It is a truth universally acknowledged  -  especially among female viewers  -  that you can never have too many costume dramas.

That was certainly what television bosses were hoping when they planned an autumn schedule packed with lavish adaptations of literary classics.

The success of BBC1's Cranford last year has prompted broadcasters to return to the traditional heroes of Charles Dickens, Jane Austen and Thomas Hardy as a tonic to the gloomy economic outlook.

Nastassja Kinski in Tess Of The d'Urbevilles and Gemma Arterton in the latest version of the title row

New Bond girl Gemma Arterton will appear as Hardy's spirited but tragic heroine in Tess Of The d'Urbervilles, which will be given its first adaptation in a decade on

She is joined by costume drama veteran Anna Massey and Gavin & Stacey star Ruth Jones as well as rising stars Jodie Whittaker and Eddie Redmayne.

The BBC's flagship channel is also to follow up its award-winning production of Bleak House with another Dickens drama, adapted by Andrew Davies.

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Kiss-off: Daniel Craig as James Bond gets intimate with Gemma Aterton in the latest 007 movie Quantum Of Solace

His version of the lesser-known novel Little Dorrit will star Tom Courtenay, Amanda Redman, Matthew Macfadyen, Andy Serkis and Alun Armstrong.

ITV will also get in on the act with a fantasy approach to Austen's much-loved classic Pride And Prejudice, called Lost In Austen.

In a plot described as 'Life on Mars... in bonnets and corsets', it follows a modern-day character, Amanda Price, as she swops place with heroine Elizabeth Bennett and is transported into late-18th century society.

Pride: Gemma Arterton (Elizabeth Bennet), Amanda Price (Jemima Rooper) and Elliot Cowan (Mr Darcy) in Lost In Austen

It has been claimed the broadcaster avoided a straightforward treatment of the story in case it compared unfavourably with the BBC's 1995 series starring Colin Firth.

The new drama, likely to divide opinion, will star Alex Kingston, Hugh Bonneville and Lindsay Duncan along with Arterton as Lizzie Bennett.

Meanwhile Channel 4 will be showing English civil war drama The Devil's Whore, which was ten years in the making by playwright Peter Flannery.

It stars Dominic West as Oliver Cromwell and John Simm as Edward Sexby, his friend turned traitor. There have been suggestions that this season's fascination with period drama is driven by a renewed taste for escapism, in the form of comforting heroes from the past.

The huge success of Cranford, starring Dame Judi Dench, as well as Lark Rise to Candleford, both screened on BBC1, sparked a flurry of interest in adaptations.

Colin Morgan stars in a 13-part adaption about Arthurian legend Merlin

And if you don't like costume drama...

Oceans (BBC 2)

The hidden stories of the world's seas presented by a team headed by Philippe Cousteau Jr, grandson of the celebrated ecologist and filmmaker Jacques. The new landmark natural history series covers stunning underwater scenery, strange creatures and shipwrecks. 

Merlin (BBC1)

Richard Wilson, Michelle Ryan, Colin Morgan, above, and Anthony Head star in a new 13-part adaptation of the stories of the wizard of Arthurian legend. It's sorcery and swords for all the family on a Saturday night. 

Wallander (BBC1)

Murder mysteries in which Kenneth Branagh stars as the quick-tempered Swedish detective Kurt Wallander. The Wallander books have sold more than .. million copies worldwide; Branagh is a fan. 

Stephen Fry  -  In America (BBC1)

Polymath entertainer Fry drives across the States in a black cab in a six-part travel series. 'I wanted to find out what it is that makes the United States of America so unique, so diverse, so very American,' he says.

Survivors (BBC1)

Revamp of the cult 1970s sci-fi classic starring Max Beesley and Doctor Who's Freema Agyeman. The new story of a deadly virus that wipes out nearly all the world's population has been created by Adrian Hodges, who co-created Primeval.

The Devil's Whore (C4)

A story of the English Civil War as told by Peter Flannery, creator of one of the most significant dramas of the Nineties, Our Friends In The North. A crack cast includes John Simm as well as Dominic West as Oliver Cromwell and Peter (The Thick Of It) Capaldi as Charles I.

James May's Big Ideas (BBC 2)

The Top Gear presenter tours the world to meet friendly boffins and explore all things scientific. He will tackle questions that have long perplexed him such as: 'Can scientists make a double of me?'