The Angel Gabriel is one of the animated characters in the film

Christian charity the Breakout Trust said It's a Boy was created after a child asked why Mary and Joseph had named their baby after a swear word.

Comedian Joe Pasquale and actor Steven Berkoff are among those providing the voices for the 30-minute film.

The soundtrack is performed by Sir Cliff Richard.

Quails-eye view

The Breakout Trust will send a copy of the film and a teaching pack to all 26,000 UK primary schools.

Author Steve Legg said: "When I heard about the boy asking why Jesus Christ was named after a swear word, that really hit me.

"There are more than 12m children in the UK and only 756,000 of them go to church regularly.

"That leaves a staggering number who don't and are probably not receiving basic Christian teaching."

He said it was not an attempt to "ram religion down people's throats" but to ensure a basic level of teaching in schools.

The film tells the story of Jesus' birth from an original viewpoint - through the eyes of three quails.

The quails are captured by King Herod and mount a bid to escape to follow Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem to warn them the king is looking for their baby.

The film is being premiered at a cinema in London's Leicester Square on Sunday and will be sent to schools in December.