Chris Chibnall

Torchwood is a series about a group of investigators based in Cardiff who protect the Earth from alien threats. Chris Chibnall, who has previously worked on Born and Bred and Life on Mars is the lead writer and a producer on the series.

Is there a "difficult second series" syndrome in the way that some bands struggle with follow-up albums?

I think this is our enjoyable second album. As writers and producers we've got to grips with the show, we've been able to build on the huge success of series one – a spin off from Doctor Who was a big ask. I think we wanted to make it bigger, better, have more fun and build on the foundations of the first series, maximising everything. You have more of a laugh with the second series, definitely.

How has the success of the first series opened up new possibilities?

It's a bit of everything. Having had the success that we did, and it was a big success in America too, creatively we wanted to push it further. During the production process things evolved naturally – James Marsters got in touch and was keen to be in the show. I wrote episode one specifically for him. We had a character for series one [rogue time agent Captain John] who didn't quite fit, but when James's name popped up we thought if you have him playing that character, that's just a riot! By the second series, actors, writers, and directors have seen the show and people want to be involved – people like Richard Briers, Nerys Hughes, Ruth Jones from Gavin and Stacey, and Alan Dale from Ugly Betty. All those people and Freema Agyeman coming across from Doctor Who, know what they're going to get.

It's not like any other show on television, it has its own niche and style. The fun is what attracts people and hopefully the quality of the production. It looks great, if we do say so ourselves. I'm so proud of the way episode one looks and feels, and having someone like James Marsters coming and how John Barrowman works with him – these are rare shows to get this level of quality and madness.

It's very dark though...

Generally you'll find the second series has a slightly richer palette; there are more warm colours in there. It was always meant to be about urban life, cities look great at night; Cardiff looks fantastic with all the neon, but I think there's more light and shade in this second series.

When you write do you visualise the finished product or is it character and dialogue on the page?

With screenwriting you're absolutely writing in pictures. You've got to have the images in mind and convey those on page in the most economical and exciting way possible. Sometimes that leads you into really odd expressions – there's a moment where Captain Jack and Captain John meet in the first episode and in the stage directions I wrote that it should be like Women in Love without the fire and the naked wrestling. If you look on the walls where they first meet there are fires roaring on LCD screens – there's music as well, it's in pictures and sound...

Do you have a soundtrack in mind when you write? Blur were on the trailer...

Yeah, Song 2 is in the show. I wasn't listening to that when I was writing it, but when Ashley Way, the director, did the rough cut of episode one, they put Song 2 over the fight as a kind of guide track and we liked it so much we used it. It has a sense of fun and energy. I've usually got loads of things playing on my iTunes and I give the directors a CD of what I've been listening to – not that they use those songs in the final cut, but it gives a sense of tone beyond what's on the page... that sounds very poncy, doesn't it?

How do you get your ideas across?

On Torchwood we have tone meetings for every episode; all the heads of department sit down – costume, lighting, design, make up – and we decide what the tone and feel of an episode should be like. With episode one the big word I used was "swashbuckling"... I wanted that piratey feel. You're describing what things should feel like and where you draw influences from to create something new, like adding ingredients in a cocktail.

How long before filming do you complete a script?

You aim for a completed script at the beginning of pre-production, which is about four to five weeks before we shoot it. Then you have the discussions and meetings and along the way you might make tweaks or changes – say a better location to what has been suggested – so things evolve up until the last minute, even when shooting sometimes. It's a constant collaboration.

Torchwood deals with aliens, time travel and so on. How do you keep it grounded in some kind of reality?

The key to it is emotional reality. In terms of images, pictures, and concepts, you can go as far as you like as long as it's grounded in relatable human emotions for the team. The Torchwood quintet are the way in for the audience – they should be seeing absolutely extraordinary things, whether it's a time agent or a huge animal beyond comprehensible size, but everything comes back to how that affects the team and their reaction. If you or I were in that situation how would we feel?

How closely is Russell T Davies involved now?

We work as a team; myself, Russell, Julie Gardner, the other executive producer, and Richard Stokes the producer, we talk every day. It's Russell's show... 1am is probably when I've had the most emails and conversations with them. It takes over your life, but it's worth it.

There's been a renaissance in genre shows with Doctor Who, Torchwood, and programmes coming out of America. Is it because you can do more technically, or is it more a sign of the times like the boom in 50s science fiction cinema?

The question is more, why did it ever go away? These stories are such a great way of examining human life. The genre is very questioning about very big issues... Why are we here? What are we doing? Is there more to life than we know of? They are questions, when you think about it, that we deal with every day... of faith and humanity. I think, particularly in times of tension and conflict, these shows have a greater part to play than ever because they reflect our own experiences back to us in new and exciting ways.

Will there be a series three?

That's in the hands of the viewers and channel controllers. I hope so, I think there's a load more stories to tell on Torchwood. I think the characters are extraordinary – Captain Jack is the most wonderful, heroic, mythic character you can have in any tv series. Torchwood is specifically designed and structured to tell a great story every week, stories that are self contained in that great X-Files and Buffy tradition. It should be able to go on for a long time, I hope so, but it always comes down to the viewers.