Watch Torchwood with John Barrowman! Vote now to pick RadioTimes.com's next watch-along
As part of our new RT Watchalong project, it’s time to revisit the Doctor Who spin-off
Looking for ways to while away the days of self-isolation and lockdown? A big fan of cult Doctor Who spin-offs? Well, you’re in luck – because RadioTimes.com can exclusively offer fans the chance to rewatch episodes of Torchwood alongside series star John Barrowman.
In our new RT Watchalong initiative, we’re hosting simultaneous online screenings of fan-favourite episodes of popular TV series, with special appearances from cast and creatives who will tweet along with behind-the-scenes insights before joining us for a special online Q&A after the episodes have concluded.
For Torchwood, that means Captain Jack Harkness himself will be joining us to revisit Torchwood’s greatest hours, beginning with our first Torchwood #RTWatch on Thursday 2nd April at 8pm BST (that’s 12pm PT and 3pm ET for US viewers) as fans around the world tune in via on-demand services or DVD.
We’ll have more details about how to join in nearer the time, and following the episode we’ll host a live interview with John Barrowman on our social media channels. There, you can put all your burning Torchwood and Doctor Who questions to him, as well as look back over the production of the episode we’ll have just watched together.
But which episode will we and Mr Barrowman be revisiting? Well, that’s up to you! Ahead of the screening we’re asking fans to select a favourite episode from each of Torchwood’s first two series, one of which we’ll get fans to simultaneously watch along with us and John on Thursday.
Following that, we’ll schedule the next episode for a later date, before attempting something very special – a full rewatch of 2010 event series Children of Earth, across five days... just like in 2009!
But for now, it’s time to vote for the first episode choice.
Results will be revealed soon, and if you need a quick reminder of what happened in every episode, check out our guide below:
Series one
Everything Changes
PC Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles) gets caught up in the world of shady special ops unit Torchwood when strange alien activity comes to Cardiff. But who is Captain jack Harkness? (John Barrowman)
Day One
Gwen’s first day gets off to a bad start when she unleashes an alien sex gas on the population. But her new approach to Torchwood’s work could change everything…
Ghost Machine
The Torchwood team are haunted by traumatic memories of the past thanks to a strange new artefact, leading Owen (Burn Gorman) to turn vigilante.
Cyberwoman
The dark secret of “office boy” Ianto (Gareth David-Lloyd) is revealed when his partially Cyber-converted girlfriend wakes up in the basement. Soon, Torchwood Three are in a battle for their lives.
Small Worlds
Gwen learns more about Jack’s past when an old flame pushes their attention onto the activity of real-life fairies. But these brutal elemental creatures aren’t quite the cheery characters you might expect…
Countrycide
In one of the series’ darkest episodes, team Torchwood head to the countryside to investigate a series of grisly murders, only to find themselves on the menu.
Greeks Bearing Gifts
Tech-expert Toshiko (Naoko Mori) is seduced by a powerful alien and a telepathic necklace, leading her to a shocking betrayal.
They Keep Killing Suzie
Deceased Torchwood member Suzie Costello (Indira Varma) is back from the dead, with a terrible scheme to keep on living. And Gwen might not survive the experience.
Random Shoes
A deceased young man finds himself haunting Gwen Cooper as she investigates his murder. But why can’t Eugene remember what happened to him? And how has he stayed around anyway?
Out of Time
A quieter episode saw three 1950s travellers accidentally transported to the 21st Century through the Rift, where their struggles to adapt to their new life made for one of the more emotional episodes.
Combat
Faced with his demons, Owen gets drawn into a bizarre subculture of alien cage fights – aka Weevil Fight Club – in an episode written by former Doctor Who companion Noel Clarke.
Captain Jack Harkness
One of Torchwood’s most critically-acclaimed episodes sees Jack and Tosh sent back in time to the 1940s, where Jack meets the man he stole his name from – but as darkness gathers, the rest of the Torchwood team fight to bring them back again.
End of Days
The immortal Captain Jack takes on death itself in the series finale, in the form of giant alien monster Abaddon the destroyer. And if that wasn’t enough, the episode’s cliffhanger was a highpoint for eager Doctor Who fans.
Series two
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
After leaving them behind to reunite with the Doctor, Jack rejoined Torchwood in this episode only to be faced with his dark double: James Marsters’ fellow ex-Time Agent Captain John Hart.
Sleeper
Alien sleeper agents living undercover in Cardiff begin to activate, leaving Jack and the team with a tough decision – kill them now and murder their human personalities, or risk them taking over the world?
To The Last Man
A budding romance blooms between a cryogenically frozen World War One soldier called Tommy and Tosh when he’s defrosted for his annual checkup. But when time distortions begin to seep through from 1918, Tommy’s number may be up after all.
Meat
Gwen’s long-suffering fiancé Rhys (Kai Owen) finally learns the truth about Torchwood when he gets caught up in an alien meat-packing conspiracy. Featuring the (physically) biggest Whoniverse alien at the time…
Adam
A being named Adam edits himself into the team’s memories, transforming Owen into a timid nerd, giving Tosh new confidence and convincing Ianto that he’s a bloodthirsty murderer while also offering glimpses of Jack's mysterious past.
Reset
In the Doctor Who crossover fans had long been waiting for, Freema Agyeman’s Martha Jones made her way into the Torchwood world, helping to infiltrate a sinister medical trial. But at the end of the episode there was a deadly outcome for Owen.
Dead Man Walking
Another Resurrection Gauntlet brings Owen back to life, but also summons Death himself as the team rally to protect the living at all costs.
A Day in the Death
Newly-zombified Owen struggles to adapt to his status, causing discord within the Hub. But soon, only he has the skills (and lack of body heat) needed for a daring heist.
Something Borrowed
Torchwood’s most overtly comic episode sees Gwen and Rhys’ nuptials interrupted when the bride is impregnated by an alien, and the guests targeted by vicious extraterrestrials.
From Out of the Rain
A circus troop led by the Ghostmaker (Julian Bleach, later Davros in Doctor Who) escape from an old celluloid film, and set about stealing the "last breath" of Cardiff residents to create a new audience.
Adrift
A missing-persons case circles back to Torchwood when Gwen learns a dark truth about the space-time Rift in Cardiff – sometimes, it picks people up as well as dropping aliens off. And when they return, those people aren’t the same…
Fragments
Stuck in a collapsing building, the team flash back to how they were each recruited to Torchwood with tales of devastating loss, industrial espionage and pterodactyl hunting. And when they’re free, they must face a familiar face…
Exit Wounds
The Torchwood team is separated and under attack in this action-packed finale, with Jack buried alive in the distant past while his twisted brother Grey and Captain John Hart wage deadly damage on present-day Cardiff. And this time, not everyone survives…
Found your favourite? Head back up to the top to vote now!
Authors
Huw Fullerton is a Commissioning Editor for Radio Times magazine, covering Entertainment, Comedy and Specialist Drama.