Wallace and Gromit are the main characters in a series of four British animated short films, a series of ten short-animated sequences, and a feature-length film by Nick Park of Aardman Animations. All the characters were made from moulded plasticine modelling clay on metal armatures, and filmed with stop motion clay animation. Wallace is an absent-minded inventor from Wigan, Lancashire. He is a cheese enthusiast (especially for Wensleydale cheese) and companion to his dog, Gromit, who appears to be rather more intelligent than his master. Wallace is voiced by veteran actor Peter Sallis; Gromit has no mouth and thus remains silent, communicating only through facial expressions and body language. Due to their popularity, the characters have been called positive international icons of modern British culture and of the British people. BBC News has called them "some of the best-known and best-loved stars to come out of the UK." has stated that they have done "more to improve the image of the English world-wide than any officially appointed ambassadors". Their short films, The Wrong Trousers and A Close Shave, and their full length feature, The Curse of the Were Rabbit, all received