Raymond Briggs' character back on screen this Christmas

The Snowman author and illustrator, Raymond Briggs, who taught at the University of Brighton Faculty of Arts during the 1960s, will see his famous character brought to life again in a new film sequel to be screened on Channel 4 this Christmas.

The new film, The Snowman and the Snowdog, is set 30 years on from the original and opens with a boy mourning the death of his dog while snow falls outside. He lifts up a floorboard and finds an old scarf with snowmen printed on it, a memento stowed away long ago by another child. Inspired, he goes outside and builds a snowman and snow dog, with a satsuma for a nose and mismatched socks for ears.

Briggs, told the Observer newspaper: "The Snowman's success is about a simple thought. We all have favourite people we become fond of and then they pass away, it touches a chord, of loss – even for young people, someone dies."

The boy, clutching the dog, flies over the London Eye rather than Brighton Pier and Pavilion, as the boy does in the original. They meet up with a snowmen's convention at the North Pole and frolic at a ski resort. The Snowman melts away as the sun comes out, although the boy gets a lasting memento from Father Christmas, this time a dog collar instead of a scarf. Those who have seen clips say the tone and gentle treatment are strikingly similar to the original.

The longevity of The Snowman's appeal is no surprise for Paul Madden, the TV executive who brought The Snowman to the screen in. Madden said: "We previewed it to children at a Channel 4 staff Christmas party in 1982, and some of them cried at the end. I think it's got that universal appeal, to every age group and every new generation."

The Snowman and the Snowdog will be shown on Channel 4 on Christmas Eve at 8pm. 

Image: Still from The Snowman and the Snowdog.