Thomas & Friends Thomas the Tank Engine Genre Children's television series Running time five minutes (season 1-7) seven minutes (season 8-) Creator(s) Wilbert Vere Awdry Britt Allcroft Starring Ringo Starr (1984–86) Michael Angelis (1991– UK series) George Carlin (1991–98 U.S. series) Alec Baldwin (1998–2003 U.S. series) Michael Brandon (2004– U.S. series) Country of origin United Kingdom Original channel ITV, Noggin and Tiny Pop PBS ABC Tokyo MX Rede Manchete, TVO, BBC Kids, Treehouse TV RTL Rai Duo, Rai Tre TV2 Azteca 7, Azteca 13, Proyecto 40 Yorin 3ABN TV4 Original run September 9, 1984–Present No. of episodes 275 Thomas & Friends (formerly Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends) is a British children's television series which was first broadcast in 1984. The series was based on The Railway Series, a series of books created by the Reverend W.V. Awdry. They deal with the adventures of a group of subanthropomorphised trains and road vehicles who live on the fictional Island of Sodor. The books were based on stories Awdry told to entertain his son Christopher during his recovery from the measles. Many of the stories are based on events from Awdry's personal experience. During the 1980s the television rights were sold to Britt Allcroft and she started producing the series. The show has been narrated by former Beatles member Ringo Starr, Michael Angelis, George Carlin, Alec Baldwin and Michael Brandon. Contents 1 Series history 2 Characters from the series 3 Season index 3.1 Cinema movies 3.2 Direct-to-video adventures 4 Thomas on television and in film 5 Narrators 6 Production history 7 Television series trivia 8 Merchandise 8.1 Thomas video games 8.2 Thomas models 8.3 Other merchandise 9 Day Out with Thomas 10 See also 11 External links Series history For the first two seasons, the series was closely based on stories from the Railway Series. The first season took stories from the first eight books, along with one specially written by Rev. W. Awdry, Thomas's Christmas Party. The second season took stories from Book 9 (Edward the Blue Engine) to Book 30 (More About Thomas the Tank Engine). This last book was unusual, in that it was written specifically by Christopher Awdry in order to be adapted for the series, as a contractual obligation of the series at that time was that it could not create original stories that had not previously appeared in print. The series also adapted a story from a Thomas Annual, 'Thomas and Trevor', and an especially written stand-alone story, Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree. Many fans consider this to be the "golden age" of Thomas. The third season was a combination of episodes derived from the Railway Series, from stories in the Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends magazine and wholly original work. There were two primary reasons for diverging from the original books. The first was that many of the books not yet adapted featured large numbers of new characters, and so would be expensive to produce. The second was that the producers wanted more stories centring on Thomas, the nominal main character. These new stories caused controversy, with Rev. W. Awdry complaining that the new stories were unrealistic and not true to the spirit of the books (see Henry the Green Engine for more details on this). Prior to the fourth season, a number of accusations of sexism were levelled against the series. Among these was a complaint that the series was short of female characters. To counter this, the producers promised that new female characters would appear in the next series. This series was almost entirely based on the Railway Series. The narrow gauge engines were introduced, greatly increasing the number of stories that could be produced. Only one original story was used, namely 'Rusty to the Rescue', but this took certain elements of plot and dialogue from the book Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine. The fifth season was a radical departure, as it was entirely original. Some fans consider the series from here on to be an entirely separate continuity from the Railway Series. This season saw the introduction of new characters and more action-packed storylines. Following this season, the film 'Thomas and the Magic Railroad' was released. It featured only a small number of characters from the television series and was rather more fantasy based. Despite high production values and the popularity of Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends, the movie was criticised for being confusing, badly written, poorly directed, poorly acted and not true to the spirit of either the Railway Series or the television adaptation by UK audiences. It was well received by young children at whom it was aimed and made $16 million at the box office; however, no reference to the film has ever been made in the television series. New episodes that had been written by Britt Allcroft and director David Mitton were from then on scripted by hired-in writers. The sixth and seventh seasons continued the policy of action-packed storylines and new characters. The sixth season was notable for its attempt to create a spin-off series. In this sixth season, two episodes were produced centering around a group of new characters known as 'The Pack'. These were construction machines, and it has been speculated that this was an attempt to cash in on the success