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[[file:Torchwood_ChildrenofEarth_logo.png|right|350px]]
{{Infobox Series
'''''Torchwood: Children of Earth''''' was a ''[[Torchwood]]'' mini-series which aired in [[2009]] on [[BBC 1]]. It served as '''Series 3''' of ''[[Torchwood]]''.
|image            = Torchwood ChildrenofEarth logo.png
==Overview==
|image2          = Ep00 CoE torchwood team.jpg
''Children of Earth'' was broadcast over five consecutive nights. The series had new [[Producer]] [[Peter Bennett]] and was [[director|directed]] by [[Euros Lyn]], who had considerable experience on the revived ''[[Doctor Who]]''. The first, fourth, and fifth episodes were written by [[Russell T Davies]], who also wrote the story arc. The third episode was written by [[James Moran]] whilst the second is by newcomer [[John Fay]], though according to Moran's blog, all three writers had input into the overall storyline.
|broadcast year  = 2009
|broadcast year2  =
|ep count        = 5
|story count      = 1
|first ep        = Children of Earth: Day One (TV story)
|main character  = Jack Harkness
|starring        = Gwen Cooper
|starring2        = Ianto Jones
|starring3        = Rhys Williams
|starring4        = Lois Habiba
|main enemy      = [[The 456]]
|producer        = Peter Bennett
|exec prod        = Russell T Davies
|exec prod2      = Julie Gardner
|start date      = [[6 July (releases)|6 July]] [[2009 (releases)|2009]]
|end date        = [[10 July (releases)|10 July]] 2009
|network          = BBC One
|runtime          = 52'
|DWM              = DWM 410
|DWM2            = DWM 412
|DWM3            = DWM 413
|DWM4            = DWM 484
|prev            = Series 2 (Torchwood)
|next            = Series 4 (Torchwood)
|trailer          = Torchwood Children of Earth Trailer - BBC One
|trailer2        =
|clip            = The Torchwood Hub is Destroyed! Day One Torchwood Children of Earth
|clip2            = We want the children - Torchwood - BBC
|clip3            = Jack makes the ultimate sacrifice - Torchwood - BBC
|bts              =
|bts2            =
|bts3            =
}}{{you may|Series 3 (BFTW)|n1=the audio series}}
'''Series 3''' of ''[[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]]'', also known under the umbrella title '''''Children of Earth''''', ran between [[6 July (releases)|6 July]] and [[10 July (releases)|10 July]] [[2009 (releases)|2009]]. It starred [[John Barrowman]] as [[Jack Harkness]], [[Eve Myles]] as [[Gwen Cooper]], [[Kai Owen]] as [[Rhys Williams]] and [[Gareth David-Lloyd]] as [[Ianto Jones]]. The series opened with ''[[Children of Earth: Day One (TV story)|Children of Earth: Day One]]'' and concluded with ''[[Children of Earth: Day Five (TV story)|Children of Earth: Day Five]]''.


Production on this series began in August [[2008]] and was broadcast in July [[2009]] on [[BBC 1]]. The Series aired from Monday the 6th of July to Friday the 10th. <ref>[http://www.gallifreyone.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?id=EkuEVEyZFEYLfvgBAE&tmpl=newsrss&style=feedstyle Outpost Gallifrey - Watch's Schedule Suggested UK Airdate for Children Of Earth (But Not Anymore)] <small>accessed 20 June 2009</small></ref>
== Overview ==
It consisted of a single, five-episode story arc titled ''Torchwood: Children of Earth'', broadcast over five consecutive nights. The series had a new [[producer]], [[Peter Bennett]], and was [[Director (crew)|directed]] by [[Euros Lyn]], who had considerable experience on the revived ''[[Doctor Who]]''.


==Television Stories==
The [[Children of Earth: Day One (TV story)|first]] and [[Children of Earth: Day Five (TV story)|final episodes]] were [[Writer|written]] by [[Russell T Davies]], who also wrote the story arc. The [[Children of Earth: Day Three (TV story)|third episode]] was co-written by Davies and [[James Moran]] whilst the [[Children of Earth: Day Two (TV story)|second]] and [[Children of Earth: Day Four (TV story)|fourth]] were by newcomer [[John Fay]], though, according to Moran's blog, all three writers had an input into the storyline.
*[[Day One (Children of Earth)|Day One]]
*[[Day Two (Children of Earth)|Day Two]]  
*[[Day Three (Children of Earth)|Day Three]]
*[[Day Four (Children of Earth)|Day Four]]  
*[[Day Five (Children of Earth)|Day Five]]


