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Jack and the Sodor Construction Company

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This article is about the mini-series. You may be looking for the group of characters.

Jack and the Sodor Construction Company, also known as Jack and the Pack,[1] is a mini-series of Thomas & Friends devised by Phil Fehrle. The mini-series lasted thirteen episodes and featured narration from Michael Angelis in the UK and Michael Brandon in the US.

Production

Plans for a spinoff series were in developed as far back as March 2001, shortly after Thomas and the Magic Railroad. Early plans was to have focused on pre-existing non-rail characters like Bertie and Harold[2]. This plan was changed after a marketing meeting.

In a SiF interview, Phil Fehrle explained:

“ The concept for the series came out of meeting with Gullane's marketing people in New York, who wanted to make a companion series to Thomas that would appeal to the next higher age group (6-8). Their market research showed that in terms of selling toys, boys in this age group like toys they can “push and pull, load and unload.” Therefore, I suggested to them that we use heavy construction vehicles (not Bob the Builder vehicles, but really big ones).

They bought the idea and I returned to Los Angeles and began to do research at various construction sites to find out what the character dynamics were of the various heavy equipment operators.

Among the operators, there is a great deal of pride in their work and also a great deal of competition. They also take great care of their machinery – the life’s blood of their work. However, they universally dislike the truck drivers. The truck drivers are seen as careless with their equipment, careless with other people's equipment, always banging into it, and not requiring very much skill to do their jobs. That’s why we made the two dump trucks the heavies in Jack and the Pack.[3]

”

The characters of the Sodor Construction Company (with the exception of Patrick, Buster, Nelson, and Monty) first appeared in two sixth series episodes, Jack Jumps In and A Friend in Need, which were written as the pilot episodes for the spin-off series.

Plans for the spin-off series being standalone from the main franchise were soon scrapped following Gullane Entertainment getting acquired by HiT Entertainment in July 2002. HiT originally wanted to outright cancel the spin-off due to wanting to avoid it competing with "Bob the Builder", which HiT already owned. Phil Fehrle however, managed to convince the company to let them film thirteen of the planned twenty-six episodes, and the standalone spin-off now becoming a mini-series apart of the main Thomas & Friends series[4]. Another reason given to this shortening was it "proved far too expensive to continue."[5]

As a result of this change, the thirteen episodes that were filmed would be rewritten to incorporate Thomas and Percy into the plots.[6] Filming would last from 2002 up to early 2003[7], being filmed alongside the seventh series.

On August 15, 2006, a US DVD called On Site with Thomas and Other Adventures was released, containing six episodes of the series, being the first time the mini-series would be released. Later, on 2 October of that same year, a UK and Irish DVD called Thomas' Trusty Friends was released, containing eleven episodes of the series, including all the remaining ones that had not yet been released. Since then, The Pack has made appearances in the 2008 special, The Great Discovery, and the twelfth series episode, Percy and the Bandstand.

Jack returned in CGI form in the 2013 special King of the Railway and appeared again in the second 2015 special Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure, in which Alfie, Oliver, Max and Monty also returned. They have since become minor recurring characters in the series, making a handful of cameos from the nineteenth series to the twenty-second series, their biggest role during this time being in the twentieth series episode, Mucking About. In the twenty-third series, which had the characters starring in a handful of episodes, would introduce new members Darcy and Brenda to add some gender balance, just like the addition of Nia and Rebecca to the Steam Team in the previous series.

For this series, large-scale models of Thomas, Percy and Trevor were built. As of 2024, Thomas and Percy's Gauge 3.5 models are now on display in Japan at Thomas Town (formerly on display at the Thomas the Tank Engine Exhibition and Hara Model Railway Museum). They were built in 1996 as part of tests for a possible theatrical film at the time. Trevor is preserved to Twitter user ThomasTankMerch. They also own a 7-plank truck that was used during the show's production. However, Thomas' Gauge 3.5 model had made appearances in the eighth series episodes Fish and Gordon Takes Charge, a Calling All Engines! Learning Segment, and two tenth series episodes Thomas' Frosty Friend and Topped Off Thomas. Trevor's model for this series had also appeared in a Learning Segment, the eighth series episode Thomas and the Tuba and the ninth series episode Henry and the Flagpole.

