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Wilbert Vere Awdry, better known as The Thin Clergyman, was an English Anglican clergyman, railway enthusiast, and children's author.
He is the fictionalized counterpart of Wilbert Awdry, the author of The Railway Series.
Biography[]
The Thin Clergyman and his friend, the Fat Clergyman, once went to the Arlesdale Railway to take photographs of the engines for his upcoming book, Small Railway Engines. One of the engines, Bert, liked the clergymen at first but became uncomfortable when they continued squinting into their cameras without saying hello to him. The clergymen hopped back into their car and raced through a puddle, splashing Bert in the face with muddy water. Although the clergymen had meant no harm, Bert was still cross with them and managed to pay the Fat Clergyman out by splashing him with water from the overhead trees, though he got in trouble for this. The clergymen went to apologise to Bert and cleaned him up, telling him that they would feature him and the other small engines in a book.[2] In 1967, Small Railway Engines was published.[3]
In 1969, the Thin Clergyman had heard the story of Duke from the Small Controller, and he, the Fat Clergyman and the Small Controller made plans to recover Duke and send him to the Skarloey Railway to be restored. Every morning they went on Bert's train and searched through the hills of Arlesdale, but they did not find anything. Their search finally ended when the Fat Clergyman fell through the roof of the buried engine shed and landed on top of Duke, who had been sleeping the whole time.[4]
In 1997, the Thin Clergyman passed away. In 2011, to celebrate his 100th birthday, Sir Stephen Topham Hatt III made plans to unveil a bust made in his likeness at Tidmouth station. Although plans for the celebration were nearly delayed due to the collapse of Henry's Tunnel, the problem was soon rectified, and the party went ahead, with Prince Charles even attending to unveil the bust.[5]
Personality[]
Though not much is known about the Thin Clergyman, he is shown to be a kind and caring man who loved engines and writing books on them, as well as organising some railway shows of his layout for the children.
Appearances[]
The Railway Series
Companion volumes
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Official Description[]
From Official Media:[6]
| “ | The Thin Clergyman (1911-1997): My father personified himself in this character, and took great delight in relating some of the adventures, suitably adaptable, that he had shared with 'The Fat Clergyman' on the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway over the years. The one exception is the story of the finding of Duke, which, while based on the fact an engine's discovery buried in the South American jungle, was nothing like so immediate or painful to the Fat Clergyman as the tale might have us believe. | ” |
Trivia[]
- When the Thin and Fat Clergymen visited the Arlesdale Railway, they drove a maroon car with the number plate "O40 BMC".
- He was briefly the publicity manager for the North Western Railway.[7]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 RWS #05 "Troublesome Engines" - Percy Runs Away
- ↑ RWS #22 "Small Railway Engines"
- ↑ RWS #34 "Jock the New Engine"
- ↑ RWS #25 "Duke the Lost Engine"
- ↑ RWS #42 "Thomas and his Friends"
- ↑ RWS "Sodor: Reading Between the Lines" (2005)
- ↑ "Railways of Sodor"
| Locomotives | Steam | 87546 and 98462 | Workshop Engines | Big City Engine | Jinty and Pug | City of Truro | Stepney | Bluebell and Primrose | Adams | Cromford | Captain Baxter | Flying Scotsman | Toby's Brothers | 8783 | 1020 | Stephenson's Rocket | Green Arrow | Boxhill | Iron Duke | Mallard | Duchess of Hamilton | Wilbert | Sixteen | Albert |
|---|---|---|
| Diesel | Diesel | Diesel 4711 | Diesel 199 | Diesel 40125 | Diesel 31120 | 10751 | |
| Rolling Stock | Helena | |
| People | Elizabeth II | The Thin Clergyman | The Fat Clergyman | |
| Stations | Barrow-in-Furness | Brighton | Carnforth | Crewe | Euston | Horsted Keynes | King's Cross | Lakeside | Norchard | Paddington | St. Pancras | York | |
| Railways | Bluebell Railway | British Railways | Corris Railway | Dean Forest Railway | Ffestiniog Railway | Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway | Snowdon Mountain Railway | Talyllyn Railway | Toby's Old Tramway | |