The public is being asked to think woolly hard about the name for a future storm.

The Met Office is inviting people to choose between two characters from the beloved animated TV series Shaun the Sheep – the titular character Shaun or his cousin Timmy the lamb.

Whichever name is chosen will join the weather service’s official storm names list for the 2026/27 season.

The vote is a collaboration with the Oscar-winning animation studio Aardman, which produced Shaun the Sheep along with other beloved titles like Wallace & Gromit and Chicken Run.

The winning name will be announced on 1 September.

However, there may not be a storm Shaun or Timmy as they are named alphabetically each storm season, and the furthest the Met Office has ever made it through the alphabet is to L, with Storm Lilian in August 2024.

“Naming storms helps our weather warnings reach more people and encourages the public to take notice when severe weather is approaching,” said the Met Office’s head of warnings and guidance Holly Clements.

“This collaboration with Aardman gives us a fantastic opportunity to engage new audiences and explain why storm naming matters, helping people understand the risks severe weather can bring and the actions they can take to stay safe.”

Last year, more than 50,000 storm name suggestions were submitted for the 2025/2026 season.

Stormy McStormFace, Dame Judi Drench and David Blowy were among some of the names which did not make the cut.

Only 21 were chosen – all public suggestions, including tributes to loved ones and pets such as Amy, Dave, Stevie and Violet.

The Met Office began naming storms in 2015. It works with Ireland’s meteorological service Met Éireann and KNMI, the Dutch national weather service, to develop the annual storm names list each year.

“It’s brilliant to be teaming up with the Met Office to give fans the chance to help choose a future storm name,” Amy Pearson, director of brand marketing and PR at Aardman, said.

“Rain or shine, weather is a familiar part of life on Mossy Bottom Farm, making this a fun and meaningful way to connect Shaun and Timmy’s world with an important public message.

“Whoever you’re backing, we hope the vote sparks some fun conversations about severe weather and how it can affect all of us.”

Aardman, which was founded by Peter Lord and David Sproxton, had its 50th anniversary this year.

The film Shaun The Sheep: The Beast Of Mossy Bottom, the third feature-length film about the characters, will be released on 18 September.