The Good Life's Penelope Keith makes TV return in Pride and Prejudice sequel Death Comes to Pemberley

The Good Life star Penelope Keith is returning to television in an adaptation of PD James's follow-up to Pride And Prejudice.

The actress will play Mr Darcy's aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, in BBC1 show Death Comes To Pemberley, based on the bestseller, which features a murder mystery and is set six years after Jane Austen's original novel.

The cast will also include Doctor Who star Jenna-Louise Coleman, who will play Lydia Wickham, Trevor Eve and The Thick Of It star Rebecca Front.

Keith, who became a household name when she played snobbish Margo Leadbetter in The Good Life, also starred in The Norman Conquests and To The Manor Born.

Other members of the cast who have already been announced include Anna Maxwell Martin, who will play Elizabeth Bennet, and Matthew Rhys, who plays Mr Darcy.

Pride And Prejudice has inspired scores of film and television versions featuring stars including Keira Knightley and Laurence Olivier.

The 1995 BBC version made a star of Colin Firth when he played Mr Darcy, famously emerging from a lake in a dripping wet shirt and breeches.

PA