We watch a lot of British TV -- not just the BBC -- and we have British friends, most of them Oxbridge. Our impression is that "different to" is becoming standard usage across the pond.

[Five minutes later.] Well -- to prove myself right, I just went to the Guardian website, searched for "different" and proved myself wrong. The Guardian uses "different from." Same with the London Review of Books. So, you are right. Our friends must be picking it up from the broadcast media. We will begin pointing out their error. .