Edward

"You're all jealous. Edward's better than all of you" "You're right, Duck. Edward's old but he'll surprise us all!"

- Duck and BoCo defending Edward, Edward's Exploit, second season

    Edward  Edward is a mixed-traffic engine.
 * Number: 2
 * Designer: Pettigrew
 * Builder: Sharp, Stewart and Co.
 * Configuration: 4-4-0
 * Arrived on Sodor: circa 1920

Bio
Edward was built by Sharp Stewart and Company in 1896 and worked on the Furness Railway before coming to Sodor in 1920 to finish the building of the North Western Railway. After his work was completed, Edward was kept in a shed, to the delight of the other engines, who claimed that he was too weak to work. Edward was eventually let out again, and proved that what he lacked in strength he made up for in work ethic.

Edward currently runs the Wellsworth-Brendam branch line with BoCo, and occasionally Donald and Douglas. He is sometimes used as a pilot engine for special trains.

Persona
Edward is kind-hearted and always keen to help a friend in need. The small engines trust him to lend a listening ear and sympathetic advice. He is a hard worker too, and always does his best to finish a job.

Sadly, the big engines often see Edward as old-fashioned and slow. While it is true he is the oldest engine on the North Western Railway - it must be noted he helped build it - he has proved time and time again that he is more than capable of working as hard as any engine, but he is a more clever and wiser engine, too.

Since the sixth season, Edward's persona differs slightly. Despite his reputation of being kind and friendly, Edward has sometime seemed to act cheeky. Edward has also acted with a lack of confidence in himself in that he keeps secrets from the other engines and the Fat Controller when once he was leaking steam, and likewise when he was told to pull the post train whilst Percy was being repaired. Sometimes, Edward has seemed to share the same personality as James, such as when he decided to show off his special waterwheel and laughed at Thomas when he was wearing a funny funnel.

Basis
Unlike most characters, Edward is not directly based upon any particular class of locomotive. The Reverend W. Awdry had stated that Edward is based on a heavily modified Sharp, Stewart and Co. "Larger Seagull", supplied to the Furness Railway in 1896, but this was a piece of retcon created for "The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways".

Sodor "historian" Martin Clutterbuck notes that Edward bears a close resemblance to a LNER D3/4 "Glen" (NBR Reid Class K) 4-4-0 from the London and North Eastern Railway. At any rate, the Reverend W. Awdry used an engine of this class to represent Edward on his model railway.

Crovan's Gate modifications to be seen are making rear splasher flush with cab, new cab windows as opposed to cutaway and new cab lookouts as opposed to the round originals.

Inspiration
The inspiration for Edward himself came from the Reverend W. Awdry's watching trains on the Great Western Railway as a child. He said in an interview with Brian Sibley for The Thomas the Tank Engine Man that, to him, the noise of the locomotives' exhaust almost sounded like dialogue - for example, the larger engine having trouble climbing the hills would appear to be saying, "I can't do it, I can't do it," and the smaller engine helping them would sound like it were saying, "I will do it! I will do it! I will do it!"

Livery
Edward is painted NWR blue with the NWR red and yellow lining and the number "2" painted on his tender sides in bright yellow with a red border. He carries two plaques on his cab that reads "NWR No. 2, Rebuilt 1920, Crovan's Gate Works".

It can be assumed that, before arriving on Sodor, Edward was painted in the Furness Railway's red livery with a yellow "FR" on his tender sides and black wheels.

Appearances
Edward's Railway Series appearances are listed in chronological order:
 * "The Three Railway Engines"
 * "Thomas the Tank Engine"
 * "James the Red Engine"
 * "Troublesome Engines"
 * "Henry the Green Engine"
 * "Gordon the Big Engine"
 * "Edward the Blue Engine"
 * "Four Little Engines"
 * "The Eight Famous Engines" (does not speak)
 * "Duck and the Diesel Engine"
 * "The Twin Engines"
 * "Gallant Old Engine" (does not speak)
 * "Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine"
 * "Main Line Engines"
 * "James and the Diesel Engines" (does not speak)
 * "More About Thomas the Tank Engine" (does not speak)
 * "Thomas and the Twins"
 * "Henry and the Express" (cameo)
 * "Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines"
 * "Thomas and Victoria"

