The star of The Wrong Trousers, A Close Shave and A Grand Day Out appears in a new series which begins next month.

Rex The Runt, the latest production from award-winning Aardman Animations, features voice-overs from a host of celebrities - including Bob Monkhouse, June Whitfield and Paul Merton.

Wallace, who features in Rex The Runt in his usual profession of window cleaner, makes only a fleeting appearance - getting into a tussle with new character Bad Bob.

It is the malleable star's first screen outing since A Close Shave, which was first seen on television in 1995.

The voices of Nil By Mouth star Kathy Burke, comedian Eddie Izzard and Eurotrash host Antoine de Caunes can also be heard in the new 13-part series about the adventures of four Plasticine dogs which will be aired on BBC Two over the Christmas period.

The duo take to wheels to chase a villain

The four characters share a suburban semi and dream of stardom, adventure and excitement. But mostly they get on with what really matters, like watching TV, eating and clearing out the shed.

A spokesman for the show said Aardman had no problem in recruiting stars to appear in the shows.

"They recognised the potency of the scripts and were more than eager to join in," he said.

"It's a fantastic voice line-up. I don't think there's any other comedy that boast a line-up like this."

The spokesman said: "It has taken about nine years to get to this stage. The idea has been in the studio for that time and it has been the success of Wallace and Gromit which has helped us to make it."