From presenting Fingermouse and Play School in the 1980s, to creating a multi-million pound worldwide franchise, Tweenies co-creator Iain Lauchlan has had a colourful life.

Lauchlan was playing the dame in Coventry’s annual Christmas panto when he and business partner Will Brenton pitched the idea of the colourful nursery school characters to the BBC.

In fact, he has claimed the pair were still in costume in the Belgrade Theatre’s dressing room when they first phoned the Beeb with the idea in 1997.

“It was a programme in our heads and ready to happen,” he says.

“The BBC were looking for a new programme to go alongside Teletubbies for the next group up.

“We put an idea in hoping we might get so far down the line, but not thinking for a minute we would get the gig.”

Iain and Will met on the set of BBC children’s favourite Play Days, and started up the Tell Tale Productions company in Iain’s spare room.

From that initial contract to produce 260 episodes for Auntie, the Tweenies has gone from strength to strength, earning a further 130-show commission when the first run was only six weeks old.

The pair then added an extra element to the franchise with their live shows.

This new production Top Of The Tots features live performances of the Tweenies’ hits Number One, Do The Lollipop, Do It Like Me and Everybody Do This!

And it will be the chance for the show’s target three to five-year- old age group to see their favourite characters Jake, Fizz, Milo, Bella and Doodles the dog in the flesh... or rather, the fuzz.

Since the success of The Tweenies, which has been sold to 25 countries across the world, and made the BBC more than £110 million in spin-offs, Iain and Will were able to sell the company, which was also behind the hits The Fun Song Factory and Hi 5, for a reported £3.1 million in 2004.

They are still coming up with new ideas though, such as the CITV series Jim Jam And Sunny. And Iain is still involved with The Tweenies as their creative director.

He also wrote and directed the first national CBeebies Live! tour in 2005, which saw Bob The Builder, Postman Pat, Fireman Sam, Pingu, Andy Pandy, The Tweenies and Bill And Ben share the stage for the first time, as well as arena tours for Bob The Builder and Thomas The Tank Engine.

Not bad for an actor who previously had to hold down carpentry jobs alongside his work on television to keep his young family afloat.

As Iain says: “The Tweenies have held up so well. Everyone expected them to be dying off by now but they are still number one.”

* 4.30pm today, 11am and 2pm Tues and 11am Wed, tickets from £18.50/£16.25, call 08448 717650