I'll be writing a lot of headlines this year, as in any other year, but I'll be surprised if there's one at the end of 2011 that trumps what you see up top. The Curse of the Buxom Strumpet is an 18th-century zombie comedy written by newcomer Matthew Butler. It's based on Butler's short film E'gad, Zombies!, which you can check out in a trailer below. Yes, that's Ian McKellen's voice you hear.

Buxom Strumpet spins the period zombie idea into a feature, and today's news brings some newly confirmed cast members, via Screen Daily. McKellen will be back, joined by another highly respected performer, Judi Dench. Also in the cast are Gillian Anderson (The X-Files) and Mark Williams (Harry Potter's Arthur Weasley). Sounds like a dynamite lineup for a zombie movie, if a completely bizarre one.

Butler will direct the script that he co-wrote with Tori Hart. The story is only laid out in broad strokes -- a small seaside town is beset by a zombifying illness -- but more will presumably be revealed as the production ramps up. The plan seems to be to get the cameras rolling in Scotland later this year.