Welsh actress Eve Myles has been confirmed to play Gwen Cooper - the lead female role in the new Russell T Davies drama for BBC THREE, Torchwood.

Eve will star alongside John Barrowman in the forthcoming 13-part drama that will be broadcast later this year.

The British sci-fi crime thriller for adult audiences will follow the adventures of a team of renegade investigators, led by the enigmatic Captain Jack, played by John Barrowman.

It will see the investigators scavenge alien technology in a very real world to solve crime, both alien and human.

"I'm thrilled to be playing the part of Gwen. To get the chance to do a 13-part series under the watchful pen of Russell is amazing," says Eve.

"It's such a compliment to have been chosen for the part - I can't wait.

"I'm also looking forward to working with John. It'll be the perfect opportunity for the both of us to show everyone what we've got."

Eve Myles guest-starred in the first series of Doctor Who - starring Christopher Eccleston - and recently finished filming Soundproof for BBC TWO.

Her credits also include a highly successful run at the National Theatre when she appeared alongside Michael Gambon in Henry IV Parts I & II.

Russell T Davies says: "I've admired Eve's work for years, and when she was able to guest-star in Doctor Who last year, it just confirmed to me that she was one of Wales's best-kept secrets.

"The part of Gwen in Torchwood was written specially for her - so it's a good thing she said yes!

"Eve and John Barrowman have already met up, and the combination is going to be electrifying."

John Barrowman adds: "I'm really looking forward to working with Eve.

"We've had a good laugh on the occasions we've met and the fact that she's already been in Doctor Who means she knows what she's getting into."

Head of BBC Wales Drama, Julie Gardner, says: "We are delighted to announce the casting of Eve Myles in the central role of Gwen, alongside John Barrowman's Captain Jack in Torchwood.

"Eve is an intelligent and versatile actress, who has done exceptional work in a number of BBC dramas, including our local series Belonging."

Torchwood, a 13-part drama series, starts filming in the summer and will transmit on BBC THREE and BBC ONE.

A BBC Wales production for BBC THREE, Torchwood is written by Russell T Davies and Chris Chibnall, with contributing writers including PJ Hammond and Toby Whithouse.

The producer is Richard Stokes and executive producers are Julie Gardner and Russell T Davies.

Burn Gorman and Naoko Mori have been cast to star alongside John Barrowman and Eve Myles in the brand new BBC THREE drama Torchwood, it was announced today.

Burn Gorman has been cast to play Owen Harper – the raw but charming medic of the group.

Burn's most recent acting credits include the hugely popular role of Guppy in the BBC ONE award-winning adaptation of Dickens' Bleak House, written by Andrew Davies.

Lead writer and Executive producer, Russell T Davies says: "Burn was just dazzling in last year's Bleak House, and attracted our attention immediately.

"We beat a path to his door. He's one of the UK's brightest new talents, and I can't believe how lucky we are to get him for Torchwood."

Naoko Mori will play Toshiko Sato – the member of the team who specialises in all things computer, surveillance and technical.

She is best known for her role as Saffy's best friend Sarah (aka Titicaca), in the comedy series Absolutely Fabulous.

Of Naoko, Russell T Davies says: "We were lucky enough to work with Naoko in 2004, on the very first day's filming of the new Doctor Who, which introduced the character of Toshiko Sato in the episode Aliens of London.

"She was absolutely brilliant, and I knew then that I wanted to bring her back."

The British sci-fi crime thriller for adult audiences will follow the adventures of a team of renegade investigators, led by the enigmatic Captain Jack, played by John Barrowman.

It will see the investigators use alien technology in a real world to solve crime; both alien and human.

The 13-part drama series begins filming in Wales next month and will transmit on BBC THREE and BBC ONE.

A BBC Wales production for BBC THREE, Torchwood is written by Russell T Davies and Chris Chibnall, with contributing writers including P J Hammond and Toby Whithouse.

The producer is Richard Stokes and executive producers are Julie Gardner and Russell T Davies.

Torchwood follows the adventures of a team of investigators as they use alien technology to solve crimes, both alien and human.

This new British sci-fi crime thriller, from Russell T Davies, follows the team as they delve into the unknown. They are fighting the impossible while keeping their everyday lives going back at home.

The cast includes John Barrowman (Doctor Who) as the enigmatic Captain Jack Harkness, the ever-watchful heart of the team guarding against the fragility of humankind.

Eve Myles (Doctor Who, Belonging) plays Gwen Cooper, initially an outsider whose first encounter with Torchwood sparks a burning curiosity to get to the truth and throws her into an unfamiliar but exciting world.

Burn Gorman (Bleak House) plays the raw but charming medic, Owen Harper, and Naoko Mori (Absolutely Fabulous) is Toshiko Sato, the team member who specialises in all things technical.

Torchwood is written by Russell T Davies and Chris Chibnall, with contributing writers including PJ Hammond, Toby Whithouse and Helen Raynor.

