Fans of The Office won't be swapping filing cabinets and printers for scenic views and organic vegetables, as the rural spin off, previously announced in January and starring Dunder Mifflin's egomaniac salesman Dwight Schrute has been halted in its tracks.

"NBC has passed on moving forward with The Farm TV show. Had a blast making the pilot - onwards & upwards!" tweeted Rainn Wilson, who plays Schrute. He did, though, implore fans of the series not to be too downheartened, and to keep on watching the show, Reuters reported. The potential spin off would have seen Schrute working full time running a bed and breakfast inn at the beet farm with a cast of new characters. Matt Jones, who plays Badger on Breaking Bad, was to play Schrute's cousin Zeke. Sounds funny to us; we wish it'd been done! Wilson has previously promised that The Farm would be "even more far out and weird" than The Office. But NBC has lately expressed a taste for more mainstream comedy.

The U.S incarnation of The Office, which was created in the U.K by British funny man Ricky Gervais, is currently in its last season and producers have said it will tie up many of the characters' storylines and reveal the identity of those shooting the 'documentary' at the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company in Scranton.