It does seem rather surreal

Ernst Malmsten, Boo.com founder

Boo.com was set up by Swedish model Kajsa Leander and was valued at more than £200 million before it launched.

But the London-based company collapsed just 18 months later, owing millions to its creditors.

'Thrilled'

The sportswear site caught investors' imagination

According to Working Title's literary executive Amelia Granger, the company's story "combines all the human drama that goes with the highs and lows of setting up an unprecedented business on a global scale".

The collapse inspired one of the firm's founders, Ernst Malmsten, to co-author the book Boo Hoo: A Dotcom Story From Concept To Catastrophe.

Mr Malmsten said of the film idea: "I'm really thrilled, but it does seem rather surreal."

Malmsten wrote about the collapse from the inside

But a spokeswoman for Working Title said that the producers saw the story as "a riveting insider view of the dotcom culture at its height".

Working Title's film hits include Four Weddings And A Funeral, and Bean.

The company's adaptation of Nick Hornby's book About A Boy, starring Hugh Grant, is set for release next year - followed by the Ali G movie, Ali G In Da House.