Since its creation, Thomas & Friends has been dubbed into many languages other than English.
Azerbaijan
In Azerbaijan, the show is called "Tomas və dostları".
Trivia
- The Azerbaijani dub of Thomas and the Magic Railroad is voiced over the English version.
- The Azerbaijani dub of the fourteenth series credits Michael Angelis as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
Brazil
In Brazil, the series is known as "Thomas e seus amigos" and is narrated by Tatá Guarnieri from the first series to the fifth and Hero of the Rails onwards, with Dário de Castro having narrated from the eighth series to the twelfth.
Voice Cast
Trivia
- Down the Mine and Thomas' Christmas Party, the final two episodes of Series 1, were narrated by Dário de Castro even though the rest of the series was narrated by Tatá Guarnieri.
- George Carlin is credited as the narrator on several DVD releases, despite being re-dubbed. The opening credits from the eighth-twelfth series also credit Michael Brandon as the narrator, even though the series was re-dubbed.
- The sixth and seventh series as well as Jack and the Sodor Construction Company and The Adventure Begins were never dubbed due to unknown personal reasons.
- Also, the episodes Thomas Goes Fishing, Percy Takes the Plunge, Percy's Predicament, Gordon and the Famous Visitor, Thomas Gets Bumped, The Trouble with Mud, No Joke for James, Edward, Trevor and the Really Useful Party, Oliver's Find and Make Someone Happy were not dubbed.
Catalonia
In Catalonia, Spain, the series is known as "En Thomas i els seus amics".
Character Names
- Bash and Dash - Paf i Crac
China
In China, the series is known in Mandarin as "火車頭日記" (Huǒchētóu rìjì) which translates to "Locomotive Diary". The series was later reintroduced as "托马斯和朋友" (Tuōmǎsī hé péngyǒu), meaning "Thomas and Friends". The series is narrated by Jiang Guangtao.
Character Names
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Trivia
- The Mandarin narrations of the first series credit Ringo Starr as the narrator and the fourth series credits George Carlin as the narrator, even though they were re-dubbed. The opening credits of the eighth to twelfth series also credit Michael Angelis as the narrator even though it was re-dubbed.
- Thomas and Friends is one of the very few television programmes originally produced in English to have aired in mainland China, not including Hong Kong or Macau. This is due to China's efforts to protect their own film industry.
- The first twenty books of The Railway Series were translated into Mandarin, making it one of the few other languages that the series has been translated into.
Hong Kong
- In Hong Kong, both the British English dub and a local Cantonese dub entitled "湯馬仕小火車" are shown, literally translating to "Thomas the Little Train". Additionally, home media releases in Hong Kong have both British English and Cantonese audio.
Croatia
In Croatia, the series is known as "Tomica i Prijatelji". The current narrator is Tomislav Stojković.
Character Names
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Trivia
- The opening credits in the first series credits Ringo Starr as the narrator even though it was re-dubbed.
- Only the first-second, eighth-twelfth, seventeenth, nineteenth and twenty-second series and Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure have been dubbed. However, the last two episodes of the second series, Woolly Bear and Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree, were not dubbed.
Czech Republic
In the Czech Republic, the series is known by several names, the most common being "Lokomotiva Tomáš" and "Mašinka Tomáš" (both roughly translating to "Locomotive Thomas"). It used to be known as "Tomáš a přátelé" (meaning Thomas and Friends) in the first and third series or "Tom a jeho přátelé" (meaning Tom and his Friends) in the second series. The first to third series were narrated by Radovan Vaculík and since the fourth series it has been narrated by Bohuslav Kalva. The Thomas & Friends episodes were all aired on Minimax.
Character Names
- Thomas - Tomáš (first series onwards, excluding the second series)/Tom (second series only)
- Edward - Eduard
- Henry - Jindra
- James - Jakub
- Toby - Toby
- Duck - Kačer
- Flying Scotsman - Létající Skot
- Duke - Vévoda
- Toad - Ropucha
- S.C. Ruffey - Ošumělý
- Bulgy - Náfuka
- George - Jirka
- Caroline - Karolína
Voice Cast
- Pavel Tesař - Thomas (Hero of the Rails - seventeenth series)
- Jan Kalous - Thomas (Tale of the Brave onwards)
- Radek Hoppe - Luke (Blue Mountain Mystery only)
- Bohdan Tůma - Diesel (Blue Mountain Mystery onwards) and Luke (King of the Railway onwards)
Trivia
- The opening credits from the first and second series credit Ringo Starr as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- The opening credits from the third to sixteenth series credit Michael Angelis as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- The opening credits from the seventeenth and eighteenth series credit Mark Moraghan as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- From the twenty-second series onwards, every non-Sodor episode features The Journey Never Ends at the end of the episode instead of the Engine Roll Call.
Denmark
In Denmark, the series is known as "Thomas og Vennerne" or "Lokomotivet Thomas og hans venner" and was narrated by Povl Dissing from the first to fourth series and Tommy Kenter from the fifth to seventh series. In the eighth to sixteenth series, Povl Dissing stepped back into the role of narrator, with Ole Fick narrating The Great Discovery. Since the seventeenth series, the series has been narrated by Lars Mikkelsen.
Voice Cast
- Caspar Phillipson - Thomas, Henry and Troublesome Trucks
- Troells Toya - James, Percy, Paxton, Kevin and Sir Topham Hatt
- Torbjørn Hummel - Spencer and Sir Robert Norramby
- Tillie Bech - Caitlin and Millie
Trivia
- The twelfth series and Jack and the Sodor Construction Company were never dubbed.
- The show premiered in Denmark in August 1996.
- Harold is called Harald.
- Cranky is called Kranus.
Estonia
In Estonia, the series is called "Toomas ja Sõbrad".
Character Names
Finland
In Finland, the series is known as "Tuomas Veturi" ("Thomas the Locomotive"), Aku Laitinen was the narrator from the first to the fifteenth series and Calling All Engines to Tale of the Brave. Starting in the twenty-second series, Juha Varis, voicing Thomas, has narrated the series. The classic series was translated by Anu Karvonen and Johanna Mattila.
Character Names
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Voice Cast
Since the thirteenth series, there has been a voice cast:
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Trivia
- The opening credits of the first and second series credit Ringo Starr as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- The opening credits of the third to sixteenth series credit Michael Angelis as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- Thomas and the Magic Railroad, Jack and the Sodor Construction Company, the sixteenth -twenty-first series, The Adventure Begins, The Great Race and Journey Beyond Sodor were never dubbed into Finnish. However, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure was supposed to be dubbed into Finnish in 2015 or 2017, but for unknown reasons the idea was scrapped.
- The show was first dubbed in Finnish in 1994.
- Some changes were made in the translation throughout the series:
- Series 9:
- Peter Sam is now called "Pietari".
- Series 10:
- Sir Handel is now called "Sir Hanski".
- Series 11:
- Donald is now called "Terho".
- Series 12:
- Duck is now called "Ankkanen"
- Toad is now called "Tatu".
- Series 22:
- Harvey is now called "Heikki"
- Trevor is now called "Teuvo".
- Series 9:
- The eleventh series episodes use the ninth and tenth series opening.
