Bad Nights was my first attempt at writing a Torchwood story. I started it about three days after the first two stories had aired. There were a few clues in the first draft to the fact that it was written early in the transmission of the first TV series. Originally Jack wasn't able to recall Gwen’s boyfriend’s name – basically because I couldn’t remember it EITHER at the time. I later changed that, but the rest of the team not knowing that Jack can come back from the dead and the fact that he has not yet had any sexual relationship with the other members of the team remained. Also the fact that Jack still has something of a ‘thing’ for the Ninth Doctor. This all pre-dates End of Days as well as the events of the Doctor Who episodes, Utopia, Sound of Drums and Last of The Time Lords. But the general consensus of those who read it is that I shouldn’t change anything or attempt to update it.

The geography of Cardiff came into play a lot in this story. Especially the location around the Altolusso apartments, the place where Jack had been standing so dramatically in the first episode. It proved a very useful coincidence that the Jurys Hotel is just across the road from the apartments. I had used the St David’s Hotel on the waterfront for the first of Jack’s unfortunate nights, and the Marriott for the second. As posh hotels go, Jurys is probably third in line after those two in Cardiff. And it couldn’t have been more perfect. That flat roof over the restaurant was perfect for the fight with the alien.