“I had no idea how we were going to do it at the beginning – after all, they don’t talk in the TV series so it would have been impossible to give them voices,” says David Wood OBE, dubbed “the national children’s dramatist” by The Times.

“The suggestion was that it should be a dance show – a ballet of sorts – but I couldn’t see how. As it developed, I suggested that it shouldn’t just be a dance show in one style, but incorporate as many dance styles as possible.”

Which explains why, in the course of Shaun’s Big Show, you will see everything from sheep performing the Riverdance to a trio of tap-dancing pigs belting out Singin’ In The Rain’s epic showstopper.

There’s even the Dirty Dancing “lift”, a pastiche of Swan Lake (or rather, Sheep Lake) and an homage to Saturday Night Fever.

It seems Shaun The Sheep – Aardman Animations’ iconic and loveable rogue who first appeared in the studio’s Oscar-winning A Close Shave – is back to his mischievous best.

“It’s very difficult to get across that it is genuinely a family show,” continues Wood.

“You’ve got all these styles which are very recognisable for adults, and if children don’t understand the references they find it funny. It’s not a question of putting different levels of humour in it – as a lot of people say you should do – I just wanted to tell a silly story. It’s very camp, much like the TV series.”

Although not working directly with Nick Park – the creator of Wallace and Gromit whose work with Aardman Animations has led to Oscar-winning success – Wood had the backing of the company, with main producer Richard Goleszowski offering an insight into the inner workings of our ovine chums.

“I call him Shaun’s Daddy – he’s sort of a standard bearer of Shaun. He’s the one who instantly knows if something is right with the character point of view,” explains Wood.

“Working with him, you learn all sorts of things about how the series developed. It’s not well known that Shirley started off as a male sheep – he was named after the wrestler Big Daddy aka Shirley Crabtree!”

As well as writing new work for children, Wood is no stranger to adapting loved and established characters for the stage.

The brains behind the theatrical versions of Roald Dahl’s The BFG, George’s Marvellous Medicine and The Witches; Dick King Smith’s Babe The Sheep-Pig and the current tour of Judith Kerr’s The Tiger Who Came To Tea, he has made a career of entertaining families that has spanned nearly 45 years.

“The craft of adaptation isn’t as easy as people think it is. As I did more, I began to think ‘this isn’t a bastard medium and I’m not selling out’. I thought writing new work was what I should be doing.

I didn’t think that adaptations were cheating… I just thought there was a craft to writing children’s plays, much as there is for adults,” he says.

“When I did my first Roald Dahl, the response was so extraordinary and it played to such huge audiences that I realised the virtues. I genuinely felt I was helping to get more children into theatres than I could have done with an original play, however good.

“My life has been dedicated to encourage children to see the theatre as part of their lives. I believe that if you grab them young enough, they’ll stay with it for life.”

* 7pm (Thurs), 11am, 2pm & 5pm (Fri & Sun) and 1pm, 4pm & 7pm (Sat), tickets from £11.50, call 0844 8717650