- The broadcasted thirteenth series episodes have title cards, but on the DVDs the title cards are removed and the narrator reads the episode's title.
- In 2010, the episode Thomas' Christmas Party aired on Boomerang Finland with British English dubbing.
- The songs written by Mike O'Donnell and Junior Campbell were never dubbed in Finnish.
- The last eight episodes of the second series, the first three episodes of the third series and the last sixteen episodes of the fourth series were never released on DVD.
France
In French, the series is known as "Thomas et ses Amis" or "Thomas le Petit Train" (Thomas the Small Train). The first five series were narrated by Gérard Boucaron and all series beyond included both a narrator and voice actors. Blanche Ravalec later narrated the series between the sixth series and the fifteenth series. Since the sixteenth series Philippe Catoire has narrated the series. In France, the series used to be shown on France 5 until the end of the fifteenth series; since then it has been broadcast on Gulli from the sixteenth series onwards. The fifteenth series was also re-aired on Gulli and was re-narrated by Philippe Catoire.
During production of the fourteenth series, the episodes A Bad Day for Harold the Helicopter, Twin Trouble, Edward the Very Useful Engine, Rusty Saves the Day and Emily's New Coaches were redone with the current voice cast.
Character Names
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Voice Cast
Trivia
- From the eighth series, Sodor is renamed "Chicalor".
Germany
In Germany the series is known as "Thomas, die kleine Lokomotive" (Thomas the Small Locomotive) or "Thomas und seine Freunde" (Thomas and His Friends). In the first five series, Thomas is also sometimes called "Thomas die Rangierlokomotive" (literally: "Thomas the Shunting Engine"), but since the eighth series, he has been called a "Tenderlok" (tank engine). It was narrated by Manfred Steffen from the first series to the fifth. From the eighth series to Journey Beyond Sodor, Sky du Mont has narrated it. Big World! Big Adventures! is called "Große Welt! Große Abenteuer!", a literal translation.
In 1981, The Three Railway Engines and Thomas the Tank Engine were translated in one book called "Thomas die Tenderlok" (Thomas the tank engine) by Josef Guggenmos. The classic series was likely translated by Thomas Karallus. Since the eighth series, the show has been dubbed at the Studio Hamburg Synchron GmbH. From the eighth series to the twentieth, it was translated by Henning Stegelmann who was also the voice director and still is. Only King of the Railway was translated by Sascha Draeger and the seventeenth and eighteenth series as well as Tale of the Brave was translated by Cindy Beier, who was also the voice director for said productions and Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure. Tammo Kaulbarsch translated Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure and the songs from Journey Beyond Sodor as well as directing all songs since 2017. The twenty-second series onwards is translated by Regina Kette.
The German dub of Thomas and the Magic Railroad was written and directed by Andreas Pollak at the Hermes Synchron GmbH in Potsdam.
Voice Cast
All characters from the twelfth series were voiced by Christian Stark
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Character Names
- Flying Scotsman - Der Fliegende Schotte
- Whiff - Mief
- 'Arry - Harry (Percy's New Whistle and fourteenth series only)
- Philip - Phillip
- Etienne - Étienne
- Mighty Mac - Mac Nic (ninth series), Big Mac (tenth series onwards)
- Troublesome Trucks - Die Widerspenstige Waggons (literally "the wayward wagons" or "the rebellious wagons")
- Old Slow Coach - Uraltwagen
- Bulgy - Der Pfau (literally "the Peacock"; third series only)
- Emerson - Louis (Big World! Big Adventures! audio book only)
- Dowager Hatt - Die Witwe Hatt (literally "the Widow Hatt")
Trivia
- Series one to four have been dubbed and released on VHS in 1996-1997. In 1998, they first aired on television.
- Thomas' Train, Thomas and the Trucks, Pop Goes the Diesel, Diesel Does it Again and the fifth series first aired in 2000 and Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree in 2001.
- The sixth, seventh and twenty-first series, Percy's Scary Tale, Jack Owns Up and The Adventure Begins were never dubbed into German.
- Only the Dinos and Discoveries, Start Your Engines! and Extraordinary Engines episodes from the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth series respectively have been dubbed into German, while the rest of the series were skipped for unknown reasons.
- For the eleventh and twelfth series, the eighth series' opening titles were used with the German Engine Roll Call.
- In the Island of Sodor opening, only the last shot had the re-filmed footage and on some DVDs, the re-shot of Thomas' close-up was used, too.
- In the eleventh series roll call, only the first two shots had the re-filmed footage. The whole new roll call was only released on the German Engines and Escapades release.
- Thomas, Percy and Old Slow Coach, Thomas and the Rumours, Oliver's Find, Happy Ever After, Sir Topham Hatt's Holiday, Duncan Gets Spooked, Thomas Saves the Day, Thomas, Emily and the Snowplough, Spic and Span, James Gets a New Coat, Percy's Big Mistake, Thomas Gets it Right, As Good as Gordon, Chickens to School, Mighty Mac, Respect for Gordon, Tuneful Toots, Rheneas and the Dinosaur, Toby Feels Left Out, Thomas and the Statue, Thomas' Day Off, Keeping Up with James, Percy and the Funfair, The Green Controller, Duncan Drops a Clanger, Toby's Afternoon Off, It's Good to be Gordon, Seeing the Sights, Big Strong Henry, Sticky Toffee Thomas, Thomas and the Shooting Star, Edward Strikes Out, Topped Off Thomas, Wharf and Peace, Emily and the Special Coaches, Thomas and the Colours, Thomas and the Birthday Mail, James the Second Best, Thomas and Skarloey's Big Day Out, Dirty Work (Series 11), Thomas and the Stinky Cheese, Percy and the Left Luggage, the first fifteen episodes of the twelfth series, Kevin's Cranky Friend and the eighteenth to twentieth series are not available on VHS or DVD but they have been broadcasted.
- The songs from the movies (excluding The Locomotion, Go, Go Thomas and the songs from The Adventure Begins), Engine Roll Call, The Narrow Gauge Engines, Best Friends Express, and the Songs from the Big World! Big Adventures! series are the only songs that have been dubbed into German.
- The UK end credits are always used. However, since the twentieth series and Journey Beyond Sodor, they are followed by one frame of German credits.
- Some changes were made in the translation throughout the series:
- Series 4:
- Toby is now incorrectly referred to as a railcar.
- Series 5:
- The Fat Controller is now sometimes called "Sir" rather than "Chief".
- Series 8:
- The Fat Controller is always called "Sir".
- Thomas' catchphrase has changed from "Schlacke und Asche!" (slag and ashes!) to "Zunder und Asche!" (Cinders and ashes!).
- Thomas is now called a "Tenderlok" (tank locomotive) rather than "Rangierlokomotive" (shunting locomotive).
- Series 9 (only):
- Toby is called a "Dampfgrubenbahn", a term that is used for engines that work in mines.
- Series 10:
- Mighty Mac's name has changed from "Mac Nic" to "Big Mac".
- Series 11:
- "Bossy Boiler" is now translated as "Dämlicher Dampfkessel" (stupid steam boiler) rather than "Herrschsüchtiger Heizkessel" (domineering boiler).
