[Arneldo]

IT’S that time of year again when novelty acts come out of the woodwork — or in this case the field — to release Christmas singles.

SHAUN THE SHEEP is hot to trot to land this year’s festive chart-topper, I can reveal.

And WALLACE & GROMIT’s pal could be the main challenger to the winner from the X Factor herd because I hear his track Life’s A Treat is not half baa-d.

Shaun — pictured with his CRAIG DAVID-style headphones — will also star in a seriously good animated promo video, which has cost £200,000 to make.

And he has had words of encouragement from comic VIC REEVES — his voice in 1995’s Oscar-winning short film Wallace and Gromit in a Close Shave.

Vic topped the charts with his hit Dizzy in 1991 before Shaun was even a lamb. He said: “I wish Shaun all the best. He has a very good chance of beating the X Factor winner.

“But I have warned Shaun that if he gets to No1 he must keep his hooves on the ground.”

Shaun, who now has his own series on kids’ TV channel CBBC, is not the first animal to find his voice.


ROLAND RAT had a hit with Rat Rapping in 1983 and who could ever forget, try as you may, how that pesky CRAZY FROG hopped to No5 two Christmases ago with Jingle Bells/U Can’t Touch This.



Another frog-rock freak was KERMIT, who hit the charts with Bein’ Green, and of course in 1982 there was nappy-wearing green duckling ORVILLE wishing he could fly.

Remember, too, when MR BLOBBY amazingly beat a young TAKE THAT to the Christmas spoils in 1993, with his annoying blobby, blobby song.

Well, at least Shaun has some decent lyrics on his track.

But musically, of course, none of the motley menagerie above can really compare withARCTIC MONKEYS.

The Sun