The Dead Line (radio drama)

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The Dead Line (radio drama)

The Dead Line is a Torchwood audio drama produced for BBC Radio 4. It aired on July 3, 2009, as one of four Torchwood radio plays released before the third Torchwood TV series. The story features the series’ regular cast and ties into Torchwood’s science fiction world.

Plot in brief
- In the early hours, Professor Stella Courtney is contacted by Ianto Jones; Captain Jack Harkness is dying.
- At St. Helen’s hospital, Gwen Cooper and Stella see that Jack’s body remains alive with faint brain activity, along with about twenty other patients in a similar trance.
- The mystery starts with a phone call to Bob Roberts two nights earlier. After Bob collapses, more people in Cardiff fall under the same trance.
- Gwen and Jack collect several old-fashioned phones connected to the cases. They discover the phones are from the 1970s and are linked to Rift energy, suggesting an alien influence.
- The phones all ring at once, and Jack collapses again when he answers one. Rhys Williams helps as Gwen and Ianto work with the Hub’s systems to find the connection.
- Stella suggests the victims’ brains are linked and affected by an electrochemical reaction caused by the phone line. Maddock House, a building society’s old site, turns out to hold the culprit.
- Gwen and Rhys break into Maddock House and recover a phone, then travel to Swansea to meet with Tyler from Cardiff and West Building Society. Tyler explains Maddock House’s phones caused the strange condition many years ago.
- Ianto links Gwen’s PDA to the Hub’s computer and rigs an MRI setup to the hospital. Using the Maddock House phone, they break the trance and wake the victims, including Jack.
- Jack recovers memory of the events, while Ianto shares a touching moment with him. The group returns to normal, and Torchwood allows the victims to recover.

Cast (highlights)
- John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness
- Eve Myles as Gwen Cooper
- Gareth David-Lloyd as Ianto Jones
- Kai Owen as Rhys Williams
- Doña Croll as Stella Courtney
- Eiry Thomas as Jan
- Matthew Gravelle as Bob Roberts
- Brendan Charleson as Tyler

Continuity and background
- The Dead Line is part of Torchwood’s range of radio dramas produced for BBC Radio 4. The play references events and characters from Torchwood’s world and includes nods to other Torchwood episodes.
- Doña Croll (Stella) had previously acted in Doctor Who’s universe, connecting the broader science fiction world.

Production and broadcast
- First broadcast: July 3, 2009
- Writer: Phil Ford
- Director: Kate McAll
- This radio drama sits before Torchwood’s third series, expanding the Torchwood universe beyond television.

Note
- The story involves themes of memory, time, and alien influences in everyday technology, presented in a suspenseful Torchwood style suitable for fans of both Torchwood and radio drama.