POINTLESS host Richard Osman has landed a “seven-figure” book deal for his debut novel.

Richard – from Hayward’s Heath – wrote The Thursday Murder Club in secret over 18 months and has now sold the rights to Penguin Random House imprint Viking following a ten-way auction.

The TV presenter retweeted a message saying the deal, which also includes a sequel, was for a seven-figure fee.

Richard said: “I have never been prouder of anything in my working life, and I can’t wait for you all to read it next year.”

The Thursday Murder Club will be published in autumn 2020 and is set in a Kent retirement village where four residents meet up each week to tackle cold cases.

The novel sees them tackling a fresh murder.

According to The Guardian, pre-publication deals have already been signed in Germany, North America, France, the Netherlands and Italy, with more on the way.

Richard told the newspaper: “Nobody knows who I am in these countries.

“They’re not buying the rights because I’m off the telly. They’re buying them because of the book.”

He is already at work on the sequel.

Richard, 48, is best-known for presenting Pointless alongside Alexander Armstrong.

He also presents his own BBC quiz, House of Games, along with Insert Name Here and Child Genius.

And he is a regular on panel shows such as Have I Got News For You and Would I Lie To You?

Richard said: “To turn from a lifelong reader to a debut author is a dream come true.

“I can’t wait for readers to meet these characters, and to try and solve their many mysteries.

“And, on a personal note, I’m delighted that my mum now thinks I have a proper job.”

Editorial director Katy Loftus, who acquired the two books, said: “The Thursday Murder Club marks the launch of a dazzling new literary talent.

“Richard Osman writes fiction like he was born to it, and I know that his quartet of unlikely detectives – Joyce, Elizabeth, Ibrahim and Ron – are swiftly going to become household names across the UK.

“Richard captures an essence of Britain, and of Britishness, in the same way that Agatha Christie did in her day, with the same knife-sharp observational skill and fond humour.”

Venetia Butterfield, publisher at Penguin General, added: “The whole team fell in love with Richard’s extraordinary novel, and we are hugely excited to be able to introduce readers to the remarkable world he has created.”