Osbournes claim $20m (and pet therapy) from MTV

The family pets are so traumatised they may need psychotherapy for life, while the network executives are worried they are paying out a small fortune for a phenomenon that might have hit its peak.

But one thing is sure: with a multimillion-dollar deal for a new season now signed, we are going to be seeing a whole lot more of The Osbournes, MTV's outrageously successful, degenerate rock reality show about Ozzy Osbourne and his wackily dysfunctional family in Beverly Hills.

Both sides announced a deal for 20 new episodes, which will be shown on MTV in the autumn, just in time for British audiences to finish digesting the first 10, which began their run last weekend and instantly broke viewing figure records as they have in the United States.

Inviting fly-on-the-wall cameras back into its crucifix-laden mansion is clearly a goldmine for the Osbourne family, although opinions differ on how much it stands to make. Family representatives talked of a $20m (£13.6m) deal, although that may include estimates on revenue from merchandising and other products (including a cartoon version now in the works). MTV said the deal was in the $5m to $7m range.

Negotiations for the new season were unorthodox, to say the least, with Sharon Osbourne, Ozzy's hard-nosed wife and business manager, demanding a new house and life-long therapy sessions for the pets. Neither claim made it into the final contract. At one point she screamed so loud at MTV executives that the other customers fled the fancy New York restaurant. She also insisted, not entirely seriously, on signing the contract in blood.

Van Tofler, MTV's president, told Daily Variety: "You've got to love Sharon. There's something very lovable about her." His colleagues said they were approached by three sets of negotiators who squeezed the network, even though the novelty of watching the domestic adventures of a clapped-out rock star and his wild children will wear off.

They warded off threats by the Osbournes to go to a bigger network, and engaged in guerrilla tactics, delaying the start of the UK run and refusing to air a video of Kelly Osbourne, 17, singing the Madonna song "Papa Don't Preach".