- Series 13:
- Hiro is now known as the "Herr der Schienen" (Lord of the rails) rather than "Held der Schienen" (Hero of the rails)
- Series 14:
- Ferdinand's catchphrase has changed from "Ja, genau!" (Yes, exactly!) to "Ja, richtig!" (Yes, right)
- Series 17:
- Hiro is now the "Meister der Eisenbahn" (Master of the Railway).
- Series 20:
- The local train is now the "Regionalzug" (regional train) rather than the "Nahverkehrszug" (local train).
- The Breakdowntrain is now the "Pannenzug" (Breakdowntrain) rather than the "Unfallzug" (Accidenttrain).
- Big World! Big Adventures! (only)
- Gordon says "Der Schnellzug kommt durch" (the express train comes through) instead of "Der Schnellzug fährt durch" (the express train drives through).
- Series 22:
- James now says "Here comes James!" instead of "Here is James!".
- Merlin now calls the Island of Sodor "Sona" instead of "Soda", like in Journey Beyond Sodor.
- Series 23:
- "Really Useful" is now translated as "Richtig nützlich" rather than "Wirklich nützlich".
- Series 4:
- The Fat Controller is known as "Der dicke Kontrolleur" in Germany
- Calling all Engines! was released between the ninth and the tenth series, The Great Discovery between the twelfth and thirteenth series, Hero of the Rails between the thirteenth and fourteenth series, Misty Island Rescue during the fourteenth series, Tale of the Brave during the seventeenth series and Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure during the eighteenth series.
- King of the Railway and Tale of the Brave were released in the same year.
- In the opening of series 5, the scene that shows the episode title is a freeze frame rather than a moving picture. As a result, Thomas is not seen in that scene.
- When the fourteenth series was released on DVD in Germany, all the title cards had a different font, their position changed from the bottom to the middle and Being Percy even had a different name, than on the TV version, though the narrator's line reading the title was not re-recorded.
- In the opening credits for the twentieth series, Dianna Basso's name is misspelled "Diana".
- The eighth series was televised after the ninth series.
- Big World! Big Adventures! was released more than a year after the twenty-second series was broadcast and also after the first broadcast of the twenty-third series.
- In the German opening of the twenty-third series, Thomas' "Wohoo" is missing and between the Life Lessons and the song, the sound effect of the steam transition is missing.
Greece
In Greece, the show is called "Τόμας το Τρενάκι" (Tomas To Trenaki) which when literally translated means "Thomas the Small Train". It is narrated by Vina Papadopoulou, with character voices performed by Loukas Frangoulis.
Character Names
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Voice Cast
Trivia
- The show was first dubbed into Greek in 2001.
- The original theme song is in a lower pitch and has lyrics.
- The live action series feature a female voice actor who provides narration and female voices, while a male narrator provides voices for all male characters.
- The second to fifth and eighth series intro featured scenes of Gordon, Henry and Edward over the first few seconds of the usual intro, so the title could be edited, as HiT did not provide a blank intro. In the original intro (first and second series), only the logo was changed.
- The eighth series has the original intro.
- Some DVD releases feature a blank version of the edited intro.
- All episodes from the first to fifth series are listed in the credits as being made in 1984.
- DVD releases of eighth series episodes feature the new theme during the credits, despite the original theme playing during the intro.
- Ringo Starr is credited as narrator on all episodes from the first to fifth and eighth series, despite only narrating the first two in English. Michael Angelis is also credited from the thirteenth series as well.
- All television broadcasts of episodes from the first to fifth and eighth series have the Thomas and Gordon title card.
- On most DVD releases of the eighth series, the first episode has the Thomas and Gordon title card.
- On some DVD releases of the eighth series, the bridge scene where the title card usually appears is cut out and replaced by the eighth series style title card.
- From the ninth series until The Great Discovery, the original theme remained with the new intro.
- The voice actors are not credited.
- In Calling All Engines!, the narrator accidentally says James instead of Jimmy once.
- When the thirteenth series aired in 2013, the show was revamped; the characters regained their English names and the Engine Roll Call was completely re-written.
- The sixth, seventh, twelfth, fifteenth and sixteenth series, as well as Jack and the Sodor Construction Company, Hero of the Rails and Blue Mountain Mystery were never dubbed into Greek.
- This is the only adaptation to feature Duck as being a female character. However, in the seventeenth series, he regained his original gender.
Hindi
In Hindi, the series is known as थॉमस टैंक इंजन और दोस्तों (Thŏmasa ṭaiṅka in̄jana aura dōstōṁ), which means Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends.
Trivia
- Like some of the Eastern European dubs the Hindi narrations of the fourth and fifth series credit Michael Angelis as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- The Hindi narrator is uncredited.
Hungary
In Hungary, the series is known as "Thomas a gőzmozdony" which means "Thomas the Steam Engine". It is also known as "Thomas és barátai" which means "Thomas and Friends". It was first broadcasted on Minimax in 2006 and was later broadcasted on M1 and recently on JimJamTV. It is narrated by János Bata in the first three series on Minimax, Józef Pawłowski on JimJam and Zoltán Csankó since the fourth series.
Character Names
- Duck - Kacsa (Series 2 only)
- Whiff - Pöfi (Series 11 only)
- Gator - Rokkó (Tale of the Brave only)
- Daisy - Százszorszép (Series 2 only)
- Mavis - Rigó (Series 3 only)
- Smudger - Füstös
- S.C. Ruffey - Szutykos
- Toad - Varangy (Series 3 only)
- Bulgy - Butus (Series 3 only)
- Tiger Moth - Medve lepke
Voice Cast
- Csore Cabor - Thomas
- Galbeniaz Tomasz - Edward
- Seder Gabor - Henry
- Karacsnyi Zoltan - Gordon
- Gyurik Istvan - James
- Szokol Peter - Percy
- Haffner Aniko - Emily
- Szabo Sipos Barnabas - Cranky
- Szabo Mate - Kevin
- Farago Andras - Sir Topham Hatt
- Aron Laszlo - Sir Robert Norramby
- Habermann Livia - Marion
- Rajkai Zoltan - Timothy
Trivia
- The Engine Roll Call was not translated into Hungarian, except during the opening titles.
- In the opening, Ringo Starr and Michael Angelis are credited as the narrators even though it was re-dubbed.
- Since Hero of the Rails, uncredited voice actors have performed the character's voices.
- The twelfth series, Thomas and the Magic Railroad, Jack and the Sodor Construction Company, The Adventure Begins and the twenty-first series were never dubbed in Hungarian.
Iceland
In Iceland, the series was known in Icelandic as "Tommi Togvagn og Vinir Hans" (literally: "Thomas the wagon and his friends") and was narrated by David Thor Jonsson, but the series was not very popular, possibly since there is no public railway system in Iceland. Only the first series was dubbed.
Trivia
- The logo in the intro and the titles of episodes were not translated. To remedy this, the narrator read the titles aloud.
- The intro credits Ringo Starr as the narrator instead of David Jonsson.
Character Names
- Thomas - Tommi
- Gordon - Gyrðir
- James - Jakob
- Toby - Tobbi
Indonesia
In Indonesia the series retains its English title. The series was dubbed from the eighth series onward and is narrated by Muhammad Nur.
Trivia
- Michael Angelis is credited as narrator in the opening credits, even though it was re-dubbed.
