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Bertie is a red bus who works alongside Thomas' Branch Line. He is owned by Sodor Roadways.
Biography
The Railway Series
After Thomas became stuck in a snowdrift, Bertie came to rescue Thomas' passengers. He later raced Thomas in 1948 after claiming he was the faster of the two but lost after having to stop at a traffic light.[3]
When Thomas' fireman did not come into work, Bertie promised to help his passengers catch Edward's train. However, he was late at the junction and missed him at the station. Bertie chased after Edward and almost caught him at the next station, but arrived just as he left. Due to being able to climb hills better than him, Bertie finally caught up to Edward at the third station. Edward apologised to Bertie for the chase and the passengers cheered at him.
When the Viaduct was being repaired, the Main Line engines were delayed in bringing Thomas his passengers, thus making Thomas late in meeting Bertie at the stations along the branch. Bertie teased Thomas about being slow because of this and even challenged him to another race, but had to eat his words after breaking down. Thomas took his passengers home and called for help at the next station. When he was repaired, Bertie apologised to Thomas for teasing him and thanked him for helping his passengers.
Bertie was once mentioned as being sick and unable to help Toby and Henrietta with carrying the quarry workers.
After the partial collapse of Henry's Tunnel, Bertie helped pick up visitors who wanted to see the bust of the Thin Clergyman unveiled at Tidmouth.
Thomas & Friends
As in the television series, Bertie reprised some of his roles from the Railway Series, but was later chosen to take visitors to the Vicar's party and teased Trevor by calling him a "stick-in-the-mud" and old fashioned. However, he got his comeuppance when he got himself stuck in the mud and had to be pulled out by Terence. After that, Bertie thanked Trevor and gave him an apology for teasing him.
When Edward had an accident on the day before he was to take the Brass Band to a concert, Bertie had to take them instead but got stuck in the mud again. Luckily, Edward was repaired and took the Brass Band to their concert.
Bertie is continuously alluding to his race with Thomas and how he could win next time. He actually raced Thomas again and won after Thomas got side-tracked with collecting the sports medals.
Bertie and Thomas have seemed to continue this tradition of racing. However, in the seventeenth series, he was re-routed, giving him an advantage. Thomas is still able to beat him occasionally.
In the nineteenth series, he, Thomas and Spencer got into an argument after Mr. Percival claimed two wheels was best; Bertie argued four wheels was in fact best. He tried to prove his point by taking The Duke and Duchess of Boxford to Callan Castle after both Thomas and Spencer failed to do so, but he too failed after receiving a flat tyre. Harold eventually came to the Duke and Duchess' rescue. He later teased Thomas by telling him about what was on the other side of a mountain on his branch line. Thomas was cross by Bertie's teasing and became determined to find out what was there. Thomas eventually discovered it was a roadside billboard Bertie was describing, though he got into an accident while trying to find out. Bertie visited him at the Steamworks and apologised, though Thomas was able to trick him into believing that he was getting fitted with wings.
In Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure, while he and Thomas were racing, Thomas nearly collided with Toby while Bertie nearly collided with Oliver the Excavator. At Ffarquhar, he complained that he was always getting stuck behind slow construction vehicles since the construction of the new branch line had started. He was then seen on the road by the Harwick Branch Line. Sheep were in his way, but Bertie just smiled.
In the twenty-first series, Bertie ended up breaking down while he and Thomas were racing. This ended up with Thomas taking on his passengers but ended up getting requests for lots of unscheduled stops, which made him run late. However, Bertie was soon temporarily replaced by Bulgy, leading to Thomas running on time.
After being repaired, he shared the mantle of keeping Bulgy in line. Bulgy, however, was still up to his old ways, so Bertie had to remind him that the Fat Controller brought him back to help him with the passenger service; he later broke down due to struggling with passenger transport (flourished due to train halting courtesy of Bulgy). Bulgy took his passengers while Butch towed him away.
Later, when Percy created rumours of a railway show for little engines at Ulfstead Castle, Bertie took Thomas' passengers from Ffarquhar to Knapford after Thomas abandoned his duties to attend.