of Bob the Builder. The spin-off never materialised, and as the models of the Pack were incompatible with the other characters in the series (having been built to a larger scale), they have not been seen in the series since. However, they have recently appeared in a straight-to-video spin-off release called On Site with Thomas. Following Series 7, a number of very significant changes took place. The series was taken over by HIT Entertainment (the owners of Bob the Builder). Episode length was increased from five to seven minutes, a new theme tune was composed and the series title was shortened to Thomas & Friends. The number of characters was greatly reduced, with stories focusing on Thomas, Edward, Henry, Gordon, James, Percy, Toby and Emily. Following complaints from parent action groups concerning the number of accidents in the series, the stories' emphasis was moved from action to character, with episodes generally focusing upon morals. Shortly before the release of Series 9, a straight-to-video film, 'Calling All Engines', was brought out. This featured characters from 'Thomas and the Magic Railroad', but was not a sequel as such. It received a far better reception than the earlier film, and HIT are thought to be considering the possibility of similar specials in the future. Season 9 featured new characters and the return of a number of old ones. The tenth season is currently being broadcast in some areas. Characters from the series Thomas and Friends may have the largest cast of any children's television series. Over the years, literally dozens of characters have put in an appearance. The characters are split to separate pages. These pages are: Railway Engines - for information on Steam Engines and Diesel Engines. Rolling Stock - for information on coaches and trucks. People and animals Non-rail vehicles Minor Characters - for information on the series' minor characters. Movie Characters - for info on the trains, animals and people that feature in the two films. Uncharacterised Vehicles - for info about the uncharacterised vehicles on Sodor. Season index Thomas and Friends - Season 1 (1984) Thomas and Friends - Season 2 (1986) Thomas and Friends - Season 3 (1991) Thomas and Friends - Season 4 (1995) Thomas and Friends - Season 5 (1998) Thomas and Friends - Season 6 (2002) Thomas and Friends - Season 7 (2003) Thomas and Friends - Season 8 (2004) Thomas and Friends - Season 9 (2005) Thomas and Friends - Season 10 (2006) Thomas and Friends - Season 11 (2007) Cinema movies Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2000) Direct-to-video adventures Calling All Engines (2005) (feature length movie) On Site with Thomas (2006) (Direct-to-video spin off episodes) Thomas on television and in film The series was first broadcast in 1984 on ITV in the United Kingdom. It was shown throughout the late eighties and into the early 90s when it was taken off the terrestrial UK network following broadcast of the third series. Between 1994 and 2003, Thomas was never shown on terrestrial UK networks, although did make a comeback on satellite through Cartoon Network in the mid 1990s and lasted until 2001, which was 5 seasons, and then Nick Jr in 2001/2002, where it has remained since and become a popular fixture, even stretching to their involvement with Gullane and HIT Entertainment on recent series of the popular children's series. Thomas also made a comeback on ITV in January 2003 with its sixth series of five minute stories. The sixth and seventh series were shown in their entirety in 2003/4. The eighth series was broadcast in 2005, but only 13 episodes were aired, possibly on account of the new format for the programme; it wasn't until July 2006 that the remaining 13 episodes were broadcast. Due to a new agreement between ITV and the Programming Authority (Ofcom) which allowed them to cut their children's TV output in mid 2005, Channel 5 bought the rights to the series, with the ninth series broadcasting on the channel from 10 October, 2006 Thomas & Friends was debuted in the United States on Shining Time Station in 1989. In 1989, Thomas and Friends was shown in North America, in a television series called Shining Time Station which was broadcast on PBS. Storytime with Thomas is another American spinoff that aired in 1999 on the Fox Family Channel. Today, Thomas and Friends is broadcast in more than twenty languages around the world. In 2000 Thomas moved to the big screen, with the release of Thomas and the Magic Railroad. However, the film was not a success. The Thomas and Friends stories were five minutes long. The first two series showed two episodes at a time, with a show of the characters in the middle. It changed to one at a time in series three. In each series until series eight, the number of trains on the railway increases as the railway expands. In 2004, the series began using computer animated special effects and the story length changed from five to seven minutes. A half-hour show format (aired on PBS and Treehouse TV in North America and on Nick Jr. in the UK from 2004) was also adopted, showing three episodes plus puzzles, songs, and mini stories. The new series made major changes, such as changing the famous theme tune, and took on a more moralistic stance than previous series. Narrators Ringo Starr (UK narrator seasons 1-2; U.S. narrator seasons 1-2). Ringo Starr, drummer in The Beatles, narrated the first