Episodes

Pilots

Screenshot Title Written By Original UK release date
JackJumpsIn94 Jack Jumps In Phil Fehrle
Jonathan Trueman
Abi Grant		 24 September 2002
A new front loader named Jack arrives on Sodor for the first time and is eager to be really useful but foolishly tries to take a load of rocks up a hill himself, leading to disaster.
AFriendinNeed59 A Friend in Need Phil Fehrle
Jonathan Trueman
Abi Grant		 25 September 2002
Ned the Steam Shovel accidentally knocks the keystone out of a bridge. It begins to fall as Thomas approaches it, so Jack tries to hold it up with his bucket.

The episode numbers in the following list were sourced from a document listing which episodes had been filmed and which had not.[8] These numbers are also used in the storyboards.[1]

Completed/Released

Screenshot Official title (top)
Original title (bottom) 		Written By Episode number #
AlfieHasKittens69 Alfie Has Kittens Abi Grant #02
Alfie is depressed when the other machines tease him for being small. However, he learns that being small can be very useful.
JackOwnsUp23 Jack Owns Up Paul Larson #03
Jack knocks over some roofing slate. When Ned is blamed for the accident, will Jack do the right thing and own up to save his friend?
OnSiteWithThomas10 On Site with Thomas
Who's the Boss		 Will Ing #06
The Pack, except Jack and Alfie all argue over whose job is more important - including Patrick the Cement Mixer who ends up face-first in his own concrete and is put in his place.
AVisitFromThomas53 A Visit from Thomas
Oliversaurus		 Paul Dawson #07
Whilst digging the foundations for a new school, Oliver the Excavator unearths a dinosaur skeleton.
MudGloriousMud52 Mud Glorious Mud Jonathan Trueman #10
The machines run out of fuel, so Isobella is sent to pick up some more. She does not like getting dirty, but is forced to go through muddy paddocks.
ThomasAndTheMoles52 Thomas and the Moles
Buster 1, Moles 0		 Jan Needle #13
Buster feels left out when he does not have any jobs to do. However, Miss Jenny discovers mole hills on a field and calls Buster to flatten the mole hills.
TheTortoiseAndTheHare12 The Tortoise and the Hare Will Ing #14
Max and Monty tease Buster about being slow and challenge him to a race.
Percy'sScaryTale56 Percy's Scary Tale
Scaredy, Scaredy		 Jonathan Trueman #15
Kelly tells a scary story about a one-eyed truck to the machines. Max and Monty tease everyone about it, but end up looking silly.
Kelly'sWindyDay42 Kelly's Windy Day
Five Easy Pieces		 Phil Fehrle #20
Kelly is blown over by strong winds which makes him nervous of working in windy conditions. Can he face up to his fear in order to save Isobella?
PercyHelpsOut53 Percy Helps Out
Nelson Gets Carried Away		 Brian Trueman #21
Nelson is tired of his job of always having to carry the other machines and dreams to be carried himself.
AHappyDayforPercy55 A Happy Day for Percy
Byron Saves the Day		 Paul Larson #22
Byron the Bulldozer is tired of being ignored. He is later the centre of attention when he has to save Alfie.
Thomas'TrustyFriends81 Thomas' Trusty Friends
Another Fine Mess		 Paul Larson #23
Ned is disappointed when Oliver is given the chance to demolish buildings.
ATaleforThomas80 A Tale for Thomas
The Lightning Tree		 Paul Larson #24
The Pack are repairing the Lightning Tree in Maithwaite Forest when Max and Monty run into it. The tree is about to collapse, but can Jack, Alfie, Kelly and Oliver save it?

