What is Torchwood?
Torchwood is a new series by BBC Wales for BBC Three. Set in Cardiff in the early 21st century it's about several conspiracy theorists, alien researchers, renegades and other people who've fallen out of society investigating alien crimes and incursions, and maybe cleaning up after *other* extraterrestrials have helped save the Earth. While Torchwood may not be a UNIT scientific advisory arm, they do have links to the Government. 

Controller of BBC Three, Stuart Murphy, said "The renegades investigate human and alien crime, as well as alien technology that has fallen to Earth"

The show is a dark, wild, sexy, sinister, psychological, paranoid sci-fi thriller cop drama with a lot of daft British humour. (Think Spooks, This Life and maybe Little Britain) Murphy is also quoted as saying repeatedly that it will be very funny.

In The Christmas Invasion with David Tennant, Torchwood was mentioned several times. As well as this the climax to the episode was a result of Torchwood's actions. 4 energy beams blasted from different points in London and merged into a single focused beam. Apparently this energy weapon was developed from an alien ship that "crashed to Earth 10 years ago."

Other mentions indicate that most members of UNIT aren't aware of Torchwood, and that the Prime Minister should NOT know about it. Torchwood has a large contingent of staff which could make for an interesting series.

 Captain Jack will be one of four major characters. His missing two years will start to come out during the series with several major revelations. (Maybe he was there when the Doctor blew up the sonic weapons refinery?)

In the second season of the new Doctor Who series, Torchwood begins in the episode Tooth and Claw, when Queen Victoria, after visiting the Torchwood Estate, decides to create The Torchwood Institute to be ready if 'this 'Doctor' ever returns' (1879)

So, assuming Queen Victoria's plan gets off the ground in 1881, This could suggest a 'birthday party' episode celebrating 125 years of Torchwood and firmly setting it in 2006

Other references in other media, including the Confidential series, suggests that Torchwood undergoes several transformations in its 125 years of service.

What market is the show aimed at?
Post-watershed viewers. X-Files style show and timeslot. Adult oriented. Definitely not for kids. So even though it is rumoured that K9 may make an appearance, he'll probably be there to blow up a few terrorists in a bloody battle. If screened in Australia we will get a warning message about adult themes.

How many episodes per year?
At the moment 13 episodes have been commissioned for season 1. Each episode will be 45 minutes long and completely self-contained.

 Who will be in Torchwood?
The actor confirmed to have the lead role in the program is John Barrowman who played Captain Jack Harkness in the new series of Doctor Who in 2005. He will play Captain Jack in the new series too. Eve Myles will play Gwen Cooper, his assistant/companion. Naoko Mori (Dr Toshiko Sato) has been confirmed as has Burn Gorman as Medic Owen Harper. 

How does Captain Jack get into the series when he's stuck in the future?
Won't be revealed until the final two part story of season 3 of Doctor Who, when Jack also gets his memories back. Written by Steven Moffat.

Will there be cross over episodes with Doctor Who?
While cross-over episodes have been ruled out, there is nothing to stop actors and characters from the old and new series of Doctor Who having a part in Torchwood. It's strongly suggested that Sarah Jane and K9 from Doctor Who will make irregular appearances. There's also nothing to stop past Doctors from making appearances either!

When will it be broadcast?
It will start broadcasting on BBC Three on 22nd October 2006. 9:00pm to 10:40pm. Episodes 1 and 2 will be broadcast back to back. The season should finish in January. The regular timeslot will be 10pm.

When will filming begin?
Filming began in May 2006. 

Who is writing the episodes?
Russell T Davies will be writing most of them. Other writers confirmed include Chris Chibnall and PJ Hammond. David Walliams and Matt Lucas from Little Britain are rumoured to have been suggested as a contenders but this is unlikely at this stage.

Will we see any aliens from Doctor Who in the series?
The series is a stand alone series so this is unlikely but not completely ruled out. Much like the Blake's 7 series used props from classic Doctor Who and visa versa, the series didn't make use of the same aliens even though Terry Nation worked on both series. (Though season 4 of Blake's 7 did steal a Sea Devil costume for a darkly lit scene with Dorian) There are rumours that K9 may make an appearance. But for actors who've been on Doctor Who and want to try something related but a bit different, this is the perfect vehicle for them. We could have just about any companion return, similar to BBV productions. Petitions for Nicholas Courtney to join the cast for an ep?

Will there be any merchandise?
Yes. 3 DVDs, 3 books and an action figure are already available to order online. The Action figure features Captain Jack as he was in Doctor Who but further action figures will be available soon.

Torchwood: Slow Decay
Torchwood: Border Princes
Torchwood: Another Life

Captain Jack Harkness Action Figure

What episode of Doctor Who was Torchwood mentioned in?
Bad Wolf, Episode 12 of Season 1 in an answer by Anne Droid
The Christmas Invasion Episode X of Season 2
Tooth and Claw E2 S2
School Reunion E3 S2
Rise of the Cybermen E5 S2
The Impossible Planet E8 S2
Army of Ghosts E12 S2
Doomsday E13 S2

I'm in the UK and I still can't access the flash files on the Torchwood site. What do I do?
The flash version of the Official BBC Torchwood site is not available to viewers from outside of the UK due to rights reasons. Unfortunately it's possible that even if you are in the UK, your ISP may not be using IP addresses that make your computer recognise that you're in the UK.

If this is the case and you really need your internet connection to confirm that you are in the UK, you can use a UK proxy server to view the Torchwood site.

If you do decide to implement this system on your computer, please note that it will slow your connection down to dialup speeds. But you will be able to view the Torchwood site's flash videos. So implement it for a short while, check out the site, then switch it off.

How to do it? Firstly, download the firefox browser and install it. 

Secondly, click on Tools, Options. Click on the General tab. Click on the button marked general settings. Click on manual proxy configuration. Enter into the box the following proxy server connection: 194.36.10.156 Enter this port number in the box 3128 Click ok then click close

Go to the Official Torchwoodsite.

Remember, due to rights reasons you should only do this if you're in the UK but your computer doesn't recognise that you're in the UK. ;)

To turn it off, go back to the same area and choose 'direct connection to the internet' NB: Because this makes changes to your computer, we don't take responsibility for any problems you might have. Have fun!