Digital channel orders three hour-long episodes of comedy drama based on Douglas Adams novel

This article is more than 9 years old

This article is more than 9 years old

BBC4 has recommissioned Dirk Gently, the adaptation of the late Douglas Adams novel starring Stephen Mangan.

The digital channel has ordered another three hour-long episodes of the comedy drama, following the pilot broadcast in late 2010, for later this year.

Adapted by the Bafta-winning writer Howard Overman – who is also behind Misfits, Vexed and Merlin – Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency follows the exploits of Adams's chaotic character as he uses his unusual methods to solve crimes.

The Dirk Gently books have formed the basis of a play and a BBC Radio 4 series, but this is the first time they have been adapted for TV.

Dirk Gently is being made by ITV Studios in association with the Welded Tandem Picture Company. The executive producers are Saurabh Kakkar for ITV Studios and Eleanor Moran for the BBC.

The drama was commissioned by Ben Stephenson, controller of BBC drama commissioning, and BBC4 controller Richard Klein.

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