- “Repair, recycle, reuse!”
- ― Reg
School of Duck is the eleventh episode of the twenty-second series.
Plot
After a storm destroys Harwick School, the children have to be brought by Daisy to Knapford for their lessons. Duck is keen to do the job, as Daisy does not want to because the children make messes, but he needs a coach.
He first takes Hannah, but Toby catches up with Duck and explains that he needs Hannah while Henrietta is at the Steamworks again. Duck continues his search but is unsuccessful; his Slip Coaches are being used by Edward, Emily is busy with her personal coaches, and Gordon refuses to loan him one of the express coaches. After searching all over Sodor, he finds Dexter, a rusty old restaurant coach, in an overgrown yard. Unfortunately, Dexter is too worn out to move and his axles break as Duck tries to pull him out. After remembering Reg's words "repair, recycle and reuse," Duck has an idea. He takes Judy and Jerome to collect Dexter and they have him placed on some bricks near the station, where the children restore him and convert him into a mobile classroom.
Characters
- Thomas
- Edward
- Gordon
- Toby
- Duck
- Emily
- Daisy
- Judy and Jerome
- Hannah
- Dexter
- Reg
- The Blond-haired Boy
- Slip Coaches (do not speak)
- James (cameo)
- Percy (cameo)
- Nia (cameo)
- Annie and Clarabel (cameos)
- Trevor (cameo)
- Jack (cameo)
- Jem Cole (cameo)
- The Ginger-haired Boy (cameo)
- Two Dark Uniformed Children (cameos)
- Henrietta (mentioned)
- Lord Callan (mentioned)
- Daisy's Fitter (mentioned)
- Terence (caterpillar treads cameo; fantasy)
Locations
- Tidmouth Sheds
- Harwick
- Knapford
- Wellsworth
- Three-Track Level Crossing
- Dexter's Yard
- Sodor Steamworks (mentioned)
- Callan Castle (mentioned)
Cast
UK
- John Hasler as Thomas
- Keith Wickham as Edward and Gordon
- Rob Rackstraw as Toby
- Steven Kynman as Duck
- Teresa Gallagher as Emily and Judy
- Tracy-Ann Oberman as Daisy
- Tim Whitnall as Jerome and Reg
- Lucy Montgomery as Hannah
- Mark Moraghan as Dexter
- Jessica Hann as a Child
- Charlie Barnard as a Child
- Mia Hope as a Child
- Holly Hazelton as a Child
- Innis Robertson-Pinnell as a Child
- Damon Denton-Snape as a Child
US
- Joseph May as Thomas
- William Hope as Edward and Toby
- Kerry Shale as Gordon
- Steven Kynman as Duck
- Jules de Jongh as Emily
- Tracy-Ann Oberman as Daisy
- Teresa Gallagher as Judy
- Tim Whitnall as Jerome and Reg
- Lucy Montgomery as Hannah
- Mark Moraghan as Dexter
- Jessica Hann as a Child
- Charlie Barnard as a Child
- Mia Hope as a Child
- Holly Hazelton as a Child
- Innis Robertson-Pinnell as a Child
- Damon Denton-Snape as a Child
Trivia
- Going by production order, this is the sixteenth episode of the twenty-second series.
- This episode is a pun on the 2003 film and 2016 Nickelodeon television show, School of Rock.
- Charlie Barnard, Jessica Hann, Holly Hazelton, Mia Hope, Damon Denton-Snape, and Innis Robertson-Pinnell join the voice cast. This is also the only episode to have any of them in the voice cast.
- This is the first and only time Mark Moraghan voices a character in the series rather than providing narration.
- In Dexter's fantasy scene, a Blue Mountain Quarry Dump Truck's wheels and Terence's caterpillar treads are used when he imagines himself with various other types of wheels.
- When Dexter gains his caterpillar treads in the fantasy sequence, he shouts "I can go anywhere," which is a very likely callback to one of Terence's lines from the first series episode, Thomas, Terence and the Snow, and the twenty-first series episode, Terence Breaks the Ice, respectively.
- Toby's line "Henrietta's at the Steamworks" was reused from the twenty-first series episode, Hasty Hannah.
