Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines

Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines is the thirty-ninth book of the Railway Series.

Foreword
Dear Friends,

I went to see the Fat Controller the other day. I told him that in 1995 it would be fifty years since the first stories about his Railway were published.

"Good gracious me!" he said. "We must do something to celebrate that."

And he set to work. Not everything went quite right. For instance, Thomas... but I won't spoil the stories - happy reading.

The Author

Birdstrike
The Fat Controller tells the delighted engines that they will be celebrating the Golden Jubilee of the Railway Series this year. Gordon wants to pull the special train for the occasion, but the Fat Controller has borrowed Pip and Emma to pull the train. Gordon has no time to be upset though, because he has to leave to pull the Express. Near Henry's Tunnel, some crows are flying close to the railway. When Gordon startles them with his whistle, the birds fly too close to him, and with a bump the brakes suddenly come on. The crew eventually find a bird knocked the seal off Gordon's front brakepipe, and the train sets off again, but no one forgets the incident, and tease Gordon about it.

Edward and the Cabbages
James is late one day and Edward hurries to make up time. Edward notes his front feels wobbly, and as they pass a cabbage patch one of Edward's bogie wheels snaps off and disappears. Nothing is said of the accident, but a surprised farmer later discovers Edward's wheel in his cabbage patch.

Rabbits
Rabbits have been burrowing under the stretch before Dryaw, and the Fat Controller imposes a ten mp/h limit on the stretch until something is sorted out. The day before the decision is put into effect, Thomas is puffing across the stretch when a rail tilts and he comes off. Percy takes Annie and Clarabel home and after the workmen lift Thomas up with jacks to put rails underneath, Percy pulls him back to Knapford.

Golden Jubilee
Henry is depressed and claims the Golden Jubilee will be a disaster. However, by the time the big day comes Thomas' Branch Line and Edward's wheels are both repaired and Edward is chosen to clear the line for Pip and Emma. Unluckily, Edward and the branchline engines are about to leave Knapford when a cobweb short-circuits the signalbox. They are flagged through, and the ceremony goes without a hitch, with the guest of honour, the Royal Personage, declaring the engines to be a credit to the Fat Controller.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Edward
 * Henry
 * Gordon
 * James
 * Percy
 * Duck
 * Donald
 * Daisy
 * Emma
 * The Fat Controller
 * Toby (does not speak)
 * Douglas (does not speak)
 * BoCo (does not speak)
 * Mavis (does not speak)
 * Pip (does not speak)
 * Annie and Clarabel (do not speak)
 * Harold (cameo)
 * Bill and Ben (mentioned)
 * Flying Scotsman (mentioned)
 * Bertie (mentioned)
 * Bahamas (mentioned)

Quotes

 * Percy: Isn't a Jubilee a sort of party? Thomas and I took some Scouts to one once.
 * Thomas: That was a jamboree.
 * Percy: Was it? Sorry.

Trivia

 * This marks the final appearances of Mavis and Harold in the Railway Series, as well as Duck and Donald's final speaking roles
 * Christopher Awdry's working title for this book was "The Fat Controller's Engines", but the publishers insisted on a "Thomas" link in the title.
 * The Royal Personage is not named, but it is likely to be Prince Charles.
 * This book was intended as a marketing tool; yet, ironically, while Christopher Awdry's books were out of print, this was the hardest one to obtain.
 * Two real life engines are mentioned: Bahamas and The Silver Jubilee.

Goofs

 * The final two illustrations of "Golden Jubilee" don't match the text. Gordon, James and Henry apparently got to the station first, but Thomas and Mavis manage to get in front of them. What's more, Edward should have been there, but he doesn't appear at all.