Mr Selfridge, Birds of a Feather Renewed by ITV

LONDON: ITV is bringing back the period drama Mr Selfridge and the comedy Birds of a Feather for new seasons.

There will be ten new episodes of Mr Selfridge for the show's fourth season. Jeremy Piven (Entourage) will reprise his role as Harry Selfridge, and Katherine Kelly (Coronation Street) is set to return as Lady Mae Loxley.

“We’re delighted to commission a fourth series of Mr Selfridge,” said ITV's director of drama, Steve November. “It’s so pleasing to see the audience take the characters and storylines into their hearts. We’re looking forward to seeing Jeremy reprise his role as the visionary yet deeply troubled Harry alongside simply stunning production values.”

Kate Lewis, executive producer for ITV Studios, said: “We’re delighted to be embarking on production of the fourth series of Mr Selfridge and thrilled to be welcoming back Katherine Kelly along with introducing some talented new faces. This series marks a dramatic turn in fortunes for Harry as he loses grip on his empire. It’s a bit of a game changer for all the characters in the series.”

Birds of a Feather is returning to ITV as well. The most recent run of the series attracted more than 5 million viewers each week. Starring Pauline Quirke, Linda Robson and Lesley Joseph, the series features original Essex girls Sharon Theodopolopodos, Tracey Stubbs and Dorien Green.

ITV’s comedy commissioner, Saskia Schuster, said, “Birds of a Feather has a large and loyal audience and we’re really pleased to be bringing it back. A new series starts shooting later this year.”

Original writers Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran added, “We’re thrilled that a nation is still in love with Sharon, Tracey and Dorien and delighted that ITV loves them too and have asked us to write what will be the 12th series of Birds of a Feather. We can promise more feisty fun with the Essex girls.”