Marks and Spencer has launched legal action against Aldi over what it says is its imitation version of the classic Colin the Caterpillar cake.

M&S; claims that rival supermarket chain Aldi’s Cuthbert the Caterpillar cake infringes its trademark.

In an effort to protect Colin the Caterpillar, M&S; has lodged an intellectual property claim with the High Court.

The company is claiming that the similarities between their Colin cake and Aldi’s Cuthbert cake lead consumers to believe they are of the same standard.

It is also arguing that Aldi’s similarities “ride on the coat-tails” of M&S;’s long-established reputation of the Colin the Caterpillar product.

M&S; wants Aldi to stop selling Cuthbert and not sell anything similar in the future. The retail chain has created different seasonal versions of Colin for holidays such as Christmas, Easter and Halloween. There is also now a Connie the Caterpillar.

M&S; has three different trademarks against Colin the Caterpillar. It believes Colin has a distinctive character and reputation that will ensure the courts will rule in their favour.

An M&S; spokesperson said: "Because we know the M&S; brand is special to our customers and they expect only the very best from us, love and care goes into every M&S; product on our shelves.

“So we want to protect Colin, Connie and our reputation for freshness, quality, innovation and value.”

Colin the Caterpillar was first launched by M&S; in 1990 and the cake’s appearance has remained largely the same since 2004.

It consists of a chocolate sponge, chocolate buttercream and milk chocolate coating. It is topped with sugar-coated chocolate beans and has a white chocolate face.

The family-friendly cake has long been a staple for birthday celebrations – David Beckham had one for his 43rd birthday and Judi Dench also saw in a birthday with a Colin the Caterpillar cake.

The Independent has contacted Aldi for comment.