- The plot of this episode is similar to The Railway Series book, Thomas and Victoria and the fifth series episode, Thomas, Percy and Old Slow Coach.
- This episode marks the last of a few things:
- Duck's final episode with a leading role, as well as his last physical speaking role in the original series, excluding the twenty-third series episode, Panicky Percy, in which he exclaims and laughs.
- Judy and Jerome's last speaking roles.
- Hannah and the Slip Coaches' last appearances, excluding life lesson segments and music video cameos.
- The last episode in which Jack appears but does not speak.
- The last episode to have Mark Moraghan as part of the voice cast, after four years of narrating from King of the Railway - Series 21, and guest voicing Dexter. Though, Moraghan took on the role of Mr. Evans as a tribute to Ben Forster (Mr. Perkins, 1958 - 2017), and narrates picture books about Thomas & Friends as promotional material on the Official Youtube Channels.
- This episode marks the only appearances/occurrences:
- Dexter's only appearance.
- Jack, Hannah and Slip Coaches' only appearances in the twenty-second series.
- The only appearance of the river Hawin Ooyre.
- The only time Mark Moraghan voices a character in the actual series.
- This is the first episode in where Nia appears, but she does not speak.
- This episode focuses on Goal #4: Quality Education and Goal #12: Responsible Consumption and Production as it was part of Mattel's partnership with the United Nations to promote 6 of the chosen Sustainable Development Goals.
- On the Nick Jr. US airing of this episode, it was paired with Trusty Trunky.
- This is one of the few episodes in the franchise where a vehicle character gets something in their mouth. In this episode, Reg blows a tuba.
Goofs
- Two cast members' surnames were misspelled in the UK end credits:
- Holly Hazelton's is misspelled as "Hazleton."
- Innis Robertson-Pinnell's is misspelled as "Robertson Purnell."
- The workman moving the tree branch at Harwick is composited behind the footbridge.
- When Duck brakes for Toby, no sound effect is heard when he puts on his brakes.
- When Duck tries to pull Dexter out of his siding, his wheels do not spark before Dexter collapses.
- When Thomas goes into Tidmouth Sheds, his steam cuts through the roof of the shed.
- When Thomas explains the moral at the end, one scene of the stock footage is zoomed out.
In Other Languages
| Language | Title |
|---|---|
| Brazilian Portuguese | A Escola do Duck |
| Czech | Duckova škola |
| Danish | Duck's skole |
| Dutch | De School van Duck |
| Finnish | Ankkasen kouluhuolet |
| German | Altes und Neues |
| Greek | Το Σχολείο του Ντα |
| Hebrew | דאק וחבריו |
| Hungarian | Kacsa iskola |
| Italian | La Scuola di Duck |
| Japanese | ダックのがっこう |
| Korean | 잊지 말자, 재활용 |
| Latin American Spanish | La Escuela de Duck |
| Norwegian | Ducks skole |
| Polish | Szkoła Kaczora |
| Portuguese | A Escola do Duck |
| Romanian | Duck și sala de clasa |
| Russian | Школа Дака |
| Serbian | Dakova škola |
| Spanish | El Vagón Escuela |
| Swedish | Ducks skola |
| Turkish | VakVak'ın Okulu |
| Ukrainian | Школа Дака |
| Vietnamese | Trường học của những chú vịt |
Home Media Releases
UK/AUS
GER
| #01 Number One Engine | #10 Outback Thomas | #19 Cyclone Thomas |
| #02 Forever and Ever | #11 School of Duck | #20 Kangaroo Christmas |
| #03 Confusion Without Delay | #12 Tiger Trouble | #21 Thomas and the Dragon |
| #04 Trusty Trunky | #13 Seeing Is Believing | #22 Rosie is Red |
| #05 What Rebecca Does | #14 Apology Impossible | #23 The Case of the Puzzling Parts |
| #06 Thomas Goes to Bollywood | #15 The Water Wheel | #24 Banjo and the Bushfire |
| #07 Thomas in the Wild | #16 Samson and the Fireworks | #25 Counting on Nia |
| #08 Thomas and the Monkey Palace | #17 Runaway Truck | #26 Hunt the Truck |
| #09 An Engine of Many Colours | #18 Thomas' Animal Ark | |