Jack Harkness - WikiHQ

Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character portrayed by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. The character first appears in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and subsequently features in the remaining episodes of the first series (2005) as a companion to the series' protagonist, the Doctor. Subsequent to this, Jack became the central character in the adult-themed Torchwood, which aired from 2006 to 2011. Barrowman reprised the role for appearances in Doctor Who in its third, fourth, and twelfth series, as well as specials "The End of Time", and "Revolution of the Daleks".

In contrast to The Doctor, Jack is more of a conventional action hero, as well as outwardly flirtatious and capable of acts which The Doctor would view as less than noble. In the programme's narrative, Jack begins as a time traveller and con man from the 51st century, who comes to travel with the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) and his companion Rose Tyler (Billie Piper). As a consequence of his death and resurrection in the Series 1 finale, "The Parting of the Ways", Jack becomes immortal and is stranded on 19th-century Earth. There he becomes a member of Torchwood, an organization dedicated to combating alien threats. He spends over a century waiting to reunite with the Doctor, over which time he becomes the leader of the Torchwood branch in Cardiff. He later reunites with the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) and Thirteenth Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) for further stints on Doctor Who. Aspects of the character's backstory—both prior to meeting the Doctor, and during his many decades living on Earth—are gradually revealed over Torchwood (and to a lesser extent, Doctor Who) through the use of flashback scenes and expository dialogue.

Jack was the first openly non-heterosexual character in the history of televised Doctor Who. The popularity of the character amongst multiple audiences directly influenced the development of the spin-off series Torchwood. The character became a figure of the British public consciousness, rapidly gaining fame for actor Barrowman. As an ongoing depiction of bisexuality in mainstream British television, the character became a role model for young gay and bisexual people in the UK. Jack is featured in various Doctor Who and Torchwood books and has action figures created in his likeness.

Appearances

Television

Jack Harkness first appeared in the 2005 Doctor Who two-part story, "The Empty Child" and "The Doctor Dances", when Rose Tyler (Billie Piper), a companion of the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston), meets him during the London Blitz. Although posing as an American volunteering in the Royal Air Force, Jack is actually a former "Time Agent" from the 51st century who left the agency after inexplicably losing two years of his memory. Now working as a con man, Jack is responsible for unwittingly releasing a plague in London in 1941. After the Doctor cures the plague, Jack redeems himself by taking an unexploded bomb into his ship; the Doctor and Rose rescue him moments before it explodes. Jack matures into a hero, but Gwen has a boyfriend and Jack enters a sexual relationship with the team's general factotum Ianto Jones (Gareth David-Lloyd). Despite having worked with him for some time, his present-day colleagues know very little about him; and was an interrogator who used torture. In the Torchwood Series 1 finale "End of Days", Jack returns to the TARDIS. This immediately leads into the 2007 Doctor Who episode "Utopia", where he joins the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) and his companion Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman). Jack explains he returned from Satellite 5 to the present day by travelling to 1869 via vortex manipulator, and lived through the 20th century waiting for the Doctor. The episode "Adam" explores Jack's childhood in the Boeshane Peninsula, revealing through flashback sequences how his father Franklin (Demetri Goritsas) died and young Jack (Jack Montgomery) lost his younger brother Gray (Ethan Brooke) during an alien invasion. Flashbacks in the series' penultimate episode "Fragments" depict Jack's capture by Torchwood in the late 19th century. Initially their prisoner, Jack is coerced into becoming a freelance agent for the organization, and eventually becomes leader of Torchwood Three at midnight on 1 January 2000. The series finale features the return of Captain John and Jack's brother Gray (Lachlan Nieboer), who, after a lifetime of torture by aliens, wants revenge on Jack. While Jack manages to repair his friendship with Captain John to some degree, he is forced to place his brother in cryogenic stasis after Gray kills his teammates Toshiko Sato (Naoko Mori) and Owen Harper (Burn Gorman). Jack subsequently appears alongside the casts of Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures in the two-part crossover finale of the 2008 Doctor Who series, "The Stolen Earth" and "Journey's End". Jack is summoned along with other former companions of the Doctor to assist him in defeating the mad scientist Davros (Julian Bleach) and his creation, the Daleks. Jack parts company from the Doctor once again, having helped save the universe from destruction.

