The long-rumoured Downton Abbey movie is set to begin filming next year.

Speaking at BBC America’s BAFTA Party in West Hollywood, the show’s creator Julian Fellowes said: “I think it will be fun to get everyone together, and move it to a larger scale because you have got more money to spend.”

Production on the big screen version of the period drama is expected to begin in 2017.

Discussing when the movie will arrive in cinemas, Fellowes commented: “[Executive producer Gareth Neame] knows more than I do. I am just the humble pen usher.’

The final episode of Downton Abbey aired last Christmas on ITV.

Buy the complete Season 1-6 box set on Amazon here.

Dame Maggie Smith has reportedly signed on to return as Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, and Laura Carmichael is keen to revisit Lady Edith Crawley, commenting: “It will be exciting to see how she is doing.”

Michelle Dockery, who played Lady Mary, revealed earlier this year that she would “wholeheartedly consider” appearing in a movie spin-off.

Which characters do you want to see return in the Downton Abbey movie? Let us know below…