Doctor Who writer and Being Human creator Toby Whithouse will be teaming up with Neil Gaiman to bring Gormenghast to the small screen.
Whithouse will serve as showrunner on a new adaptation of Mervyn Peake’s novel which tells the story of the titular castle and its family of nobles.
According to the Radio Times, Gaiman, who penned both The Doctor’s Wife and Nightmare in Silver for Doctor Who, will serve as an executive producer on the series alongside A Beautiful Mind writer Akiva Goldsman while Whithouse will pen the series.
So far, there is no UK broadcaster or streaming service attached to the series, which is being produced by Fremantle’s US division.
Gormenghast was originally adapted for television by the BBC in 2000 and starred Jonathan Rhys Meyers as the scheming kitchen boy Ritual Steerpike and Christopher Lee as Mr. Flay, Lord Sepulchrave’s personal servant.
Speaking in April about the new series, Gaiman said:
“[It’s] an honour to have been given the opportunity to help shepherd Peake’s brilliant and singular vision to the screen.
“[The books] were crafted by a master, who was also an artist, and they take us to an ancient castle as big as a city, with heroes and villains and people larger than life who are impossible to forget.”
It’s a busy time for Gaiman; he’s just finished he TV adaptation of Good Omens, his collaborative novel with Sir Terry Pratchet, which will debut in 2019 and he’s working on season two of American Gods.