The Mainland (RWS)

The Railway Series

Thomas & Friends

All Engines Go

United Kingdom
Background Information
First appearance	Toby the Tram Engine (1952)
Last appearance	Thomas and Victoria (2007)
Overview
Official name	United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Type	Island country
Leader(s)	King Charles III Elizabeth II (formerly)
Government	Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
Demonym	British, Briton
Language(s)	English Welsh (Wales) Scottish Galiec (Scotland)
Population	67,886,004 (2020)
Continent	Europe
Capital	London
Largest city	London
Area	242,495 km2 (93,628 sq mi)
Constituent countries	England Scotland Wales Northern Ireland Island of Sodor

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, also known simply as the United Kingdom, is The Mainland of Sodor, accessed via the Vicarstown Bridge. It constitutes of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It also consists of many small islands.

Location

The Mainland (United Kingdom) is located across the Walney Channel from Sodor and is accessed via the Vicarstown Bridge. Barrow-in-Furness is the nearest Mainland station and town to Sodor. Sodor itself bridges the bay between Barrow and the Isle of Man, reducing what would otherwise be a swath of open sea into a narrow strip of water named Faarkey-Y-Sudragh ("Sudrian Sea").

Landmarks

Several notable landmarks on the Mainland appear or are mentioned throughout The Railway Series and its associated media. These include:

• Barrow-in-Furness
• Crewe
• Doncaster
• Haverthwaite Tunnel
• Horsted Keynes
• Lakeside
• London
  • Euston
  • King's Cross
  • Paddington
  • St. Pancras
  • The Big Airy Shed
• Pendre
• Sixteen's Old Steelworks
• Swindon
• Tywyn Wharf
• The Workshop
• York
  • National Railway Museum

Railways

The Mainland is home to a number of different railways. The main railway company on the Mainland was British Railways - now split up into various privatised companies - however there are many others which also feature in The Railway Series and its associated media. These include:

• Bluebell Railway
• Corris Railway
• Dean Forest Railway
• Ffestiniog Railway
• Furness Railway
• Great Western Railway
• Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway
• Snowdon Mountain Railway
• Talyllyn Railway
• Toby's Old Tramway

Appearances

• Railway Series

England The Railway Series Toby the Tram Engine - Toby and the Stout Gentleman and Dirty Objects The Twin Engines - The Missing Coach (mentioned) The Eight Famous Engines - Percy Takes the Plunge, Gordon Goes Foreign and The Fat Controller's Engines Duck and the Diesel Engine - Domeless Engines Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine - Bluebells of England and Stepney's Special Enterprising Engines - Escape Gordon the High-Speed Engine - Fire Escape and Gordon Proves His Point Henry and the Express - Out of Puff Thomas and the Great Railway Show - Museum-Piece, Not the Ticket, Trouble on the Line and Thomas and the Railtour Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines - Golden Jubilee Thomas and Victoria - Avalanche Scotland The Railway Series The Twin Engines - Hullo Twins (mentioned) and The Missing Coach (mentioned) Jock the New Engine - Jock (mentioned) Companion Volumes The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways (mentioned) Wales The Railway Series The Twin Engines - The Missing Coach (mentioned) Great Little Engines - Sir Handel Comes Home New Little Engine - Dirty Water

Trivia

• Some other real-life locations on the Mainland have also appeared or been mentioned in The Railway Series:
  • Bournemouth is mentioned in the story Mrs. Kyndley's Christmas from Toby the Tram Engine. It is also mentioned in Thomas's Christmas Party.
  • Bincombe Tunnel is mentioned in the story Leaves from Gordon the Big Engine.
  • Bristol and Plymouth are mentioned in the story Domeless Engines from Duck and the Diesel Engine, with Bristol and Swindon also being mentioned in The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways.
  • Carlisle is mentioned in the story Gordon Proves His Point from Gordon the High-Speed Engine.
  • Norfolk is mentioned in the story Toby's Seaside Holiday from Toby, Trucks and Trouble.
  • Skipton is mentioned in the story Museum-Piece from Thomas and the Great Railway Show.
  • Lydney is mentioned in the story Cab Over Wheels from Wilbert the Forest Engine.

United Kingdom

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