===Story Notes===
[[Freema Agyeman]] and [[Noel Clarke]] were originally scheduled to appear as [[Martha Jones]] and [[Mickey Smith]], Agyeman appearing throughout the story arc and Clarke in the final two episodes. When Agyeman was signed to co-star in {{wi|Law & Order: UK}}, her appearance was whittled down to a one-scene cameo, which was ultimately cut when she became completely unavailable. Clarke was forced to pull out at a later stage due to film commitments. ([[REF]]: ''[[Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale|Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale - The Final Chapter]]'')
*''Children of Earth'' was orginally planned to air in the second week in June, but was changed to July.
*The only returning main cast members for Series 3 are John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Gareth David-Lloyd, [[Tom Price]], and [[Kai Owen]].
*The story is set overall in September [[2010]], and the final scenes take place six months later making it March [[2011]].
*As of this story, all of the original Torchwood team have died, apart from [[Gwen Cooper]]. [[Jack Harkness]] has died numerous times, only to return to life.


===Opening and closing credits===
Also, [[Nicholas Briggs]], who has written and acted in many licensed-by-BBC and unlicensed ''Doctor Who'' franchise spin-offs since the 1980s, and who is the revived ''Doctor Who'' series' resident alien voice-over artist, makes his first on-screen appearance in a televised Who-franchise production.
The opening credits for Series 3 are markedly different from that used for the first two seasons. The series logo screen is presented with black text on a white background (as opposed to the normal red-on-black), with the ''Children of Earth'' subtitle. There is no opening credit sequence beyond the title screen, no opening theme music; the main cast credits play out over the opening scene of each episode and are combined with the major production credits. Kai Owen receives start-of-episode credit along with Barrowman, Myles and David-Lloyd in these episodes for the first time.


The closing credits are formatted the same as previous seasons, featuring the ''Torchwood'' closing theme music.
Production on this series began in [[August (production)|August]] [[2008 (production)|2008]].


===Myths and rumours===
In [[2010 (production)|2010]] the [[Television Critics Association]] nominated the series for ''Best TV Movie, Miniseries and Special''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://au.tv.ign.com/articles/109/1095038p1.html|title=Modern Family, Glee, Lost and Clone Wars Get TV Critics Love|date of source=June 5, 2010|website name=IGN|accessdate=11th February 2012}}</ref>
*[[DW]]: ''[[Journey's End]]'' included a scene in which Jack Harkness is heard offering [[Martha Jones]] a job, with further dialogue hinting at possible involvement by [[Mickey Smith]]. This, combined with a comment in [[Russell T. Davies]]' book ''[[The Writer's Tale]]'' that Davies had promised [[Noel Clarke]] a role in Series 3 of ''Torchwood'', led to speculation that Martha and Mickey would appear in ''Children of Earth''. Ultimately, this did not occur, although ''Day One'' includes a dialogue reference to Martha.
*Similarly, an appearance by [[Tenth Doctor|The Doctor]] was also speculated, but did not occur, although once again references to the character are made in dialogue (including a reference in ''Day Five'' that serves to cover the issue of why he isn't on Earth to combat the 456).


===Cast===
== Cast ==
====Returning Cast====
[[File:COEpromotionalposter1.jpg|thumb|A promotional image for the series.]]
*[[Jack Harkness|Captain Jack Harkness]] - [[John Barrowman]]
* [[Jack Harkness|Captain Jack Harkness]] - [[John Barrowman]]
*[[Gwen Cooper]] - [[Eve Myles]]
* [[Gwen Cooper]] - [[Eve Myles]]
*[[Ianto Jones]] - [[Gareth David-Lloyd]]
* [[Ianto Jones]] - [[Gareth David-Lloyd]]
*[[Rhys Williams]] - [[Kai Owen]]
* [[Rhys Williams]] - [[Kai Owen]]
*[[Andy Davidson]] - [[Tom Price]]
* [[Lois Habiba]] - [[Cush Jumbo]]
* [[John Frobisher]] - [[Peter Capaldi]]
* [[Clem McDonald]] - [[Paul Copley]]
* [[Johnson (Children of Earth: Day One)|Johnson]] - [[Liz May Brice]]
* [[Rhiannon Davies]] - [[Katy Wix]]
* [[Alice Carter]] - [[Lucy Cohu]]
* Mr [[Dekker]] - [[Ian Gelder]]
* [[Brian Green|Prime Minister Green]] - [[Nicholas Farrell]]
* [[Bridget Spears]] - [[Susan Brown]]
* [[Steven Carter]] - [[Bear McCausland]]
* [[Johnny Davies]] - [[Rhodri Lewis]]
* [[Andy Davidson]] - [[Tom Price]]
* Voice of the [[The 456]] - [[Simon Poland]]


