Lower Tidmouth/Behind the Scenes

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Behind the Scenes

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This is a behind the scenes subpage for Lower Tidmouth. This subpage contains all behind the scenes material relating to said article.

Background Information

Television Series

Lower Tidmouth is a fictional station on the Island of Sodor created by Britt Allcroft and David Mitton. It serves as an intermediate station on The Main Line. Former Railway Consultant Sam Wilkinson's 2014 map of Sodor places it between Tidmouth and Knapford.

Lower Tidmouth first appeared in the first series of the television series, in the episode Whistles and Sneezes, which first aired in 1984. Its final appearance was in the sixth series episode Thomas the Jet Engine, which first aired in 2002.

Behind the Scenes

Gauge 1 model

Lower Tidmouth was originally built for the test shoots as an O Gauge model. Its appearance was partially modelled after the Country Station as well as Cronk as illustrated in The Railway Series. While the tests were unsuccessful, the model would later be modified and re-used for the unaired pilot and the rest of the first series. The station had extensions added to make it appear larger and thus in-scale with the Gauge 1 props used in the final production.

C. Reginald Dalby's station design in The Three Railway Engines was the direct basis

Concept art

Overview of the Tidmouth District circa Series 1

Lower Tidmouth in the unaired pilot

Lower Tidmouth in the first series

The station appeared in a promotional photoshoot (photographed 9th October 1984) alongside Ringo Starr, Wilbert and Christopher Awdry. Later, in 1993, the station building formed part of a small diorama at the London Transport Museum.

Ringo Starr with Gordon, Percy, Thomas, James and Henry, photographed 9th October 1984

Wilbert Awdry, Christopher Awdry and the model engines from the first series

Christopher Awdry poses alongside the station building, on display at the London Transport Museum (1993)

The main station building was later reused for the sets of Bertram's Old Mine, Old Manor Station and The Church Station in the fifth series.

The station building reused at Bertram's Old Mine in Toby's Discovery

The station building redressed and reused as the Old Station in Oliver's Find

The station building (minus its canopy) reused as The Church Station in Sir Topham Hatt's Holiday

During 2009, Lower Tidmouth's station building was briefly moved to Drayton Manor Theme Park during the construction of its Discover Thomas exhibition. The station was not used on the layout, however, so the building was returned to storage.

The original Lower Tidmouth buildings are now owned by Twitter user TomsProps. On 12 October 2019, the restored props were exhibited at the Gauge 1 Model Railway Association show's annual show, which was held in Kenilworth near Coventry, and at the Bournemouth Model Railway Exhibition in February 2020 and at various events in 2022.

The station building spotted at Drayton Manor Theme Park during the construction of the Discover Thomas exhibition

Lower Tidmouth owned by Twitter user TomsProps (prior to restoration)

Lower Tidmouth on display in Coventry

Lower Tidmouth on display in Bournemouth

Lower Tidmouth on display at the Spa Valley Railway (Tunbridge Wells)

Reference Sheets

Third series ruler reference of Lower Tidmouth

eighth series ruler reference of the road bridge

Close-up model

A close-up model of a small portion of Lower Tidmouth station was built to be used for scenes involving the close-up scale figures.

Reference Sheets

Eighth series ruler reference of the close-up station sign

Eighth series ruler reference of the most beautiful station contest poster

Eighth series ruler reference of the most beautiful station contest winner sign