Netflix snaps up BBC thriller Bodyguard but ITV lands the cash

It is one of the BBC's most popular dramas in years – but the broadcaster is set to miss out on its cash windfall. Netflix has splashed out on the international rights for high intensity drama Bodyguard, which has brought in as many as eight million viewers per episode on BBC1. Netflix has paid an undisclosed sum to secure the international broadcast rights to Bodyguard, pictured, starring Richard Madden and Keeley Hawes The show, which follows protection officer David Budd, played by Madden, pictured, has proved a huge hit, netting eight million viewers for its last episode It comes amid fears the BBC could lose out on a second series of the show – penned by Jed Mercurio and starring Richard Madden and Keeley Hawes – to Netflix after director general Lord Hall said the broadcaster needed to find more money to compete with the streaming giant and its rivals, such as Amazon Prime. ITV Studios are to get the cash from the deal because it is majority owner of World Productions, which produces the show The deal has sparked some concerns Netflix could obtain a second series of the show rather than the BBC. Pictured is Keeley Hawes as Home Secretary Julia Montague Speaking at a Royal Television Society conference yesterday Lord Hall said the BBC's spending is 'unsustainable' and admitted 'we need to find more money'.