Sci-fi drama Torchwood returns for fourth series with Starz

Torchwood, the successful spin off from Doctor Who, will return for a fourth series, having secured fundng from the US cable network Starz Entertainment.

Stars John Barrowman and Eve Myles, who play Captain Jack Harkness and Gwen Cooper, will return with new cast members in the 10-part science-fiction series. The writing team will be led by Torchwood creator Russell T Davies, the man who brought Doctor Who back to such spectacular life in 2005. The Guardian reports the new series will be a three-way co-production between BBC Wales, which made the previous series, Starz Entertainment and the BBC's commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, which distributes the show. It will be executive-produced by Davies and the Los Angeles-based BBC Worldwide Productions executives Jane Tranter and Julie Gardner. "Russell, Jane and Julie came to us with a compelling vision for the evolution of the Torchwood saga that really takes the story into whole new areas," Carmi Zlotnik, Managing Director of Starz Media – the production and development division of Starz – said in a statement. "The compelling story and characters this trio created provide a strong template for driving this narrative in exciting ways." The first series of the science fiction drama was broadcast on BBC3 in late 2006, with the second run shifting to BBC2 when it was transmitted in early 2008. The third series aired on BBC1 in July last year as a five-part mini-series "Children of Earth" aired across consecutive nights. The US broadcaster Starz has recently come to particular prominence with the series Spartacus: Blood and Sand, a graphic retelling of the Roman slave revolt story that has just started airing in the UK on Bravo. Starz will debut Torchwood exclusively in the US, while BBC One will debut it in the UK, next summer. BBC Worldwide will distribute the show outside the US.