JILL SCOTT - SCOTT LANDS HBO SERIES AFTER TV MOVIE HIT

Singer/actress JILL SCOTT is to become a regular on U.S. TV after show producers decided to turn her small screen movie THE NO.1 LADIES' DETECTIVE AGENCY into a series. The soul diva was asked to take on the role after starring as lead heroine Precious Ramotswe in the Anthony Minghella-directed TV film last year (07), which aired on U.S. cable channel HBO. The film and forthcoming 13-episode series has been adapted from Alexander MCCall Smith's books, which follow the fortunes of the only female-owned detective agency in the African nation of Botswana. Dreamgirls star Anika Noni Rose will also reprise her role in the TV movie for the new series. The show will be screened by HBO in the U.S. and Canada, while the BBC will distribute the show in the U.K.