Thomas

Thomas is a blue tank engine who works on the North Western Railway. He originally worked as the station pilot at the Big Station but longed to leave his yard to go out and see the world. After helping to rescue James from a nasty accident, Thomas was rewarded with two new coaches, Annie and Clarabel and was given the responsibility of running the Ffarquhar Branch Line, where he works to this day.

In The Neptunians, he serves as transport for the team along with Donald and Douglas.

Appearance
Thomas is based on the LB&SCR Class E2 0-6-0T, particularly the second batch of locomotives built with extended side-tanks. These engines were built by Brighton Works between 1913-1916 to replace the ageing Stroudley E1 class and were primarily used for heavy shunting and short-distance goods trains in the London area and on the south coast. During their final working years, the E2 class worked as shunting engines at Southampton Docks alongside the USATC S100 Tank Engines (Rosie's basis), until they were replaced by the BR Class 07 diesel shunters (Salty's basis). All of the E2s were scrapped, with none surviving into preservation.

Thomas has several major differences from the original E2 class. He is much shorter in length than his original basis, he has two extra windows on the sides of his cab and he has wheel splashers, something the original E2 class lacked. In the early volumes of The Railway Seriesand the television series, Thomas' footplate is dipped at the front, but oddly enough is not dipped at the back. In Branch Line Engines, his footplate was levelled out from smokebox to bunker. Thomas is painted in NWR bright blue with red lining. His number is painted on the sides of his tanks in yellow with red lining and the lining around his cab windows is yellow.

In The Adventure Begins, Thomas was originally painted teal-green with white lining. He had the initials "LBSC" and the number 70 painted on the sides of his tanks and cab respectively in yellow with red lining and his wheel rims were painted white.

In the first three series of the television series, Thomas had the red lining on the back of his coal bunker, but during the production of the third series episode, All at Sea, the lining was removed. The lining was reapplied in The Adventure Begins.

Personality
Thomas is described as being a cheeky and fussy engine. He often gets into scrapes, usually by being over-eager to do things best left to bigger and more sensible engines. But clouds never last long in Thomas' life and he is soon bustling about again, playing his part in the yard and on his very own branch line, of which he is extremely proud.

He loves teasing the others, especially the bigger engines, such as Gordon and on occasion brags about his superiority, but is always brought down to earth in due course by anyone willing to correct him, especially the Fat Controller and his two coaches, Annie and Clarabel. If Thomas has one major character flaw, it is that he is forgetful and rather impatient. However, he is also optimistic, idealistic and altruistic with a heart of gold.

While he might drive others away, Thomas is very good at luring back friends should the situation demand it.

Despite all this, he does have his pride and will sometimes take wrong advice at the wrong time - such as from Sailor John or Ace, as well as refusing help even when he needs it.

Powers
Thomas possesses standard tank engine abilities. His top speed is 50 miles per hour.
 * Hauling Proficiency: Thomas is very talented at hauling, whether it be trucks or coaches.
 * Shunting Proficiency: Thomas is also an expert shunter.

Trivia

 * Thomas was the first character in the Railway Series to have a number. According to Brian Sibley, Awdry used the number one because it was the easiest to draw.
 * Thomas was the first character introduced in the television series.
 * From the first to twelfth series during the model era, Thomas had three different facial expressions: furious, jovial and irritated; that was not used on-screen. His unused second series jovial face mask, however, was used in The Great Festival Adventure game, where Thomas was teasing Gordon about being on the turntable.
 * Also in the tenth series episode, Topped Off Thomas, his unused third series outraged face was used where Thomas was arguing with Spencer about going or not going faster than the wind and later challenging him to a race to Kellsthorpe Road.
 * Sometime before or during production of the fourth series, Thomas also had an elderly face mask, created by model maker Jeremy King, which was originally made as a joke to David Mitton during the filming of Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
 * Christopher Awdry lost the original Thomas toy when he was in the United States. However, a replica was made for a 70th-anniversary sizzle reel. The second version of the original toy was made as a "thank you" gift by Michael White.
 * In the American and Finnish cast, Thomas is the only character voiced by Joseph May and Juha Varis in the series.
 * Thomas' LBSC number, 70, was actually carried by a real LB&SCR locomotive, an A1 named "Poplar" currently preserved by the Kent & East Sussex Railway. The number also represents the 70th anniversary of the Railway Series. All the actual E2s, however, were only numbered from 100 to 109.
 * According to Sir Topham Hatt on the 2001 version of the official website, Thomas was given his name by the engine workshop which built him.
 * Thomas is one of the few characters to have a speaking role in every series and special.
 * A Wooden Railway toy of Thomas, along with one of Stepney's, appeared in the second series of The Big Bang Theory in an episode called "The Friendship Algorithm".
 * An ERTL toy of Thomas along with one of James' also appeared in the sixth series of Full House in one of its episodes called "Be True to Your Preschool".
 * Following Mr. Conductor in Thomas and the Magic Railroad, Thomas became the second character to narrate in first-person.
 * In Calling All Engines!, Thomas sleep-whistles. This is apparently the steam engine version of snoring, though instead typical snoring sounds, Thomas makes warbling whistles after pausing before the next toot. This was only mentioned in Calling All Engines as it might be because that his crew never shut off his steam properly.
 * He has the most on-screen nicknames of any character, with seven in total. However, he has the third-highest amount overall behind Percy with nine and Gordon with eleven.
 * He is the first Sudrian engine with a separate driver in international locations.
 * He is the only vehicle character with headwear (a nightcap in the series 9-12 closing segments, a party hat in the ninth series episode Thomas' Milkshake Muddle, an aviator pilot hat in the tenth series episode Sticky Toffee Thomas and a top hat in the same episode and the eleventh series episode Smoke and Mirrors, if you can also count The Fat Controller's top hat in Topped Off Thomas), not counting the glasses of Whiff and The Ballast Spreader or Darcy's visor (or the Santa caps on all the vehicles in the early Christmas episodes).
 * Thomas is the first character in the show to have lost his voice onscreen with the twenty-third series episode, Too Loud, Thomas!. With this, he is the third character on the show with a speech impediment (albeit temporarily) after Fergus and Theo.
 * He has been seen going well over his top speed of 50 miles per hour.