two TV series of Thomas and Friends from 1984 to 1989. Ringo did the original UK narration for the series, and then when exported to the US, parts of it were renarrated and replaced. Ringo also contributed his services to Ladybird Audio Book tie-ins for the series, and appeared in Shining Time Station as the first Mr Conductor, before returning to pursue his musical career with his All Starr Band. Starr's celebrity status was a useful factor in gaining publicity for the show in its first season, and he is now the narrator most associated with Thomas. Michael Angelis (UK narrator seasons 3- ; U.S. narrator season 7). Angelis has narrated the series since 1991, and been the longest standing narrator for the series in its history. He began in the 3rd series, and continues to narrate the British series. Angelis also replaced Baldwin for the beginning of the seventh season of the U.S. version for only one DVD called "New Friends for Thomas". He has also narrated the direct-to-video release Calling All Engines. Angelis also narrated the first three volumes of The Railway Series for CD release in the UK in March 2006. George Carlin (U.S. narrator seasons 1-4). Carlin was the first American to narrate the series; he replaced Starr in 1991 for the American series and "Shining Time Station" as the Mr Conductor character. In the American series, Carlin re-narrated the first two seasons due to Shining Time; in 1998, he left the series to return to his career in comedy. Alec Baldwin (U.S. narrator seasons 5-6). Baldwin replaced Carlin in 1998 for the U.S. series; he left the series to pursue film roles. In the American series, Baldwin renarrated seasons 5-6 due to Storytime With Thomas. He also appeared in the movie Thomas and the Magic Railroad, where he became the third actor to play Mr Conductor. Michael Brandon (U.S. narrator seasons 7-present). Brandon narrated the 7th, 8th & 9th seasons, and renarrated part of the 6th season for television broadcast, as well as the straight to DVD specials - Calling All Engines and On Site with Thomas. He continues to narrate the series as of now. Production history The series has gone through numerous changes throughout its run. The producer is in charge of every aspect of the show for the relevant season(s) Seasons 01-02: Britt Allcroft (executive producer), David Mitton, and Robert D. Cardona Seasons 03-05: Britt Allcroft, David Mitton Seasons 06-07: Phil Fehrle Seasons 08-10: Simon Spencer Originally the series was produced by Britt Allcroft Ltd (Britt Allcroft's company) and Clearwater Features Ltd (David Mitton and Robert D. Cardona's company). Clearwater closed down in 1990 and Britt Allcroft Ltd (which changed to Gullane Ltd in 2000) produced solo until 2003, when HIT Entertainment bought the company and now runs its operation. HIT Entertainment was bought over in 2005 by Private Equity firm - Apax. Contrary to speculation and rumour, Apax are not a production company, and there is very little change likely to be made to the production side of HIT. The series has always been filmed at Shepperton Studios. Television series trivia It has been suggested that Maron Station be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) Since 1984, the show has been filmed at West London's Shepperton Studios. The layouts are expansive and fit in a hangar-sized room. The train miniatures are set on remote control and filmed using a 35mm camera, in order to get quality shots from such small objects. [1] Stories were taken from The Railway Series books in the first four seasons From Season 5 onwards stories were written especially for television. First by the then producers of the show Britt Allcroft and David Mitton (series 5), and then by a much larger team of hired writers (series 6 onwards). Throughout series 6 and 7, David Mitton continued to provide storylines and wrote his final script during the show's sixth run, "Edward the Very Useful Engine". The narrator provides the story and the character voices. In the Japanese and Korean versions, individual voice actors did the characters' voices instead of the narrator. In some episodes, old models used in Thomas' short-lived sister show, TUGS appear. Season 7 was the last season to use 35mm film and the original Thomas the Tank Engine theme tune In the American version of the first two seasons and in some other seasons, the episodes had different titles. Mike O'Donnell and Junior Campbell composed the show's original theme song and music from the years 1984 to 2003. In 2004, Robert Hartshorne took their place as composer, while Ed Welch wrote the new theme tune and the songs. David Mitton directed until he retired in 2003. However, Steve Asquith replaced him from 2004. Thomas the Tank Engine was in The Guinness Book of World Records 2004 for the world's largest model railway for the Thomas & Friends Big Live Tour 2002; the model in question was a model of James. Gordon, who is bigger than James, did appear in the show, although a full model of him was not made. His front was seen sticking out of the shed in the scenes at the shed. Season 9 is the first season where Thomas appeared in all 26 episodes. Daisy's face appears to be the same as Boco's, only with make-up and eye lashes. Thomas, Edward, Henry, Gordon, James, Percy, Toby, Henrietta, Bertie, Annie, Clarabel, The Fat Controller and The Troublesome Trucks are the only characters to appear in every