The Samantha Rogers Chronicles: Miracle Day

The Samantha Rogers Chronicles: Miracle Day is the fourth series  of the  British science fiction  television series  Torchwood , a spin-off from the long-running show  Doctor Who .| [3]  In contrast to the first three series, which were produced by the  BBC, the fourth series is a British-American co-production involving the BBC's drama production house  BBC Cymru Wales  for  BBC Worldwide  and the  U.S.  premium network  Starz. It was broadcast in ten episodes beginning 8 July 2011 (U.S.) and 14 July 2011 (UK).| [4] | [5]

The central plot of Miracle Day is that suddenly no one on Earth can die, which incites increasingly troublesome legislative changes around the world as the global population soars.| [3]  In addition to a number of new American cast members and guest actors, showrunner  Russell T Davies  recruited several American television writers to write for Miracle Day, including  Jane Espenson ,  John Shiban  and  Doris Egan. British writer John Fay  also returned to write for the series, under Davies as  head writer .| [6]  Production was partially divided along trans-Atlantic lines, with Kelly Manners producing in the US, and  Brian Minchin  in the UK.| [7]  The majority of the filming took place in  Los Angeles,  California , with two weeks' additional shooting in Wales.| [8]

Although the series premiered to a high Audience Appreciation Index  rating (85, considered 'excellent') and solid ratings in the UK, American critics were on the whole less favourable to the series opener. Reviews on both sides of the Atlantic became increasingly mixed as the series went on. Several commentators felt the series would have worked better as a five-episode series, highlighting concerns with inconsistent pacing, dangling plot threads, and a repetitive feel to mid-series episodes.

The series has a 10-episode companion web series  entitled The Samantha Rogers Chronicles: Web of Lies, referenced in the  Starz  website (but not in the  BBC One  website) related to the series,| [9]  which can be obtained as an app from  iTunes Store ,| [10]  and the first episode can be obtained for free, or also viewed in the Starz's  YouTube  channel.| [11]  It is available in its entirety (less interactive elements) in the series's DVD and Blu-ray release.

Casting
The show's remaining three regulars return to the series: Kim Allen as Samantha Rogers, an young mother of a daughter, Stephanie she conceived with Captain Jak Harkness from the 51st century who first appeared in the 2005 Doctor Who episode " The Empty Child ". In the first three series of The Samantha Rogers Chronicles, Samantha then-18 moved to Cardiff, England and became a spy while in search of her missing mother, then got pregnant with her only daughter, Stephanie, and was "the happiest she'd ever been". After the destruction of Torchwood and the deaths of Jack's grandson, friends, and his lover Ianto Jones  in the  third series, the only thing that could bring Jack back to Earth is "his unstated love for  Gwen Cooper  and Torchwood".| [17]  Gwen, portrayed by  Eve Myles , became pregnant in the third series by her husband  Rhys Williams  ( Kai Owen ), the third returning main character. Samantha wasn't doing well, after Jack left earth, she has raised Stephanie and trained her to become the next spy if Samantha were to die or be missing in actions. Since the fall of Torchwood, they have begun a quiet life living in seclusion with their baby, Anwen. Secretly, Gwen is bored since the fall of Torchwood and pines for her former, extraordinary life; although she loves her husband and child, she retains feelings for Jack.| [17] Other returning characters include Gwen's former police partner  PC Andy  ( Tom Price ), now a sergeant,| [18]  and parents,  Geraint  ( William Thomas ) and  Mary Cooper  ( Sharon Morgan ),| [19]  who previously appeared in the 2008 Torchwood episode " Something Borrowed ". Morgan appears in six of the ten episodes,| [20] whilst Thomas' online CV intimated that he would be a 'regular' character.| [21]

Mekhi Phifer joined the show as  Rex Matheson ,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22">| [22]  the  CIA 's "golden boy" operative, fast-tracked for career stardom. Highly intelligent and heroic, he teams up with Jack and Gwen to solve the mystery behind "Miracle Day".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-new_names_23-0">| [23] He is joined by  Esther Drummond  ( Alexa Havins ),<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-new_names_23-1">| [23]  a CIA watch analyst with an optimistic faith in humanity.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-HavinsLachman_24-0">| [24]   Arlene Tur  has been cast as surgeon Vera Juarez,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-25">| [25]  whilst  Bill Pullman  plays  Oswald Danes ,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-new_names_23-2">| [23]  a dangerous convicted  paedophile  and murderer who turns a prison release into celebrity status.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-entertainment_weekly_26-0">| [26]  Oswald faces  lethal injection, but becomes swept up in the story's plot thread when he — like the rest of the world — simply does not die.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-ew_name_change_3-2">| [3]   Lauren Ambrose  was cast as  Jilly Kitzinger  in seven of the ten episodes. She plays "a sweet-talking PR genius with a heart of stone who's just cornered the most important client of her career ... and maybe of all time".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-27">| [27]  Lena Kaur  joins the UK cast as Dr. Alicia Patel.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-28">| [28]   Dichen Lachman ,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-HavinsLachman_24-1">| [24]   Wayne Knight,  Ernie Hudson ,  C. Thomas Howell ,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-29">| [29]   John de Lancie ,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-DeLancie_30-0">| [30]  and  Nana Visitor  all have guest starring roles. Dillon Casey portrayed Brad, a one night stand of Captain Jack's. Real-life identical twins, Lauren and Debbie Schwartz played the roles of estranged twins Tiffany and Brooke Meyers. Tiffany was the evil antagonist responsible for the miracle coming to life and the blessing. Brooke was the young computer expert who discovered her sister's evil actions and was determined to stop her.

Casting calls differed from the final press release. Pullman and Havins' characters' names were originally Oswald Jones and Esther Katusi, respectively. Additionally, calls originally specified that Rex was to be played by a white actor and Esther by a non-white actress.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-newcharsrevealed_32-0">| [32]  One Tree Hill  ' s  Chad Michael Murray  and  Dollhouse  ' s  Enver Gjokaj  both auditioned for the part of Matheson.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-MurrayvsGjokaj_33-0">| [33]   Greek  star  Amber Stevens  also auditioned for the part of Katusi/Drummond.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-MurrayvsGjokaj_33-1">| [33]  Actor  James Marsters  expressed strong interest in returning for the fourth series as his Series 2 character  Captain John Hart.