Teri Hatcher and Felicity Huffman are reported to be angling for a departure after the next season of Desperate Housewives (Source: Publicity image, ABC)

Teri Hatcher and Felicity Huffman, two of the stars of the popular comedy-drama series Desperate Housewives, are reported to have told producers that they intend to leave the programme.

The Daily Mail claims that Hatcher, who portrays Susan Delfino on the ABC series, is looking to move on to other projects after the show's next season. Hatcher has been a member of the regular Desperate Housewives cast since it began in 2004.

"Teri has given in her notice and is making active preparations to move on," a source claimed.

"She has another production deal in the pipeline and she is in the early stages of developing a sitcom that she wants to start work on immediately after she finishes Desperate Housewives - she wants a new show in time for the mid-January pilot season."

The paper also claimed that Huffman, who plays Lynette Scavo on the series, would be leaving the series along with Hatcher.

The loss of the two actors would be a blow for the programme and for the plans by Marc Cherry, the creator and executive producer, to extend the life of the series further.

An ABC spokesperson denied the claims, telling GossipCop that there was "no truth to this rumour".

Media Spy discussion: Desperate Housewives