James

"I am a splendid engine, ready for anything. You never see my paint dirty."

- James, Dirty Objects

    James   James is a vain red mixed-traffic engine.
 * Number: 5
 * Class: L&YR Aspinall Class 27/Hughes Class 28 2-6-0 hybrid with Fowler tender
 * Designer: George Hughes
 * Builder: Horwich Works
 * Configuration: 2-6-0, originally 0-6-0
 * Arrived on Sodor: 1946

Bio
James was built by George Hughes at Horwich Works in 1915 as an 0-6-0 with wooden brakes, James was once unable to stop due to his wooden brake blocks. After his first accident he had his front sandboxes removed, was rebuilt into a 2-6-0 with a proper brake and a Fowler tender and repainted red with gold stripes and blue lining. He was troublesome when he returned, ruining Sir Topham Hatt's new top-hat with his steam and jarring his coaches so much a brake pipe leaks. He was threatened to be painted blue (which James detests), but later made the line's worst trucks behave after being given a second chance.

Persona
James is very proud of his paintwork. He hates pulling trucks, and believes that he should only pull coaches. He thinks himself superior to the others, and can be shallow, boastful and vain, particularly to those who appear old-fashioned, weak, slow or dirty. However, on a number of occasions he has found himself in need of help from those he has insulted, and is, in the end, apologetic.

James was the last engine to retain a prejudice against diesels. However, after stalling on a cold day he was rescued by the Works Diesel, and James had to admit that nothing was wrong with diesels. This appears to be one of the few lessons that has stuck.

Basis
In The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways it was claimed that James is based on a rebuild of a L&YR Class 27 locomotive from the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway and designed by George Hughes, who added a Belpaire firebox and a Schmidt superheater and extended the footplate and sandbox. However, as with most of the early Railway Series characters, this information was purely retcon.

Sodor "historian" Martin Clutterbuck has pointed out that James strongly resembles an G&SWR "Austrian Goods" 2-6-0 from the Glasgow and South Western Railway, but with the addition of a Belpaire firebox. At any rate, the Reverend W. Awdry used an engine of this class to represent James on his model railway. It is possible that he rejected this prototype for James' official "biography" on the grounds that an English locomotive would be more likely to end up on Sodor.

Livery
James was originally painted navy-black with red lining before his accident and was given his red coat with yellow stripes and black lining to cheer him up. Sometime during the 1960s, James' black lining was repainted blue and gold. James has the number "5" painted in bright yellow with a blue border on his tender sides.

In the television series, James has always been red with gold stripes and black lining, except in the tenth season episode The Green Controller, when he was painted yellow and black, like a bumblebee, on Percy's orders. Then, in the thirteenth season episode Tickled Pink, James was painted in pink! This time it was only an undercoat, though.

James' twins
The Mid Hants Railway repainted a Southern Railway N Class into the livery of James. The engine retained this colour scheme for many years, and participated in the Railway Series Golden Jubilee celebrations at the National Railway Museum.

The repainting of the engine, however, created a stir among railway enthusiasts who felt that it was wrong to paint a historic main line locomotive in such a garish livery. Nevertheless, the locomotive was popular with the railway's younger visitors.

On the East Lancashire Railway, unrestored LMS 2MT 2-6-0 No. 46428 has been painted as James, although his face only appears during Thomas events.

Appearances
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Railway Series

 * Thomas the Tank Engine
 * James the Red Engine
 * Tank Engine Thomas Again (mentioned)
 * Troublesome Engines
 * Henry the Green Engine
 * Toby the Tram Engine
 * Gordon the Big Engine
 * Edward the Blue Engine
 * Four Little Engines (not seen)
 * Percy the Small Engine
 * The Eight Famous Engines
 * Duck and the Diesel Engine
 * The Little Old Engine
 * The Twin Engines
 * Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine
 * Main Line Engines
 * Small Railway Engines (mentioned)
 * Enterprising Engines
 * Oliver the Western Engine
 * Duke the Lost Engine (cameo)
 * James and the Diesel Engines
 * Great Little Engines (mentioned)
 * More About Thomas the Tank Engine
 * Gordon the High-Speed Engine
 * Thomas and the Twins (cameo)
 * Thomas and the Great Railway Show
 * Henry and the Express
 * Wilbert the Forest Engine
 * Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines

Television series

 * Season 1 - Thomas and Gordon (cameo), Edward and Gordon (cameo), The Sad Story of Henry (cameo), Edward, Gordon and Henry (cameo), Thomas' Train (cameo), Thomas and the Trucks (cameo), Thomas and the Breakdown Train, James and the Coaches, Troublesome Trucks, James and the Express, Thomas goes Fishing, Tenders and Turntables, Trouble in the Shed (does not speak), Percy Runs Away, Coal, The Flying Kipper (cameo), Whistles and Sneezes (cameo), Thomas in Trouble (cameo), Dirty Objects, Off the Rails (does not speak), and Thomas' Christmas Party
 * Season 2 - Cows (cameo), Saved from Scrap (cameo), Old Iron, Percy and the Signal, Duck takes Charge, Pop Goes the Diesel, Dirty Work, A Close Shave (does not speak), Better Late than Never, Breakvan, The Deputation, Edward's Exploit, and Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree (cameo)
 * Season 3 - A Scarf for Percy, Percy's Promise (cameo), Time for Trouble, Gordon and the Famous Visitor (cameo), Donald's Duck (cameo), Thomas gets Bumped (does not speak), Thomas, Percy and the Dragon, Diesel Does it Again (cameo), Henry's Forest, The Trouble with Mud, No Joke for James, Trust Thomas, Buzz Buzz, Tender Engines, Escape, Oliver Owns Up, Bulgy (cameo), Percy, James and the Fruitful Day, and Thomas and Percy's Christmas Adventure (cameo)
 * Season 4 - Sleeping Beauty, Bulldog, Four Little Engines (does not speak), Rock 'n' Roll, Steamroller (cameo), Gallant Old Engine (cameo), Thomas and Stepney (cameo), Train Stops Play (cameo), Bowled Out, Henry and the Elephant, Toad Stands By (cameo), Bull's Eyes (cameo), Thomas and the Special Letter (does not speak), Paint Pots and Queens, Fish (cameo), and Mind that Bike (cameo)
 * Season 5 - Cranky Bugs, Horrid Lorry, A Better View for Gordon, Lady Hatt's Birthday Party (cameo), James and the Trouble with Trees, Gordon and the Gremlin, Baa! (cameo), Put Upon Percy (cameo), Haunted Henry (cameo), Something in the Air (cameo), Thomas, Percy and Old Slowcoach, Thomas and the Rumours, Oliver's Find (cameo), Happy Ever After (cameo), Make Someone Happy, and Busy Going Backwards
 * Season 6 - Salty's Secret (cameo), Harvey to the Rescue, No Sleep for Cranky (cameo), A Bad Day for Harold the Helicopter (cameo), Elizabeth the Vintage Lorry (cameo), The Fogman, It's Only Snow, Twin Trouble (cameo), The World's Strongest Engine (cameo), Scaredy Engines (cameo), Percy and the Haunted Mine (cameo), Middle Engine, James and the Red Balloon, Jack Frost, Gordon Takes a Tumble, Percy's Chocolate Crunch, Thomas, Percy and the Squeak, Thomas the Jet Engine, and Edward the Very Useful Engine (cameo)
 * Season 7 - Emily's New Coaches (cameo), Percy Gets it Right, Edward's Brass Band (cameo), What's the Matter with Henry? (cameo), James and the Queen of Sodor, The Spotless Record (cameo), Bulgy Rides Again, Harold and the Flying Horse (cameo), Best Dressed Engine, Gordon and Spencer, Not so Hasty Puddings (cameo), and Three Cheers for Thomas (cameo)
 * Season 8 - Thomas and the Tuba (cameo), Percy's New Whistle (cameo), Thomas to the Rescue (cameo), James Gets a New Coat, Thomas Saves the Day, Percy's Big Mistake (cameo), Thomas, Emily and the Snowplough (cameo), Don't Tell Thomas, Emily's New Route, Thomas and the Firework Display, Gordon takes Charge (does not speak), Spic and Span, Edward the Great, Thomas and the Circus, Thomas Gets It Right, As Good as Gordon, Halloween (cameo), Too Hot for Thomas, James Goes Too Far, and Percy and the Magic Carpet
 * Season 9 - Percy and the Oil Painting (cameo), Thomas and the Rainbow (does not speak), Molly's Special Special (cameo), Thomas' Milkshake Muddle (cameo), Thomas and the Toy Shop (cameo), Respect for Gordon, Thomas and the Birthday Picnic (cameo), Thomas and the New Engine, Toby Feels Left Out, Thomas Tries His Best, Thomas and the Statue, Thomas' Day Off (cameo), Thomas' New Trucks, Saving Edward (cameo), Thomas and the Golden Eagle (cameo), Keeping up with James, and Flour Power (cameo)
 * Season 10 - Follow that Flour, Thomas and the Jet Plane (cameo), Percy and the Funfair, The Green Controller, Thomas' Tricky Tree (cameo), It's Good to be Gordon (cameo), Seeing the Sights (cameo), Toby's New Shed (cameo), Topped Off Thomas (cameo), Thomas and the Shooting Star, Big Strong Henry (cameo), Wharf and Peace, Thomas' Frosty Friend, Thomas and the Colours, Duncan's Bluff, Thomas and the Treasure, and James the Second Best
 * Season 11 - Thomas and the Storyteller, Emily's Rubbish, Dream On (cameo), Dirty Work, Hector the Horrid, Gordon and the Engineer (cameo), Thomas and the Spaceship (cameo), Henry's Lucky Trucks, Thomas and the Lighthouse, Thomas and the Big Bang (does not speak), Thomas Sets Sail, Don't be Silly, Billy (cameo), Edward and the Mail (cameo), Hide and Peep (cameo), Toby's Triumph (cameo), Thomas and the Runaway Car (cameo), Thomas in Trouble, Thomas and the Stinky Cheese, Sir Handel in Charge, and Ding-a-Ling
 * Season 12 - Thomas and the Billboard, Heave Ho Thomas! (cameo), James Works It Out, Tram Trouble (cameo), and Percy and the Bandstand (cameo)
 * Season 13 - Creaky Cranky, The Lion of Sodor, Tickled Pink, Double Trouble (cameo), Slippy Sodor, The Early Bird, Play Time, Thomas and the Pigs, Percy's Parcel, Toby's New Whistle, A Blooming Mess, Thomas and the Runaway Kite (does not speak), Steamy Sodor, Splish, Splash, Splosh!, The Biggest Present of All (does not speak), Snow Tracks (cameo), Henry's Good Deeds (cameo), Buzzy Bees (cameo), and Hiro Helps Out (cameo)
 * Season 14 - Thomas' Tall Friend (cameo), James in the Dark, Pingy Pongy Pick Up, Charlie and Eddie (cameo), Toby and the Whistling Woods, Henry's Health and Safety (cameo), Diesel's Special Delivery, Pop Goes Thomas, Being Percy, Merry Winter Wish, Thomas and the Snowman Party, Thomas' Crazy Day (cameo), Jumping Jobi Wood!, Thomas and Scruff (cameo), O the Indignity, Jitters and Japes (cameo), and Henry's Magic Box

