'Joey' pilot leaked onto net

The pilot episode of Friends spinoff Joey has been leaked onto the internet more than three months before it premieres in the States.

The one-hour episode sees Joey settle into his new life in Los Angeles and introduces other members of the Tribbiani clan.

Almost 8,000 people have downloaded the pilot from one particular internet site over the past few days, but the number of people viewing the show illegally will increase by tens of thousands more as the file spreads onto the various file-sharing networks.