Thomas & Friends is a British children's television series, which had its first broadcast on the ITV network on 4 September 1984. It is based on The Railway Series of books by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry and his son, Christopher Awdry. These books deal with the adventures of a group of anthropomorphised locomotives and road vehicles who live on the fictional Island of Sodor. The books were based on stories Wilbert told to entertain his son, Christopher during his recovery from measles. From Series one to four, many of the stories are based on events from Awdry's personal experience.
The peaks and the valleys. Find the essential episodes — and the ones to skip.
Produced in 1983 by Britt Allcroft, this pilot episode was seen for the first time since its creation on the official Thomas and Friends YouTube channel to mark the brand's 80th anniversary.
When The Fat Controller announces the building of a new airport on Sodor, old rivalries between steam engines and diesels soon resurface. A trick by Thomas backfires badly and before long the whole island is in jeopardy.
Stephen becomes jealous of all the attention received by Glynn at the castle.
Shane has too much fun to stop and refuel until he runs out of coal and gets stranded on the Australian Railway.
Each point is an episode, plotted in order. Colored bands mark season boundaries. Look for the rise, the plateau, or the decline.
High votes + high rating = beloved classic. High votes + low rating = notorious stinker. Low votes + high rating = hidden gem.
One point per season. Smooths out the episode-to-episode noise to reveal the bigger arc.
Did each season build or fizzle? Green means the finale outscored the premiere. Red means the opposite. Longer arrows, bigger swings.
How steady is each season? Tightly clustered dots mean reliable quality. Scattered dots mean a wild ride.
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