- The first seven series were never dubbed in Indonesian.
Israel
In Israel, the series was dubbed into Hebrew as "תומס הקטר" (Tomas haKatar, "Thomas the Locomotive") and was later reintroduced as "תומס הקטר וחברים" (Tomas haKatar vaH̱averim, "Thomas the Locomotive and Friends"). However, the series has still been aired as "תומס הקטר" on certain channels. The first and second series aired on the Hop! Channel in 2000, the eighth to fourteenth series aired on the Israeli Educational TV and the fifteenth, seventeenth and twentieth series onwards have aired on Hop!. Each series was narrated by Simcha Barbiro, Ron Druyan and Dan Schatzberg respectively. When the Israeli JimJam channel began offering alternative dubbed versions of its content, Nir Ron narrated a different dub of the older series.
Character Names
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Voice Cast
Trivia
- The Adventure Begins, The Great Race and Journey Beyond Sodor have not yet been dubbed into Hebrew and it is unknown whether or not Jack and the Sodor Construction Company, Hero Of the Rails, Misty Island Rescue, Day of the Diesels and Blue Mountain Mystery have ever been dubbed either. The sixteenth, eighteenth and nineteenth series had to be skipped due to various reasons.
- For unknown reasons, Tale of the Brave and King of the Railway were released after Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure. The latter premiered in Israel at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque in Summer 2016.
- Thomas' Christmas Party, Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree, The Missing Christmas Decorations, Santa's Little Engine, Letters to Santa, The Christmas Coffeepot and Over the Hill were not dubbed into Hebrew due to being explicitly Christmas-themed episodes, since the respective series they were in were shown on Hop!. However, the first-seventh series later aired on JimJam and dubbed versions of the first two Christmas episodes were most likely available there.
- In the first to seventh series:
- The Island of Sodor was not mentioned by name in the Hop! dub of the first and second series.
- Edward's nickname Eddie was used in the Hop! dub as his proper name. Since the Educational TV dub of the eighth series, his formal name has been used instead.
- The word "fireman" was mistranslated as "כבאי" (kabai, "firefighter"). The proper term for a steam engine fireman is "מסיק" (masik, "stoker").
- Terence's name was mispronounced as "Trance".
- Tender engines were referred to as "coal engines" (referring to their "coal cars"), with no specific term for tank engines.
- In the Hop! dub of the fifteenth series onwards:
- HiT Entertainment's name was mistransliterated as "היט אינטרטיימנט" ("Hit Intertaiment"), instead of "היט אנטרטיינמנט" ("Hit Entertainment"). Several names of the original production crew were mistransliterated as well.
- The UK voice cast is credited, albeit with their names in Hebrew, despite the show having been re-dubbed.
- Sharon Miller was misidentified as male.
- Den's name is mispronounced as Dan.
- In the seventeenth series, Sharon Miller was incorrectly credited as head writer and writers from the thirteenth-sixteenth series were still mentioned in the credits, as well as Nitrogen Studios, even though the Arc Productions logo still appeared.
Italy
In Italy, the series is known as "Il Trenino Thomas" or "Il Trenino Thomas e i suoi amici" which translates to Thomas the Small Train and his friends. Angelo Maggi narrated the first-fifth series, Giorgio Bonino narrated the sixth and seventh series, Giorgio Locuratolo narrated from the eighth to eighteenth series and Cristina D'Avena narrated The Great Race. Francesco Facchinetti is the current narrator, having narrated since the nineteenth series. The series was first aired on JimJamTV, but since the eighth series it has been aired on Cartoonito. Since the twenty-second series, the series has been titled "Grandi Avventure!"
Character Names
- Edward - Edward / Eddie (from the fifteenth series onwards)
- Flying Scotsman - Scozzese Volante
- Whiff - Whiff / Soffio / Sbuffo
- Bash - Bifo
- Dash - Bofo
- Scruff - Sciatto
- Gator - Drillo
- Hurricane - Uragano
- Salty - Salty (pronounced like Solty (since the fourteenth series (except Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure)))
- Rheneas - Rheneas / Rhene (since the sixteenth series)
- Captain - Capitano
- Sir Topham Hatt - Signor Topham Hatt (his first appearance only) - Pallone Gonfiato / Sir Topham (from the twelfth series onwards)
- Sailor John - Mariano John
Voice Cast
- Marco Vivio - Thomas
- Ambrogio Colombo - Henry
- Simone Crisari - James
- Gianluca Crisafi - James
- Mattia Nissolino - Percy (twelfth - eighteenth series)
- Chiara Oliviero - Percy (nineteenth series onwards)
- Sacha Pilara - Toby
- Raffaele Palmieri - Duck
- Chiara Gioncardi - Emily
- Micaela Incitti - Rosie
- Giò Giò Rapattoni - Ashima
- Danny Francucci - Rajiv
- Teo Bellia - Diesel
- Mariangela D'Amora - Daisy
- Gaetano Lizzio - Salty
- Marco Barbato - Philip
- Anna Cugini - Annie
- Laura Amadei - Clarabel
- Valerio Massari - Dexter
- Enzo Avolio - Sir Topham Hatt
Trivia
- The Italian dub of the first and second series credits Ringo Starr as the narrator and the third series credits Michael Angelis, even though they were re-dubbed, but the rest of the credits are in Italian.
- Because in Italian the term "Locomotive" is a female term, all the engines are referred to as females from the first to the fifth series.
- Jack and the Sodor Construction Company and Thomas and the Magic Railroad were never dubbed in Italian.
Japan
In Japan, the series is translated as "きかんしゃトーマス" (Romaji: "Kikansha Tōmasu" - Thomas the Locomotive). Thomas is extremely popular in Japan due to the prevalence of railways in everyday life. This version of the show has also had individual voice actors since the model series. It was broadcast on Fuji Television from the first series until the eighth series and broadcast from the ninth series to the thirteenth series on TV Tokyo and recently on NHK and Cartoon Network. Leo Morimoto was the narrator from the first to the eighth series, followed by Jon Kabira from Calling All Engines! to the twenty-first series. Starting in the twenty-second series, Kumiko Higa, voicing Thomas, has narrated the series.
Character Names
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Voice Cast
Trivia
- In 1973, Kaye and Ward released the Japanese translation of Awdry's 26 Railway Series books. The series was translated by Kuwabara Saburou and Shimizu Shuyu. Genyuu Kuroiwa supervised the technical terms of the railway. Christopher's books, however, have yet to be translated into Japanese.
- This is the first country that gave the show its own individual voice cast and dubbed in a language other than English (if counting the Railway Series).
- Several Japanese exclusive Thomas and Friends video games were released there.
- In this version, the nameboards are used for introduction of the characters who appeared in each episode. From the eighth series, the narrator calls the title of the episode at the end of each episode.
- 'Arry is called "Harry".
- After the eighth series, the original voice cast affiliated with Aoni Production was replaced with new voice cast affiliated with 81 Produce due to the show being switched to another broadcasting station.
- The eleventh series episodes use the ninth and tenth series opening.
- It is unknown why the twelfth series was not aired, but it is believed that Japanese kids would be confused upon seeing the mixture of live action with CGI. However, Heave Ho Thomas!, Saved You! and Best Friends have been shown at Thomas Land's 3D Theatre and Excellent Emily, Saved You!, James Works it Out and Percy and the Bandstand were released on Unaired Video Collection.
