Theory:Timeline - Jack Harkness
If this thread's title doesn't specify it's spoilery, don't bring any up.
This page lists appearances of Captain Jack Harkness in the order he experienced them. This timeline is based upon observations of the Doctor Who universe and the events that occur during each of these stories. From these observations we have attempted to build a concise timeline. It is assumed that for each novel, comic, audio or television series, their published, broadcast or numbered order is the order they occur in.
Limiting factors
Any story with the Ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler must be after TV: The Doctor Dances and before TV: Bad Wolf. Any story with Jack waiting on 19th and 20th century Earth must be after TV: The Parting of the Ways and before TV: Everything Changes. Any story with Gwen, Ianto, Owen and Tosh must be after TV: Everything Changes and before TV: End of Days or after TV: Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang and before TV: Exit Wounds. Any story where Owen is dead, but still mobile must be set after TV: Dead Man Walking and before TV: Exit Wounds. Any story where Gwen is married to Rhys must be after TV: Something Borrowed. Any story with Gwen and Ianto must be after TV: Exit Wounds and before TV: Children of Earth: Day One.
Overview
Captain Jack Harkness was briefly an original to Doctor Who television companion of the Ninth Doctor, travelling with him through time and space. After being trapped with a broken vortex manipulator in 1869, with few opportunities to time travel over the next century, he later joins Torchwood Three, though the majority of his stories told are set after Gwen Cooper's recruitment to Torchwood in 2007 in the premiere episode of Torchwood, with remaining stories or scenes set before then occurring in flashback.
His adventures with 21st century Torchwood Three and the related Torchwood team in America that was formed after the destruction of the Hub can be categorised as these original to Torchwood television lineups:
- With Gwen, Owen, Ianto and Tosh in Torchwood Three
- With Gwen and Ianto in Torchwood Three
- With Gwen, Ianto and associate Rhys Williams following the Torchwood Hub's destruction
- With Gwen, Rex Matheson and Esther Drummond as part of a new team codenamed Torchwood
Timeline
- Set immediately after The Doctor Dances.
- Takes place before Boom Town due to Jack mentioning he has not visited the Ninth Doctor's companion Rose Tyler's era (the 21st century).
- Rose phones her mother Jackie and tells her about the events of Boom Town
- Jack is left behind on Satellite 5.
- Set in the late 19th century.
- Set in 1898
- TV: Small Worlds (flashback)
- Set in 1909.
- TV: Immortal Sins (flashback)
- TV: Children of Earth: Day Four (flashback)
- COMIC: Time Fraud (comic story)
- Set in 1965.
- TV: Fragments (flashbacks with Alex Hopkins and Jack's 2007-era Torchwood associates)
- Set over the course of the late 20th and early 21st century before Gwen Cooper is recruited to Torchwood Three
- Gwen is recruited.
- Gwen's first day on the job.
- Gwen is still inexperienced with weapons.
- Several references are made to the events of Cyberwoman.
- Set three months after Everything Changes.
- Owen is visibly upset by the events of Out of Time in this story. He calls off his affair with Gwen.
- Continues where Captain Jack Harkness left off. Jack disappears from Torchwood.
- Set during the events of Last of the Time Lords.
- Gwen has started taking charge more in Jack's absence, in comparison to Captain Jack Harkness, where Owen was said to be second-in-command. Gwen is now engaged to Rhys.
- Continues where Reset left off. Owen is resurrected, but with no lifesigns.
- Set three days after Reset.
- Continues where Fragments left off. Owen and Tosh die.
- Martha meets Jack for the first time since Owen and Tosh's funeral.
- AUDIO: Asylum
- AUDIO: Golden Age
- AUDIO: The Dead Line
- AUDIO: The Devil and Miss Carew
- AUDIO: Submission
- TV: Children of Earth: Day One
- TV: Children of Earth: Day Two
- TV: Children of Earth: Day Three
- TV: Children of Earth: Day Four
- TV: Children of Earth: Day Five
- Shrouded and The House of the Dead are set in the six-month gap at the end of Children of Earth: Day Five. Shrouded takes place at Ianto's funeral after Ianto dies in Day Four. Jack leaves Earth at the end of Children of Earth: Day Five. Days One through Five flow into one another.
- Jack returns to Earth.
- Jack and Gwen are taken to America.
- TV: Dead of Night
- TV: Escape to LA
- TV: The Categories of Life
- TV: The Middle Men
- TV: Immortal Sins
- TV: End of the Road
- Jack and Gwen return to the UK, along with Esther after End of the Road. The New World through End of the Road flow into one another.
- Takes place a few months after End of the Road.
- Continues where The Gathering left off.
- AUDIO: Red Skies
- AUDIO: Mr Invincible
- PROSE: Exodus Code
- AUDIO: Forgotten Lives
- AUDIO: Uncanny Valley
Unplaced
- PROSE: Another Life
- PROSE: Border Princess
- PROSE: Slow Decay
- PROSE: Something in the Water
- PROSE: Trace Memory
- PROSE: The Twilight Streets
- PROSE: Pack Animals
- PROSE: SkyPoint
- PROSE: Almost Perfect
- PROSE: Into the Silence
- PROSE: Bay of the Dead
- PROSE: The House That Jack Built
- PROSE: Risk Assessment
- PROSE: The Undertaker's Gift
- PROSE: Consequences: The Wrong Hands
- PROSE: Consequences: Virus
- PROSE: Consequences: Consequences
- PROSE: First Born (flashback)
- PROSE: Long Time Dead (flashback)
- COMIC: The Legacy of Torchwood One!
- COMIC: Jetsam
- COMIC: Rift War!
- PROSE: Harm's Way
- PROSE: Black Water
- PROSE: Mrs Acres
- PROSE: The Beauty of Our Weapons
- PROSE: Plant Life
- PROSE: Monster
- PROSE: The Book of Jahi
- COMIC: Captain Jack and the Selkie
- PROSE: Who by Fire
- PROSE: Gordian
- COMIC: Broken
- COMIC: Fated to Pretend
- PROSE: Best Friends
- AUDIO: Hidden
- AUDIO: Everyone Says Hello
- AUDIO: In the Shadows
- AUDIO: The Sin Eaters
- AUDIO: Department X
- AUDIO: Ghost Train
- TV: Web of Lies
- AUDIO: The Conspiracy
- COMIC: Cindy, Cleo and the Magic Sketchbook
- COMIC: Arena of Fear
- COMIC: The Return of the Vostok (comic story)
- COMIC: Escape to Penhaxico (comic story)
- COMIC: The Birthday Boy (comic story)