Bulgy (T&F)/Behind the Scenes

Behind the Scenes

This is a behind the scenes subpage for Bulgy (T&F). This subpage contains all behind the scenes material relating to said article.

Background Information

Bulgy is a fictional double-decker bus created by the Rev. W. Awdry.

Bulgy first appeared in the third series episode Bulgy, which first aired in 1992. His last appearance was in the twenty-fourth series episode Cleo the Road Engine, which was released in 2021.

In The Railway Series, Bulgy's face was black, however in the television series, he has a grey face to match the other vehicles.

Bulgy never returned in The Railway Series after he was turned into a hen house at the end of his debut, however in the seventh series, Bulgy was given a second chance and was eventually repainted green and turned into a mobile vegetable stand.

Between the eighth and twelfth series, Bulgy made a number of minor cameos, however had no speaking roles. During this time, he also reverted back to his original red livery. When the series switched to full CGI in 2009, Bulgy was then absent for eight years.

In 2017, he made his return in the twenty-first series where he was used to carry passengers once more and despite still believing that passengers should travel by road, he means well and works hard. He eventually played an antagonistic role again in the twenty-third series episode, Free the Roads where he caused the engines to become ill and used it to his advantage to carry passengers, until he learned that having too many passengers was not so easy for the buses on their own.

Voice

Since his return in 2017, Bulgy has been voiced by Colin McFarlane in both the British English and American English dubs of the series. McFarlane portrays him with a stuffy voice, and gives him a hoarse cockney accent.

Behind the Scenes

Gauge 1 models

Bulgy's models were built to run on Styrofoam road and were painted in glossy car body paint. Bulgy's tyres were sourced from Dunlop Tyres made by an unknown model company. Three models of Bulgy were built, one as a standard bus, one in a henhouse condition, and one as a vegetable stand. The roof of the red model was removable, making it accessible for human figurines to be placed inside. All three models shared the same eye mechanism and was switched around to each model when necessary.

The eye mechanism had two servos, one for up and down movement and one for left and right movement. The up/down servo was attached to the body. The left/right servo had a rod attached to the arm, which connected to a bracket. The eyeballs were coupled to the bracket and locked in by the face-plate, so whenever the servos were powered, the eyeballs would move however the crew member desired.

Reference Sheets

Series 3

Series 8 (Standard Model)

Series 8 (Henhouse Model)

Series 8 (Vegetable Stand Model)

Faces

Ten different facial expressions were sculpted for Bulgy, although only eight were used on-screen and two of which, his worried and scared expressions were unused. The faces were first sculpted in clay and from that resin casts were made using a silicone mould. A radiator was attached to each of Bulgy's faces.

Reference Sheets

Usage and Evolution

Present Day

One of Bulgy's faces is now owned by twitter user ThomasTankMerch. A production made cast of his annoyed face was also sold by The Prop Gallery in 2022, and is now owned by Twitter user SkarloeyRailwayAdventure. His frightened face would also be present during the construction of Drayton Manor's new Discover Thomas & Friends Exhibition layout in 2023 alongside his annoyed face (which was worn on the actual model during construction and on the final display.

Model Changes

Bulgy went through many changes over the years in the television series:

Series 7:
- His paint was given a matte finish.
- His bell was replaced with a horn.
- As a henhouse:
  - His broken axle, bonnet and deck pole were repaired.
  - His bent bumper was changed.
- As a bus, after he was restored:
  - His rivets on his bumper disappeared.
  - He permanently gained a "Railway Bus" sign on both sides.
- As a vegetable stand:
  - He was painted green.
  - His "roofbox" above the top deck windows disappeared.
  - His "Railway Bus" signs were replaced with signs that said "Mobile Grocery Store".
  - He had a serving hatch for his vegetables.
Series 10:
- He returned to his original state as a passenger bus.

Present Day

After production of the model series wrapped in 2008, most of the models and sets would be put into storage, with some being put on display at Drayton Manor Theme Park. All other models would be logged and referenced from 2010 until early 2011 by HiT Entertainment. From this HiT would decide on which models were to enter storage once again, which would be given to crew members and which would be disposed off. Due to only having one set of models made in gauge 1 scale, Bulgy's models would stay under HiT and later Mattel's ownership.

Bulgy's model (in original red livery) was on display at the Discover Thomas & Friends Exhibition at Drayton Manor with his happy face. In early 2020, the model was given a smiling face until sometime later in the same year, it was sent to Japan and it was put on display at the Thomas the Tank Engine Exhibition. However during the construction of Drayton's Manor's new Discover Thomas & Friends Exhibiton layout in 2023, Bulgy's model was sent back to England, and it was later put on display at the exhibit in late 2023.

Two sets of spare unused lettering sheets for Bulgy's model, in both white and red, are also currently owned by Twitter user TomsProps.

Close-up model

A close-up model of Bulgy was required for scenes where he had to interact with close-up scale figures. It was also used for interior shots. The model was not complete and only his bottom deck, along with the wheels, were built. Bulgy's close-up model only appeared in the seventh series episode, Bulgy Rides Again.

Reference Sheets

CGI model

In 2009, the series introduced Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI) as a replacement for the show's long-standing live-action models. Bulgy was recreated from scratch in CGI by Jam Filled Toronto in 2017 for the production of the twenty-first series. His model was "hand-sculpted" in Maya, a 3D animation and modelling software. Photographs of Bulgy's Gauge 1 model were used for reference.

Bulgy has had modifications throughout the CGI series. These include:

Series 21:
- His face became smaller and the rounded edges became square.
- His body became wider.
- His bumper became taller.
- His wheels became thinner, his wheel arches became red and his rear hubcaps became the same as his front ones.
- His radiator became red.
- He gained a new nameplate, rather than his name being painted on him.
- His clear windows became glazed so viewers cannot see inside.
- He gained a door for his driver.
- He went back to having a bell and gained a new bell sound.
- His red paint became slightly duller.
Series 23:
- He gained vents next to his "Free the Roads" sign.
- He regained his BLG 1 number plate from the Railway Series.
- He gained a full interior and transparent windows.
- He gained some rivets on his front bumper either side of his number plate.
- His indicator lights returned.
- He gained rear view wing mirrors.
- He gained handles on the side of his bonnet.
- He gained ridges along his body.
- He gained a windscreen wiper.