- In the seventeenth series, the opening credits credited Greg Tiernan as a director from Steamie Stafford, the first episode of the series in Japanese broadcast order, but it was fixed from Gone Fishing, the thirteenth episode of the series.
- Jack and the Sodor Construction Company was never dubbed.
- The CGI specials are slowed down to 24 FPS, adding an extra two minutes to their length. As a result, their audio is slightly distorted and low-pitched.
Latin America
In Latin American countries, the series is called "Thomas y sus Amigos" and is currently narrated by Héctor Ireta de Alba, voicing Thomas. It is often broadcast on Discovery Kids. It currently airs on Canal 5 in Mexico, but it used to air on Azteca 7.
The narration was previously provided by Pedro D'Aguillón Jr. in Shining Time Station, Diego Brizzi from the first-twelfth series and Óscar Gómez from Hero of the Rails to the twenty-first series.
Voice Cast
Since Hero of the Rails, there has been a voice cast:
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Character Names
- The Flying Scotmsan - El Escocés Volador
- Hurricane - Huracán
- Duchess - Duquesa
- Big Mickey - Gran Mickey
- The Fat Controller - El Inspector Gordo
Trivia
- The series was first dubbed in Mexico in 1994 as a segment in the Latin American Spanish dub of Shining Time Station.
- From the thirteenth series and onwards, the series was named "Thomas & Friends" without any translation, only in the specials the series is called by his translated name.
- Thomas and the Magic Railroad was dubbed into Latin American Spanish two times (a cinema version and a television version) and both of the dubs produced in Mexico.
- The Fat Controller was referred to as "The Fat Inspector" ("El Inspector Gordo" in Spanish) in the first five series, but from the eighth series onwards he is called his real name "Sir Topham Hatt", although he has been referred to as "The Fat Controller" (without translation) a few times.
- The nineteenth series episode The Other Side of the Mountain marks the first time in the CGI Series that he is called "The Fat Inspector".
- For the first to fifth series, the sixth series intro is used and afterwards, the engines are introduced.
- The opening credits from the eighth series to the seventeenth series credited Michael Brandon and Mark Moraghan as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed. The eighteenth and nineteenth series credited Óscar Gómez and the voice actors; from the twentieth and twenty-first series, the voices from the US dub are credited; starting in the twenty-second series and onwards, the actors are credited once again.
- The official website had not been updated since the release of Misty Island Rescue. Also, the videos on the site use the narration from Spain.
- Jack and the Sodor Construction Company has never been dubbed.
- For unknown reasons, the episodes Thomas Goes Fishing, Percy Takes the Plunge, Percy's Predicament, Gordon and the Famous Visitor, Thomas Gets Bumped, The Trouble with Mud, No Joke for James, Edward, Trevor and the Really Useful Party and Oliver's Find were not dubbed.
- The episodes A Bad Day for Harold the Helicopter, Twin Trouble, Edward the Very Useful Engine, Rusty Saves the Day, Emily's New Coaches and Snow Engine were the only episodes from the sixth and seventh series to be dubbed.
- Let's Dream and Don't Stop (UK version) are the only songs to date that have been released with English dubbing.
- This dub and the Brazilian Portuguese dub share the same basis. This can be noted because some Latin American titles of episodes are the same as in Brazil, as well as having the same style in music videos.
Latvia
In Latvia, the series is called "Tomas un Draugi" and is narrated by Robert Dreija. The narration uses a voice over method similar to the original Ukrainian dub of the first four series and the Lithuanian dub.
Trivia
- The Engine Roll Call for the seventeenth series is a voice over of the English version.
- Mark Moraghan and the UK voice cast can be heard in the background of the seventeenth series Latvian dubs.
- The Latvian dub of the seventeenth series credits Mark Moraghan as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
Lithuania
In Lithuania, the series is called "Tomas ir Draugai". The episodes are voiced over the English dub, similar to the Ukrainian and Latvian dubs.
Trivia
- In the seventeenth series, the opening credits sequence and the Engine Roll Call are voiced over the instrumental, but in the eighteenth series, they are voiced over the English dub.
- The Lithuanian dubs of the seventeenth and eighteenth series credit Mark Moraghan as the narrator, even though they are dubbed over.
Middle East
In Arabic speaking countries, the series is known as توماس والأصدقاء (transliterated: Tumas Wal'Asdiqa).
Character Names
- Thomas - توماس - Tumas
- Edward - إدوارد - 'Iidward
- Henry - هنري - Hinri
- Gordon - جوردون - Juridun
- James - جيمس - Jims
- Percy - بيرسي - Birsi
- Toby - توبي - Tubi
- Emily - إميلي - 'Iimili
- Sir Topham Hatt - سيدي توبهام هات - Sayidi Tubiham Hat
Norway
In Norway, the series is known as "Lokomotivet Thomas" (Thomas the Engine) or "Thomas og Vennene Hans" (Thomas and his Friends). It has been narrated by Ane Barmen since the eighteenth series. Trine Lossius Borg narrated series one-two on TV and VHS and series three-four on home video. Gro Solemdal narrated series three-four on TV and the fifth series on TV and home video. Terje Strømdal narrated the sixth series and Kalle Øby narrated the eighth series until Tale of the Brave.
Character Names
- Duck - Anda (The Thomas Way onwards)
- Whiff - Piff
- Bash and Dash - Krutt og Futt
- Scruff - Rusk
- 'Arry - Harry
- Den - Drift (fifteenth series onwards)
- Dart - Dag (fifteenth series onwards)
- Sir Handel - Handle (Series 4, TV dub)
- Henrietta - Henriette (eleventh series onwards)
- Old Slow Coach - The Old Snail
- Troublesome Trucks - Brysomme vogner
- Captain - Skipper
- Ol' Wheezy - Gamle Snøfte
- Hee-Haw - Hiv-og-Ho
- Sir Topham Hatt - Kontrollsjefen/Herr Flossenhatt/Den Tykke Kontrolløren
- Mr. Percival - Jernbanesjefen/Smalsporsjefen/Kontrollassistenten
- Kuffy the Clown - Klovnen Krølle
- Mr. Bubbles - Herr Boblemann
Location Names
- Shake Shake Bridge - Vaklebrua/Vinglebrua
- Brendam docks - Brendam havna
- Misty Island - Tåkeholmen
- Tidmouth Sheds - Tidmouthstallen
- Gordon's Hill - Gordon bakken
- Wellsworth station - Edwards stasjon
- The Mainland - Fastlandet
Voice Cast
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Trivia
- The show was first shown in Norway in 1986 and was the first country to dub the series into another language.
- Thomas and the Magic Railroad, the seventh and twelfth series and Jack and the Sodor Construction Company were never shown in Norway. This meant that the audience would not know about Splatter and Dodge, Fergus, Flora, Hank, Nelson, Patrick, Colin or Buster's names. The eleventh series never aired on television, it was released direct to DVD, except for Thomas and the Stinky Cheese and Percy and the Left Luggage, which were only released on the internet. The last six episodes of the fifth series were never released on VHS or DVD but they have been broadcast.
