We're
delighted to bring you an exclusive interview with John
Barrowman's sister, Carole E. Barrowman!
Carole and John recently penned an exclusive comic strip
called Captain Jack and the Selkie, which appeared in
issue #14 of the Official Torchwood Magazine.
The comic sees Captain Jack facing a deadly threat on
a remote Scottish island, where people are disappearing
one by one... But to his horror, Jack starts to suspect
he may know who - or perhaps more specifically what
- is responsible!
You can read our interview with Carole below - thanks
to everyone who submitted their questions for her into
us.

Q.
Hey Carole. Obviously we're all looking forward to the
release of Captain Jack and the Selkie, but what inspired
you to write it and where did the first ideas for the
plot come from?
CB: The first ideas for the plot came from a short story
I'd written a year or so ago called "The Tale of
the Selkie." The story has nothing to do with Torchwood
or Captain Jack, but it has enough elements of the mysterious
and the unusual that when John and I did start to brainstorm
ideas for the comic, he remembered my story and we decided
it would be perfect for the first Captain Jack tale.
Q. How long did the comic take to write, and how closely
did you work with John to produce the final project?
CB: John and I worked closely at the beginning when we
were working out the elements of the story and we stayed
in regular contact after that. When John and I finished
the story's outline, the artists - brilliant guys - Tommy
Lee Edwards and Trevor Goring, worked out the panel breakdowns
and then I wrote the script from there. At that point
the script and panels went back to them for the art and
to John Workman for the lettering. Overall, from first
outline to finished project... maybe two months. We would
have liked more time, but each one of us squeezed this
in between other projects.
Q.
(Sent in by Reginald) Does the comic feature any of the
regular Torchwood characters (Gwen, Ianto, etc...), or
it set when Captain Jack is a freelance agent?
CB: I'm afraid not, Reginald. This story is just Jack.
He's in Scotland investigating a series of bizarre murders
that have something to do with his past... won't say anymore
less I spoil it for you.
Q.
Did you have any influence over the artwork in your comic?
CB: Probably the biggest influence we had was that we
picked two of the best artists in the business to work
with us. During the process, Tommy sent us sketches and
rough drawings and my only job in relation to the art
was to make sure that some of the visual clues that we
needed in early panels were visible.
Q.
Did spending time with John and the other members of the
Torchwood cast and crew on the set give you any inspiration
for your story?
CB: Spending time on the Torchwood set did give me insight
into Jack's character. It's always exciting to watch the
actors bring life to their characters, but the story is
more a personal tale of Jack's and so it's set outside
the Torchwood world.
Q.
(Sent in by DdWho) Does knowing the real John influence
how you write his character, Captain Jack, in any way?
CB: Hmm, interesting question, DdWho. I really try to
keep the two separate in my head (which isn't always easy);
otherwise, I'd just see my 'wee' brother all the time.

Q.
You've previously worked with John on the publication
of his autobiography, Anything Goes (we met you at a book
signing in Cardiff). Did you find your relationship with
him was strained during work on these projects?
CB: John and I are close enough as siblings and as collaborators
that when we do start to fray each other's nerves (which
honestly doesn't happen that much), we usually can tell
and we can deal with it. We both share a similar sense
of humor and usually we need to control that more than
we ever need to worry about other things.
Q.
Are you looking forward to hearing the fan's reaction
to your story?
CB: I love hearing from fans. I'm getting lots of emails
via my website and I'm reading all of them and enjoying
the reactions tremendously. Torchwood/Jack/ fans in particular
and scifi fans in general seem to be a very close and
vibrant community and I'm enjoying being part of it.
Q.
(Sent in by Matt and Mark) If the BBC were to offer you
a guest role in an episode of Doctor Who or Torchwood
alongside your brother, would you accept it?
CB: Well, Matt and Mark, I think I'd have to think about
it for, oh, all of ten seconds... I'd love to play a rogue
scientist or some character that has some kind of secret
that Jack and the team needs... actually, here's two little
known facts for fans of the series. My son, Turner, John's
nephew, spent time working on set one summer and he got
on camera as an extra. John didn't know what part Turner
would be playing and there's a great shot in the show
of John/Jack walking into a tent passed Turner and realizing
it's him... Also, my daughter, Clare, has been used by
the makeup artists a couple of times when she's been with
John to test out the make-up for wounds etc. before they're
used on the actors.

Q.
(Sent in by Sam) What's it like to see your brother act
on TV?
CB: It's really very cool, and I think I'd love Captain
Jack even if I didn't know the actor who plays him. Some
of us in our family can separate his character from John
better than others. Clare sobbed her way through most
of the last episodes of season two because all she could
see was her Uncle John was really sad and upset...
Q.
Have you got any plans to work with John again for future
projects, Torchwood or otherwise?
CB: We do have a few things we're working on right now
and I think (hope) fans will be as excited about them
as we are. Thanks for the good questions, WhovianNet.
We'd
just like to send Carole a big thanks for taking time
out to answer the questions.
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