'Little Dorrit' comes up big

It was the little engine that could.

After staying off the radar with little marketing push, the BBC/PBS production of "Little Dorrit" surprisingly became the most honored program of the night with seven Emmys, including best miniseries.

It was a come-from-behind win. At the nomination stage, "Dorrit" was tied with its competitor in the best miniseries category, HBO's "Generation Kill," for sixth place, behind such heavy hitters as series "30 Rock," "Mad Men" and movies "Grey Gardens" and "Into the Storm." But in the end, the Charles Dickens adaptation squeaked past the dominant player in the longform space, HBO. The cabler's "Gardens" was second in the program tally with six Emmys.

"This is a fantastic win that Dickens would be proud of," said BBC Worldwide exec vp programming and production Jane Tranter, who commissioned the mini at the BBC. "If he was around today, he would undoubtedly be writing for television."