Jilly Cooper's bestselling book 'Rivals' is to be adapted into a TV series by Disney+.
Jilly Cooper's Rivals lands Disney adaptation
The streaming giant has revealed a new eight-part series is in the works, and it will be executive produced by Jilly, former 'EastEnders' boss Dominic Treadwell-Collins and ex-'Ackley Bridge' producer Alexander Lamb.
Jilly - who released the book in 1988 - said: "I am so, so excited.
"Throughout my childhood, my favourite word was ‘Disney’, and by a miraculous coincidence, greater-than-ever Disney are joining forces with an utterly brilliant drama company, Happy Prince, to turn my novel into a TV series.
"I know they will bring the boardroom battles and love triangles of my characters to life – particularly those of my devastatingly handsome hero.
"I cannot wait to see who will be stepping into his shoes ... let the hunt for our Rupert Campbell-Black commence!"
Dominic, executive producer at Happy Prince, added: "I have been wooing Jilly Cooper since I first started working in television.
"Jilly's iconic novels' razor-sharp observations on class, sex, love and what it means to be British resonate even more today than when Jilly wrote them in the 1980s.
"I'm so excited to bring Rivals to the screen, entertain fans of the beloved Cooperverse and introduce a whole new generation to the sweeping love stories, social satire and biting wit of Rutshire."
'Rivals' will be set in 1986 in the fictional upper-class county of Rutshire where a long-standing rivalry between two powerful men, notorious womaniser Rupert Campbell-Black, and his neighbour Tony Baddingham, controller of the independent TV franchise Corinium Television, is set to boil over.
The series is expected to bring a 2020s lens to the 1980s.
Lee Mason, Director of Scripted Content, EMEA, Disney+ added: "The combination of Jilly Cooper and Disney+ is delightfully unexpected.
"We were thrilled when Dominic brought us these iconic books, and we leapt at the chance to bring them to life.
"We can’t wait to welcome Rupert Campbell-Black and the residents of Rutshire to the platform."
Elliot Hegarty will be lead director of the series.