Thomas and Friends

Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends (otherwise referred to as Thomas and Friends, Thomas the Tank Engine or Thomas for short) is a British children's television series. It was first broadcast on CITV in September 1984. It is based on The Railway Series books by the Rev. W. Awdry and his son, Christopher. The main character is Thomas the Tank Engine, a tank engine that is painted blue. The show takes place on the made-up island of Sodor. There are some route systems there. One of them is a standard-gauge heritage railway run by Sir Topham Hatt known as the North Western Railway. Thomas runs on that route system.

Thomas and Friends
Logo used from 2008 until 2021
Also known as	Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends (original title; series 1–6) Thomas & Friends: Big World! Big Adventures! (series 22–24)
Genre	Children's television series
Created by	Rev. W. Awdry
Based on	The Railway Series by Rev. W. Awdry Christopher Awdry
Developed by	Britt Allcroft
Directed by	David Mitton (series 1–7) Steve Asquith (series 8–12) Greg Tiernan (series 13–16) David Baas (series 17) Don Spencer (series 18) Dianna Basso (series 19–24)
Voices of	See List of Thomas & Friends voice actors
Narrated by	Ringo Starr Michael Angelis George Carlin Alec Baldwin Michael Brandon Pierce Brosnan (The Great Discovery) Mark Moraghan John Hasler Joseph May
Opening theme	Thomas' Theme (1984–2003) Thomas' Anthem (secondary) (1991–2003) Engine Roll Call (2004–2021) Big World! Big Adventures! (2018–2021)
Composers	Mike O'Donnell and Junior Campbell (1984–2003) Robert Hartshorne (2004–2016) Ed Welch (2004–2008) Peter Hartshorne (2011–2016) Chris Renshaw (2016–2021) Oliver Davis (2016–2017)
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	24
No. of episodes	584 + 14 films and 6 double-length specials (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Britt Allcroft (1984–1986, 2002) Angus Wright (1991–1998) Peter Urie (2002–2003) Jocelyn Stevenson (2003–2006) Christopher Skala (2007–2011) Marion Edwards (2009–2015) Lenora Hume (2009–2010) Karen Barnes (2011–2013) Kallan Kagan (2013–2017) Jeff Young (2013–2015) Steven Hecht (2013–2015) Michael Carrington (2013–2014) Christopher Keenan (2014–2021) Edward Catchpole (2015) Marianne Culbert (2016) Kyle MacDougall (2016–2021) Jamie LeClaire (2016–2021) Phil LaFrance (2016–2021)
Producers	David Mitton (1984–1998) Robert D. Cardona (1984–1986) Britt Allcroft (1991–1998) Phil Fehrle (2002–2003) Simon Spencer (2004–2008) Nicole Stinn (2008–2012) Ian McCue (2011–2017) Halim Jabbour (2013) Robert Anderson (2013; 2015–2017) Brian Lynch (2013–2015) Jennifer Hill (2014–2015) Lynda Craigmyle (2016) Jane Sobol (2016) Tracy Blagdon (2016–2021) Micaela Winter (2016–2018)
Production locations	Clapham Junction (1984) Clearwater Studios Battersea (1984) Shepperton Studios (1986–2008)
Running time	4 minutes, 30 seconds (series 1–7) 10 minutes (series 8–12) 11 minutes (Series 13–24)
Production companies	Clearwater Features (1984–1986) Britt Allcroft Ltd./Britt Allcroft (Thomas) Ltd. (1984–1986) The Britt Allcroft Company/Gullane Entertainment (1991–2003) HIT Entertainment (2003–2017) Mattel Television (2017–2021)
Original release
Network	ITV (series 1–3) Cartoon Network (series 4–5) Nick Jr. (series 6–11) Channel 5 (series 12–24)
Release	9 October 1984 (1984-10-09) – 20 January 2021 (2021-01-20)
Related
Tugs Shining Time Station Thomas & Friends: All Engines Go

Characters

The show is mainly about the locomotives, other machines, humans and other animals who populate the fictional Island of Sodor in the United Kingdom. Since 2004, the show has had ten main characters:

