and destroy the General, but is also told that, in order to remain a secret, he is to leave no witnesses.
Billed as an entirely new chapter in the franchise, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed casts players as Darth Vader’s “Secret Apprentice” and promises to unveil new revelations about the Star Wars galaxy.
Payers are promised an “expansive story” seet during the largely unexplored era between Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. In it, players will assist Vader in his quest to rid the universe of Jedi - and face decisions that could change the course of their destiny.
The game will be available on XBox 360, Wii, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS and PSP and can be pre-ordered from the seenit.co.uk store.
More Classic Radio Sci-Fi On CD
BBC Audiobook have announced the next three titles to be released in their classic radio sci-fi range.
Frankenstein - Starring Michael Maloney (Bonekickers, Notes on a Scandal) as Frankenstein and John Wood as the Creature, this spine-tingling dramatisation perfectly conveys the book’s pervasive sense of unease and dread.
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R.U.R. - Simon Ward and Tessa Peake-Jones (Poppy Shakespeare) star in this suspenseful BBC Radio dramatisation of Karel Čapek’s play. R.U.R. written in 1920 is a thought-provoking drama famous for introducing the word ‘robot’ (from the Czech for drudge) to the English language. It is set in a future when all the work in our society is carried out by robots manufactured by Rossum’s Universal Robots.
Feeling sorry for the emotionless robots, the headstrong Helena persuades the company to factor emotion into them. The robots’ new-found consciousness leads them to revolt against their masters, and the resulting catastrophe makes for a gripping and thought-provoking drama.
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The Lost World - This production of The Lost World, based on the novel by Arthur Conan Doyle, was first broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1975, and amongst the cast are Francis de Wolff, Gerald Harper, Carol Boyd and the renowned radio actor Carleton Hobbs. The story follows a 19th century expedition to enter the rumoured lair of animals thought to have died out millions of years before - a terrifying world of pterodactyls and other prehistoric ‘monsters’. This CD release also includes an introductory sleeve note recounting the making of the radio adaptation, written by Andrew Pixley.
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Torchwood: The Complete Series Two Boxset
June 30th sees Captain Jack and the Torchwood team’s second run of adventures arrive on DVD. As was clear on original transmission the series has improved a lot since the first run (although that had a number of good moments) and seems to found the right tempo.
The thirteen episodes are all present and correct and accompanied by cutdown episodes of Torchwood De-classified plus The Lives and Deaths of Captain Jack, a 20 minute feature on Jack’s story plus some deleted scenes and out-takes.
It’s a pity there’s no commentaries but to be fair in most cases there’s probably not much more any of the cast and crew can to add to what’s already said in the De-classifieds.
The Lives and Deaths of Captain Jack is a pretty comprehensive look at Jack’s personal history starting with his first appearance in The Empty Child and covering his recruitment to Torchwood, his lost loves and his ultimate evolution into the Face of Boe. There’s also a contribution from series composer Ben Foster discussing the music for the show and the origins of Jack’s theme but
For me the highlight of the feature was a rather nice splicing together of the Torchwood series 1 scenes where Jack hears the Tardis and what is essentially the other end of that moment when, in Doctor Who’s third series, he runs to catch the Doctor before he takes off again. It’s a true fanboy pleasing moment.
Outtakes are something you either love of loathe and the ones here call for you to find Barrowman and the gang’s messing around funny so if you’re one of those odd people who feel the Torchwood and Doctor Who crews enjoy their work too much the outtakes here will probably just infuriate you. For everyone else they’re a pretty playful look behind the scenes of the show.
The deleted scenes show just how much of a show’s soul can be lost just to meet the demands of a transmission slot and some of the little moments shown here would added a slightly deeper and meaningful layer to the final episode.
If you can manage to ration yourself to an episode a week this’ll be a good way to fill the gap between the end of Doctor Who’s fourth series and the Christmas Special.
Torchwood: The Complete Series Two is available to pre-order from the Seen it store.
BBC One To Revive Survivors
It’s been announced that BBC Drama Productions are to remake Tarry Nation’s 1970’s drama series Survivors for broadcast on BBC One. Set in the present day, the new series will be written by Adrian Hodges.
Hodges said he was “thrilled to be involved with re-imagining it for a new audience.”
The original show, which launched in April 1975 and ran for 38 episodes over three series, focussed on a post-apocalyptic world, in the aftermath of a devastating plague which wipes out over 99% of the world’s population, and how a group of individuals grappled with the trials of day-to-day survival.
Kate Harwood, Head of Series and Serials at BBC Drama Production, said “after months of negotiations, I am delighted that one of British television’s great cult series will return with original stories packed with adventure and spirit set against the backdrop of our own recognisable world.”
Nation is best known as the creator of the Daleks in Doctor Who and fellow BBC Sc-Fi hit Blake’s 7.