Peppa Pig's new friend is called Ms Leopard - and is Katy Perry

No child today can ignore Peppa Pig (Peppa Wutz in German). And therefore no parent - not even a pop star like Katy Perry. As the mother of a three-year-old daughter and a self-proclaimed Peppa Pig fan, she is therefore perfect for a guest role in the cult animated series, said Hasbro boss Olivier Dumont in a press statement on Wednesday.

The day before, Peppa Pig's official Instagram account had already been busy promoting "a big surprise". Hours later, "Deadline" was the first industry portal to announce the news: Peppa Wutz and her animal friends are getting a celebrity addition in the form of Katy Perry.

Next year - to mark the 20th anniversary of the Hasbro production - she will appear in a three-part special. Perry lends her voice to a leopardess called Ms Leopard.

Perry plays a wedding dressmaker

The character was newly created, as was the occasion: for the first time ever, a wedding is taking place in the series. Mr and Mrs Cop want to walk down the aisle, Ms Leopard is acting as the dressmaker

On the Instagram page, the "Deadline" message was confirmed shortly afterwards with a first official picture of Peppa Pig with Ms Leopard. The caption also emphasises that Perry is not a strikebreaker. All casting and filming with her had been completed before the actors and screenwriters in Hollywood went on strike.

It is still unclear exactly when the episodes with her will be broadcast for the first time. A date in May would be plausible: Peppa Pig celebrates her 20th birthday on 31 May. She first flickered across screens in the UK in 2004 and even then made it crystal clear what she was into: mud puddles.