When sunbathing on her hotel room balcony, Jo (Hawes) hears gunshots ring out across the complex. The gunmen, hellbent on revenge, instantly turn her dream holiday with family and friends into a waking nightmare.

As the hotel staff and clientele are forced to make rash life-or-death decisions, the consequences will last long after the final shots are fired.

Crossfire will also star Josette Simon (Small Axe), Anneika Rose (Line of Duty), Lee Ingleby (The A Word), Daniel Ryan (The Bay), Vikash Bhai (The Stranger), Hugo Silva (Nasdrovia), Alba Brunet (Operation Mincemeat), Shalisha James-Davis (Alex Rider) and Ariyon Bakare (His Dark Materials).

Louise Doughty, author of Apple Tree Yard, wrote the series as her first original for television.

Doughty said: “In extremity, each character is faced with a set of dilemmas: and at the heart of it is Jo, who booked the holiday and unknowingly put her family and friends - and herself - at risk.

“I'm fascinated by the idea of how so-called ordinary people respond to intense pressure and I couldn't be more excited to have written this drama for Dancing Ledge Productions and the BBC and to have the amazing Keeley Hawes in the star role.”

Director of BBC Drama, Piers Wenger, said: “Louise’s scripts crackle with adrenalin, intrigue and secrets kept among a long-standing group of friends.

“But amidst the action and emotion, Crossfire explores the consequences of the secrets we keep, the risks we take and the lies we tell to conceal them. This is a startling original piece of writing.”

Crossfire has begun filming.