The actress told The Sunday Times: “I want to write Ab Fab: The Movie. We’d have so much fun, and I’ve thought of a really nice idea.”

She explained: “We thought it would be hilarious if [Edina and Patsy] went to a party on an oligarch’s yacht, got drunk, fell asleep and woke up in the middle of the ocean. Everyone else has left, and the ship has been moved on.”

Christine Langan, Head of BBC Films, told Deadline: “I think she’s a genius. I can’t imagine anything more exciting than working with her.”

Production on the film will reportedly begin next year once Saunders has completed work on Viva Forever, the upcoming Spice Girls stage musical from Mamma Mia! producer Judy Craymer.

Absolutely Fabulous will return to BBC One this Christmas with the first of three 30-minute specials to celebrate the comedy’s 20th anniversary, which will see the group “in the midst of a life-changing experience for one – which affects them all”.

The original cast – Jennifer Saunders, Joanna Lumley, Julia Sawalha, June Whitfield and Jane Horrocks – will all return for the new episodes.

Would you like to see an Absolutely Fabulous movie? Let us know below…

> Order the 20th anniversary specials on DVD on Amazon.

> Buy the complete Absolutely Fabulous boxset.

Watch the Series 5 trailer…