Thomas and the Magic Railroad
In the film, Bertie is seen as a major road vehicle character. When Thomas headed off to find Mr. Conductor after the meeting with the engines, Bertie asked Thomas if he wanted to have a race, but Thomas said he had no time and apologised to Bertie when he unable to race with him. Thomas instead decided to help Mr. Conductor solve some mysteries concerning the gold dust crisis and Bertie still honking accepted his apology. Later, Bertie passed and greeted Thomas, informing him that he had five coal trucks instead of six. Throughout the many scenes of Bertie, he appeared to be taking tourists around the many roads of the Sodor Roadways.
Personality
Bertie is friendly and ready to help anyone in need. However, he can be quite cheeky and can even be boastful about himself, especially to Thomas, always joking around and teasing him about their races. He can sometimes be quite grumpy, as whenever he breaks down or gets stuck, he grumbles about it. He is always, however, easy-going and cheerful to everyone he sees. Unlike Bulgy, Bertie respects the railways and its engines, and serves as one of the many minds keeping the double-decker bus in line.
Technical Details
Basis
Bertie is based on an AEC Regal "T Class" London Country Area bus. 8 of these are known to survive in preservation. One of these, T31, is believed to have been the first bus to be privately preserved in the UK.
Upon closer inspection, however, Bertie appears to be based on a post-war Leyland Motors "Tiger", type PS-2, built between 1947 and 1953, with several examples surviving in preservation.
Livery
Bertie is painted in the common red livery of buses in the United Kingdom, mostly famously used by London Transport. His number plate, CRD54, refers to the fact that it was first seen in Edward the Blue Engine, published in 1954 and illustrated by C. Reginald Dalby. His interior was originally cream-colored with red seats, but in the CGI series, he retained his red seats while his interior became red.
Appearances
The Railway Series
Companion Volumes
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Audio Files
Horns
| First used | Last used | Sound Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Series 1 | Series 3 |
In Rusty to the Rescue and since the eighth series, Bertie reuses Caroline's horn sound.
| First used | Last used | Sound Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Series 4 | Active |
| First used | Last used | Sound Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Bowled Out | Series 7 |
| First used | Last used | Sound Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Thomas and the Magic Railroad | Thomas and the Magic Railroad |
In one scene in Harvey to the Rescue, Bertie is incorrectly portrayed with a different horn, which in turn would later be used for a lorry in Toby's Windmill.
| First used | Last used | Sound Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Harvey to the Rescue | Harvey to the Rescue |
In the mobile app Read and Play!, Bertie is incorrectly portrayed with Alfie's horn.
| First used | Last used | Sound Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Read and Play! | Read and Play! |
In the mobile app Read and Play!, Bertie is incorrectly portrayed with a different horn.
| First used | Last used | Sound Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Read and Play! | Read and Play! |
In Engines Working Together, Bertie's horn sound is lower-pitched.
| First used | Last used | Sound Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Engines Working Together | Engines Working Together |
Trivia
- Bertie used to be one of twelve characters, as well as the only talking non-rail vehicle, to appear in every series of the television series until the twenty-second series in which he did not appear in an episode, possibly due to his model being updated for the twenty-third series.
- In the French dub, Bertie was known as Bertrand in the first seven series.
- Bertie had a total of nine facial expressions, one of which (a furious face) was not used on-screen. It was made sometime before or during production of the sixth series.[4]
- Bertie's new happy face is now in possession of Twitter user ThomasTankMerch.
- Coincidentally, there is a children's book written by Ingrid Pitt with a character known as Bertie the Bus.[5]
- Bertie has used his current horn sound since the fourth series episode Rusty to the Rescue onwards, then it was reused for Caroline in the same series episode Train Stops Play to the fifth series episode Lady Hatt's Birthday Party.
- In some countries such as Poland, Bertie is portrayed as a female character.
- Bertie is the only road vehicle who visited Misty Island.
- From Three Cheers for Thomas until 2008, Bertie's eyes would move.
- Bertie's horn sound used in the fourth series episode Bowled Out to the seventh series was later reused for Elizabeth in the eleventh series, but the rest of the series, he used his current horn sound that he still has.
Merchandise
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References