Terence

Terence is an orange caterpillar tractor who works near Thomas' Branch Line. He is owned by Farmer Finney.

Biography

The Railway Series

Thomas insulted Terence for having caterpillar tracks, but regretted it after Terence pulled him out of a snowdrift.

Terence befriended Duck while Thomas was at the Works.

Terence did Percy's shunting work at Ffarquhar while Percy was at Knapford Harbour.

Terence helped to build a barn the day Victoria was sent back to Thomas' Branch Line. After swerving for a boulder by the Hackenbeck tunnel, Terence's trailer fell down the cutting and balanced dangerously on a tree.

Thomas & Friends

As in the Railway Series, Terence rescued Thomas when he got stuck in the snow. He later helped Mrs. Kyndley when her house was snowed up and looked after her house when she went with the engines to a Christmas Party. In the second series, Terence befriended Duck while Thomas was at the works, and attended the Christmas Party at Tidmouth.

In the third series, Terence helped Trevor with the planting of new trees in the forest after a storm and assured Henry that the forest would look better than ever before. He also got trapped near a level crossing when Mavis got stuck and blocked the road. When Bertie got stuck in the mud at the Vicar of Wellsworth's party, Terence used strong ropes to pull him out. Later, when villagers were stranded by snow, Terence helped them by ploughing the snow away. In the fourth series, he was seen working at a farm near where Sir Handel had an accident.

In the fifth series, he warned James about the damage that trees can do, and reminded Percy that Mrs. Kyndley's daughter was to get married. He was also seen working at Boulder Quarry.

In the sixth series, he helped clear away fallen rock on the line which had derailed Thomas, and almost Toby. He was later seen ploughing in a field, when Duncan lost his whistle trying to surprise him.

In the seventh series, he helped clear away a tree that had fallen on the line, and pulled Elizabeth out of the snow.

In The Great Discovery, when Thomas went missing, Terence helped with the search for him, and once Thomas was found, Terence informed Harvey of the news.

In the twenty-first series, Terence took a shortcut over a frozen lake while collecting Christmas trees for the holiday market, but in the process the ice began to break. While Thomas did rescue Terence, the Christmas tree was lost.

Personality

Terence is an assertive, orange tractor with caterpillar tracks. The engines find these very unusual, but Terence is very capable of proving that he does not need rails and that his tracks allow him to go practically anywhere. He takes any teasing in the name of fun and is happy to get on with his job, usually partaking in agricultural work. Terence never hesitates to assist in emergencies or sticky situations, road or rail, due to his helpful, forgiving nature. His tracks are particularly invaluable in harsh winter conditions when snow can affect transport across the Island. He may be slow, but he is versatile, adaptable, and helpful. He can usually be found transporting agricultural produce or cheerily ploughing fields beside Thomas's branch line.

Technical Details

Basis

Terence is based on a Caterpillar Model Seventy; the largest, and last design of petrol-powered tractors in Caterpillar's range. The Caterpillar Tractors share the same basis.

Terence's basis

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Livery

Terence is painted orange with grey caterpillar tracks and a black engine and exhaust pipe.

Appearances

Voice Actors

• Tom Stourton (UK/US; twenty-first series onwards)
• Yasuhiko Kawazu (Japan; first - fifth series)
• Hinata Tadokoro (Japan; twenty-first series onwards)
• Daniel del Roble (Latin America; twenty-first series onwards)
• Michael Griem (Germany; Audio Books only)

Trivia

• Terence is the first non-rail character introduced in the entire series.
• Terence is drawn with a cab, but without his widow's peak in Thomas's Christmas Party.
• Terence's television model is currently on display at Drayton Manor. His plough, however, has been broken since the display opened.
• Terence is a bit longer than his basis.
• According to The Thomas the Tank Engine Man, Terence was originally going to be called "Terry", but was later changed to the current and more formal version of the name.
• Terence has a detachable plough.
• According to a magazine article, he sometimes works on Farmer Trotter's Pig Farm.
• In some merchandising and books, Terence's name is sometimes misspelt as "Terrence".
• In the 1995 annual story, James Gets Cracking, Terence's driver was revealed to be named Farmer Finney. However, he has been driven by Jem Cole, Farmer McColl, and Farmer Collett once before. In a deleted scene of Ghost Train, Terence was driven by Sam the Farmer.
• In the French dub of the first seven series, Terence' name is Thierry.
• Terence had some modifications in the twenty-first series, including:
  • Losing his widow's peak.
  • Gaining eyebrows.
  • His face also became more elongated, covering his entire front, and lost the small indents it originally had.
  • Gained rivets around his front.
  • His front fender disappeared.
  • His rear drawbar changed in style, and he also gained a coupling loop on his front.
• Up until Series 21, Terence never had any eyebrows in the television series, although he has eyebrows in some illustrations and merchandise.
• In some scenes Terence's plough is shown lifted above the ground via small hydraulics yet the company that made his basis designed a set of beams, an A-frame and a winch to lift and lower the plough.
• During the model series, Terence always has the same expression. It is unknown why he has the same expression.
• The Polish Story Library book Terence is named Teodor, althought his name in the Polish dub is Tymcio.

Merchandise

• ERTL (discontinued)
• Wooden Railway (black wheels, orange wheels, tractor wheels, all discontinued)
• Take Along (discontinued)
• Motor Road and Rail (discontinued)
• TrackMaster (discontinued)
• Thomas Engine Collection Series (discontinued)
• Mini Die Cast Collection (discontinued)
• Thomas Town (discontinued)
• Trading Cards (discontinued)
• My First Thomas (discontinued)
• My Thomas Story Library (discontinued)
• Bachmann
• De Agostini (discontinued)
• Brio (discontinued)
• Nakayoshi (discontinued)
• Capsule Plarail
• Pocket Fantasy (discontinued)
• Departing Now (discontinued)

References