Channel Gold is to air dinnerladies diaries, a three-part documentary series based on Victoria Wood's personal diaries.

Producers explain: "Twenty years ago, Victoria Wood put pen to paper and wrote her multi-award-winning comedy, dinnerladies. She'd never written a sitcom before, having stuck to sketches, songs and playlets - this was a big thing for her.

"How do we know? Because she recorded all her thoughts and feelings in diaries, notebooks, photos and backstage footage."

They continue: "Gold will give viewers a glance into Victoria's notebooks, her backstage photos and studio records - all of which have never been seen before. The three-part series will also feature interviews with the cast and friends of dinnerladies as they reminisce about one of Britain's most loved comedies on its 20th anniversary."

The new series, produced by Phil McIntyre Television, will be titled dinnerladies diaries. The new programme's title is deliberately stylised in lowercase letters to match Wood's decision on the original sitcom's title. The documentary's episodes will tell the story of how the groundbreaking comedy was conceived, developed, produced and why Victoria chose to end it after just two series.

Commissioner Iain Coyle says: "These days the phrase 'national treasure' gets bandied about all too often but in Victoria's case, it is apt and accurate. The folks at Phil McIntyre TV have uncovered some extraordinary material, that will give us a unique insight into how one our best loved shows was conceived and produced."

Steve North, Manager of Gold, adds: "We are very proud of the retrospective documentaries we have made on Gold from Bring Me Morecambe And Wise to The Interviews, and this is a wonderful tribute to the incredible talent of Victoria Wood."

Lindsay Jex from Phil McIntyre Entertainment comments: "It's a privilege to be making this 20th anniversary tribute to Victoria Wood's dinnerladies. We have unearthed some truly amazing unseen gems from the archive combined with first-hand insight from the cast and crew, this series will tell the definitive story of this award-winning sitcom. And of course we're delighted to be working with Gold again."

dinnerladies diaries will air on Gold in 2018.