Screenshot Title Written by Original UK DVD release date Episode number #
ATaleforThomas80 A Tale for Thomas Paul Larson 2 October 2006 #01
The Pack are repairing the Lightning Tree in Maithwaite Forest when Max and Monty run into it. The tree is about to collapse, but can Jack, Alfie, Kelly and Oliver save it?
ThomasAndTheMoles52 Thomas and the Moles Jan Needle 2 October 2006 #02
Buster feels left out when he does not have any jobs to do. However, Miss Jenny discovers mole hills on a field and calls Buster to flatten the mole hills.
Kelly'sWindyDay42 Kelly's Windy Day Phil Fehrle 2 October 2006 #03
Kelly is blown over by strong winds which makes him nervous of working in windy conditions. Can he face up to his fear in order to save Isobella?
PercyHelpsOut53 Percy Helps Out Brian Trueman 2 October 2006 #04
Nelson is tired of his job of always having to carry the other machines and dreams to be carried himself.
TheTortoiseAndTheHare12 The Tortoise and the Hare Will Ing 2 October 2006 #05
Max and Monty tease Buster about being slow and challenge him to a race.
Thomas'TrustyFriends81 Thomas' Trusty Friends Paul Larson 2 October 2006 #06
Ned is disappointed when Oliver is given the chance to demolish buildings.
OnSiteWithThomas10 On Site with Thomas Will Ing 2 October 2006 #07
The Pack, except Jack and Alfie all argue over whose job is more important - including Patrick the Cement Mixer who ends up face-first in his own concrete and is put in his place.
AlfieHasKittens69 Alfie Has Kittens Abi Grant 2 October 2006 #08
Alfie is depressed when the other machines tease him for being small. However, he learns that being small can be very useful.
AHappyDayforPercy55 A Happy Day for Percy Paul Larson 2 October 2006 #09
Byron the Bulldozer is tired of being ignored. He is later the centre of attention when he has to save Alfie.
AVisitFromThomas53 A Visit from Thomas Paul Dawson 2 October 2006 #10
Whilst digging the foundations for a new school, Oliver the Excavator unearths a dinosaur skeleton.
MudGloriousMud52 Mud Glorious Mud Jonathan Trueman 2 October 2006 #11
The machines run out of fuel, so Isobella is sent to pick up some more. She does not like getting dirty, but is forced to go through muddy paddocks.
JackOwnsUp23 Jack Owns Up Paul Larson 2006 #12
Jack knocks over some roofing slate. When Ned is blamed for the accident, will Jack do the right thing and own up to save his friend?
Percy'sScaryTale56 Percy's Scary Tale Jonathan Trueman 2006 #13
Kelly tells a scary story about a one-eyed truck to the machines. Max and Monty tease everyone about it, but end up looking silly.

Screenshot Title Written by Original US DVD release date Episode number #
AVisitFromThomas53 A Visit from Thomas Paul Dawson 15 August 2006 #01
Whilst digging the foundations for a new school, Oliver the Excavator unearths a dinosaur skeleton.
JackOwnsUp23 Jack Owns Up Paul Larson 15 August 2006 #02
Jack knocks over some roofing slate. When Ned is blamed for the accident, will Jack do the right thing and own up to save his friend?
OnSiteWithThomas10 On Site with Thomas Will Ing 15 August 2006 #03
The Pack, except Jack and Alfie all argue over whose job is more important - including Patrick the Cement Mixer who ends up face-first in his own concrete and is put in his place.
Percy'sScaryTale56 Percy's Scary Tale Jonathan Trueman 15 August 2006 #04
Kelly tells a scary story about a one-eyed truck to the machines. Max and Monty tease everyone about it, but end up looking silly.
Kelly'sWindyDay42 Kelly's Windy Day Phil Fehrle 15 August 2006 #05
Kelly is blown over by strong winds which makes him nervous of working in windy conditions. Can he face up to his fear in order to save Isobella?
AHappyDayforPercy55 A Happy Day for Percy Paul Larson 15 August 2006 #06
Byron the Bulldozer is tired of being ignored. He is later the centre of attention when he has to save Alfie.
Thomas'TrustyFriends81 Thomas' Trusty Friends Paul Larson 1 May 2007 #07
Ned is disappointed when Oliver is given the chance to demolish buildings.
AlfieHasKittens69 Alfie Has Kittens Abi Grant 1 May 2007 #08
Alfie is depressed when the other machines tease him for being small. However, he learns that being small can be very useful.
ATaleforThomas80 A Tale for Thomas Paul Larson 1 May 2007 #09
The Pack are repairing the Lightning Tree in Maithwaite Forest when Max and Monty run into it. The tree is about to collapse, but can Jack, Alfie, Kelly and Oliver save it?
PercyHelpsOut53 Percy Helps Out Brian Trueman 1 May 2007 #10
Nelson is tired of his job of always having to carry the other machines and dreams to be carried himself.
TheTortoiseAndTheHare12 The Tortoise and the Hare Will Ing 1 May 2007 #11
Max and Monty tease Buster about being slow and challenge him to a race.
ThomasAndTheMoles52 Thomas and the Moles Jan Needle 1 May 2007 #12
Buster feels left out when he does not have any jobs to do. However, Miss Jenny discovers mole hills on a field and calls Buster to flatten the mole hills.
MudGloriousMud52 Mud Glorious Mud Jonathan Trueman 6 May 2008 #13
The machines run out of fuel, so Isobella is sent to pick up some more. She does not like getting dirty, but is forced to go through muddy paddocks.

