The first in the His Dark Materials trilogy of books by Philip Pullman is has finally pulled a Director on board. You'll maybe remember I wrote about how the story was being radically altered from the original and all the religious references have been removed from the script in order to make it sellable in the US.

At that time we also heard that the Screenwriter\Director Chris Weitz was removing himself from the Directors role because he found it too challenging. Do you think the new Director more suited to the challenge judging from his CV? The BBC have the news that Anand Tucker has signed to direct the first of the trilogy, His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass.

Pullman said he welcomed the appointment of Tucker, calling his ideas "exciting".

Anand's previous work includes Hilary and Jackie, about the lives of musicians Jacqueline and Hilary Du Pre. He was also a producer on the movie adaptation of Girl with a Pearl Earring.

New Line Cinema met with more than 50 film-makers interested in taking on the project before handing it to Tucker.

"The opportunity to turn Philip Pullman's extraordinary story into a film is literally a dream come true," said Tucker. "I instantly fell in love with His Dark Materials when it was first published, and have been a huge fan ever since." He added: "Phillip has created an incredibly universal story about a reluctant hero whose destiny is nothing less than to save mankind."

Yes, Philip did, but the movie won't. However, Pullman seems onboard with the decision.

"I warmly welcome Anand Tucker as director of the first His Dark Materials film," said Pullman. "He respects the integrity of the narrative and will maintain that integrity in the film-making process."

Do you think he's the right choice for the movie? Can he handle the "technical challenges" better than Weitz do you think?