Where lovers’ tiffs are concerned, this was a pretty big one.

Anyone who subscribes to Virgin (formerly NTL) will know that that since early last year, they have had no access to several of Sky’s core channels, including Sky One and Sky News.

The pair locked horns on the matter when they failed to reach an agreement over some of Sky’s most popular channels. Toys were thrown out of respective prams, with both refusing to budge, leaving avid fans of hit shows such as Lost – well, literally lost mid-series.

But yesterday the rivals buried the hatchet and agreed fixed fees to carry each other’s channels.

From next Thursday, full service will resume in both camps. Virgin customers will have access to all of Sky’s basic channels, while Sky customers can rest assured that Virgin’s basic channels, including Living and Bravo, are theirs to tune into until 2011...I’m sure everyone is breathing a sigh of relief that those repeats of Jerry Springer aren’t going anywhere...

Personally, this can only be a good thing for Joe consumer.

I liked the thought of getting a bundled package with Virgin, but was put-off by the fact that several of its vital channels wouldn’t be part of my viewing package. This will make me think again.

May Sky and Virgin live happily ever after eh?