A BBC production

Captain Jack is the hero of the new BBC sci-fi series, Torchwood, and Eve Myles his gorgeous recruit, but the real star of the show is its backdrop - Cardiff.

Swansea-born writer and producer Russell T Davies said he wanted to give the city the sort of treatment American cities have in some US TV shows.

The production used a helicopter to gain sweeping views of the city's waterfront and landmark buildings.

Davies said: "It's got everything a city should have - and Cardiff Bay."

Torchwood screens on BBC Three on Sunday evening, promising a pacey and sexy sci-fi series based around Captain Jack Harkness, a time traveller who appeared in an episode of the first series of Doctor Who.

He leads a small team of investigators with a secret base on the city's waterfront who track aliens and use their technology to solve crime, both human and alien.

The series is filmed and set in Cardiff and promises spectacular images of the city and locations such as the Wales Millennium Centre.

Davies said, as a Welshman who had set dramas in Manchester, London and his home city, he was proud to be putting Cardiff on the screen.

He said: "If only Manchester had the bay. Cardiff looks like a city should look. It has all the restaurants and the bars.

"I wanted it to look like a city does in an American show. They aren't ashamed about putting what they've got on the screen. That's what I wanted to achieve."

He said the BBC Wales-made production also brought millions of pounds in to the city.

BBC Wales Controller Menna Richards described the production as Davies' "love letter to Cardiff".

Wales-born actress Eve Myles, who plays Captain Jack's new recruit, said that Cardiff was "a huge character in the show".

John Barrowman stars as bisexual time-traveller Captain Jack Harkness in the Doctor Who spin-off series, Torchwood. The 39-year-old actor has starred in several Broadway and West End musicals, and was recently a judge in the reality show How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?

How is Torchwood different to Doctor Who?

Because it's for a completely different audience. It's on after the watershed and it's for adults, or teenagers who have permission from their parents to watch this type of show.

I'm not just saying it's more risque, but we're dealing with violence. There's blood, there's gore, there's sex.

So if parents let their kids watch it, they must understand they'll have some explaining to do.

Writer Russell T Davies says your character has a "real life with a mortgage to pay and plenty of chips to eat". What else does he do?

He saves the world! He battles aliens and travels through time! That's what makes him exceptional. Someone described him as being the closest thing we've got to being a superhero. He doesn't have special powers, but he's a science-fiction action hero.

Is it really a respectable job to get up in the morning and fight aliens in a spaceship?

It absolutely is, and it's really respectable not only to get up and fight aliens and have a spaceship and shoot guns, but I also get to have sex, so that's good!

How complicated is Captain Jack's love life?

I joke about it a lot, but it's not complicated at all. It's very straightforward, very normal. But that's why I say about the whole kids thing. Not every nine-year-old has the ability to comprehend why this alien is having sex with somebody on the counter of a sink and then killing him.

Will Captain Jack be appearing in Doctor Who again?

I will be going back into Doctor Who right after I'm done with Torchwood. I think I'll be in three or four episodes.

You've lived and worked in both the UK and US - which do you call home?

The UK is my home. At the moment, I'm spending all my time in Cardiff. My partner [architect Scott Gill] is in London with his job and so he comes to Cardiff on the weekends.

I'm a huge fan of the city. The people are lovely - we have never had any complaints when we're filming in people's neighbourhood or when we close down their road. The city is hugely proud of the series and we're very proud to be there.

You've been quoted in the press as saying you want to adopt a child. Have you asked Madonna for advice?

I do not know Madonna, so the answer is no. What she does is her business. But Scott and I have talked about adoption, and I'm saying right here and now that we are not actively pursuing that at the moment.

You were passed over for the role of Will in the comedy series Will and Grace - how close did you come to getting the part?

I was of one of quite a few who got down to the last choices, and I was actually told that I wasn't gay enough - even though Eric McCormack is straight. Go figure!

As the star of cult movie Shark Attack 3, what would your advice be to anyone who's attacked by a shark?

Get the hell out of the water! Punch the s*** out of it! The shark I was dealing with was actually the old Jaws shark, so it was just a fake. I didn't learn any lessons - just to stay clear of them!

You've acted with aliens, sharks, Billie Piper and Yasmine Bleeth. Who's been the worst to work with?

Sharks are the worst and I have to say aliens are the best.

Any particular favourite?

I love the Daleks. They still scare the crap out of me when I'm on set and they still give me a thrill when I see them on television.

Have you been tempted to get inside one?

Captain Jack might have been inside a Dalek and a Dalek might have been inside Captain Jack!

But I have been inside the Dalek costume. And one day, while Billie [Piper] and I and Christopher Eccleston were filming, I picked up the microphone that controls the Dalek's voice and I started singing There's No Business Like Showbusiness.

Maybe there's a musical in there?

You never know! Lord of the Rings has been turned into a musical, so why not Torchwood?

John Barrowman talked to BBC News entertainment reporter Mark Savage.

Torchwood can be seen on BBC Three from Sunday 22 October and on BBC Two from Wednesday 25 October.