In his court documents, Mr Savage claims that Flanimals breaches the copyright
in his book by being ?broadly the same in content and character, adding
that both books involve ?a whimsical take on the animal kingdom through the
use of drawings and text.

Flanimals has been highly successful, leading to three sequels, a pop-up book
and an audio CD. It is currently being made into an $80million Hollywood
film, for release next year, with Gervais co-writing the screenplay.

?Im going to play the lead character, a Puddloflaj called Puddy, said
Gervais last year. ?Its great fun to work on and its really weird.
Flanimals was a little thing I used to do when I was 15 to make my nephew
laugh. And now this is happening.

The Puddloflaj is one of many fictional creatures in Flanimals, alongside the
Grundit and the Munge Fuddler.

Gervais made his name with the BBC Two series The Office, a version of which
is still running on the US TV network NBC.

Mr Savage says that in or about 1998 he submitted a manuscript for Captain
Potties Wildlife Encyclopaedia, based on sketches he had drawn as a
teenager, to a number of literary agents.

Mr Savages book was eventually published in 2000 and sold in shops, including
Waterstones.

A spokesman for Gervais said: ?This story goes back several years, when John
Savage first made contact with Ricky Gervaiss representatives. At the time
it was made clear that the concept and illustrations of Flanimals pre
existed John Savages work. To date Ricky Gervais has not received any
formal court proceedings from Mr Savage.

Mr Savages court documents describe him as a freelance artist and author,
making an ?honest living through a combination of regular work, one off
commissions and original creative endeavours.