Steven Knight to adapt 'Great Expectations' for BBC/FX

"Peaky Blinders" creator Steven Knight is set to write a limited series adaptation of Charles Dickens' novel "Great Expectations".

Knight will also executive produce the six-part BBC One/FX series, with his "Taboo" and "A Christmas Carol" collaborators Ridley Scott and Tom Hardy.

"Great Expectations" is the coming-of-age story of an orphan nicknamed Pip. Dickens first released it in a series of weekly chapters, beginning in December 1860, before it was published as a novel.

The series will be produced by FX Productions in association with the BBC, Scott Free and Hardy Son & Baker.

The Bafta Award-winning writer, who previously adapted Dickens' "A Christmas Carol", said translating the writer's work to screen is a delight.

"I chose 'Great Expectations' as the next work to bring to the screen not just because of the timeless characters, but also because of the very timely story.

"A story of class mobility and class intransigence, told through an intensely emotional and personal first-person narrative. As the son of a Blacksmith myself, Pip's journey from the forge into society is a very special one to me," Knight said in a statement shared on BBC website.

Dean Baker, David W Zucker and Kate Crowe are also attached to executive produce, with Marina Brackenbury as co-executive producer.

Previous filmed iterations of "Great Expectations" have included a 2012 feature from Mike Newell and a BBC/PBS series in 2011.