NEW YORK — Welcome back, George Smiley.

After a hiatus of more than 25 years, John le Carre is again writing about one of the world’s most famous fictional spies.

Viking said Tuesday that le Carre’s “A Legacy of Spies” will come out Sept. 5. According to the publisher, the novel tells of how Smiley and such peers as Peter Guillam receive new scrutiny about their Cold War years with British intelligence and face a younger generation that knows little about their history.

The novel will also refer to the le Carre classics “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold” and “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.” Le Carre, 85, last wrote about Smiley in 1991’s “The Secret Pilgrim.”