• Thomas the Tank Engine
• Edward the Blue Engine
• Henry the Green Engine
• Gordon the Big Engine
• James the Red Engine
• Percy the Small Engine
• Toby the Tram Engine
• Duck the Western Engine
• Donald and Douglas the Scottish Twin Engines

History

The first attempt to adapt Awdry's stories for television came in 1953, when the editor of the Railway Series books, Eric Marriott, was approached by the BBC, who wished to use live-action model trains to re-create two stories from Awdry's first book, The Three Railway Engines. 00 gauge Hornby Dublo models appeared on sets that reflected the style of the original illustrations. The first episode (based on "The Sad Story of Henry") was broadcast live on the evening of Sunday 14 June 1953 from Lime Grove Studios. The live broadcast did not fare well: a failure to switch the points caused the model of Henry to derail and it had to be replaced on the rails by one of the operators. The models moved jerkily, and all effects and music had to be superimposed.

News of the broadcast hit the front pages of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail. Awdry branded the episode "unprofessional", and the point-switching debacle an "elementary mistake". As a result, the second episode scheduled for 28 June 1953 was put on hold, and then later cancelled. The BBC offered Awdry and the Railway Series publishers greater creative control over the production, but the publishers declined, preferring to focus on publishing new books for the series.

Nearly twenty years later, the BBC featured Awdry's stories in the television story-telling show Jackanory. Fourteen years before Thomas and Friends was aired, Ted Ray (sitting in a stationmaster's office) read five Railway Series books in episodes that aired between 20 September to 2 October 1970.