====New Cast====
=== Recurring ===
*[[Lois Habiba]] - [[Cush Jumbo]]
* [[Dr]] [[Rupesh Patanjali]] - [[Rik Makarem]]
*[[Rupesh Patanjali|Dr. Rupesh Patanjali]] - [[Rik Makarem]]
* [[Denise Riley]] - [[Deborah Findlay]]
*[[Alice Carter]] - [[Lucy Cohu]]
* [[Trinity Wells]] - [[Lachele Carl]]
*[[Bridget Spears]] - [[Susan Brown]]
* [[French newsreader]] - [[Anthony Debaeck]]
*[[Johnson (Children of Earth)|Johnson]] - [[Liz May Brice]]
*[[John Frobisher]] - [[Peter Capaldi]]
*[[Clem MacDonald]] - [[Paul Copley]]
*[[Dekker|Mr. Dekker]] - [[Ian Gelder]]
*[[Brian Green|Prime Minister Green]] - [[Nicholas Farrell]]
*[[Rhiannon Davies]] - [[Katy Wix]]
*[[Denise Riley]] - [[Deborah Findlay]]
*[[Rick Yates]] - [[Nicholas Briggs]]
*[[The 456]] (voice)- [[Simon Poland]]


===International Broadcast===
=== Guest ===
Early in 2009, several sources including ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' reported that [[BBC One]] and [[BBC America]] were planning to coincide their broadcasts, allowing ''Children of Earth'' to be broadcast in the UK and US on the same days. This ultimately did not occur, with the UK showing the miniseries the week of 6th July, followed by BBC America the week of 20th July 2009.
* [[Rick Yates]] - [[Nicholas Briggs]]


The Canadian network [[Space (TV channel)|Space]] also aired ''Children of Earth'' the week of July 20th.
== Episodes ==
{| {{prettytable}}
!width="2%"| '''#''' || width=10%| '''Title'''  || '''Writer(s)''' || '''Director''' || '''Notes'''
|-
|1
|'' [[Children of Earth: Day One (TV story)|Day One]]''
|[[Russell T Davies]]
|rowspan=5|[[Euros Lyn]]
|First appearance of [[Clement McDonald]], [[Lois Habiba]], [[John Frobisher]], [[Brian Green]], [[Rhiannon Davies]], [[Johnny Davies]], Mr. [[Dekker]], [[Alice Carter]], [[Steven Carter]] and [[Johnson (Children of Earth: Day One)|Agent Johnson]]. Gwen learns she is [[pregnant]]. Destruction of the [[Torchwood Three|Torchwood Hub]].
|-
|2
|'' [[Children of Earth: Day Two (TV story)|Day Two]]''
|[[John Fay]]
|
|-
|3
|'' [[Children of Earth: Day Three (TV story)|Day Three]]''
|Russell T Davies, [[James Moran]]
|First appearance of [[the 456]].
|-
|4
|'' [[Children of Earth: Day Four (TV story)|Day Four]]''
|John Fay
|Death of [[Ianto Jones]] and [[Clement McDonald]].
|-
|5
|'' [[Children of Earth: Day Five (TV story)|Day Five]]''
|Russell T Davies
|Final appearance of the 456. Death of Steven Carter and John Frobisher. [[Jack Harkness]] leaves Earth. Torchwood Three disbands.
|}


===DVD/Blu Ray Release===
== Aliens and enemies ==
''Children of Earth'' was released on both DVD and Blu-Ray on the 13th of July in the UK,<ref>[http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Torchwood-Children-Of-Earth/12007 TVshowsOnDVD.com - Torchwood - Correct release date & package art for ''Children of Earth'' on DVD & Blu-ray] <small>accessed 20 June 2009</small></ref> and in North America on 28th July.
* [[The 456]] ambassador
* [[John Frobisher]]
* [[Brian Green]]
* [[Johnson (Children of Earth: Day One)|Johnson]]
* [[Rupesh Patanjali]]
* [[Hitchhiker (species)|Hitchhiker]]


===External Links===
== Digital availability ==
*[http://www.bbc.co.uk/torchwood/ Season 3 preview.]
Series 3 of ''Torchwood'' is available for purchase and/or as part of a subscription on:
* [[iTunes]] in [[Australia]], [[Canada]], [[France]], [[Germany]], the UK and [[US]],
* [[Amazon (service)|Amazon Video]] in [[Austria]], Germany, the UK and US,
* [[Netflix]] in 70 countries, which do not include Austria, Canada, France, Germany or the UK.
* Stan in Australia which includes the rest of the series
<gallery position="center" captionalign="center" hideaddbutton="true">
File:iTunes_TorchwoodS3_cover.jpg|[[iTunes]] store cover
</gallery>


===Footnotes===
== Radio ==
{{reflist}}
* ''[[Asylum (audio story)|Asylum]]''
* ''[[Golden Age (audio story)|Golden Age]]''
* ''[[The Dead Line (audio story)|The Dead Line]]''


==Aliens and Enemies==
=== Notes ===
[[The 456]]
* The audio stories were broadcast in early [[July (releases)|July]] on [[Radio 4]] prior to the broadcast of ''Children of Earth'', the CD was later released in [[September (releases)|September]] [[2009 (releases)|2009]].


