Veep creator Armando Iannucci making sci-fi comedy for HBO

Since stepped back from Veep, Armando Iannucci has been busy working on the wildly funny The Death Of Stalin.

With the black comedy reaching cinemas imminently, Iannucci’s next project has been announced: a comedy sci-fi set in outer-space and based in the future.

According to Deadline, HBO — the home of Veep — has greenlit a pilot for the show, tentatively titled Avenue 5. Iannucci will act as showrunner, writer and executive producer on the show.

Details remain scarce but the pilot episode — which is believed to be primarily set on a spaceship — is expected to be shot in London early next year.

Earlier this year, Iannucci teased the project when talking to The Independent, saying: "I'm doing something with HBO later next year - that’s set in space [which] is all I can say – as well as a couple of other film scripts."

Iannucci previously stepped away from Veep in 2015, citing the strain of working on a US series while his family was based in London.

Meanwhile, Veep recently won its third Emmy for best comedy series, Louis-Dreyfus taking home her sixth consecutive Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.

Despite the American show’s success, Iannucci remains better known in the UK for creating and directing the foul-mouthed comedy The Thick Of It, co-creating the character Alan Partridge, and hosting various radio shows. Iannucci will also direct and write an upcoming BBC adaptation of David Copperfield.