A Day in the Death
Original
Broadcast 27th February, 2008
‘My
name is Doctor Owen Harper and this is my life. A life that is full of action
and violence and work, wonder. Secrets, sex and love and heartbreak and death.
My death. The death I survived, the death I am now living through. Except, this
isn't living. Every day is the same. I get up, get ready for work, the same as
everyone else. The thing is, I'm not the same. I get to work and everyone's
doing the same old thing. Babbling away about aliens and weddings. I'm not
real. Three days ago, I died. And they think I'm fine, but they're wrong.’
Dr. Owen Harper died three
days ago. Yet, here he is living his death. Unable to enjoy the trappings of
his previous life, he is stuck in a perpetual cycle of routine without enjoying
any of it. He may as well be six feet under. He can't eat. He can't drink. Sex
is a none starter. Dr. Owen Harper is broken.
Maggie Hopley is also
broken. Her life to a wonderful husband was cut short a year ago, on her
wedding day, when she had been involved in a car accident which killed her
husband.
Up on the roof, she plans
on joining her husband and end her heartache. Then, she meets Owen.
Henry Parker also met
Owen. An energy spike is registering high and could cause major catastrophe's
across Cardiff. With the high-tech security system throughout his home, the
only man who could enter without detection, is someone without a pulse. Someone
like Owen Harper.
Richard Briers
(14 January 1934 - 17 February 2013)
'Parker'
'Don't
you sit there pontificating. You're just a boy, what do you know about
anything? I've travelled the world. I fought in the war. Started my own
business. I made a fortune. Married. Widowed. My collection, all of it. I've
done so much and this is where I ended up. Alone, lying in my own piss.'
Bed ridden, Henry Parker
had been known to Torchwood for his extensive collection of alien 'hoohah'. He
was an extremely wealthy man. Filed under Mostly Harmless, he was a recluse,
who lived alone in a huge mansion in Cardiff, surrounded by security and CCTV
cameras which he viewed from his bedroom. It was impossible to enter without
being detected. He'd locked himself away from the world after his wife died in
1986.
When Owen found him, he
was holding the 'pulse', the alien
object, that Parker had found and felt it was keeping him alive, when in fact,
it was doing no such thing. Soon after, when Parker realised this, his life
slipped from him, and Owen was unable to resuscitate him.
Richard Briers, sadly died
in in 2013. He was one of those actors, that as soon as you saw or heard him on
the telly, you were engaged from the off. Whether he voiced cartoon characters
for children's television, or he played a role in a drama or a situation
comedy, you knew, that whatever he was in, he'd portray the role brilliantly.
To read more about Richard
Briers, take a read of our Tribute from 2013. https://projecttorchwood.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-tribute-to-richard-briers.html
Briers acting career began
in 1956, but it was some 30 years before he appeared in Doctor Who as the Chief
Caretaker/Kroagnon in Paradise Towers (1987), and another 21 years before he
returned to the Whoniverse to play Henry Parker, in Torchwood. Since playing
Parker in 2008, Brier's mainly voiced characters for children's television programmes
and Children in Need Medley in 2009. He was the iconic voice of Roobarb &
Custard, and Robert in Bob the Builder, and the Mouse in Mouse and Mole at
Christmas Time in 2013. He played Hamish in Cockneys Vs Zombies, a screenplay
by James Moran, in 2012.
In the February of 2013,
Richard Briers died. He was 79.
Christine Bottomley
'Maggie'
'Today's
my wedding anniversary. My perfect day...We'd been married less than an hour. I
was picking confetti out of my hair when it happens.'
Maggie Hopley contemplated
suicide a year after losing her newly married husband. She felt empty inside.
After talking to a dead man on the roof of the car park, she eventually found
something to live for.
