One of the greatest cinematic villains of the last 30 years will return to the screen this Christmas.

Feathers McGraw, last seen in 1993’s The Wrong Trousers, will be back in Vengeance Most Fowl, the latest Wallace and Gromit adventure.

The 70 minute film will be released by the BBC at Christmas, and around the world by Netflix.

The adventures follows Gromit’s growing concern as Wallace becomes over-dependent on his inventions – which proves justified when Wallace invents a ‘smart gnome’ that seems to develop an evil mind of its own.

But who or what could be the cause? As events begin to spiral out of control, it’s up to Gromit to put aside his qualms and battle sinister forces, or Wallace may never be able to invent again!

The voice cast for the film includes Ben Whitehead as Wallace, Peter Kay as Chief Inspector (formerly PC) Mackintosh, alongside new cast members Lauren Patel, Reece Shearsmith, Diane Morgan, Adjoa Andoh and Lenny Henry.

Speaking about the film, director Nick Park said: “I’d had the idea of a film about garden gnomes turning bad for more than a decade, but I could never work out what made them bad. It occurred to me that the single most asked question I get when I meet fans is, will the penguin Feathers McGraw, Wallace and Gromit’s original antagonist from The Wrong Trousers 30 years ago, ever return?

“We’ve had fun bringing him back in cameo capacities but now, three decades on, it felt like the right time. Then it hit me: What if Feathers was involved with these gnomes? We’re hoping that this film will appeal to fans of ‘Gnome Noir’ everywhere and that people will be gratified when they see what Feathers has been up to since The Wrong Trousers.”