- For unknown reasons, Calling All Engines! was released before the eighth series, The Great Discovery was released on DVD between the ninth and tenth series, Hero of the Rails was released on DVD in the middle of the tenth series, Misty Island Rescue was released during the eleventh series, Day of the Diesels was released at the end of the eleventh series and Blue Mountain Mystery was released in the middle of the thirteenth series.
- The opening titles credited the UK narrators and not the Norwegian narrator. Most video did however credit Trine Lossius Borg, although this was also on the tapes she did not narrate. Later TV-airings also had a last frame of Norwegian credits after the normal credits.
- On home video, during the first four series, as well as the sixth series on TV and video, the narrator reads the episode's title. This stopped after the eighth series. Although, in some eleventh series episodes, the narrator says the episode's title because the title card is missing.
- Gordon's catchphrase changes between "Oh, so undignified!", "Oh, how nefarious!" and "What a humiliation!"
- Since the thirteenth series, Tidmouth Sheds is referred to as "Tidmouth Station". In the fifteenth series, it is sometimes referred to as "Tidmouthstallen" which means "Tidmouth Sheds".
- In Trine Lossius Borg's narration, Duke is called the Norwegian word for Duke, "Hertugen".
- Bulgy is called "Viktigper" in the television version, which translates to "show-off" or "know-it-all".
- Bulstrode is called "Sinnataggen" in the VHS dub, which could translate to "grumbler" or "crosspatch".
- Thumper is called "Dundrern", roughly meaning "barreller".
- When Thomas and Percy's Christmas Adventure first aired on Christmas Eve in 1996, the audio was gone for half of the episode. This was fixed when the episode aired again a few years later.
- In Rusty and the Boulder, Rusty is referred to as female. It is evident in both that episode and Snow that Gro Solemdal gave Rusty a feminine voice.
- Since the thirteenth series, Engine Roll Call is in Norwegian.
- When the Fat Controller's name is used, they do not say "Bertram", they say "Topham".
- The eleventh series episodes use the eighth-tenth series opening, end credits and Engine Roll Call. The fourteenth and fifteenth series episodes use the thirteenth series version of Engine Roll Call.
- Like in the UK and US, the fifteenth series aired before Day of the Diesels, barring the last three episodes.
- Since the fifteenth series, Arlesdale End is called "Arlesdale Station".
- Bash and Dash often switch voices.
- Dart's catchphrase is "Digre Dieseler" which means "Giant Diesels".
- For unknown reasons, the last three episodes of the fifteenth series aired five months later than the rest of the series when it first aired.
- The thirteenth series episodes on television have title cards, but on the DVDs the title cards are removed and the narrator reads the episode's title.
- The first six series aired on NRK1 until 2006. TV2 started broadcasting in 2007 starting with the eighth series. In autumn 2014, the series was made available to RiksTV (Series 1-4 and 8-9) and CMORE play (Series 1-4) users. As of 2016, the show once more airs on NRK via NRK Super starting with the eighteenth series.
- In 2016, starting from the eighteenth series onwards, the series gained a completely new voice cast and the characters now speak a lot more regional dialects.
- When Big World! Big Adventures! and the twenty-second series were dubbed in Norwegian, a new voice cast was established, thus scrapping the concept of including more regional dialects. A lot of cast members from the first CGI dub returned.
- Norwegian is one of few languages in which The Railway Series has been translated in, although only eight of the original books (as well as Henry and the Express) were released from 1988-1993.
Poland
In Poland, the series is known as "Tomek i przyjaciele". Grzegorz Fedorowski narrated the first versions of the first to fifth series. Stefan Knothe later re-dubbed the first five series and narrated the sixth to twienty-first series.
Voice Cast
Since the thirteenth series, there has been a voice cast:
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Character Names
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Trivia
- The twelfth series, Thomas and the Magic Railroad, Jack and the Sodor Construction Company and The Adventure Begins were never dubbed in Polish.
- The series' logo was not translated into Polish until the fourteenth series.
- The opening credits in the eighth to sixteenth series credits Michael Angelis even though it was re-dubbed.
- The opening credits in the seventeenth series onwards credits Mark Moraghan even though it was re-dubbed.
- Currently, Stefan Knothe ties with Dutch narrator Erik de Zwart and the Finnish narrator Aku Laitinen as the longest serving narrator for a non-English dub of the series.
- In various series 10 and 11 episode titles, the characters regain their English names.
- Both Polish dubs refer Old Slow Coach as male and Bertie as female. Bill and Ben were also referred to as female in the Grzegorz Fedorowski dub.
Portugal
In Portugal, the series is known as "Thomas o Trem Azul" translated into "Thomas the Blue Train" or "Thomas e os seus amigos" translated into "Thomas and his Friends". This is narrated by Pierre Borsan. It airs daily on Canal Panda in Portugal and is watched among many viewers.
Character Names
- Mighty Mac - Big Mac
Trivia
- The Portuguese dub of the thirteenth - fourteenth series credits Michael Angelis as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
Romania
In Romania, the series is known as "Locomotiva Thomas și prietenii săi". The show was first broadcasted in 2006 on MiniMax TV Romania, starting with the eighth series, followed up by Calling All Engines! in 2007 and the ninth series in 2008. JimJam TV Romania has also broadcasted the first to eleventh series, Calling All Engines! and The Great Discovery. All of the original three series are in restored format. Since 2010, MiniMax TV Romania has broadcasted the thirteenth series onwards and movies.
Voice Cast
- Daniel Vulcu - narrator (series 8, 9 and Calling All Engines!)
- Alexandru Rusu - current narrator (all the series and specials which have not been narrated by Daniel Vulcu)
- Richard Balint - Thomas
- Ioana Perneș - Emily, Mavis and Girls
- Corina Cernea - Belle
- Ion Abrudan - Oliver
- Armando Bungău - Toad
- Andrian Locovei - Timothy
- Alina Leonte - Marion
- Cosmin Petruț - Duncan
- Rin Tripa - Sir Topham Hatt
Trivia
- Ringo Starr, Michael Angelis, Pierce Brosnan, Michael Brandon (for Calling all Engines!) and Mark Moraghan are credited as the narrators in the openings even though everything was re-dubbed.
- Thomas and the Magic Railroad, the Jack and the Sodor Construction Company series and the twelfth series have not been broadcasted yet.
- Even if starting with the thirteenth series all the next series had the intro dubbed, the eighteenth series was the first one to have Engine Roll Call dubbed, the Calling all Engines! and The Great Discovery special versions of the song were also dubbed. All the songs in specials have been dubbed, except for Thomas, You're the Leader and Go, Go Thomas.
- In 2011, the episode A Bad Day for Sir Handel aired on JimJam Romania without narration.
Russia
In Russia, the series is known as "Томас и его друзья" and was first dubbed into Russian in 1995. From the fifth series until the seventeenth series, the Russian version was shown in Ukraine.
Character Names
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Voice Cast
Trivia
- The Russian title sequence of the first to twelfth series credits Ringo Starr and Michael Angelis as the narrators, even though it was re-dubbed. This is common in most dubs, but the title and credits in the opening were audibly translated in Russian.
- From the seventeenth series until The Perfect Gift in the eighteenth series, the narrator reads out each episode's writer along with its title.
