Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends is very popular with children worldwide and based on a series of books originally written by the Rev Awdry for his son Christopher.

Thomas and his friends are character engines with individual personalities that are realistically portrayed in books and in films. They live and work on the island of Sodor and through their daily existence, help to educate children about the realities of working alongside one another, building friendships, the importance of play and resolving conflicts, whilst also going about their daily activities in an English countryside setting.

Thomas the Tank Engine and friends each have an important job to do that can help to teach children about the different activities that take place on railways while transporting their imaginations to different places on exciting journeys with their favourite characters.

The characters are also a feature of a variety of interesting and popular products, such as toys, books, videos, DVDs, bedding, clothes and so on. In fact, there are many products that incorporate the adorable Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends characters which can be found through various links on this site.

Characters

Thomas - A blue tank engine, who is a self-assured, confident character with a kind heart and ability to make good friends.

Edwards - A blue engine and although he is the oldest of the engines he is probably one of the wisest and always reliable as his friends know him to be.

Henry - A green engine who likes to travel fast, which tends to match his highly strung character.

Gordon - A large engine who pulls the express, a job which he is very proud to do. He travels at high speed and has great strength and tends to have upper class characteristics.

James - A red engine who loves his red shiny coat and is full of fun and enthusiasm when he does the type of jobs he enjoys.

Percy - A small engine and the youngest of the engines, although he is quite forward and has a cheeky personality.

Toby - An old tramway Engine with a lot of experience who works alongside his coach Henrietta.

Annie & Clarabel - They work with Thomas and are much loved as his helpers.

The Fat Controller - Sir Topham Hatt is in charge of all the Engines on the railway and is respected by all the engines.

Bertie the Bus - He loves to travel along the road with speed and is helpful to the engines.

Harold the Helicopter - He patrols the island and shares a good sense of humour.