==Radio==
== External links ==
The week prior to the original UK broadcast, [[BBC Radio 4]] aired three original audio dramas featuring the television cast. Although not officially promoted by the BBC as extensions of Series 3 (and as such are of uncertain canonicity), the fanbase has taken them to be so.
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/torchwood/ Season 3 preview.]
* [http://www.reviewsrantsrandomness.com/2009/07/torchwood-children-of-earth.html Praise for the mini-series on The Three Rs.]


*[[Asylum (Torchwood)|Asylum]]
== Footnotes ==
*[[Golden Age]]
{{reflist}}
*[[The Dead Line]]
{{Torchwood series 3}}
{{Torchwood Series 3 aliens}}
{{TitleSort}}


{{Torchwood series 3}}
[[Category:Seasons]]
{|class="browser"
[[Category:Torchwood series]]
|class="prev"|'''Previous season''':<br />[[Series 2 (Torchwood)|Torchwood Series 2]]
 
|class="next"|'''Next season''':<br /> Torchwood Series 4
[[cy:Cyfres 3 (Torchwood)]]
|}
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[[Category:Torchwood seasons]]

Latest revision as of 20:11, 3 November 2024

RealWorld.png

You may be looking for the audio series.

Series 3 of Torchwood, also known under the umbrella title Children of Earth, ran between 6 July and 10 July 2009. It starred John Barrowman as Jack Harkness, Eve Myles as Gwen Cooper, Kai Owen as Rhys Williams and Gareth David-Lloyd as Ianto Jones. The series opened with Children of Earth: Day One and concluded with Children of Earth: Day Five.

Overview[[edit] | [edit source]]

It consisted of a single, five-episode story arc titled Torchwood: Children of Earth, broadcast over five consecutive nights. The series had a new producer, Peter Bennett, and was directed by Euros Lyn, who had considerable experience on the revived Doctor Who.

The first and final episodes were written by Russell T Davies, who also wrote the story arc. The third episode was co-written by Davies and James Moran whilst the second and fourth were by newcomer John Fay, though, according to Moran's blog, all three writers had an input into the storyline.

Freema Agyeman and Noel Clarke were originally scheduled to appear as Martha Jones and Mickey Smith, Agyeman appearing throughout the story arc and Clarke in the final two episodes. When Agyeman was signed to co-star in Law & Order: UK, her appearance was whittled down to a one-scene cameo, which was ultimately cut when she became completely unavailable. Clarke was forced to pull out at a later stage due to film commitments. (REF: Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale - The Final Chapter)

Also, Nicholas Briggs, who has written and acted in many licensed-by-BBC and unlicensed Doctor Who franchise spin-offs since the 1980s, and who is the revived Doctor Who series' resident alien voice-over artist, makes his first on-screen appearance in a televised Who-franchise production.

Production on this series began in August 2008.

In 2010 the Television Critics Association nominated the series for Best TV Movie, Miniseries and Special.[1]

Cast[[edit] | [edit source]]

A promotional image for the series.

Recurring[[edit] | [edit source]]

Guest[[edit] | [edit source]]

Episodes[[edit] | [edit source]]

# Title Writer(s) Director Notes
1 Day One Russell T Davies Euros Lyn First appearance of Clement McDonald, Lois Habiba, John Frobisher, Brian Green, Rhiannon Davies, Johnny Davies, Mr. Dekker, Alice Carter, Steven Carter and Agent Johnson. Gwen learns she is pregnant. Destruction of the Torchwood Hub.
2 Day Two John Fay
3 Day Three Russell T Davies, James Moran First appearance of the 456.
4 Day Four John Fay Death of Ianto Jones and Clement McDonald.
5 Day Five Russell T Davies Final appearance of the 456. Death of Steven Carter and John Frobisher. Jack Harkness leaves Earth. Torchwood Three disbands.

Aliens and enemies[[edit] | [edit source]]

Digital availability[[edit] | [edit source]]

Series 3 of Torchwood is available for purchase and/or as part of a subscription on:

Radio[[edit] | [edit source]]

Notes[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • The audio stories were broadcast in early July on Radio 4 prior to the broadcast of Children of Earth, the CD was later released in September 2009.

External links[[edit] | [edit source]]

Footnotes[[edit] | [edit source]]

  1. ↑ Modern Family, Glee, Lost and Clone Wars Get TV Critics Love. IGN (June 5, 2010). Retrieved on 11th February 2012.
v • e
Torchwood television stories
Series 1
Series 2
Series 3
Children of Earth: Day One • Day Two • Day Three • Day Four • Day Five
Series 4
Stories listed here are only those that have been officially licensed by the BBC.
v • e
Aliens and Enemies of TW Series 3
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