Cult US drama Mad Men has become the latest high-profile show to be picked up by Sky, after they outbid the BBC for the UK rights to the fifth series. The show, set among the world of ad men in the 60s, is currently being shown by BBC Four. However it will move over to the satellite broadcaster early next year to be featured on their new channel Sky Atlantic, which will screen hits from US cable channel HBO. The channel is believed to have outbid the BBC by more than 25 per cent for the rights to the show, in a deal reportedly worth between five and 10 million pounds. The news comes as Ben Stephenson, the controller of BBC Drama, hit out at the US trend for long series - and also said that shows on the BBC should be "defiantly British". "We are not going to have an eye on the American market, we are not going to become obsessed by co-production," he said. "We are going to serve our audiences by telling the best stories our writers have to tell." Mad Men is the latest in a string of shows to be poached from terrestrial channels by Sky. They also picked up the rights to the Kiefer Sutherland hit 24 as well as buying up Lost from its former home on Channel 4. Their new channel Sky Atlantic will show classic episodes of dramas like Six Feet Under and The Sopranos as well as new shows including Boardwalk Empire, from Oscar winning director Martin Scorsese.