season of the show. The Season 8 change from 35mm film (used in movies) to digital film (used for newscasts) is somewhat obvious. Viewers will detect that the camera resolution is finer, and the motion is less jumpy; however, animate objects (especially engines and flowing steam) move unrealistically fast across the screen. Only two episodes refer to the steam preservation movement during the setting. These episodes is "Edward's Exploit", which Gordon snobbily remarks, "He (Edward) should give up and be preserved before it's too late", and "Horrid Lorries" where LOR3 says to Toby generally "you should go to a museum" Three real engines have been featured on the show - Stepney has made a number of appearances (Stepney is also a real engine from the Bluebell Railway), and City of Truro and Flying Scotsman played minor roles in two Season 3 episodes. Merchandise Thomas video games Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends, for Super NES and Sega Genesis. There was also games written for the Commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, and the PC. A sequel to the PC version, Thomas the Tank Engine 2 was also produced. Thomas models Hornby Railways produce a range of OO scale Thomas Models. The models are not particularly detailed, but suitable in their role of toys. In the United States, Lionel offers a range of Thomas models in the larger O scale. In Japan where space as at a premium and small size is important Tomix have introduced a series of N scale Thomas models. Ertl, now defunct, produced a range of die-cast and plastic models. Learning Curve of Chicago produces and distributes the Thomas Wooden Railway System, which includes most characters, wooden track, stations, bridges, tunnels, and buildings, designed as educational and learning tools for young children. They also produce the Take along Thomas & Friends range of travel Thomas playsets. Tomy produce a Motor Road and Rail plastic train model set with battery powered engines and a wide range of track types and Thomas characters. Recently Tomy has also introduced die-cast models of the Thomas characters. Other Thomas models and toys can be found below under 'Thomas Merchandise'. For more details, see Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends models. Other merchandise The Railway Series (note: this TV Series was based on the "Railway Series" book series) Thomas & Friends Magazines Thomas Mini Story Library Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends annuals Thomas and Friends - Video Releases Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends ERTL Models Thomas TOMY Motorised Toys Take along Thomas & Friends Hornby Thomas And Friends Thomas and Friends Computer Games Bachmann Thomas and Friends My First Thomas & Friends Thomas and Friends Wooden Railway Thomas & Friends Lionel Trains LEGO Duplo Thomas & Friends Thomas Tomy Wind Ups Thomas Character Builder Day Out with Thomas Day Out With Thomas, also referred to as "Come Ride the Rails with Thomas"[2] is a US tour by real trains modeled after Thomas the Tank Engine. The Thomas engine visits various historic railroads across the United States allowing visitors to play games, meet Sir Topham Hatt and to ride on a passenger car pulled by the engine. HIT Entertainment sponsors the event to promote the Thomas and Friends brand. See also List of Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends Songs Shining Time Station TUGS List of Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends Interactive Learning Segments External links Official Thomas and Friends website The Real Lives of Thomas The Tank Engine thomas from the BBC website TV.com Thomas Guide Awdry Family Site Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends at the Internet Movie Database Sodor Island Fansite Thomas The Tank Engine Train Rides in Sydney Past PBS Kids Shows (as of September 2006) 3-2-1 Contact | Adventures from the Book of Virtues | Adventures of Dudley the Dragon | Anne of Green Gables | Bill Nye the Science Guy | Bloopy's Buddies | Big Comfy Couch | Bob the Builder | Captain Kangaroo | Charlie Horse Music Pizza | Club Connect | The Electric Company | Gerbert | Ghostwriter | In the Mix | Katie and Orbie | Kidsongs | Kratts' Creatures | Lamb Chop's Play Along | Liberty's Kids | Long Ago & Far Away | The Magic School Bus | Mark Kistler's Imagination Station | Noddy | Newton's Apple | Pappyland | PBS Kids Bookworm Bunch | Preschool Power! | The Puzzle Place | Ramona (Television series) | Shelley T. Turtle Show | Shining Time Station | Square One Television | Storytime | Seven Little Monsters | Theodore Tugboat | Thomas and Friends | Tots TV | Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? | Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? | Wimzie's House | Wishbone | Zoobilee Zoo List does not include shows from networks airing PBS Kids shows but not funded directly from PBS such as KLCS shows. Complete List | Current Shows | Past Shows | Search Term: "Thomas_the_Tank_Engine_and_Friends" Categories: Articles to be merged since September 2006 | Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends | Children's ITV television programmes | Children's television series | 1980s TV shows in the United States | 1990s TV shows in the United States | 2000s TV shows in the United States | Rail transport in fiction

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