- "I know, Sir, my birthday flag. It just might be big enough!"
- ― Duncan
Duncan and the Hot Air Balloon is the eleventh episode of the twelfth series.
Plot
It is the Thin Controller's twins' birthday and Duncan is excited to give them their annual birthday ride. While Duncan is getting ready, he is disappointed to learn from the Thin Controller that the twins will instead be having a ride in a hot air balloon which Duncan will be collecting from the Transfer Yards. When Duncan collects the balloon from Thomas, he is told to go slowly and carefully. He soon starts to go over some bumpy tracks which causes a rope to come loose and gives him an idea; if he jiggles the hot air balloon some more, then it will come loose and then he could take the children. He does so and the hot air balloon flies away.
Unfortunately, the hot air balloon lands on Duncan's track. He tries to push it away which leads to one of the sand bags falling off, so he starts hitting it until they all come off and the balloon flies away again. Unfortunately, he soon finds it on a nearby bridge and tries to figure out what he should do, when he wheeshes and the smoke from his funnel inflates the hot air balloon and it yet again flies away. Duncan soon approaches the Thin Controller about the balloon having flown away when it floats down near the weathervane on the Thin Controller's house, which tears a hole in the balloon.
Duncan sees the error of his ways and owns up to the Thin Controller. Duncan collects the balloon repair man, who has little hope of repairing the balloon. However, Duncan has an idea; he suggests using his birthday flag to patch it, which the balloon repair man agrees with. Peter Sam soon collects the Thin Controller's twins and they and the balloon repair man fly in the balloon, which makes Duncan really happy.
Characters
- Thomas
- Duncan
- Mr. Percival
- The Balloon Repairman
- Peter Sam (does not speak)
- Patrick and Pansy Percival (do not speak)
- Skarloey (cameo)
- Rheneas (cameo)
- Mrs. Percival (cameo)
Locations
- The Depot
- The Transfer Yards
- Stone Bridge Over Narrow Gauge Runby
- Mountain Village Station
- Brendam Docks (mentioned)
Trivia
- This episode marks the last of a few things:
- The last appearance of the Hot Air Balloon.
- The last episode to have Duncan with his secondary whistle sound.
- Duncan's last episode with a leading role, as well as his last starring role, until the eighteenth series episode, Duncan and the Grumpy Passenger.
- The last appearance of Rheneas' laughing face.
- The Red Balloon with the yellow flag was used on the cover for the 2009 reprint of James and the Red Balloon. The aforementioned episode has a plot similar to this one. It is also shown on the 3 Lunchbox DVD Set.
Goofs
- The tracks through the narrow gauge shed do not have buffers.
- In one shot of Duncan shunting the hot air balloon, he has no face and his tracking marker is visible.
- Peter Sam has Duncan's CGI face in the last shot.
Merchandise
In Other Languages
| Language | Title |
|---|---|
| Croatian | Duncan u Balon |
| Czech | Duncan a Horkovzdušný Balon |
| Finnish | Tauno ja Kuumailmapallo |
| French | La Montgolfière |
| German | Duncan und der Heißluftballon |
| Hebrew | דנקן והכדור הפורח |
| Indonesian | Duncan dan Balon Udara Panas |
| Italian | Duncan e la Mongolfiera |
| Korean | 던컨과 둥실둥실 열기구 (Kids 1) 던컨과 열기구 (EBS) |
| Mandarin (China) | 邓肯和热气球 |
| Polish | Damian i Lot Balonem |
| Portuguese (Brazil) | Duncan e o Balão |
| Spanish (Latin America) | Duncan y el Globo Aerostático |
| Vietnamese | Bạn Duncan và Chiếc Khinh Khí Cầu |
Home Media Releases
|
| #01 Thomas and the Billboard | #08 Excellent Emily | #15 Gordon Takes a Shortcut |
| #02 Steady Eddie | #09 The Party Surprise | #16 The Man in the Hills |
| #03 Rosie's Funfair Special | #10 Saved You! | #17 Thomas Puts the Brakes On |
| #04 Mountain Marvel | #11 Duncan and the Hot Air Balloon | #18 Percy and the Bandstand |
| #05 Henry Gets It Wrong | #12 James Works It Out | #19 Push Me, Pull You |
| #06 Heave Ho Thomas! | #13 Tram Trouble | #20 Best Friends |
| #07 Toby's Special Surprise | #14 Don't Go Back | |