Dominic Cooper to play Ian Fleming

Dominic Cooper is to play James Bond creator Ian Fleming in a new TV show.

The British actor will take on the lead role in Fleming, a new series based on the author behind the 007 franchise.

The show will be a "no holds barred look" at the novelist's real-life story, which is said to be as "exciting, eventful and sexually charged as his famous creation," according to a representative for the programme.

Fleming worked as a journalist and naval intelligence officer before publishing his first Bond book, Casino Royale, in 1952.

He went on to write 11 more 007 novels and two short-story collections based on his famous superspy.

Cooper says of his new role, "Stepping into the shoes of the spy who not only created 007 but fantasised about being him has to be every actor's dream."

Fleming will air on Britain's Sky Atlantic channel later this year (13).