Praise be, Torchwood is coming to the States.

Acclaimed British cult TV favorite "Torchwood" is getting a U.S. makeover courtesy of Starz.

The premium cable outlet will share production costs on the show's upcoming season in exchange for domestic distribution rights. The 10-episode run will debut on BBC One and Starz next summer, and take on a more international scope. The bulk of the story will shift from UK to North America and key U.S. actors will join the cast.

Once again, stars John Barrowman and Eve Myles will return.

"This gives 'Torchwood' the chance to feel like a real global drama," said BBC Worldwide Productions executive vp Jane Tranter. "The story of 'Torchwood' will impact worldwide humanity and not just a small area of the UK. This will scale it up."

The most recent edition of "Torchwood" was a five-episode miniseries titled "Children of Earth" that was recently nominated for best miniseries by the Television Critics Association. The show chronicles a group that keeps Britain safe from hostile aliens and is led by an immortal named Captain Jack (Barrowman).

Producers previously were developing a U.S. version at Fox, which eventually passed on the project.

John Barrowman is an incredibly likable character who happens to be attracted to men, women and aliens. When I first read that FOX was thinking about picking up the show, I figured they would have to change his character and destroy it because there was no way they would let Capt. Jack make out with a guy on American TV, but now he'll be intact and so will the show. Something funny happened in the UK. The children didn't all turn "gay" after watching the show which is something the homophobes here would have screamed about.

Eve Myles plays the female lead who is in love with Jack, but never says it even as she marries her boyfriend and really is the heart of Torchwood even though Captain Jack Harkness was the character that sold the show after he appeared on season one of the newer Doctor Who. From what I'm hearing the story arc is brilliant, it will have American actors/characters to make up the team and it's just as dark as Children of Earth which was the BBC America's biggest hit to date ratings wise at the time.

If you're a fan of British espionage and spy thrillers then MI-5 is for you. I came across it over the holiday and it's just a dynamite series. It follows Britain's MI-5, their Secret Service which offers a rich drop of plots filled with twists and turns, global intrigue and excellent character development. It began its run in 2003 and it's fascinating to watch how UK writers broach the rest of the world's security problems that are so closely linked to all of Europe and the Middle East.

It really takes off after the first season and surprisingly never loses its edge even as actors come and go. They handle their protagonists quite differently than American TV. They don't always treat Americans favorably and there are episodes before Bush invaded Iraq that show how much the world changed after his preemptive doctrine speech. They are on their 8th season and it's just as interesting as its ever been.

Nicole posted about these casting choices back in May for Oliver Stone's new movie, W. The Stray Cat Bar in Shreveport, Louisiana was the site of a massive bar fight early Saturday morning which led to the arrest of two actors portraying President George W. Bush and former Secretary of State Colin Powell. Josh Brolin, 40, who portrays President Bush and Jeffrey Wright, 42, who depicts Colin Powell in Oliver Stone's upcoming film, "W," were taken into custody along with five others around 2 am. Apparently in casting Brolin as Bush, director Oliver Stone liked what he saw. In 2004, Brolin was arrested and charged with spousal battery for hitting his wife, award-winning actress Diane Lane. Brolin was later released after posting $20,000 bail. "There was a misunderstanding at their home," explained the couple's spokesperson Kelly Bush.

You can't make this stuff up folks.

Amygdala: Always trust your government. Just don't trust anyone else's

The Reality-Based Community: Grampa McCain on net neutrality: NO

The Pump Handle: Congress demands more info on Labor Secretary Chao's mystery proposal for risk assessment.

Wonk Room: What kind of economist is Phil Gramm?

Pharyngula: Fight back against phony-baloney Catholic, Bill Donohue!

OFF THE BEATEN PATH: The Black Snob, Prairie Sun Rising, Lambasted!, earth family alpha,
Actors and Crew

Of course there's a New Hampshire Primary Open Thread here, but for the main open thread let's watch an issue-oriented video that will bring us down gently from Planet Primary. Actors Jack Klugman and James Whitmore have recorded these spots in support of separation of church and state. These religious freedom ads will run this week in South Carolina (heh), and the accompanying website has ten sample questions for voters to ask candidates, such as "Do you think public schools should sponsor school prayer or, as a parent, should this choice be left to me?" and, "Do you think my pharmacist should be allowed to deny me doctor-based prescribed medications based on his or her religious beliefs?" You can watch the other ads here.

Generic Open Thread below, and again, the New Hampshire Primary open thread is here.

(h/t MF)

BlueGrassRoots made the trip to the $27 million dollar institute of non-learning, the Answers in Genesis Creation museum, so you don't have to.

Early in the museum, the visitor is given advice on the proper mind frame to have for your visit: "Don't think, just listen and believe". [..] Human Reason is the enemy and God's Word is the hero. Descartes represents Human Reason, saying "I think, therefore I am". But God tells us there no need to waste your beautiful mind, for God says "I am that I am".

So logic, reason and science are Bad; blind faith is Good.

And you wonder why our jobs are being outsourced...

UPDATE: Maybe making casting decisions on faith doesn't work out so well.  It's a slippery slope; start researching the actors you use for your Creation videos and pretty soon, you're learning and stuff.  ((shudder)) Can't have that, can we,  Mr. Ham?

Forest Whitaker

I'm really enjoying Whitaker on The Shield. There aren't too many actors that you can just sit back and enjoy. He's one of them.

Rick Santorum has a problem: Check out the ad

If the grandfather and grandson walking together in Sen. Rick Santorum's Internet ad look familiar, it could be because the same two actors are in a television ad that a third-party group is running in support of Santorum....read on

Download | play -WMP QT coming

Atrios has more.

Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis, and Battlestar Gallactica are all back with their premier episodes tonight.

SG-1 is my least favorite ( I do like it. I'm up to season six now via Netflix ), but I saw two actors from Farscape in the trailer so I'm jacked about that. Atlantis and Gallactica flat out rock. Get away from the mad world of politics (I've been through evey Buffy and Angel) and don't miss out on Sci-Fi Friday.

via Jay Rosen : "The Parable: The aide said that guys like me were ''in what we call the reality-based community,'' which he defined as people who ''believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality.'' I nodded and murmured something about enlightenment principles and empiricism. He cut me off. ''That's not the way the world really works anymore,'' he continued. ''We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality -- judiciously, as you will -- we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.'' ...read on