A real life story that featured the heroics of two Malmesbury pigs was always stranger than fiction but now it has been given even more quirky twists by programme makers. The story is set to appear on TV this Easter as DEBBIE WAITE reports.

SIX years after pigs Butch and Sundance made their valiant escape from a Malmesbury abattoir, their story is to hit our television screens in the BBC fantasy The Legend of the Tamworth Two.

The programme, which will be screened on Easter Monday, is loosely based on real-life events that took place in Malmesbury in January 1998. And while the drama has been injected with a good dose of fantasy the pigs can talk and the real-life characters have been replaced by some famous faces its makers are promising that the suspense and real-life fight for survival will remain.

Butch and Sundance, as they came to be known, were two Tamworth Ginger pigs, originally owned by street sweeper and smallholder Arnaldo DiJulio, who had been taken to Newman's Abbatoir, near Kington Langley, for slaughter in early January 1998.

Miraculously, the duo escaped from the abattoir and after swimming across the River Avon, managed to evade capture for almost two weeks.

Their quest for freedom, which featured in a local newspaper, went on to capture the attention of the world's media and within days of the escape, the streets, pubs and hotels in and around Malmesbury were packed with reporters and television crews from as far away as the USA and Japan.

As the media attention grew, the Daily Mail newspaper launched a campaign called Save the Tamworth Two and Mr DiJulio supported the cause.

When the pigs were finally captured, they were bought by the Daily Mail and moved to a rare breeds centre in Kent, where they still reside.

The Legend of the Tamworth Two begins when the boars flee from the local abattoir and journalist Jenny Best (Emma Pierson) based on Trowbridge journalist Wendy Best, now 35 writes about their death-defying escape. In no time at all, a whole media circus erupts to help her and the local bobby PC Springfield (Darren Boyd) track them down.

As the pigs continue to avoid capture, a character called Wolf (Kevin Whately) arrives on the scene to capture the pigs and send them back to the abattoir.

For those who want the pigs saved, it's a race against time to rescue them from imminent death and reunite them with their mother.

Starring Kevin Whately (Inspector Morse), Gerard Horan (London's Burning), Emma Pierson (Charles II), Darren Boyd (Kiss Me Kate) and featuring Alexei Sayle (Tipping the Velvet) and John Sessions (The Lost Prince), the drama has been written by Jed Mercurio, who also wrote the popular television drama Cardiac Arrest.

Predominantly filmed on the Isle of Man, it uses a mixture of live action and computer-generated animation.

Publicist Cathie Davey explained: "Although the production uses real pigs seven in fact, to play both parts - special effects like those used in films such as Cats & Dogs, Stuart Little and Babe will be used to make them talk."

BBC executive producer Sally Woodward said: "The film tells how the story of Butch and Sundance became a legend, of how Britain once again took the under-dog to their hearts or in this instance, the under-hog and in the process briefly made them the most famous fugitives in the world.

"It also shows how contrary human beings are in their relationship with animals how we are only too happy to tuck in to a pork chop, but are outraged when we want to capture a pig that has stolen our heart."

Executive producer Justin Thomson-Glover added: "This film is loosely based on what the real Butch and Sundance went through, but we have taken a few liberties with the story and given the pigs voices."

In Malmesbury, the tale of the Tamworth Two lives on, but mostly in people's memories.

Tourist Information Centre manager Sandra Pell explained: "At the time there was huge interest. We had so many reporters in the TIC and were on the news too.

"We also created the Trotter Trail, a themed walk, which offered visitors the chance to trace the route the pigs took in their escape and visitors from all over the world used it.

"Interest has died down in recent years. The abattoir itself has been knocked down and now there is housing there.

"The bungalow where the pigs were eventually cornered is also now gone, but people do still ask about the pigs occasionally and the mural on the town's information board still features them too.

"The potter Clive King of Cross Hayes, made clay pigs at the time for sale. There were also pig ties and fridge magnets on sale in the town.

"We are looking forward to seeing the programme and hopefully it will bring some more visitors back into Malmesbury."

A story of two pigs' courage

Jeremy Newman, 41, was managing his father's business Newman's Abattoir in January 1998, when the two pigs (and all hell) broke loose.

"Their owner Arnaldo DiJulio had brought them in to be slaughtered along with another pig, but while one came straight in, the other two had other ideas and just ran off," said Mr Newman.

"They would have been slaughtered the next day maybe they sensed that.

"At the time Arnaldo said to leave them, because they had dug under the fence and we didn't stand much chance of catching them.

"But what most people didn't realise is that they had been missing for about a week before the story came out.

"We had reported their escape to the police.

"But it was pretty unusual for pigs to swim like that across a river.

"The next thing we knew, Radio 4 was on the phone and twisted our arm into an interview quickly followed by loads of others."

Mr Newman said his family, who ran Newman's Abattoir for more than 50 years, were amazed by the publicity their escape generated.

"I guess it was a quiet news time," he said.

"The pigs would have been turned into sausage meat and would only have been worth around £20 each at the time. It was strange seeing news helicopters circling overhead looking for them."

Mr Newman, who is now a farmer in Lea near Malmesbury, said he would be watching the programme with his children Tom, 12, and Daisy, 9.

George's Vets partner Fran Baird, 36, said: "I was enlisted by the RSPCA to go along with the police marksman, who was going to tranquillize the pigs.

"Butch had been caught on the Tuesday or Wednesday but we did not catch Sundance until the Friday.

"He was tranquillized and then I had to sedate him further. When we got him back to the surgery he came around and was good as gold.

"It was an extraordinary experience. We were surrounded by the world's media.

"I'm sure everyone at the practice will be watching the BBC drama although I don't think there's an actor playing me we certainly haven't had any calls from Hollywood," he joked.