13 x 60’exclusively for Sky Atlantic HD

London, Friday 13t April, 2012:  As part of Sky’s commitment to bringing innovative programming to its customers, SKY ATLANTIC HD today announces the exclusive acquisition of Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution’s intriguing new drama AWAKE, starring Jason Isaacs (Harry Potter, Case Histories) as a detective who finds he is leading a complex double life that defies reality.      

Scheduled to air on Sky Atlantic HD in the spring, AWAKE is produced by Twentieth Century Fox and is from the executive producers Kyle Killen (Lone Star), Jeffrey Reiner (Friday Night Lights) and Howard Gordon (Homeland, 24).

Following the story of Detective Michael Britten (Jason Isaacs) who survives a serious car accident only to find he is living in two parallel worlds; in one world, his wife, Hannah (Laura Allen, Terriers), survives the crash but his son dies and in the other world his son, Rex (Dylan Minnette, Saving Grace) is alive and grieving over the death of his mother.

Michael navigates between these two worlds, each populated with its own psychiatrist, police partner and of course, murder cases. Michael quickly discovers that his dual existence is actually a powerful tool and he begins to solve impossible cases by using his two realities to gain unique perspectives and link clues that cross over from world to world.

Helping Michael to navigate his two realities are his LAPD-assigned therapists Dr. Evans (Emmy® Award winner Cherry Jones, 24) and Dr. Lee (BD Wong, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit). He is also partnered with either Detective Isaiah "Bird" Freeman (Steve Harris, The Practice) or Detective Efrem Vega (Wilmer Valderrama, That '70s Show), who both begin to wonder how Michael is able to connect seemingly unrelated clues. While Michael is understandably reluctant to confront which of the realities is true, hidden memories from the crash begin to surface, forcing him to confront the truth about what really happened.

Commenting on Sky’s acquisition of the series, Director of Acquisitions, Sarah Wright says:  “Sky Atlantic HD is committed to bringing the best drama exclusively to our customers.  AWAKE with its stellar cast and intriguing plot lines, together with GAME OF THRONES and SMASH will ensure Sky Atlantic HD has the perfect drama schedule this spring.”

Sky Atlantic HD is committed to bringing bold, innovative content to screen from both sides of the Atlantic, from award-winning ‘Mad Men’ and ‘Game of Thrones’ to UK-originations such as ‘Hit & Miss’, created by Paul Abbott and starring Chloe Sevigny and ‘Great Britain: Our Story’, the channel’s first foray into high-end factual; an epic reconstruction of the history of our nation, told through inspiring stories of human endeavour, the Great British spirit that has made us who we are today.

For further information please contact

Tamsyn Zietsman - Head of PR, Sky Atlantic HD
T: +44 (0)20 7032 8093
E: Tamsyn.Zietsman@bskyb.com

Megan MacLeod - Publicist, Sky Movies HD, Sky Atlantic HD
T:
E: megan.macleod@bskyb.com

Notes to editor

About Sky

Sky entertains and excites more than 10.4 million homes through the most comprehensive multichannel, multi-platform television service in the UK and Ireland. Sky continues to break new ground with its own portfolio of channels: Sky 1 combines its commitment to UK production with the best of the US; Sky Living pushes ahead with fresh and innovative entertainment formats; Sky Arts is the UK's only dedicated arts channel brand; Sky Atlantic is the home to HBO and other iconic drama and comedy, Sky Sports is still raising the bar in sports broadcasting; Sky News remains a pioneer in television news; and Sky Movies is leading the way in High Definition and on-demand.

Sky also works with dozens of other broadcasters on the satellite platform, as well as online and on mobile through the ground-breaking Sky Go service.  Sky has also led the UK into the age of high definition television, launched Europe's first 3DTV channel, Sky 3D, and offers customer even more flexibility and choice through Sky Anytime+, its internet-delivered video on demand service.   Since launching Sky Broadband and Sky Talk in 2006, the company has also been the UK's fastest-growing home communications provider.

Sky believes in making a wider contribution to the communities in which it operates, not least by increasing participation in, and access to, the arts, supporting grassroots sports, and taking positive action on the environment.

About 20th Century Fox Television

Twentieth Century Fox is a subsidiary of News Corporation. News Corporation's diversified global operations include the production and distribution of motion pictures and television programming; television, satellite, cable and digital media broadcasting and transmission, the publication of newspapers, magazines and books; the production and distribution of promotional and advertising products and services; the development of conditional access and subscriber management systems