'Torchwood' miniseries comes to U.S.

NEW YORK, July 20 (UPI) -- A "Torchwood" miniseries, which picks up more than a year after the British TV show's second season ends, is to air in the United States, BBC America said.

The five-part "Torchwood: Children of Earth" science-fiction miniseries is slated to run on consecutive nights, starting Monday. Show regulars John Barrowman, Eve Myles and Gareth David-Lloyd will reprise their respective alien-hunting roles of Captain Jack Harkness, Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones in the latest "Torchwood" offering, which aired earlier this month in the United Kingdom.

"It's becoming a new tradition in Britain -- the five-night schedule," the show's creator and writer Russell Davies told USA Today. "It started a couple years ago with a drama called 'Five Days,' and then there was another drama last summer called 'Criminal Justice' that was absolutely brilliant. So when they offered it, I was very excited, because very rarely do you get the chance to write in a new format."

Barrowman told the newspaper one doesn't have to know the specifics of the show to enjoy the miniseries.

"You can come right into this and not have to know any back history," he explained. "Everything is explained about the characters at some point, for instance, Jack not being able to die."