- The twelfth series, Jack and the Sodor Construction Company, Hero of the Rails, Misty Island Rescue, Day of the Diesels, Blue Mountain Mystery, Tale of the Brave and The Adventure Begins were never dubbed in Russian.
Scotland
In Scottish Gaelic, the series is called "Tomas is a Threud", which in English translates to "Tomas and his flock" and is narrated by Ian MacAmhlaigh. It is often shown on BBC Alba
Character Names
- Thomas - Tòmas
- Edward - Eideard
- James - Seumas
- Percy - Pearsaidh
- Toby - Tobaidh
- Emily - Oighrig
- Diesel - Dìosail
- Duncan - Dhonnchadh
- Annie - Annag
- Clarabel - Clarabeileag
- The Fat Controller - Riaghladair Reamhair (The Fat Ruler)
- Farmer McColl - Farmer MacColla
Trivia
- The narrator did not read the episode's titles from the point that the ninth series was released.
- To date, only the eighth and ninth series have been translated into Gaelic.
Serbia
In Serbia, the series is known as "Tomas i drugari" (or "Томас и другари" in Cyrillic writing), but is also recently known as "Thomas, parna lokomotiva". It is currently shown on Minimax in Serbia and is narrated by Bojan Žirović.
Character Names
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Trivia
- The Serbian dubs of the first and second series credit Ringo Starr as the narrator, even though they were re-dubbed.
- The Serbian dubs of the third to sixteenth series credit Michael Angelis as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- The Serbian narrations from the seventeenth series onwards credit Mark Moraghan as the narrator, even though it was redubbed.
Slovakia
In Slovakia, the series is known as "Thomas a jeho priatelia".
Character Names
- Thomas - Tomáš
- Edward - Eduard
- Duke - Vojvoda
- Sir Topham Hatt - Tučný kontrolor
Slovenia
In Slovenia, the show is known as "Lokomotivček Tomaž in prijatelji" and is narrated by Vladimir Jurc.
Character Names
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Trivia
- Early VHS / CD episodes credit Ringo Starr as the narrator even though the show has been dubbed.
- The seventh to twelfth series were never broadcast, but the names of the characters introduced in those series can be found in magazines.
- The first to fifth series were highly localised with location names replaced by Slovenian ones with similar roles. The Island of Sodor was referred to as "otok" (simply "island"). In Coal, Welsh coal is replaced with "Trbovljski premog" (coal from Trbovlje - Slovenia's largest coal mine). In The Flying Kipper, Crewe works is referred to as "Zalog" (town near Slovenian Railroad's largest railroad workshop). In Break Van, it is said the twins came from the Gorenjska region of Slovenia instead of Scotland, more precisely from Jesenice (city in said region, home to Slovenia's largest steelworks) instead of Glasgow. Their accent is also different as it is not Scottish but is regional dialect from Gorenjska.
- Since the thirteenth series, several names of characters changed.
- Since the thirteenth series, episodes are plagued by incorrect literal translations of (British) technical terms and jokes. For instance, "trucks" are often referred to as "tovornjaki" (lit. lorries - correct term would be "tovorni vagoni" - freight wagons), "funnels" are called "lijaki" (lit. funnels - correct term would be "dimniki" - chimneys/smokestacks) and so on. In Charlie and Eddie, for example, Charlie's jokes are translated literally and since the puns are English exclusive, they do not function when translated.
South Korea
In South Korea, the series 1~5 (KBS) is translated as "기관차 토마스와 친구들", Series 1~4 (재능TV) is translated as "칙칙폭폭 토마스 기관차", Series 5~15 (EBS) and Series 11~12 (Kids 1) is translated as "꼬마 기관차 토마스와 친구들", Series 13~21 (KBS) is translated as "토마스와 친구들" It was narrated by Jang Gwang (재능TV) in the first-fourth series, by Kim-Il (EBS) in the fifth-seventh series, by Kim Seung-jun (EBS ~ KBS) from the eighth series to the 21, in the eleventh-twelfth by Yoo Dong-gyun, Tale of the Brave~Journey Beyond Sodor by Heo Seong-jae and he former Korean dub of Misty Island Rescue, Ji Jin Hee voiced by the narrator
Voice Cast
- Shin Yong-u - Thomas (thirteenth series onwards), Toby (sixteenth series onwards), Sir Topham Hatt (King of the Railway only)
- Um Sang-hyun - Edward, James, Percy, Toby (Up to fifteenth series), Victor, Spencer and Sir Topham Hatt (sixteenth series onwards)
- Kim Eun-a - Emily and Millie
- Kim Seung-jun - Narrator and The Mayor of Sodor (thirteenth series)
- Jeon Tae-yeol - Gordon, Spencer (Redub), Stephen, Henry and Rocky
Trivia
- Calling All Engines!, Jack and the Sodor Construction Company, The Adventure Begins were never dubbed in Korean.
- Day of the Diesels was dubbed, but it was only released in VOD because children from that country are likely to get scared of some dark elements.
- Thomas and the Magic Railroad was mixed with both the English and Korean dubs.
- Unlike the US and the UK versions, all of the characters got their individual voice actors since the twelfth series.
- The Korean language is one of very few languages in which The Railway Series has been translated in.
- In Tale of the Brave, all of the voice actors in Korea have changed. The movie was dubbed into other actors and the episodes are dubbed into the original existing actors.
- In the nineteenth series, it plays the thirteenth-eighteenth series intro instead of the new intro.
- A few US DVDs have been released in South Korea, which were dubbed over the English audio in a similar vein to Series 1-4 of the Ukrainian dub.
Character Names
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Spain
In Spain, the series is known as "Thomas y sus Amigos". It is currently narrated by Pepa Castro. It was previously narrated by Salomé Larrucea from the eighth to nineteenth series, while Roberto Cuadrado voiced many of the characters in the live action series.
Voice Cast
Since the thirteenth series, there has been a larger voice cast:
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Character Names
- Rheneas - René
Trivia
- The series was first dubbed in 2007.
- The first to seventh series were never dubbed due to unknown reasons.
Sweden
In Sweden, the series is currently known as "Thomas & Vännerna" (Thomas & Friends) today, but it has also gone under the names "Det lilla Ångloket Thomas" (Thomas the little steam engine) and "Thomas Tåget och hans vänner" (Thomas the train [sic] and his friends). Louise Raeder narrated the first versions of the first two series. Håkan Mohede later re-dubbed the first two series and narrated the third–seventh series. Since the eighth series, the series has been narrated by Claes Ljungmark.
Character Names
- Duck - Ankan
- Stepney - Stepney blåklockslokomotivet.
- Salty - Saltis
- Peter Sam - Sir Peter
- Duke - Hertigen
- Mighty Mac - Strong Adolf
- Old Slow Coach - Gamla snigeln
- Bertie - Bertil (Bertie)
- Bulgy - Butter
- Cranky - Gnällis
- The Fat Controller - Kontrollchefen (The Control-Chief)/Direktörn (The Director)
Location Names
- Sodor - Rälsö
Voice Cast
- Nick Atkinson - Thomas
- Roger Storm - James and Timothy
- Adam Fietz - Percy
Trivia
- The show was first dubbed into Swedish in 1991.
