When it comes to my favourite things, a good pudding is up there with my love of science. So when the two combine I admit I am as excited as a kid at Christmas. The advance of fruity technology has really whetted my appetite. We have blackberries and apples firmly on the menu but the pièce de résistance is the Raspberry Pi.

Britain has a long history of invention and the Raspberry Pi is the latest trophy for the “Proudly British” case. Developed and manufactured in the UK by the creatively named Raspberry Pi Foundation, a Raspberry Pi is a credit-card sized computer that is as clever, quick and capable as your average PC.

Originally developed as a teaching aid for school children to help them learn computer programming, the Pi aims to show people that developing your own software is easier than expected. It hasn’t taken long for people outside the classroom to get excited about where this fabulous fruity gadget could take us.

In your home a Raspberry Pi can link up to your TV, be used as a computer and make all the electronic devices in your house talk to each other. Outside the home there are some crazy and exciting projects using Raspberry Pi too.

Raspberry Pi-wered Robots are popping up all over the place – you might spot a self-driven robotic boat zipping across the Atlantic if you happen to be flying to America.

There are wacky ideas like musical instruments made entirely of pi-powered vegetables. It isn’t just us humans who are benefiting.

A Pi controlled treat dispenser has been developed for peckish pets and a teddy bear called Babbage has been launched to a whopping 39km into the upper atmosphere.

Babbage was monitored using a single Raspberry Pi that enabled his owner to follow him on his flight down and collect him safely with incredible accuracy.

Some of the more serious uses for the Raspberry Pi include monitoring endangered animals like rhino. An infrared camera has been developed to attach to the Pi so that rangers and nature lovers can keep track of animals at night, observe their behaviour and protect them from dangers such as poachers.

Even space is no limit. School kids have already sent Pi-wered rockets into the upper atmosphere, collecting really valuable information about what is happening on the outer reaches of our planet.

Scientists are taking note and planning on using Raspberry Pi to create small, agile satellites that can be easily and much more cheaply sent into space.

You would think that something so nifty and high tech would cost a cherry bomb but they are ridiculously cheap. You can buy one online for about £28.

So if, like me, you think “programming” still means putting together a schedule, it might be a better addition to your kid’s Christmas wish list than your own.

But one thing is certain…anyone who suggests that the best times of British innovation are over can eat humble Pi!