Comic book giant Marvel has introduced its own band of all-British superheroes to fight alongside the Avengers and the Fantastic Four - calling the team ‘The Union’.

Scottish hero ‘Kelpie’ joins up with heroes representing England, Ireland and Wales, as well as leader ‘Britannia’ for the five-issue Empyre series, written by Paul Grist, who also worked on Judge Dredd.

Details of the plot are being kept under close wraps, but a teaser produced by Marvel describes it as a “interstellar epic” that will see the heroes battle against an alien Kree-Skrull alliance.

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Kelpie is joined on the team by Union Jack, Snakes, representing Ireland, and The Choir, from Wales.

Some social media users mocked the name of the team, suggesting the current political division around the country already rendered the Union name meaningless.

However, Grist suggested that would form a central theme of the story, stating the team was “falling apart before it has even begun”.

He added: "Forty years ago, Roger Stern and John Byrne introduced a new Union Jack into the pages of Captain America. This is the comic I've been waiting 40 years to write.”

Kelpie’s powers are not yet clear, but character art released by Marvel shows her sporting an blue and white costume with pink hair.

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Britannia carries a shield with a lion emblem on the front, while The Choir boasts a sword featuring the Welsh dragon insignia.

Character designer R.B. Silva said: “I really like Medieval themes and when I was designing these, I thought of the series The Last Kingdom on Netflix.

“With Britannia and Kelpie, I wanted them to look like medieval warriors and I just simplified and modernized it from there.”

The Union issue #1 goes on sale in May.