The move will see a 10% increase in programming investment for the channel, which moves up the EPG to channel 121.

New one-off drama Birthday, adapted from Joe Penhall’s sell-out play, will air on Tuesday evening.

Stephen Mangan stars as Ed, a pregnant man waiting to give birth on an NHS maternity ward, accompanied by his high-flying executive wife (Anna Maxwell Martin).

The broadcaster has made a commitment to increasing high-quality arts programming across Europe.

The UK is one of five countries to have a Sky Arts channel, along with Italy, Germany, Austria and Ireland.

In May it was announced that a Sky Arts Production Hub would launch in Milan, tasked with creating arts programming for Sky customers across Europe.

The hub’s first pan-European event will be the inaugural Sky Arts Photographer of the Year, which will open for entries later this year and seeks to find the best amateur photographer on the continent.