BBC AMERICA CO-PRODUCTION "BEING HUMAN" COMMISSIONED FOR FIFTH SEASON

Created by Toby Whithouse, the hit series' fourth season is premiering now as part of BBC AMERICA's Supernatural Saturday

New York - Monday, March 26, 2012 - BBC AMERICA announced today that award-winning and critically-acclaimed Supernatural Saturday series, Being Human, written and created by Toby Whithouse (Doctor Who, Torchwood), will return for a fifth season. The unconventional trio of a vampire, a werewolf and a ghost will live on as six more episodes have been commissioned for BBC AMERICA and BBC Three in the UK next year. Being Human is produced by Touchpaper Wales, a Zodiak Media Company, for BBC Cymru Wales and BBC AMERICA. The fourth season is currently premiering as part of the channel's Supernatural Saturday programming block.

Toby Whithouse, creator and executive producer, is keeping plans closely under wraps but can confirm that werewolf Tom (Michael Socha) and vampire Hal (Damien Molony) will return. He says: "Being Human lives on! The response to series 4 has been terrific. We're thrilled that the audience have taken the new cast into their hearts with such enthusiasm and affection. We're delighted to have this opportunity to expand the world further and explore new characters and tell new stories. A heartfelt thank you to all the fans for their unstinting support, and to the BBC for letting us mess up the sandpit for a fifth year."

BBC AMERICA's SVP of Programming, Richard De Croce, commented: "The original hit Being Human series has been a staple of BBC AMERICA's Supernatural Saturday programming block. We're excited to present the series' loyal fans with a fifth season and to continue working with the series' cast and extraordinarily talented creator Toby Whithouse, who clearly is fast becoming one of the biggest names in sci-fi television."

Rob Pursey, executive producer, Touchpaper Television says: "When we first made the pilot episode for Being Human we knew we had something special. But we didn't dream we'd be making a fifth series. It's a testament to the ambition of the writing and the performances that it's stayed so fresh. We're very grateful to the BBC for continuing to support a drama that doesn't play by the usual rules."

The fifth season of Being Human (6 x 60) has been re-commissioned by Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning and Zai Bennet, Controller, BBC Three.

Being Human is written by Toby Whithouse and executive producers are Toby Whithouse, Rob Pursey, Philip Trethowan for Touchpaper Television, and George Ormond for BBC Cymru Wales. Zodiak Rights own worldwide right to the Being Human series.

BBC AMERICA delivers US audiences high-quality, innovative and intelligent programming. Established in 1998, it has been the launch pad for talent embraced by American mainstream pop culture, including Ricky Gervais, Gordon Ramsay, Graham Norton, and successful programming formats including ground-breaking non-scripted television like Top Gear and top-rated science-fiction like Doctor Who. Owned by BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, BBC AMERICA has attracted both critical acclaim and major awards including an Emmy(R), five Golden Globes(R) and ten Peabody Awards. The channel attracts one of cable's most affluent and educated audiences and is available on digital cable and satellite TV in more than 76 million homes. It broadcasts in both standard and high-definition, with content available On Demand across all major digital platforms. Online, www.bbcamerica.com is the place to go to dig deeper into pop culture with a British twist.