Ricky Gervais touched down at the Annecy International Animation Festival on Thursday  for a sneak peek presentation of his Netflix adult animation Alley Cats, following the trials and tribulations of a group of British cats from all walks of society.

He got a hero’s welcome as he entered the festival’s packed out 1,400-capacity main Bonlieu theatre and was then serenaded with a raucous rendition of “Happy Birthday” marking his turning 65 today.

As well as writing and directing the show, Gervais reprises his trademark deadpan self as ginger tomcat Gus, alongside Tom Basden, Andrew Brooke, David Earl, Kerry Godliman, Jo Hartley, Diane Morgan, Natalie Cassidy and Tony Way in the voice cast.

The presentation kicked off with a preview of the first two episodes of the show introducing Gus and his motley crew of stray cats, who are joined each day by a posh domesticated cat called Ponce.

Tapping into the zeitgeist of a down-at-heel broken Britain, the cats spend their days watching nature programs and musing on a range of out-of-the-hat topics from the complications of cat suicide, when you have nine lives and always land on your feet, to the etiquette of crapping on a freshly dug grave plot.

Gervais told the audience in an Q&A following the screening that the show was a continuation of his process and work across The Office, Extras and After Life, transposing his observations of life into drama, and also tapped into his love of animals.

“I’ve loved animals all my life..  cats they’re just sort of perfect creatures. They’re so independent, they’re so tiny, and think they’re lions,” he said.