Reverend Richard Coles' murder-mystery novel Murder Before Evensong is set to be adapted into a TV series.
Helmed by Acorn TV and Paramount's Channel 5, Midsomer Murders writer Nick Hicks-Beach is attached to the project with Strictly star Coles expected to serve as executive producer, according to Deadline.
The publication reports that Acorn has been developing the adaptation for two years alongside production company The Lighthouse, which produced Prince Andrew Netflix film Scoop.
Writer and radio presenter Coles released Murder Before Evensong in 2o22, the first book in a series of murder-mystery novels featuring protagonist Canon Daniel Clement.
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Daniel is the Rector of Champton, living at the Rectory for eight years alongside his widowed mother Audrey and his two dachshunds.
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Shortly after announcing his plans to install a lavatory in the church which divides the village parish, Champton patron Anthony Bowness is found dead behind the church, launching a whodunnit.
Murder Before Evensong was followed by A Death in the Parish in 2023 and Murder at the Monastery earlier this year.
The most recent novel featuring Daniel is Murder Under the Mistletoe: A Canon Clement Christmas Novella, released last month, in which the Rector hunts down a festive killer.
The synopsis reads: "It is Christmas Day and at Champton Rectory, Canon Daniel Clement and his mother Audrey are joined by the residents and guests of the big house to drink, eat and be merry.
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"At the festive feast, peace and goodwill prevail. Until two meet under the mistletoe. One of them falls down dead. And Daniel suspects murder has returned to Champton...
"Can Daniel and Detective Sergeant Neil Vanloo solve the crime and catch the Christmas killer?"
The announcement follows a difficult year for Coles after suffering the loss of his mother as well as his two beloved dogs Daisy and Pongo.
Sharing the news of his mother Elizabeth's death in February, he wrote: "Mum died last night. Here she is on her wedding day, laughing. No mummy's boy (hello) could have wished for more. RIP."
In August, he posted an update on his social media page sharing that his two dogs had died, writing: "Daisy and Pongo, having lived all their long lives together, departed together today."
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