- The original Swedish dub of the first and second series credit Ringo Starr as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- Thomas and the Magic Railroad, Jack and the Sodor Construction Company, fifteenth-twenty-second series, The Adventure Begins, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure, The Great Race and Journey Beyond Sodor were never dubbed into Swedish.
- Only the eighth-fourteenth series were titled with the Swedish logo of Thomas & Friends.
- Peter Sam was called Sir Peter in the Swedish dub but also in the Norwegian dub.
- Sir Topham Hatt is called "Herr Cylinderhatt", which means "Sir Tophat". Although, in the original dub of the first to seventh series, he was called "Herr Rälsson" which means "Sir Railsson".
- The episode title cards were not read aloud by the narrator in the original Swedish dubbing of the first two series, but were so in the redub.
- In the CGI Series, it plays the Calling All Engines! Roll call version.
Taiwan
In Taiwan, the series is known as "湯瑪士小火車" and is narrated by Guan Zhihong. The series is shown being re-dubbed into Mandarin.
Location Names
- Sodor - 多多島 (Dou Dou Daw)
Trivia
- The first-third series were not dubbed into Taiwanese due to unknown reasons.
- The fourth series's narrator is credited as George Carlin, the fifth series with Alec Baldwin and the sixth series onwards by Michael Angelis, even though the series was re-dubbed.
Thailand
In Thailand, the series is known as โธมัสยอดหัวรถจักร
Character Names
- Thomas - โทมัส
- Edward - เอ็ดเวิร์ด
- Henry - เฮนรี่
- Gordon - กอร์ดอน
- James - เจมส์
- Percy - เพอร์ซี่
- Toby - โทบี้
- Emily - เอมิลี่
- Sir Topham Hatt - ผู้ควบคุมอ้วน
Trivia
- The Thai dub of the eleventh series credits Michael Angelis as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
The Netherlands
In the Netherlands, the series is known as "Thomas de Stoomlocomotief" and is narrated by Erik de Zwart from the first series to the eleventh series and up to Day of the Diesels for the specials and Michiel de Jong from Blue Mountain Mystery onwards for the specials and the thirteenth series for the television series.
Voice Cast
Character Names
- Whiff - Snif
- Duke - Jonker
- Smudger - Knoeipot
- Mighty Mac - Jut en Jul, Mega Mac (The Great Discovery only)
- S. C. Ruffey - Schoffie
- Troublesome Trucks - Trammeland Trucks
- Toad - Padde
- Bulgy - Dikkie
- Thumper - Bonkertje
- Cranky - Krik (fifth series only)
- Sir Topham Hatt - Meneer Hoogsma Hoed
- Lady Hatt - Mevrouw Hoogsma Hoed
- Sailor John - Zeeman Jan
Trivia
- The opening titles (excluding the narrator card) were not translated into Dutch until the eighth series.
- The fifth, sixth and seventh series are not available on DVD but they have been broadcast on TV.
- The twelfth series was never dubbed into Dutch.
- Currently, Erik de Zwart ties with Polish narrator Stefan Knothe as the longest serving narrator for a non-English dub of the series.
Turkey
In Turkey, the series is known as "Thomas ve Arkadaşları".
Trivia
- The Turkish narrations of the third series and the thirteenth to sixteenth series credit Michael Angelis as the narrator, even though they were re-dubbed.
Ukraine
In Ukraine, the series is known as "Паровоз Томас та його друзі" and was later introduced as "Томас і Друзі" and was narrated by lector Mykola Koziy (Микола Козій) with the translations done by Oleksa Nehrebeckyj. The narration for the first four series uses a voice over method, as the Ukrainian voice track is layered over the original English track, a common practice in Eastern Europe. The first four series were the only series dubbed until Series 17-20. were dubbed, most likely because of how big Russian is in Ukraine's culture. The Ukrainian dub of the first four series were only ever aired from 1997-1998 and were never re-broadcasted.
Voice Cast
Andriy Fedinchyk - Thomas
Character Names
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Trivia
- The Ukrainian dubs of the first and second series have Ringo Starr's voice in the background, series three has George Carlin's voice in the first thirteen episodes and the last thirteen episodes of series three as well as all of series four have Michael Angelis' voice.
- It is unknown if Thomas and Gordon, Edward and Gordon, The Sad Story of Henry, Edward, Gordon and Henry, Thomas' Train, Thomas and the Trucks, Thomas and the Breakdown Train, James and the Coaches, Troublesome Trucks, James and the Express, Thomas and the Guard, Thomas Goes Fishing, Percy Runs Away, Coal, Dirty Work, A Close Shave, Wrong Road and Edward's Exploit were ever dubbed into Ukrainian. They likely were, though due to the archive nature of this dub, were not recorded from their airings. The Christmas Coffeepot and Over the Hill were not dubbed either.
- The opening credits from the seventeenth series onwards credit Mark Moraghan as the narrator, even though it was re-dubbed.
- Since the seventeenth series, uncredited voice actors have provided the character's voices.
Vietnam
In Vietnam, the series is known as "Thomas và những người bạn". Only the first seasons were dubbed.
Voice Cast
- Gia Trí - Thomas
- Anh Tuấn - Edward
- Trưởng Tân - Henry
- Quổc Tín - Diesel
- Thanh Hống - Emily
- Tiến Đạt - Peter Sam
Trivia
- From the point the thirteenth series was released, the twelfth series intro was still used. The twelfth series Engine Roll Call was still played, too.
- The engine roll call's lyrics in Vietnamese were written by Thanh Hống.
Wales
In Wales, the series is called "Tomos a'i Ffrindiau" (originally "Tomos y Tanc a'i Ffrindiau" and is narrated by John Ogwen. It is often broadcast on Cyw, S4C's children's block. Episodes are available for catch up on the S4C website and the BBC iPlayer for a week after they have aired.
The Railway Series
Welsh was the first - and for many years only - translation of The Railway Series books. In 1950, Welsh minister Sir Ben Bowen Thomas suggested that Edmund Ward publish the engines' adventures in the Welsh language. As a result, J.T. Jones, a former winner of two National Eisteddfod literary awards, was paid seven guineas to translate the first four titles - Y Tri Injian Tren, Thomas yr Injian Danc, James yr Injian Coch and Thomas Injian-Danc Eto - each of which were produced in a print-run of 5,000 volumes.
Character Names
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Trivia
- Only the first seven series along with the thirteenth and fourteenth and Hero of the Rails were dubbed. Old Iron, Thomas and Trevor, Percy Takes the Plunge, Pop Goes the Diesel, Better Late Than Never, Break Van, The Diseasel, Wrong Road, Horrid Lorry, A Better View for Gordon, Lady Hatt's Birthday Party, Baa!, Toby and the Flood, Haunted Henry, Thomas and the Rumours, Sir Topham Hatt's Holiday, Make Someone Happy and Duncan Gets Spooked were also seemingly not dubbed.
- Jack Frost, What's the Matter with Henry?, Rheneas and the Roller Coaster and Not So Hasty Puddings were never given home video releases, though they were dubbed and aired on Cyw.
- The first eight episodes of the fourteenth series used the thirteenth series's version of the Engine Roll Call.
- Unusually, the Welsh dub is the only known version of the show to translate most of the signs within the episode.