The makers of Family Guy have brought back one of the show's characters, weeks after he was killed off.

Brian Griffin, the family dog, was run over by a car in an episode called Life of Brian on 24 November.

The talking pet, voiced by show creator Seth MacFarlane, was replaced by a new dog called Vinny but returned in a Christmas episode broadcast on Sunday.

Around 75,000 fans of the show had signed a petition on Change.org to have the character resurrected.

The episode, called Christmas Guy, saw talking baby Stewie Griffin travel back in time to save his friend, after asking the Father Christmas at a local shopping centre to bring him back.

The fictional talking baby, who is known for being incredibly intelligent, has a home-made time machine which features in several episodes.

It is unclear if Brian's replacement Vinnny, voiced by Sopranos star Tony Sirico, will appear in the show again.

Brian, a family dog that talks, drinks, goes out with women and is an aspiring novelist, has been a major character since the pilot of Family Guy in 1999.

He has appeared in more than 200 episodes of the animated cartoon comedy.