BBC One has ordered The White Queen, a new ten-hour series set against the iconic backdrop of the War of the Roses.

Adapted from Philippa Gregory‘s bestselling historical novel series The Cousin”s War, The White Queen is the story of the women caught up in the conflict for the throne.

The BBC calls it “a stunningly rich tale of love and loss, seduction and deception, betrayal and murder, vibrantly woven through the stories of three women, in their quest for power as they manipulate behind the scenes of history – Elizabeth Woodville, Margaret Beaufort and Anne Neville.”

Controller of BBC Drama, Ben Stephenson, says: “One of the most ambitious series the BBC has made, this is an epic drama that makes real history as gripping as the best fiction, featuring a cast of new talent and some of our finest actors.”

The White Queen is made by Company Pictures and adapted by Emma Frost (Consuming Passions, Shameless). The series is produced by Gina Cronk and directed by James Kent. Filming takes place on location in Bruges, Belgium and it will broadcast in 2013.

Full information on The White Queen can be found on Production Intelligence, the online database of advance productions from The Knowledge: