Torchwood ??? Any news please.

[6ULDV8]

I read a few weeks ago that there would be a DrWho spin off called Torchwood...

Any news on it, when will it air, has it been cut?

Can't find much 'real news' on it.

[faceless]

I reckon I've only heard what you've heard really, but it does sound good

[faceless]

Burning questions
Why shouldn't Billie Piper do a Doctor Who spin-off series?

Because Russell T Davies says she can't, that's why. He's the writer who brought Doctor Who back from obscurity; he created Rose, but this week it emerged he'd abandoned plans for a spin-off series featuring Billie Piper's character Rose Tyler - even though the BBC had commissioned it from him and bankrolled it.

But why? Rose was so cool. She was the best assistant Doctor Who ever had - sweet and sexy but tough and clever. A great role-model for teenage girls. And that final scene when she was parted from the Doctor forever and she told him ... you know ... told him she ... how she felt about him ... it was, well ...

Quite a tearjerker, I know. I was reaching for the Kleenex myself. But the thing is Davies has decided that Rose has to stick with her mundane life in boring London. If she could have her own adventures independently where would that lead us? "It spoils Doctor Who if ... her life continues to be as exciting without the Doctor," he told Doctor Who Magazine. But don't worry: there's another Doctor Who spin-off series starting on BBC3 this autumn.

Oh, that. Torchwood. It'll never work.

Really? Why not? It's based around a proper Doctor Who character, Captain Jack Harkness, played by dashing John Barrowman; it's written by Davies; it's even an anagram of Doctor Who ... Wait a minute - it's not because Captain Jack's gay, is it?

Bisexual, actually. No, that's irrelevant. It's just that spin-offs never really work, do they? I mean look at K-9 and Company - that was rubbish. You can't have Doctor Who's dog without Doctor Who.

But I thought you wanted ...

I mean, look at the evidence: the follow-up to Porridge was Going Straight. Only Fools and Horses gave rise to The Green, Green Grass. Grange Hill sired Tucker's Luck. Morse begat Lewis. Joey sprang forth from the loins of Friends. It just doesn't work.

OK, well how about Frasier? He started life on Cheers and went on to be far funnier and more likeable in his own series. Then there was Rab C Nesbitt: he first appeared on Naked Video. Or how about The Simpsons? They began their long and illustrious career on The Tracey Ullman Show, of all things. Then there's Angel, Phoenix Nights ... and don't forget Star Trek: The Next Generation, Voyager, Enterprise and Deep Space Nine.

Yes, and how about Xena: Warrior Princess? Far better than that tedious Hercules. But this is exactly my point. A spin-off can be wonderful as long as you choose the right character. So why doesn't Russell just ditch Captain Jack and write one for Rose?

You're changing your tune a bit aren't you? I thought you said all spin-offs were a complete disaster.

Well I'd make an exception for Rose. She's special.

Your feelings about her are abundantly clear.

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Strange writing-style alert!

[6ULDV8]

Thx m8...

About as much info as I had found....

There were some other rantings about the new show being over budgeted against the Dr.Who series (unsubstantiated to my knowledge) & a few 'glitches' in the main cast... anagin nothing came of those stories...

I had found a few fans sites but they seem to have been taken down by the beeb ???
I'd have thunk that the beeb would love fans sites.

[faceless]

It starts on the 22nd of October....

click for trailer

www.bbc.co.uk/torchwood/