Christine Bottomley's
acting career began in 2001 when she played Kirsty in Eastenders. She has
played roles in many popular television series' including The Inspector Lynley
Mysteries, Holby City, Heartbeat, Shameless and Sea of Souls before playing
Maggie in Torchwood episode - A Day in the Death in 2008. Since Torchwood,
Christine has been in Hope Springs as Shoo Coogan, and Land Girls as Annie
Barratt in 2009, Midsomer Murders as Blaze Leadbetter and In With the Flynns as
Sarah, and Inspector George Gently as Terri Molloy in 2011.
In Silent Witness as DI Kate
Warren, and Frankie as Diane Preston, Vera as Lisa Strachan, and New Tricks as
Becky Belgrade in 2013. DCI Banks as Katy Heath, Keeping Rosy, as Sarah and
Emma Rawlins in Undeniable in 2014. In Russell T Davies' series Cucumber as
Lynne in 2015, In the Club as Vicky for 12 episodes in 2016. She went on to
play Gwen in The End of the F***ing World in 2017, and is currently filming
Back to Life as Mandy in 2019.
Louis Decosta Johnson
'Farrington'
'Who
are you? Why aren't the sensors picking you up? Okay, stop. Stop or I'll
shoot.'
Farrington is the head of
security at the Parker Estate. He's surprised by a dead man walking and talking
as he reaches him at the top of the stairs. Unsure if a bullet would stop him,
Farrington learns that Dr Owen Harper is having a really bad day, just before
the lights go out!
Louis Decosta Johnson's
acting career began in 1999 as DS Rick Ross in Trial & Retribution series.
He went on to play Monday Bandele in Dream Team for 53 episodes from 2000 -
2002.
He played Dave James in
Casualty back in 2002, returning to the medical sister drama Holby City in 2005
- 2007 as Dale Richardson and Charlie Mortimer. To any fans of Ultimate Force
from 2005 - 2006, you may remember him as Dave Woolston. (knew I recognised him
from somewhere). Decosta joined in Series 3 and remained in the series.
Louis moved up the ranks
from DC Godley to DS Godley in Eastenders from 2003 - 2007. Since Torchwood
however, his acting credits do not extend beyond 2009. His last role was as
Psychotic Tony in the series, Misfits.
Brett Allen
'Taylor'
'It's
Chrissie, she's been in an accident. Look, I've got to go.'
Taylor is another of the
security team. Targeted by Torchwood, they lure him away with news that his
wife Chrissie has been involved in an accident.
Brett Allen's career
begins in 1995 as Darren Cody in Casualty, before playing single role
characters, in dramas from London's Burning in 1997, before a break until 2006
when he appears in Wire in the Blood as Carl Blisset. He appears in The IT
Crowd, and Spooks a year before his Torchwood appearance as Taylor.
Since Torchwood he's
continued playing single roles for known dramas such as Holby City, Ashes to
Ashes, and played a multitude of different roles for The Bill, for six episodes,
played a Snooker player for The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret in
2010. Call the Midwife, Inspector George Gently, in 2012, The Musketeers,
Silent Witness were also single roles until Eastenders where he played regular
police officer PC Scott for 3 episodes in 2005 and Burke in 2015.
Much of Allen's roles have
been in uniform as either Police or security of some kind. In Happy Valley he
played a Personnel Officer in 2016, PC Declan Cameron in Undercover, in the
same year. Special Unit Guard in Sherlock a year later. Most recently he played
Anthony Johnson in A Very English Scandal
in 2018.
Gil Kolirin
'Webb'
'Mister
Farrington. Ben's had to go. His wife's been in an accident.'
Webb was another security
guard protecting the grounds of the Parker Estate.
Kolirin's career properly
began in Batman Begins in 2005, although uncredited as Narrows Person. Two
years later he was in Hollyoaks as DS Grant for 3 episodes in 2007.
After Torchwood in 2008,
he played Floyd in Wrong Turn 3: Left For Dead video in 2009, was the Security
Guard in The Decoy Bride in 2011, played a series of characters for film shorts
from 2011 - 2014, played Mills' Man in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom in 2018,
and Yuri Galka in Father Brown a year later.
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