Torchwoods third series (2009) is a five-part serial entitled Children of Earth. Aliens known as the 4-5-6 announce they are coming to Earth. Civil servant John Frobisher (Peter Capaldi) orders the destruction of Torchwood to cover a conspiracy; in 1965, the British government had authorized Jack to sacrifice twelve children to the 4-5-6, which is shown in flashbacks. Jack is blown apart in an explosion, but painfully reconstitutes from an incomplete pile of body parts; Gwen and Ianto escape and later rescue Jack from a concrete grave. Jack's daughter Alice (Lucy Cohu) and grandson Steven (Bear McCausland) are taken into custody by the assassins. The 4-5-6 demand ten percent of the world's children. Although he handed over twelve children in 1965, Jack refuses to give up any this time around. The 4-5-6 release a fatal virus; Ianto dies in Jack's arms. To create the signal that will destroy the 4-5-6, Jack is forced to sacrifice Steven. As a result of this, he and Alice sever ties with each other. Six months later, having lost his lover, his grandson and his daughter, he bids farewell to Gwen and is transported aboard an alien ship to leave Earth for parts unknown. In the closing scenes of 2010 Doctor Who special "The End of Time", the critically injured Doctor gives each companion a farewell before his impending regeneration. Finding Jack in an exotic alien bar, he leaves him a note containing the name of Titanic crew member Alonso Frame (Russell Tovey), sitting on Jack's left side; the two proceed to flirt.

The fourth series, Miracle Day (2011), an American co-production, but joins the team along with CIA colleague Esther Drummond (Alexa Havins) after conspirators within the CIA betray them. Jack's investigations into the miracle repeatedly turn up dead-ends, indicating a decades-old conspiracy to manipulate the global economy, as well as political institutions, for unknown purposes. Flashbacks in "Immortal Sins" depict Jack's relationship with Italian thief Angelo Colasanto (Daniele Favilli) in late 1920s New York City, ending in heartbreak after Jack is killed, bled and tortured repeatedly by the local community. In the present day, Angelo's granddaughter Olivia (Nana Visitor) explains that the descendants of three local businessmen who wished to purchase Jack's powers—"the Three Families"—are responsible for the miracle, using Jack's blood in conjunction with what they call "the Blessing". In "The Gathering", the team ultimately track down the Families and the Blessing, which is revealed to be an antipodal geological formation connected to the Earth's morphic field running from Shanghai and Buenos Aires; the team divide, attempting to reach both access points. To end the miracle, in "The Blood Line", Jack has Gwen kill him so that his mortal blood can reset the human morphic field; Gwen kills him with a bullet through the chest, while Rex—who transfused himself with Jack's blood to keep it safe—allows the Blessing to drain him too, in Buenos Aires. Rex survives, and with the morphic field restored, Jack resurrects. At Esther's funeral however, they discover that Rex has acquired self-healing abilities just like Jack's.

After a ten-year absence from the show, Jack returned in the twelfth series of Doctor Who in the episode "Fugitive of the Judoon" (2020), where he attempts to contact the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker). Using a stolen alien craft, he transports the Doctor's companions Graham O'Brien (Bradley Walsh), Ryan Sinclair (Tosin Cole) and Yaz Khan (Mandip Gill), mistaking each of them for the Doctor. Learning of their identity and the Doctor's recent regeneration into a woman, he returns them to Earth, passing them a warning to give to the Doctor about the "lone Cyberman", before he teleports away after the ship's onboard nanogenes attack him. He returned in the 2021 New Year's episode "Revolution of the Daleks", in which he breaks the Doctor out of a Judoon prison, recovering his vortex manipulator in the process. Later, alongside the Doctor's companions, they repel a new Dalek invasion of Earth. Jack then chooses to stay on Earth and reconnect with Gwen Cooper.

In May 2021, following reports of the actor's alleged misconduct, a video featuring Barrowman as Harkness was removed from the stage show Doctor Who: Time Fracture, Big Finish removed the Torchwood release "Absent Friends" from pre-order and their release schedule, and Titan Comics shelved a graphic novel due to feature Harkness.

