Something Borrowed (Torchwood)

22 – "Something Borrowed"
Torchwood episode
Gwen Cooper wakes up pregnant on her wedding day.
Cast
Starring
Others
Production
Directed byAshley Way
Written byPhil Ford
Script editorGary Russell
Produced byRichard Stokes
Chris Chibnall (co-producer)
Executive producer(s)Russell T Davies
Julie Gardner
Music byBen Foster
Production code2.9
SeriesSeries 2
Running time50 mins
First broadcast5 March 2008 (2008-03-05)
Chronology
← Preceded by
"A Day in the Death"
Followed by →
"From Out of the Rain"
List of episodes

"Something Borrowed" is the ninth episode of the second series of the British science-fiction television series Torchwood. It was first broadcast on BBC Three on 5 March 2008 and repeated on BBC Two one week later. The episode was written by Phil Ford, directed by Ashley Way and produced by Richard Stokes. The episode featured the five initial series regulars John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Burn Gorman, Naoko Mori and Gareth David Lloyd plus recurring actor Kai Owen in a central role.

The episode centres on the marriage of the alien hunter Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles) to the transport manager Rhys Williams (Kai Owen). The wedding is complicated by Gwen's sudden impregnation by an alien, though she resolves to see the day through. When the nuptials are interrupted by an attack from the biological mother of the alien fetus (played successively by Collette Brown, Nerys Hughes and John Barrowman), Rhys, Gwen, and Gwen's teammates at Torchwood must neutralise the threat. Gwen and Rhys ultimately marry, and the wedding guests have their memories wiped.

The episode was designed to be the most humorous of Torchwood's second series and incorporated elements of broad comedy and soap opera style storytelling to the monster of the week story. It was filmed largely on location in South Wales—prominent locations included the tourist attractions Margam Country Park and Dyffryn Gardens—and featured an ensemble of previously unseen Welsh characters. The episode was seen by an aggregated total of 4.76 million viewers across its three debut showings in the United Kingdom. Critical response was extremely mixed, with some reviewers praising the inclusion of a less serious episode and others expressing the view that the comedy was too overt.