TV insiders say Lily James ( pictured ) , who stars in the new Disney cinema hit Cinderella , would be ideal as Mary in the new TV adaptation . They were left broken-hearted when writer Julian Fellowes announced that the next series of Downton Abbey would be the last . But at least the hit show 's millions of fans can now look forward to more fun from the Oscar winner . He plans another heady TV mix of romance , class struggle and social snobbery , this time based on the work of Anthony Trollope , one of Britain 's greatest novelists . Lord Fellowes , 65 , has revealed he is to turn Trollope 's 1858 novel Doctor Thorne into a new three-part historical drama for ITV . He said : 'Doctor Thorne is one of my favourite novels . It is romantic and funny and I am absolutely delighted to be doing it . I said yes to it straight away . ' He added : 'It is rooted in darkness and starts with a murder , which spreads its shadow over many of the principal characters . ' The novel tells the story of Doctor Thomas Thorne , who lives in the village of Greshamsbury in Barsetshire with his beautiful niece , Mary , a girl blessed with every gift except money . Mary has grown up alongside the Gresham sisters – Augusta , Beatrice and Alexandrina – and their handsome brother Frank , whose home is the great house and estate at Greshamsbury Park . When the terrifying Lady Arabella Gresham discovers that her son Frank has fallen in love with Doctor Thorne 's penniless niece , she is horrified . And the situation is made all the more fraught because Doctor Thorne is harbouring a secret about Mary 's parentage which threatens to bring everyone 's world crashing down . Trollope 's tale is considered one of his best works and Fellowes 's track record in both television and film is likely to attract an A-list cast . TV insiders say Hugh Bonneville , who plays Lord Grantham in Downton , and Lily James , who plays Lady Rose in the show and who stars in the new Disney cinema hit Cinderella , would be ideal as Thomas Thorne and Mary . But one source last night said that ITV would be keen to ensure that the cast of the new drama was not filled with faces from Downton . TV critics want Hugh Bonneville , who plays Lord Grantham in Downton , to appear in the new television show . The tale is considered one of Trollope 's best works . Several actresses , including Anna Chancellor , who made a guest appearance in the last series of Downton Abbey , Juliet Stevenson and Janet McTeer could all be likely contenders for the role of the snobbish Lady Arabella . The project is the realisation of a life- long ambition for Fellowes , a huge admirer of Trollope 's work . He revealed plans for the new drama at a dinner held at The Athenaeum Club in London on Friday night to celebrate the bicentenary of Trollope 's birth . Fellowes was a speaker at the event . He told The Mail on Sunday that there was a snobbishness towards Trollope in certain quarters and he hoped the adaptation would lead to a flood of other series . ' I think television has just woken up to the fact that there are all these wonderful stories by Trollope which have never been done . How much more interesting than the 88th version of Pride And Prejudice . ' Fellowes revealed that many of the characters in Downton Abbey and his Oscar-winning 2001 film Gosford Park had been inspired by Trollope . He said Gosford Park 's Lady Trentham and Downton 's Dowager Countess of Grantham – both played by Maggie Smith – were very similar to Doctor Thorne 's Lady Arabella , and that Gosford 's imperious Lady Sylvia , played by Kristin Scott Thomas , was a 'classic ' from a Trollope novel . Also at the Athenaeum Club was fellow Trollope fan Sir John Major . He discovered Trollope when he was 13 and likened the author to a 'friend for 60 years ' . In an article in The Mail on Sunday 's Event magazine he wrote : ' I invite others to make his acquaintance . Few , if any , will be disappointed . And most – like the young boy who once rummaged through the library shelves in Brixton – will find a love for life . '
Lord Fellowes , 65 , has revealed he is to turn Trollope 's 1858 novel Doctor Grantham into a new three-part historical drama for ITV . Tale considered one of his best works and is likely to attract an A-list cast . TV insiders say Hugh Bonneville , who plays Lord Thorne in Downton and Lily James would be ideal as Thomas Grantham and Mary .