Cast

Voices

Current voices

Actor	Region	Role(s)
John Hasler	UK	Thomas (The Adventure Begins onwards)
	UK/US	Rheneas (Season 20 onwards)
Joseph May	US	Thomas (The Adventure Begins onwards)
Christopher Ragland	US	Percy (Series 19 onwards) and Trevor (Season 20 onwards)
	UK/US	Troublesome Trucks (The Adventure Begins onwards), a Passenger
Tim Bain	UK/US	Aiden, Madeleine's Father, some Passengers and some Workmen (UK/US)
David Bedella	US	Victor and The Mayor of Sodor
	UK/US	Victor (Blue Mountain Mystery onwards) and The Cuban Man
Sanjeev Bhaskar	UK/US	Shankar
Sheena Bhattessa	UK/US	Noor Jehan and Charubala
Hugh Bonneville	UK/US	Merlin
Darren Boyd	UK/US	Theo
Jonathan Broadbent	UK/US	Bill & Ben, and A Slip Coach
Jamie Campbell Bower	UK/US	Skiff
Chipo Chung	UK/US	Hong-Mei and Dr. Kim
Flamina Cinque	UK/US	Ester and Dam Bella
Nathan Clarke	UK/US	Alfie
Olivia Colman	UK/US	Marion
Sophie Colquhoun	UK/US	Frankie
Laura Cucurullo	UK/US	Cassia, a Batucata Musician and Marcia
Tina Desai	UK/US	Ashima and The Indian Fashion Designer
Jonathan Forbes	UK/US	Connor
Anna Francolini	UK/US	Gina, some Italian Children, and some Italian Passengers
Teresa Gallagher	UK	Emily, Rosie, Mavis, Lady Hatt, Stephen Hatt (Diesel's Special Delivery), Bridget Hatt, The Duchess of Boxford, Bridget Hatt's Friends, The Teacher, The Laundry Lady, The School Children, The Girl in Red Dress, The Blond-hair Boy and Some Passengers
	UK/US	Belle, Mavis (Series 17 onwards), Annie & Clarabel, Lady Hatt (Series 17 onwards), Judy and The Lady with the Big Hat
Bob Golding	UK/US	Stephen, Sidney, Baz and Some Dock Workers
Mike Grady	UK/US	Sir Robert Norramby
Rasmus Hardiker	UK/US	Philip
William Hope	US	Edward, Toby, Whiff, Bash, Rocky, Stephen Hatt, Farmer McColl, The Duke of Boxford, The Maithwaite Stationmaster (Double Trouble and Wonky Whistle only), Farmer Trotter, The Dock Manager, and The Wellsworth Station Worker
	UK/US	Bert (Series 16 onwards) and A Railway Inspector
Jim Howick	UK/US	Hurricane
Siu-see Hung	UK/US	An An and the Chinese Women
Togo Igawa	UK/US	Hiro
Shane Jacobson	UK/US	Shane
Rufus Jones	UK/US	Flying Scotsman
Jules de Jongh	US	Emily, Rosie, Mavis (Hero of the Rails - Blue Mountain Mystery), Lady Hatt, Bridget Hatt, The Duchess of Boxford, Bridget Hatt's Friends, The Teacher, The Laundry Lady, The Blond-haired Boy and The School Children
	UK/US	Alicia Botti
Harriet Kershaw	UK/US	Jenny Packard and Darcy
Steven Kynman	UK	Porter, Jack, and The Dock Manager (Tale of the Brave only)
	US	Butch (Series 17 onwards) and a Child
	UK/US	Duck, Peter Sam, Dart (Series 17 onwards), Paxton, A Slip Coach, and A Railway Inspector
Francisco Labbe	UK/US	Gustavo and a Batucata Musician
Michael Legge	UK/US	Luke
Dan Li	UK/US	Yong Bao and Chinese Railway Inspector
Windson Liong	UK/US	Yin-Long and the Chinese Men
Montserrat Lombard	UK/US	Mia and some Italian Passengers
Monica Lopera	UK/US	Gabriela
Antoino Magro	UK/US	Stefano, the Italian Stationmaster, and some Italian Workmen
Clive Mantle	UK/US	Gator
David Menkin	US	Porter and Jack
Genevieve McCarthy	UK/US	Aubrey
Matt McCooey	UK/US	Kenji
Ian McCue	UK/US	Tiger Hunter #1 and The Crown Thief 1
Colin McFarlane	UK/US	Bulgy and Beresford
Rachael Louise Miller	UK/US	Rebecca
Joe Mills	UK/US	Donald (Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure and The Great Race only), Douglas, Oliver, Toad, Skiff and The Welsh Bird Watcher
Lucy Montgomery	UK/US	Lexi, Hannah and Carly
Vincenzo Nicoli	UK/US	Lorenzo, Beppe, An Italian Workman, and some Italian Passengers
Rebecca O'Mara	UK/US	Caitlin and A Slip Coach
Maggie Ollerenshaw	UK/US	Henrietta
Nikhil Parner	UK/US	Rajiv, the Indian Friendly Stationmaster, the Indian Grumpy Stationmaster, and the Indian Troublesome Trucks
Rosamund Pike	UK/US	Duchess
Nigel Pilkington	UK	Trevor
Gabriel Porras	UK/US	Emerson and Fernando
Miranda Raison	UK/US	Millie and The Knapford Station Speaker (Missing Gator)
Rob Rackstraw	UK/US	Donald (Season 20 onwards), Bradford, Monty and Flynn (Season 19 onwards, excluding Toad and the Whale)
	UK	Toby (season 19 onwards)
	US	James (The Adventure Begins onwards) and Stanley (Season 20 onwards)
Eddie Redmayne	UK/US	Ryan
John Schwab	UK/US	Vinnie
Peter Andre	UK/US	Ace
Yvonne Grundy	UK/US	Nia
Kerry Shale	US	Henry, Gordon, James (Hero of the Rails - Season 18), Dash, Scruff, Harold, Kevin, Sir Topham Hatt (Hero of the Rails - Season 18), Mr. Percival, Sir Lowham Hatt, The Maithwaite Stationmaster (Time For a Story and A Blooming Mess only), A Railway Inspector, The Railway Coal Inspector, The Zoo Keeper, and Workmen
	UK	The Zoo Keeper (Not Now, Charlie! only)
	UK/US	Diesel (UK, Season 13 onwards, US, season 19), 'Arry, Bert (Series 14 - 15), Max, Beau, and Some groaning passengers (Calm Down Caitlin)
Tom Stourton	UK/US	Duncan, Rex and Terence
Federico Trujillo	UK/US	Raul, a Batucada Musician, a Brazilian Workman and Marcio
Tim Whitnall	UK	The Deputy Minister
	UK/US	Timothy, Mike, Oliver (Excavator), Jerome, Duke and Reg
Keith Wickham	UK	Edward, Henry, Gordon, James, Percy, Whiff, Dash, Harold, The Mayor of Sodor, The Thin Controller, Sir Lowham Hatt, Mr. Bubbles, The Railway Coal Inspector, The Man at the Fire, The Wellsworth Station Worker, The Wellsworth Stationmaster, Some Workmen, Some Passengers, Gator's Driver, A Steamworks Worker, A Groundsman, and A Postman
	UK/US	Harvey, Skarloey, Sir Handel, Bert (Arlesdale Railway), The Fat Controller (UK, Season 13, US, The Adventure Begins onwards), Salty, Den, Norman, Stafford, Bertie (Series 17 onwards), Captain, Dowager Hatt, A Railway Inspector, The Great Composer, The Maron Station Speaker, The Fat Controller's Assistant, Thomas' Guard, The Grumpy Passenger, and Father Christmas
Robert Wilfort	UK/US	Samson
Matt Wilkinson	UK	Spencer, Stanley, Charlie, Bash, Scruff, Victor (Hero of the Rails - Series 16), Rocky, Cranky, Butch (Series 16 onwards), Kevin, Stephen Hatt, Farmer McColl, The Duke of Boxford, The Photographer, The Maithwaite Stationmaster, Farmer Trotter, The Knapford Stationmaster, The Bird Watcher, The Dock Manager, A Railway Inspector, Some Dock Workers, The Island Inspector, The Sodor Search & Rescue Centre Manager, The Blue Mountain Quarry Workman, and The Zoo Keeper
	UK/US	Diesel 10, Rusty, Winston, and Merrick
Glenn Wrage	US	Spencer, Charlie (Series 13 - 15), Ferdinand, Cranky, Butch (Series 15 - 16), The Sodor Search & Rescue Centre Manager, Gator's Driver, and A Steamworks Worker