Literature

Jack features in the BBC Books "New Series Adventures" Doctor Who novels The Deviant Strain, The Stealers of Dreams, and Only Human. These novels take place between episodes of the 2005 series of Doctor Who. In The Stealers of Dreams, Jack refers to the Face of Boe as a famous figure in his home era; the producers of the series had not conceptualized the possibility of a Jack and Boe connection until mid-way into the production of the 2007 series. Border Princes, and Slow Decay (published January 2007), are set between episodes of the first series of Torchwood. The novels Trace Memory, The Twilight Streets, and Something in the Water (published March 2008), are set during the concurrently airing second series of Torchwood. The Twilight Streets suggests Jack was a freelance Torchwood agent in the 1940s, who disagreed with their methods but was persuaded by the love of an ex-boyfriend, Greg. The novel also explained that during the events of the Doctor Who episode "Boom Town" (which was set in Cardiff), SkyPoint, and Almost Perfect (October 2008), are made up of more second series adventures, apart from Almost Perfect which is set after Series Two finale "Exit Wounds". Bay of the Dead, and The House that Jack Built (May 2009), similarly are set between the second and third series of the show. The House that Jack Built focuses partly on Jack's life in 1906. The Undertaker's Gift, and Consequences (October 2009), are likewise set between "Exit Wounds" and Children of Earth.

thumb|upright|alt=A drawing of a dark-haired man in military clothes pointing a revolver which is in the foreground.|left|Jack as he appears in the first Torchwood comic book, art by SL Gallant; the character is featured in a number of different media. First published in January 2008, the monthly Torchwood Magazine began occasionally including Torchwood comic strips, in which Jack also appears. One such comic, written in 2009 by John Barrowman and sister Carole E. Barrowman, "Captain Jack and the Selkie", expands on Captain Jack's characterisation. Barrowman comments that "We'd already agreed to tell a story that showed a side of Jack and a part of his history that hadn't been explored too much in other media. I wanted to give fans something original about Jack." Torchwood Magazine also ran with the ten-part Rift War! storyline from April to December 2008. The first Torchwood comic "Jetsam" was later collected along with Rift War! in a graphic novel.

The Torchwood Archives, published after the second series in 2008, is a companion book written by Gary Russell which gives an "insider's look" into the life of Jack and the Torchwood team. The book collects and re-publishes ancillary material which appeared on the Torchwood website in the first two seasons, and provides new material such as rough dates for things like Jack's marriage as relayed by the book's fictional narrator. The book is composed of fictitious archive notes, personnel forms, photographs, newspaper clippings and staff memos, and offers revelations about the character which would later be confirmed by the television series. For example, Archives first mention Jack's lover Lucia Moretti, who is mentioned in Children of Earth.

The character is also mentioned Dave Stone's 2006 Judge Dredd novel Psykogeddon, where a Mega-City News announcer relays a disclaimer from pornographer Jason Kane – a character Stone created for the 1996 Doctor Who novel Death and Diplomacy – stating that any similarity between Kane and "the notorious Cursed Earth brigand 'Captain' Jack Harkness is a purely unfortunate coincidence".

Jack makes a brief appearance in the 2021 Doctor Who novel The Ruby's Curse by Alex Kingston.

Online media

During the first series of Torchwood, the Torchwood website, located at torchwood.org.uk, recounted some adventures by Captain Jack through an alternate reality game made up of electronic literature in the form of fictional intercepted blogs, newspaper cutouts and confidential letters and IM conversations between members of the Torchwood Three crew. Written by James Goss, the first series' website sheds some light on Jack's backstory in the years he worked for Torchwood. For the second series in 2008, a second interactive Torchwood online game was devised, scripted by series writer Phil Ford, and as with the 2006 website contained some information on Jack's unseen adventures. The BBC America Torchwood also has a 'Captain's Blog' section which relays Jack's accounts of the events of each episode. The Torchwood Archives by Gary Russell collects much of this online literature for the first two series in hardback form, including the Captain's Blog section of the BBC America website. A Christmas special 2008 Monster File features Barrowman in new footage as Jack, as does the Cybermen edition added following the airing of "The Next Doctor" on Christmas Day. For Dr Fiona Hobden, the Monster Files' mock-documentary format give an "additional twist" to the interplay between history and fiction. Because Captain Jack narrates, "the story unfolds in the tradition of contemporary historical documentary, the docudrama"; in the Monster File for "The Fires of Pompeii", Harkness' commentary moves the 'reality' of the episode away from the explosion of Vesuvius and the human experience, and to the story itself. From Series Five onwards, the Monster Files are instead presented by River Song (Alex Kingston).

