Torchwood Institute

Fictional secret organization in the Doctor Who and Torchwood universe
the organisation within the Doctor Who universe

The Torchwood Institute, or simply Torchwood, is a fictional secret organisation from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin off series Torchwood. It was established in 1879 by Queen Victoria after the events of "Tooth and Claw". Its prime directive is to defend Earth against supernatural and extraterrestrial threats. It is later revealed in "Army of Ghosts" that the Torchwood Institute has begun to use their findings to restore the British Empire to its former glory. To those ends, the organisation started to acquire and reverse engineer alien technology. Within Torchwood, an unofficial slogan evolved: "If it's alien, it's ours". According to one base director, Yvonne Hartman, its nationalist attitude includes refusing to use metric units. While described as "beyond the UN", the Torchwood Institute is seen to cooperate with UNIT to some extent. There appears to have been some rapport with the Prime Minister, Torchwood maintains this illusion by using false witnesses, or by sectioning any journalists who threaten to expose the truth, and via the use of memory altering drugs. Jack Harkness rebuilds Torchwood to become less confrontational and more secretive in honour of the Doctor.

The name "Torchwood" is an anagram of "Doctor Who", with which tapes of series 1 of the revived Doctor Who TV series were labelled to prevent the footage from being leaked. While writing Doctor Who series 2, head writer and executive producer Russell T Davies established the word "Torchwood"—which was the name of an institute previously mentioned in the episode "Bad Wolf" (2005)—in his script for the 2005 Christmas Special "The Christmas Invasion", both as a motif of the series similar to the "Bad Wolf" motif in series 1, and as a lead in to the Torchwood spin off series Davies was planning for BBC Three. Torchwood was conceived by Davies as a ruthless but professional organisation helmed by a "soulless" woman based on someone Davies had met. He originally based the Torchwood seen in the Doctor Who series 2 episodes "Army of Ghosts" and "Doomsday" (both aired 2006) over a rift in Cardiff introduced in "The Unquiet Dead" (2005), but while developing the Torchwood spin off series over the summer of 2005, he relocated the Torchwood seen in "Army of Ghosts" and "Doomsday" to London, while maintaining the existence of a Cardiff branch for the Torchwood series he was preparing.