Cancelled

The order of the episodes in the following list were sourced from a document listing which episodes had been filmed and which had not. It is unclear if this was the intended order of the cancelled episodes as, unlike the filmed episodes, they were not numbered in the document.[8]

Screenshot Title Written by Original release date Episode number #
Byron Bossy Byron Paul Larson n/a #1
When Kelly is sent for repairs, Byron puts himself in charge and starts to boss all the other machines about.
AlfieModelPromo Alfie Has a Secret ? n/a #4
Alfie builds a crossing for some hedgehogs, while Jack and Isobella make one for the schoolchildren.
AlfieModelSeries Treasure Hunt Robin Rigby n/a #5
Kelly tells the Pack about their next site, which may have buried treasure! Jack and Alfie race to uncover the secrets, but what will they find underground?
MainByronModel All Work, No Play Emma Collins n/a #8
The Pack are in the village finishing work on a playground site. Everyone is excited but Byron is too serious about his job to have fun.
JackJumpsIn63 The Grass is Greener Will Ing n/a #9
Jack and Alfie decide to swap jobs. However, Jack grows restless and Alfie becomes exhausted.
JacktheFrontLoaderPromo Jack and the Quack ? n/a #11
Jack accidentally damages a duck pond and is disappointed when he is forced to look everywhere for the ducks.
PatrickPromo The Importance of Being Patrick ? n/a #12
Patrick feels he is being taken for granted and Miss Jenny gets a frantic phone call about holes in a concrete path.
MainIsobellaModel Isobella Gets Steamed ? n/a #16
The vicar's tractor engine breaks down and Isobella has to pull the float with the choir.
Kelly Kelly's Heroes Phil Fehrle (Story) n/a #17
Jack has trouble taking advice from the other machines, especially Kelly, to be careful during construction of a viaduct.
MainIsobellaModel Pop Goes the Diesel Paul Larson n/a #18
Max and Monty tell Isobella that Miss Jenny will soon get rid of the steam-powered vehicles in favour of diesel-powered ones.
JacktheFrontLoaderPromo Jack's Snow Rescue Paul Dawson n/a #19
A group of schoolchildren are trapped high in the mountains. Jack is fitted with a snowplough and rumbles into heroic action.
AHappyDayforPercy22 Safety First Robin Rigby n/a #25
Max and Monty are not safe while working until something bad happens.
Byron No Dozer is an Island Brian Trueman n/a #26
Byron sinks and the Pack think of how to save their friend.

Songs

Screenshot Title Composers Original release date
AHappyDayforPercy9 The Work Song Ed Welch 15th August 2006 (US/CAN; DVD)
Sodor's always busy with jobs that must be done
Being really useful is not just work, it's fun...
OneFriendlyFamily One Friendly Family Ed Welch 1st May 2007 (US/CAN; DVD)
Thomas has so many friends.
Some fast, some tall, some slow,...

