Months before the world bade goodbye to the Crawley family at the end of the final series of Downton Abbey, rumours had started swirling that the ITV drama would one day be turned into a movie.

And if you’ve been nursing a period drama-shaped hole in your life ever since the sixth season concluded last Christmas, get ready to rejoice: Downton Abbey: The Movie is all but confirmed.

Speaking to the Daily Mail this week, Downton creator Julian Fellowes said that filming for a big-screen adaptation was expected to start in 2017 – and that he was looking forward to having a bigger budget to lavish on Downton’s always-extravagant sets and costumes.

“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,” he said.

“As far as I am concerned, I am completely up for it,” he continued, adding: “Most of the cast are up for it.”

The Downton Abbey movie is confirmed – and Maggie Smith’s on board