Dawn French has been named as the star of new Sky1 comedy drama Delicious.

The show is described as an 'event drama' with 'funny' elements. The channel explains: "Set in the stunning Cornish countryside, Delicious is a surprising and compelling story of love, heartbreak, food and female friendship. When your best friend is your husband's ex, can you ever really be friends or will your secrets eventually overwhelm you?

"Sensual and passionate cook Gina (Dawn French) was once married to Leo Vincent, a successful entrepreneur, chef and hotel owner, with whom she has a daughter. Leo made his fortune from his exceptional Italian cooking - a family tradition he inherited from his ex-wife - and runs the idyllic Penrose Hotel in the Tamar Valley.

"Since divorcing Gina, Leo's culinary empire has continued to grow, with the fruits of success now being shared with his new wife Sam. However, Leo is keeping a secret which is set to upturn all of their lives. In a friendship already born out of betrayal, Gina and Sam face the secrets and scandal that will bind them together in the most unlikely of circumstances."

The four-part series has been written by Dan Sefton, who previously wrote on the comedy Gates and has penned scripts for Mr Selfridge.

Talking about taking on her new role, Dawn French says: "Cornwall, summer, sunshine and the other S word - it will be Delicious fun."

French currently lives in Cornwall, and this will not be her first show set in the area. In 2002 she starred in the sitcom Wild West and in 2006 she took on the role of Rosie Bales in the Jennifer Saunders comedy Jam & Jerusalem.

Speaking about the new programme, Phillippa Giles from production company Bandit Television says: "Delicious is a bold and distinctive start for Bandit. The series is feisty, funny and frank and with Dawn French at the centre the honesty will be unflinching."

Anne Mensah, Head of Drama at Sky, comments: "It's incredibly exciting to welcome Dawn French to Sky1. We've been wanting to work with her for a long time and Delicious is just the perfect project. It's funny, surprising and audacious but also compelling and emotional. Plus the wonderful Cornish countryside - it's going to be a fabulous treat for our audience."

Delicious is expected to be shown on Sky1 either late this year or in early 2017.

The show is one of six new series unveiled by Sky today. Also in the list is The Last Dragonslayer, a family Christmas adventure series written by Tom Edge (Scrotal Recall) in which Royle Family star Ricky Tomlinson will play a lead role.

The other programmes are 1970s love story Guerrilla starring Idris Elba; Tim Roth and Christina Hendricks thriller Tin Star; thriller Riviera starring Julia Stiles; and 1600s frontier drama Jamestown.