'Torchwood' Creator Talks 'Children of Earth', 'Doctor Who'

Torchwood: Children of Earth is a huge hit in the U.K. The miniseries event has garnered the saucy Doctor Who spin-off its biggest audience and best reviews to date. The fun comes to the U.S. next week when BBC America airs the first episode of the five-part miniseries on July 20. The network will follow the UK's broadcasting model, airing Children of Earth for five consecutive sci-fi filled nights.

Chris Jancelewicz of AOL Canada talked to Torchwood creator Russell T. Davies about the miniseries and how this version of the show works on a more international level. Here are some highlights from the interview:

Davies on the epic scope of Children of Earth:

"I wanted it to be a big event. In Britain, it was moving to BBC1, the biggest channel in the country. They wanted to show it across the week, from Monday to Friday. The stakes were high, and I knew I had to make a big impact. I also wanted it to work on an international level, but again, relating it to the domestic story as well - the government, the police, the Army. Then there's America, the United Nations...that's the world, but you're still talking to people in their living rooms, their kitchens. Ordinary lives being changed by huge decisions.

Big events like all the children being affected, and the invasion of Species 456...truly exciting and terrifying. Writ large, yes. But I think I had something to say about the world, and I think that's the point."


On writing gay and bisexual TV characters:

"The moment I walk into a television studio, they know I'm going to put gay and lesbian characters, because that's what I do. I don't do it on purpose: I do it because that's my life. There's no grandstanding. It's not like I'm getting on a soapbox anymore. I think the key is that I do it with a sense of humour. Often, gay characters are done very seriously, and thus very boring. I'd rather chuck this stuff up in the air and have a laugh with it."

On the show's future:

"I'm not sure it will ever return to its alien-of-the-week format. I think we've proven that the show can work really well with this continuous-story format. I think we've set a new benchmark for Torchwood. Let's be honest, though: if they gave me a pile of money and tell me to make a monster-of-the-week, I would go and do it. But the story never ends. It looks like an ending because it was the perfect ending to the story, but I could easily write the next five scenes of what happens next. I won't run out of stories, not until the day I die."

On the upcoming new season of Doctor Who, the first without Davies as producer since the show's return in 2005:

"They're gearing up for their next season right now, and I'm slightly turning into their stalker. I keep emailing them, 'How are you?' 'How's it going?' 'What's happening?' I can't wait to be a viewer, to sit back and watch their series. It's the first Doctor Who series that I get to watch for the first time in 21 years."

Read the full interview at AOL Canada.