Image copyright Jamie McCarthy Image caption Gillian Anderson starred alongside David Duchovny in the long-running TV show

Cult sci-fi show The X-Files is to return to TV after a 13-year hiatus.

David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson will reprise their roles as FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully for the six-part series.

Original creator Chris Carter will be at the helm when production starts this summer.

It is not yet known when it will air on TV.

The show, which ran for nine seasons from 1993-2002, saw Mulder and Scully investigate unsolved mysteries and paranormal cases.

More than 200 episodes of the The X-Files were made, making it one of the longest-running sci-fi series in US network TV history. Two feature films were also made - in 1998 and 2008.

Carter said: "I think of it as a 13-year commercial break.

"The good news is the world has only gotten that much stranger, a perfect time to tell these six stories."

Dana Walden and Gary Newman, of Fox Television Group, said: "We had the privilege of working with Chris on all nine seasons of The X-Files - one of the most rewarding creative experiences of our careers - and we couldn't be more excited to explore that incredible world with him again.

"The X-Files was not only a seminal show for both the studio and the network, it was a worldwide phenomenon that shaped pop culture - yet remained a true gem for the legions of fans who embraced it from the beginning.

"Few shows on television have drawn such dedicated fans as The X-Files and we're ecstatic to give them the next thrilling chapter of Mulder and Scully they've been waiting for."