BLIMEY!

The American TV networks introduced their new fall TV schedules this week and no less than five new shows are based on established British hits.

ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox are scooping up ideas from the other side of the pond to beef up their new schedules.

American TV is a staple all over the world – though increasingly other countries are making their own versions of our hits rather than dubbing the U.S. originals into the native lingo.

And American TV has always borrowed ideas from British TV. But no one can remember when so many shows of British ancestory have been adopted here in a single season.

Leading the latest British invasion are:

* “The Office” – NBC has ordered six epsiodes of the wildly popular BBC show for midseason.

* “Wife Swap” – ABC has already committed to 20 hours of the popular reality show in which two moms swap families.

* “Fire Me . . .” – CBS will air this hidden-camera show based on the BBC’s “The Sack Race,” in which people compete to see who can get fired from a job first.

* “The Benefactor” – Based on a Brit reality show of the same name, ABC set up 16 contestants with billionaire Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, to see who can win a $1 million prize.

* “The Sketch Show” – Fox will air an American remake of this sketch comedy show with “Frasier” alum Kelsey Grammer as host.