Former voices

Actor	Region	Role(s)
Martin Sherman	US	Thomas (Hero of the Rails - Series 18), Percy (Hero of the Rails - Series 18), Diesel (King of the Railway - Series 18), and some children (Toby and Bash)
Ben Small	UK	Thomas (Hero of the Rails - Series 18), Toby (Hero of the Rails - Series 18), and Ferdinand (Misty Island Rescue - Series 16)
	US	Stanley (Series 15 - 18) and Charlie (Series 16 - 18)
	UK/US	Rheneas (Blue Mountain Mystery - Series 18), Flynn (Series 17, only), Troublesome Trucks (Series 16 - 18) and Owen (Blue Mountain Mystery - Series 18)
Michael Brandon	US	Diesel (Series 13 - Blue Mountain Mystery), Mr. Bubbles (Series 13 - 15), and The Knapford Stationmaster (Series 13 only)
Rupert Degas	UK	Butch (Series 15 only)
	UK/US	Diesel 10 (Misty Island Rescue; original cut only), Dart (Series 15 - 16), Flynn (Series 15 - 16), and Bertie (Series 15 - 16)

Narrators

United Kingdom

• Ringo Starr (Series 1-2)
• Michael Angelis (Series 3-16)
• John Hasler (Series 22-24, in-character as Thomas)

United States

• George Carlin (Series 1–4) (1984–1995)
• Alec Baldwin (Series 5–6) (1998–2002)
• Michael Brandon (Series 7-16) (2003-2012)
• Joseph May (Series 22-24, in-character as Thomas)

Both

• Pierce Brosnan (The Great Discovery)
• Mark Moraghan (Series 17-21)

Other websites

• "Official Thomas and Friends website". Archived from the original on 29 October 2006.
• Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends on IMDb