In television series, Edward has appeared in:
 * Season 1 - Edward and Gordon, The Sad Story of Henry, Edward, Gordon and Henry, Thomas' Train (cameo), Thomas and the Trucks, Thomas and the Breakdown Train (cameo), James and the Coaches, Troublesome Trucks, Trouble in the Shed, Percy Runs Away, Coal (does not speak), The Flying Kipper (cameo), Whistles and Sneezes, Off the Rails, and Thomas' Christmas Party
 * Season 2 - Cows, Bertie's Chase, Saved from Scrap, Old Iron, Thomas and Trevor, Percy and the Signal (cameo), The Runaway (does not speak), A Close Shave, Better Late than Never (cameo), Breakvan, The Deputation, The Diseasel, Wrong Road, Edward's Exploit, and Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree (cameo)
 * Season 3 - Percy's Promise, Time for Trouble (cameo), Gordon and the Famous Visitor, No Joke for James (cameo), Trust Thomas, Edward, Trevor and the Really Useful Party, One Good Turn, Tender Engines (cameo), Escape, Heroes (does not speak), Percy, James and the Fruitful Day (cameo), and Thomas and Percy's Christmas Adventure (cameo)
 * Season 4 - Four Little Engines, Gallant Old Engine (does not speak), Thomas and Stepney, Bowled Out (cameo), Thomas and the Special Letter (does not speak), Paint Pots and Queens, and Fish (does not speak)
 * Season 5 - Horrid Lorry (cameo), James and the Trouble with Trees, Bye George! (cameo), Haunted Henry, Happy Ever After, Busy Going Backwards (cameo), and Rusty and the Boulder
 * Season 6 - Salty's Secret (cameo), Harvey to the Rescue, Elizabeth the Vintage Lorry (cameo), It's Only Snow, Scaredy Engines, Percy's Chocolate Crunch (cameo), Thomas, Percy and the Squeak (cameo), and Edward the Very Useful Engine
 * Season 7 - Emily's New Coaches (cameo), Percy Gets it Right (cameo), Edward's Brass Band, and Gordon and Spencer (cameo)
 * Season 8 - James Gets a New Coat (cameo), Thomas Saves the Day (cameo), Percy's Big Mistake (cameo), Thomas, Emily and the Snowplough (cameo), Don't Tell Thomas, Gordon takes Charge (does not speak), Edward the Great, Thomas and the Circus (cameo), Thomas Gets It Right (cameo), As Good as Gordon (cameo), Halloween (cameo), You Can Do it, Toby! (does not speak), Chickens to School, James Goes Too Far, and Percy and the Magic Carpet (cameo)
 * Season 9 - Percy and the Oil Painting (cameo), Thomas and the Rainbow, Molly's Special Special (cameo), Thomas and the Toy Shop (cameo), Respect for Gordon (does not speak), Thomas and the Birthday Picnic (cameo), Thomas and the New Engine, Toby Feels Left Out (cameo), Thomas Tries His Best (does not speak), Thomas and the Statue, Thomas' Day Off (cameo), Thomas' New Trucks (cameo), Saving Edward, and Keeping up with James
 * Season 10 - Percy and the Funfair, It's Good to be Gordon (cameo), Edward Strikes Out, Topped Off Thomas (cameo), Thomas and the Shooting Star (cameo), Big Strong Henry (does not speak), Thomas' Frosty Friend (cameo), Thomas and the Colours (cameo), and James the Second Best
 * Season 11 - Thomas and the Storyteller (cameo), Hector the Horrid (does not speak), Thomas and the Spaceship (cameo), Henry's Lucky Trucks, Thomas and the Lighthouse, Thomas Sets Sail (does not speak), Edward and the Mail, and Percy and the Left Luggage
 * Season 12 - Thomas and the Billboard (cameo), Steady Eddie, Henry Gets It Wrong, Heave Ho Thomas! (cameo), Toby's Special Surprise (cameo), Tram Trouble (cameo), and Percy and the Bandstand (cameo)
 * Season 13 - The Lion of Sodor, Tickled Pink (cameo), Double Trouble, Slippy Sodor, Play Time, Time For a Story (cameo), Percy's Parcel, Toby's New Whistle (cameo), A Blooming Mess, Thomas and the Runaway Kite, Steamy Sodor (cameo), The Biggest Present of All, Snow Tracks (cameo), and Hiro Helps Out
 * Season 14 - Thomas' Tall Friend, James in the Dark, Charlie and Eddie, Toby and the Whistling Woods (cameo), Diesel's Special Delivery (cameo), Victor Says Yes, and Henry's Magic Box (does not speak)

Specials:
 * Calling All Engines
 * The Great Discovery
 * Hero of the Rails
 * Misty Island Rescue

Merchandising

 * ERTL (normal and Gold Rail) (both discontinued)
 * LC Wooden
 * Take-Along (normal and metallic)
 * My First Thomas (normal and talking)
 * TOMY\TrackMaster
 * Hornby
 * Bachmann
 * My Thomas Story Library
 * Bandai Tecs
 * Take-n-Play
 * Di Agostini
 * Brio (discontinued)

Voice Actors

 * William Hope (US) (Hero of the Rails onwards)
 * Keith Wickham (UK) (Hero of the Rails onwards)
 * Yasuhiro Takato (Japan) (Season 1 - Season 8)
 * Nozomu Sasaki (Japan) (Season 9 - Present)

Trivia

 * Edward was the very first character created for the Railway Series, in 1943.
 * Edward is the only engine whose crew has been named in the Railway Series. In the foreword of "Edward the Blue Engine" their names were given as Charlie Sand (driver) and Sidney Hever (fireman). Their surnames came from their duties (one of the driver's jobs is to sand the rails when they are slippery to let the engine's wheels grip, while the fireman "heaves" coal to the firebox); their Christian names came from an engine crew from the Wisbech and Upwell Tramway.
 * The Learning Curve Wooden range inaccurately depicts Edward as a 0-4-0.
 * Two of Edward's models are currently on display; one at Drayton Manor and one in Canada at Nitrogen Studios.
 * A rare promotional picture shows Edward wearing James' face.
 * Edward was not seen in Thomas and the Magic Railroad as his model wasn't finished in time.
 * In the episodes Steady Eddie and Charlie and Eddie, Edward refers to himself as "Eddie".