BBC comedy bosses are harking back to classic shows such as 'Allo 'Allo!, Dad's Army and Are You Being Served? to find inspiration for a 'silly' new ensemble comedy.

Broadcast Magazine reports that at a recent BBC brainstorming session staff were looking to come up with ideas for a 'big, hilarious comedy' for the corporation's main channel. It is widely know BBC1 is now desperate for some more hit comedies (in 2006 only one sitcom - Not Going Out - successfully debuted on the channel) and so it seems the BBC are now changing tact in a hope they'll have more success than they are now.

The BBC said: "We think there is potential next year for an ensemble show for BBC1 in the spirit of shows of the past like Dad's Army. Something with a big cast and quite silly humour – there isn't really a recent example of BBC1 doing a show like that".

The BBC Spokesman went on to say: "The [brainstorming] meeting threw up a few ideas and the writers have now gone away to develop them further. We will wait and see which ones work out. We want to see if there is anything that can be learned from the past, rather than remaking shows that were a hit years ago".

As was first revealed on our forums, a new episode of 'Allo 'Allo is being filmed in Manchester next week. Written by the comedy's co-creator Jeremy Lloyd, the one-off episode will reunite all the surviving cast members, including star Gorden Kaye who played cafe owner Rene Artois in the original series. As well as the new episode a documentary looking back at the sitcom is being filmed too.

Eighty five episodes of 'Allo 'Allo were broadcast on the BBC between 1982 to 1992 – in the last episode Rene finally escaped his wife Edith and eloped with waitress Yvette and a painting worth millions. This will not be the first time the sitcom has returned though - in 1994 a show called "The Best of 'Allo Allo" was broadcast in which classic clips from the comedy were interspersed with new scenes featuring Rene and Edith celebrating Edith's birthday in the Alps.