IN little more than a fortnight, I will be pouring myself a martini and popping on a 1950s-style prom dress to celebrate the return of Mad Men, aka the greatest TV show ever made.

Not since I was nine and glued to Neighbours have I been so excited about a television programme. And, boy, has this latest season kept me waiting.

I was warned, but it didn't make it any easier – especially when rip-off shows, like The Hour and Pan Am, failed to fill my need for retro tely. I've missed Don Draper more than is respectably healthy. His appearance in last year's hit film, Bridesmaids, filled the void briefly – that is, after I'd got over the shock that he really was just an actor, not a real person.

The last episode of Mad Men was in autumn 2010 – a season fraught with so much strife, not to mention boozing and smoking, that it's no wonder Draper and Co needed a break.

Last time we saw the handsome lothario (spoiler alert if you've not watched the show and want to), he'd proposed to his secretary (a cliché, but I still love him); his ex-wife, Betty, wasn't very happy with her new husband (more fool you, darling); sexy secretary Joan was pregnant with a child – that may or may not belong to ad boss Roger; and the lovely Peggy was, well, doing rather well for herself as Draper's second in command.

I'm still reeling that Sky Atlantic has poached the show from the BBC, but at least the change means a wait of days, rather than months, to see the show after its US airing. And after so much in-fighting within the Mad Men creative team, I'm just happy the show is back at all. What it will bring, I can only imagine, but as long as Don features heavily, I'll be happy.