Jack also appears in the web-based motion comic series Torchwood: Web of Lies (2011), which ties into Miracle Day. The story depicts a series two-set adventure where Jack is kidnapped by unknown assailants and pursued by Gwen. Investigations by a woman named Holly (voice of Eliza Dushku) establish that Jack was kidnapped by the Three Families so they could acquire entire vats of his blood, which she destroys.

Audio drama

In addition to the paperback novels, Jack also appears in Torchwood audio books, the first four being Hidden written by Steven Savile and narrated by Naoko Mori, Everyone Says Hello written by Dan Abnett and narrated by Burn Gorman, released February 2008, In the Shadows by Joseph Lidster and narrated by Eve Myles, released September 2008, and The Sin Eaters written by Brian Minchin and narrated by Gareth David-Lloyd, released September 2008. Joseph Lidster also wrote a BBC Radio 4 Torchwood drama, "Lost Souls" which aired in Summer 2008 as an Afternoon Play featuring the voices of John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Gareth David-Lloyd and Freema Agyeman. Set after the events of the 2008 series, Jack and his team make their first international adventure to CERN in Geneva, as part of Radio 4's special celebration of the Large Hadron Collider being switched on. The special radio episode's plot focuses on the Large Hadron Collider's activation and the doomsday scenario some predicted it might incite, as well as the team's mourning of Toshiko and Owen's recent deaths.

Between 1 and 3 July, Radio 4 aired three further audio dramas in The Afternoon Play slot, bridging the gap between Series 2 and 3. "Golden Age" introduced Jack's ex-lover Duchess Eleanor (Jasmine Hyde), the leader of Torchwood India, which Jack closed down in 1924. "The Dead Line" features another ex-girlfriend of Jack's, Stella Courtney (Doña Croll).

2011 audio drama series The Lost Files was released to tie in with Miracle Day. "The Devil and Miss Carew" and "Submission" are set in the same period as the previous audio dramas. "House of the Dead", however, reveals itself in its final act to be set six months after Ianto's death; Jack visited the House of the Dead to make contact with Ianto, who is unaware that he is dead. Jack and Ianto say a final goodbye and tell each other they love one another for the first time. Jack attempts to return to the land of the living alongside Ianto, but Ianto stays behind to close the Cardiff spacetime rift forever with Jack's device.

In 2015, BBC Worldwide granted a licence for Big Finish Productions to produce Torchwood audio plays. Barrowman was the first Torchwood cast member to reprise his role and has appeared in numerous releases, including semi-regular appearances in the monthly range, an ongoing series set after the events of Miracle Day and various special releases. Captain Jack was set to appear in Absent Friends - marking the fiftieth Torchwood monthly range release - which would have seen him reunited with the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant). However, while this story was recorded, its release was cancelled in May 2021.

In 2017, Big Finish Productions released a solo audio series for the character - The Lives of Captain Jack - containing four plays depicting adventures in Jack's life. Including the year he spent on a devastated Earth following The Parting of the Ways; his romantic encounter with Alonso Frame, briefly alluded to in The End of Time; a friendship he developed with Jackie Tyler (Camille Coduri) during the time he waited on Earth for the Doctor to return; and a story from his days as a Time Agent before he adopted the name Jack Harkness, revealing how he lost two years of memory along with his real name: Javic Piotr Thane.

A second volume of The Lives of Captain Jack was released in 2019 which saw Jack filling in for a recuperating Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) and working as a chauffeur for newsreader Trinity Wells (Lachele Carl). In 2020, following Jack's return to television in Fugitive of the Judoon but recorded prior to broadcast, a third volume reunited him with Jackie, depicted an ageing Jack in the distant future and explored his encounters - and romance - with River Song (Alex Kingston).

Characterisation

Concept and creation