The institute was founded by Queen Victoria in 1879, following the events of the Doctor Who episode "Tooth and Claw". While staying at Torchwood House, the Scottish estate of Sir Robert MacLeish, the Queen (Pauline Collins) was attacked by a werewolf, in reality an alien intelligence that planned to infect her with its consciousness by biting her. The werewolf was ultimately dispatched, thanks to the efforts of the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) and the sacrifice of Sir Robert. Having discovered that "Great Britain had enemies beyond imagination," Victoria decided to establish the Torchwood Institute in memory of Sir Robert (who lived on the Torchwood Estate). She also decided that the Doctor was a potential threat and declared that if he ever returned (against her orders never to return), Torchwood would be waiting. The Doctor's name was written into the Torchwood Foundation's charter as an enemy of the Crown. Her Majesty states in the Torchwood Charter 31 December 1879 that "Torchwood is also to administer to the Government thereof in our name, and generally to act in our name and on our behalf, subject to such orders and regulations as Torchwood shall, from time to time, receive from us through one of our Principal Secretaries of State". In 1882, Victoria expanded Torchwood's role to include the acquisition of alien technology, creating the policy that "if it's alien, it's ours". In 1888, Victoria reiterated the secrecy policy of the Torchwood Institute, protecting her subjects from the "evils that [Torchwood] fight[s]". Not long after the foundation of the institute, a spacetime rift was identified in Cardiff, and, as a result, a smaller branch of the institute (Torchwood Three) was formed there to monitor and exploit the Rift. As shown in the episode "Fragments", Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) came to the attention of Torchwood Three in 1899, due to visiting the rift and talking about the Doctor. He was coerced into working for the organisation. Captured by two Torchwood agents—Alice Guppy (Amy Manson) and Emily Holroyd (Heather Craney)–Jack was subjected to torture and interrogation regarding the Doctor before being put to work for the Institute as a freelance agent for over a century. A few years later (1901), whilst this Harkness was in Torchwood's employ, Guppy and Charles Gaskell (Cornelius Macarthy) found and disinterred another Harkness on a different timeline, who instructs them to immediately "cryofreeze" and store him for 107 years to avoid him meeting his other self – they comply with his request. The activities of the Torchwood Institute during the 20th century are, for the most part, yet to be revealed. It is known that the organisation "flourished down the decades, becoming stronger" and grew "more arrogant." Some insights into the World War I era organisation (such as their progressive policies regarding women's civil rights) were offered in Torchwood episode "To the Last Man". Torchwood Three's progressive stance is also shown in the episode "Exit Wounds", where a black Torchwood member called Charles Gaskell is shown in 1901, an era of widespread racial prejudice. Other events in the 20th century have attributable dates. At the time of the British Raj, Torchwood also maintained a branch in Delhi. This was shut down in 1924, Torchwood anticipating Indian independence; agent Jack Harkness was sent to recover all their artifacts. In 1983, Torchwood became the sole proprietor of H. C. Clements, a security firm. In 1996 a "Jathaa sunglider" flew into British airspace and was shot down by Torchwood. From its remains, an energy weapon was installed in London On New Year's Eve 1999, the then leader of Torchwood Three (named "Alex Hopkins" by the Torchwood website) killed all the staff apart from Jack, ending with himself. He claimed that he was "saving" them, as the 21st century was when it all changed and humanity was not ready. Left in charge of Torchwood Three, Jack began severing the links with Torchwood One and their more aggressive policy on extraterrestrial life. Over the next few years, Jack recruited his own team; Suzie Costello (Indira Varma), Toshiko Sato (Naoko Mori) and Dr. Owen Harper (Burn Gorman). On the command of Prime Minister Harriet Jones, Torchwood used the Jathaa sunglider weapon to destroy a Sycorax ship on Christmas Day 2006. The threat is ended when the Doctor and Rose Tyler use Torchwood One's equipment to banish the Daleks and Cybermen into the Void between worlds and end the invasion. In "The Runaway Bride", it is revealed that the London based security firm "H. C. Clements" (which employed secretary Donna Noble (Catherine Tate), who inexplicably materialised in the TARDIS just as she was about to get married) was a front company for the Torchwood Institute. On a restricted basement level of the company situated beneath the Thames Barrier was a secret laboratory which the Institute used to recreate ancient "Huon particles". Over a period of months, H. C. Clements' Human Resources Manager, Lance Bennett (Don Gilet), had courted and poisoned Donna with Huon particles, intending to sacrifice her to the Empress of the Racnoss (Sarah Parish). It would appear that Lance was not acting on behalf of the institute, and the lab was in disuse since the Battle of Canary Wharf and the Queen's official closure of Torchwood One. In 2007, following Torchwood One's closure, Torchwood Three leader Captain Jack Harkness allows former Torchwood One researcher Ianto Jones (Gareth David Lloyd) to join his team and is no longer working under the authority of the headquarters in London; he is the de facto leader of the entire organisation. This team worked together until later the same year, when the hiring of policewoman Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles) coincided with the suicide of second in command Suzie Costello. In "The Sound of Drums", Jack indicates to the Doctor that, with Torchwood One gone, fewer than ten staff remain (between Wales and Scotland). He mentions that he rebuilt the Institute "in the Doctor's honour", with a new regime and a less aggressive stance. Outside the institute's small workforce, journalists such as Vivien Rook (Nichola McAuliffe) of The Sunday Mirror investigate controversial figures such as Harold Saxon (John Simm) on behalf of the institute. Saxon sent Torchwood Three on a 'wild goose chase' to the Himalayas to prevent them from helping Jack or the Doctor. although new member Rex Matheson notes at one point that 'Torchwood' is essentially just a name given their current renegade status. In the Doctor Who episode "Fear Her", set in 2012, Torchwood is public enough to be mentioned in a television broadcast during the London 2012 Olympics.

In the future seen in the novel Twilight Streets, Torchwood is no longer a private organisation and has branches all across the Torchwood Empire. At the center of the organisation's new image is the Cardiff branch, a new building in the center of the city. The Rift Manipulator has been moved to the new building and has been plugged into a permanently comatose Jack Harkness, whose immortality allows the Rift to be held open safely, thus allowing two way travel. The radio drama "Asylum" also suggests that Torchwood might gain control over the Rift in the near future, using it to send a half alien girl back to the present day. Torchwood was also mentioned in the Doctor Who episode "Bad Wolf" when Rose is forced to play on a game show and one of the questions is about the remains of a Torchwood location. In the 42nd century, the Torchwood Archives sent a group of explorers to investigate a mysterious power source that kept a planet in stable orbit around a black hole. By the 2002nd century, the Great Cobalt Pyramid has been built on the ruins of the Torchwood Institute.

Torchwood Four is described as "missing".

Due to the popularity of Doctor Who and Torchwood, Torchwood has had an influence on popular culture. On the heels of being featured in Torchwood, Cardiff has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the UK, in particular, the Wales Millennium Centre, with a resident commenting that tourists often jump on the paving slab that was used as the "magic lift" in the series. In January 2008, such was the popularity of Torchwood that being near the "Torchwood Tower" was used in advertising for local property. A January 2009 article comments on the attraction the Torchwood 'Hub' has brought to the Wales Millennium Centre, as Minister for Heritage Alun Ffred Jones announced that resultingly, "the Wales Millennium Centre building itself is now established as a symbol of modern Welsh culture".

In the Sherlock episode, "The Lying Detective" a card with the Torchwood logo on it can be seen on Sherlock's mantlepiece under a magnifying glass.