Characters

Characters Introduced

Locations

Trivia

  • This series is called by several titles;
  • This series takes place between the main show's seventh and eighth series and was filmed during the classic era alongside the seventh series in 2003,[10] but was released in the summer between the ninth and tenth series during the HiT era.
  • This mini-series, if classified as a series in its own right, is the shortest series to date, having only thirteen episodes.
  • Lots of the episodes had different titles[12], but they were renamed by HiT Entertainment to include "Thomas" or "Percy", and so, only four episodes would keep their original titles.[13]
  • Unlike the released episodes, none of the cancelled episodes include Thomas or Percy on the outlines.
  • This is the second series directed by Steve Asquith, following the sixth series (in production order).
  • This is the first series produced by Phil Fehrle and Gullane Entertainment since the seventh series.
  • This is one of the few series to never air on TV, not counting the pilot episodes made during the sixth series.
  • The opening and closing credits for the spin-off series use the seventh series intro sequence and credit scene in the UK and the eighth series one in the US and AUS.
  • Percy's gauge 3.5 model for this series has red step ladders on the end of his running board instead of green, and his dome is green instead of gold.
  • The Official Website, as well as various magazine articles and Trading Cards' facts, state that the Horrid Lorries were "especially built to work at the Sodor Construction Company".[14] It is therefore possible that they may have been originally intended to be a part of the Pack.
  • This is the only series to feature Alfie's horn sound. This is also the first series to feature Jack's horn sound.
  • This was David Mitton's second and final series as model consultant, counting the sixth series episodes, Jack Jumps In and A Friend in Need, prior to his departure from the series due to his frustrations with HiT Entertainment over the lack of creative freedom on the show.
  • If this spin-off is classified as a series, then this the only series in which where Henry, Gordon, James, Toby and Salty appear, but never speak since their introductions.
    • Also, if that being the case, this is the only series in which where Toby does not appear outside of stock footage, as well as the only series where Edward and Emily do not appear since their introductions.
  • This is also the last series since the main show's eighth series and special, Calling All Engines!, to use stock footage either directed by David Mitton or produced by Gullane Entertainment before his death two years later.
    • Also, this is the final series since the main show's seventh series to use stock footage produced by Clearwater Features.
  • This series was never shown in Wales (in Welsh), Latin America, Spain, Brazil, Portugal, France, Romania, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Russia, Greece, Albania, Turkey, Israel, the Middle East, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, South Korea, China, Taiwan or Hong Kong.
    • In fact, the episodes Jack Owns Up and Percy's Scary Tale were never shown in Australia, the Netherlands and Germany and are UK and US exclusives.
    • A temporary Japanese title is displayed in the ending credit of 2003, probably because it was planned to be released in Japan; for unknown reasons, however, plans have been cancelled due to the HiT Entertainment buyout on the series in 2004.
  • Mike O'Donnell stated on YouTube that he and Junior Campbell had recorded music to be used for the series. However when the series was released on DVD, the newly composed music by Robert Hartshorne was used instead. It is unknown why this was like that, but it is likely done to make the series more in-line with the new episodes during Seasons 8, 9, and 10 at the time of HiT Entertainment's involvement with the show. The score for the spin-off series, despite being recorded and completed, have never been released.
  • A Visit From Thomas is the only episode where Thomas doesn't speak, and A Happy Day For Percy is the only episode where he doesn't appear at all.

In Other Languages

Language Title
Dutch De betrouwbare vriendjes van Thomas
German Thomas und seine treuen Freunde
Japanese ジャックとソドーとうけんせつがいしゃ (tentative title)

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 T&F Storyboards for "Jack and the Pack"
  2. ↑ News article mentioning plans for a spinoff series, 21 March 2001
  3. ↑ Phil Fehrle's SiF interview about Series 6-7
  4. ↑ 2012 Chris Lloyd interview from SiF
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Jack and the Pack on Abi Grant's website
  6. ↑ 2009 SiF interview with Phil Fehrle
  7. ↑ File:JackProductionBoard.jpg
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jz8zcBoS_bO0_xUhhkRq7QtKRgewPc-X/view
  9. ↑ Thomas the Tank Engine on Bruce Gordon's website
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 T&F Production board for "Episode 6"
  11. ↑ TheIronEngine on Twitter
  12. ↑ #01 Oliversaurus; #03 Who's the Boss; #04 Scaredy, Scaredy; #05 Five Easy Pieces; #06 Byron Saves the Day; #07 The Lightning Tree; #08 Buster 1, Moles 0; #09 Nelson Gets Carried Away; #11 Another Fine Mess
  13. ↑ #02 Jack Owns Up; #10 The Tortoise and the Hare; #12 Alfie Has Kittens; #13 Mud Glorious Mud
  14. ↑ Main article: The Horrid Lorries/Behind the Scenes#Television Series


Jack and the Sodor Construction Company

#02 Alfie Has Kittens #21 Percy Helps Out n/a Bossy Byron
#03 Jack Owns Up #22 A Happy Day for Percy n/a The Importance of Being Patrick
#06 On Site with Thomas #23 Thomas' Trusty Friends n/a Pop Goes the Diesel
#07 A Visit from Thomas #24 A Tale for Thomas n/a Jack and the Quack
#10 Mud Glorious Mud  n/a No Dozer is an Island n/a Alfie Has a Secret
#13 Thomas and the Moles  n/a All Work, No Play n/a Isobella Gets Steamed
#14 The Tortoise and the Hare  n/a Safety First n/a The Grass is Greener
#15 Percy's Scary Tale  n/a Treasure Hunt n/a Kelly's Heroes
#20 Kelly's Windy Day  n/a Jack's Snow Rescue
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