Nickelodeon is an American basic cable and satellite television network launched on 1 December 1977 and is owned by Paramount Global, through Paramount Domestic Media Networks, and based in New York City.
Their preschool block, Nick Jr. aired Thomas & Friends in the UK and Ireland from 1999-2017 and aired Shining Time Station throughout the summer of 2000 in the US to promote the film Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
In the Netherlands, Thomas & Friends aired on Nickelodeon from 1 September 2002 up until 10 May 2015. Series 6 to series 11 and series 13 premiered on this channel between 2004 and 2010. Nickelodeon also re-aired series 1 to series 5. Nickelodeon always aired standalone episodes.
Thomas & Friends aired on Nick Jr. from December 2005 up until 10 May 2015 in the Netherlands. The preschool channel aired the same series as Nickelodeon did in the country.
Thomas & Friends aired on Nickelodeon in the US on 15 December 2017 with a showing of The Christmas Coffeepot and Terence Breaks the Ice. The following week, Emily in the Middle, Daisy's Perfect Christmas, The Big Freeze and Over the Hill aired on the Nick Jr. channel.
After PBS' contract for the series ended on 31 December 2017, Mattel announced that Nick Jr. would be the new US home for Thomas & Friends beginning on 12 March 2018 with an airing of The Adventure Begins. Nickelodeon also aired episodes and at the time, they were the exclusive consumer products licenser for the US.
In 2020, Mattel ended their contract with Nickelodeon and made a new deal with Netflix to stream Thomas & Friends episodes in March the same year. However, the two companies later drew a up a new contract that sees Nickelodeon broadcasting the UK dub of All Engines Go in 2022.
Contents
Airings
2017
- (15th December 2017) - The Christmas Coffeepot/Terence Breaks the Ice
2018
- (12th March 2018) - The Adventure Begins
- (13th March 2018) - Unscheduled Stops/Springtime for Diesel
- (14th March 2018) - Dowager Hatt's Busy Day/Stuck in Gear
- (15th March 2018) - Blown Away/Wild Water Rescue
- (16th March 2018) - The Little Engine Who Raced Ahead/Philip to the Rescue
- (19th March 2018) - P.A. Problems/Hasty Hannah
- (20th March 2018) - Runaway Engine/Confused Coaches
- (21st March 2018) - Slow Stephen/Two Wheels Good
- (22nd March 2018) - Reds vs Blues/Best Engine Ever
- (29th March 2018) - Engine of the Future/Hugo and the Airship
- (16th April 2018) - Three Steam Engines Gruff
- (17th April 2018) - Henry in the Dark
- (18th April 2018) - Skiff and the Mermaid
- (19th April 2018) - The Missing Breakdown Train
- (14th May 2018) - Pouty James
- (15th May 2018) - The Way She Does It
- (16th May 2018) - The Other Side of the Mountain
- (17th May 2018) - Who's Geoffrey?
- (2nd July 2018) - Journey Beyond Sodor (Part 1)
- (3rd July 2018) - Journey Beyond Sodor (Part 2)
- (4th July 2018) - Journey Beyond Sodor (Part 3)
- (5th July 2018) - Diesel and the Ducklings/Toad and the Whale
- (6th July 2018) - Mike's Whistle/Useful Railway
- (7th September 2018) - Big World! Big Adventures!
- (17th September 2018) - Number One Engine/What Rebecca Does
- (27th December 2018) - Thomas in the Wild
2019
- (4th February 2019) - Thomas and the Dragon/Seeing is Believing
- (5th April 2019) - Cyclone Thomas/Samson and the Fireworks
- (30th December 2019) - Deep Trouble/Rangers of the Rails
Trivia
- Prior to Nick airing the series, the Minis line released toys resembling SpongeBob SquarePants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Power Ranger characters.
- Shout! Factory also made Nickelodeon DVDs for the US market.
- This is the last US TV channel to date to air Thomas & Friends in the US in its original format.