Special:
 * Thomas and the Magic Railroad
 * Calling All Engines
 * The Great Discovery
 * Hero of the Rails
 * Misty Island Rescue
 * Day of the Diesels

Magazine stories
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 * 2002 - The Winning Shot (cameo) and James and the Bees
 * 2005 - What's Cooking?
 * 2008 - Being Bright (cameo)
 * 2010 - Pulling the Post (cameo)
 * 2011 - Watch the Clock

Voice Actors

 * Michael Angelis (Thomas and the Magic Railroad; original workprints only)
 * Susan Roman (Thomas and the Magic Railroad)
 * Keith Wickham (UK; Hero of the Rails onwards)
 * Kerry Shale (US; Hero of the Rails onwards)
 * Katsuji MoriIn (Japan; first season 1 - eight season)
 * Masashi Ebara (Japan; ninth season onwards)

Trivia

 * The Bachmann range originally depicted James with grey wheels and tender axle-boxes and red smokebox sides.
 * A large-scale working replica of James, along with replicas of Thomas, Percy, Harold, and Jack, was created by BBC Visual Effects for a tour in 2003. The battery powered locomotive is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest model railway engine ever built, at 2.64 x 1.5 x 6.52 metres.
 * In Toby's New Whistle, James revealed that he once had a three-chimed whistle.

Quotes

 * At last, Toby lost patience.
 * "James," he asked, "why are you red?"
 * "I am a splendid engine," answered James loftily, "ready for anything. You never see my paint dirty."
 * "Oh!" said Toby innocently, "that's why you once needed bootlaces; to be ready, I suppose."

- A conversation between Toby and James, "Toby the Tram Engine"


 * "Ony wan wad think," said Douglas, "that Donal' had his accident on purrpose. I heard tell," he went on, "aboot an engine an' some tar wagons."
 * Gordon and Henry chuckled.
 * "Shut up!" said James. "It's not funny."

- Douglas ribbing James, "The Twin Engines"

Merchandise

 * ERTL (normal and Gold Rail; both discontinued)
 * Learning Curve Wooden (normal, motorized, and talking)
 * Take-Along (normal, metallic, and lights and sounds; discontinued)
 * My First Thomas (normal and talking)
 * TOMY/TrackMaster (normal, greatest moments, talking, flipface, RC, and "Busy Bee" livery)
 * Hornby
 * Bachmann (HO and large scale)
 * Lionel (G scale (discontinued) and O gauge)
 * Tomix
 * My Thomas Story Library
 * Bandai Tecs
 * Take-n-Play
 * De Agostini
 * Wind-up Trains
 * Brio (discontinued)
 * Pez