- "Peter Sam said again and again
his new funnel will put ours to shame.
Went into the tunnel,
lost his old funnel.
Now his famous new funnel's a drain!" - ― Sir Handel's song, teasing Peter Sam
Special Funnel is the eleventh episode of the fourth series. It is based on the story of the same name from The Railway Series book Gallant Old Engine.
Plot
It is wintertime on Sodor. Ever since his accident at the Incline, Peter Sam has been having trouble with his damaged funnel wobbling in the strong wind. He is still awaiting a new funnel which he says, in the Manager's words, will be "something special" but the other engines tease his talk about a new funnel.
Heavy rain soon comes, causing streams to rise, which threaten to wash away the line. Rusty is kept busy taking workmen along the line, removing any leaves and brush that prevent water from flowing. One day, Rusty's driver reports that a torrent has washed out a bridge near the tunnel, so Rusty and some workmen are sent to rebuild the bridge. This job, however, takes a long time and, as days pass, the rain ends and the weather becomes frosty and much colder.
A few days later, the bridge is finally rebuilt and Peter Sam is chuffing carefully down the line with his morning passenger train. As he puffs through the tunnel, his driver spots an object hanging from the roof but is unable to stop Peter Sam from colliding with it. When Peter Sam exits the tunnel, he discovers that the object, revealed by the guard to be a large icicle, has knocked off his old funnel, which cannot be found. They continue on but Peter Sam (a different-looking engine) finds it hard work with smoke billowing in all directions. When his fireman spots an old piece of drainpipe laying by the track, they fasten it to him with wires as a temporary funnel to control the smoke. When the other engines see Peter Sam with the drainpipe, they tease him relentlessly (especially Sir Handel, who sings a song about it).
Peter Sam's new funnel eventually arrives and is presented to him by the Fat Controller. The funnel has an unusual design and Peter Sam is worried it has been "squashed" but the Fat Controller assures him it really is "something special". The new funnel has special pipes that make puffing much easier, giving Peter Sam much more strength when pulling trains. He is much happier with it, stating that he feels stronger than ever before. The other engines, especially Sir Handel, are impressed with how easy he makes work look. Since then, they have never teased Peter Sam about his special funnel; instead, they wish they could have one like it.
Characters
- Skarloey
- Rheneas
- Sir Handel
- Peter Sam
- Duncan
- Duke
- Sir Topham Hatt
- Rusty (does not speak)
- Narrow Gauge Coaches (cameos)
- Troublesome Trucks (mentioned)
- The Skarloey Railway Manager (mentioned)
Locations
- The Mountain Line
- Hawin Dooiey
- Skarloey Engine Sheds
- Crovan's Gate Yards
- The Forest Runby Bridge
- Mountainside Runby
- Cros-ny-Cuirn
- Skarloey
- Rheneas
Trivia
- Stock footage from Granpuff is used.
- This episode marks:
- The first episode without the standard gauge engines in any way.
- Peter Sam's last episode with a leading role until the seventh series episode The Refreshment Lady's Tea Shop.
- The first appearance of Peter Sam's new funnel.
- The only winter-themed episode in the fourth series, not counting the opening and ending scenes of Granpuff.
- The last appearance of Peter Sam's original funnel, excluding deleted scenes in the fifth series episode Duncan Gets Spooked.
- The last appearance of Cros-ny-Cuirn, aside from a mention in the eighteenth series episode Duncan and the Grumpy Passenger.
- The last episode to be re-narrated by Michael Angelis, until the sixth series episode James and the Red Balloon.
- In the original UK dub:
- The music bits at the beginning of this episode and the scene when Peter Sam had to use a pipe are omitted.
- Most of Peter Sam's whistle sound bits are also omitted.
- Sir Handel's song is heard later.
- The wind sound effect from the 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back can be heard in this episode.
- The song Sir Handel sings about Peter Sam's funnel is sung to the tune of "Boys and Girls Come Out to Play".
Goofs
- In the close-up shots of Peter Sam's funnels, his face, which is actually Duke's, is a different size. This is because a larger model was used for close-ups.
- Peter Sam has Duke's original whistle sound when he arrives at the Sheds.
- Rheneas appears, even though he is supposed to be at the Works.
- Rusty's driver is smiling when he brings the bad news about the washout.
- During the overhead shot of Peter Sam entering the tunnel, the steam goes off too late.
- The narrator says that the drainpipe was wired to Peter Sam's boiler, however, it was actually attached to his front buffers with ropes.
- When Peter Sam pulls into the Sheds, the "wheeshing" sound is heard just before the steam.
- In the close-up of Sir Handel, his eyes are misaligned.
- When Peter Sam receives his new funnel, he has a short black funnel on.
- Despite the line, "Oh dear, someone squashed it!" being taken from the original book, the new funnel presented in the series does not look squashed.
- As Peter Sam passes Skarloey and Rheneas, a camera's shadow is seen.
- In the last shot, either Skarloey or Rheneas has Duke's whistle sound.
- In a promotional image, Peter Sam is wearing Sir Handel's sad face.
In Other Languages
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Merchandise
Peter Sam (2005 My Thomas Story Library book)
Home Video Releases
Episode
US narrationReference
| #01 Granpuff | #10 Rock 'n' Roll | #19 Henry and the Elephant |
| #02 Sleeping Beauty | #11 Special Funnel | #20 Toad Stands By |
| #03 Bulldog | #12 Steam Roller | #21 Bulls Eyes |
| #04 You Can't Win | #13 Passengers and Polish | #22 Thomas and the Special Letter |
| #05 Four Little Engines | #14 Gallant Old Engine | #23 Paint Pots and Queens |
| #06 A Bad Day for Sir Handel | #15 Rusty to the Rescue | #24 Fish |
| #07 Peter Sam and the Refreshment Lady | #16 Thomas and Stepney | #25 Special Attraction |
| #08 Trucks | #17 Train Stops Play | #26 Mind that Bike |
| #09 Home at Last | #18 Bowled Out | |