The Wild Nor' Wester

The Railway Series

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The Wild Nor' Wester
Background Information
First appearance	The Three Railway Engines (1945)
Last appearance	Thomas and his Friends (2011)
Creator(s)	Rev W. Awdry
Character Overview
Name	The Wild Nor' Wester
Nicknames	The Express
Country	Island of Sodor England
Technical Details
Gauge	4'8½" (1,435 mm; standard gauge)
Vehicle	Rolling stock
Type	Coaches
Top speed	125 mph (160.9 kph) (England)
Railway	North Western Railway

The Wild Nor' Wester, also known simply as the Express, is an express passenger train of the North Western Railway. Gordon is best known for having the duty of pulling the train, but after his retirement, it was later passed down to Pip and Emma.

History

The Express was created to provide an express passenger service from London to Sodor. In 1925, following an agreement with the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS), locomotive exchanges were moved from Vicarstown to Barrow-in-Furness.

During 1959, a special coach was added to the express that would be detached at Tidmouth for passengers travelling on the Ffarquhar Branch Line.

By 2011, as too much time was being wasted on changing engines at Barrow, Sir Stephen Topham Hatt III purchased Pip and Emma to run the service.

Stops

The Express stops at the following stations:

• St. Pancras
• Barrow-in-Furness
• Crovan's Gate
• Tidmouth

Rolling Stock

A variety of engines have pulled the Express. Before Pip and Emma took over, Gordon mainly pulled the express, through Henry, James, and Bear would sometimes do it. When Class 40 failed, Stepney and Duck took his place, the latter later helping Thomas and Percy when Henry was ill. Edward also helped Henry pull the express when Gordon burst his safety valve.

Locomotives

Pip

Emma

Gordon (formerly; superseded by Pip and Emma)

Henry (occasionally; formerly)

James (occasionally; formerly)

Bear (occasionally; formerly)

Coaches

BR MK3 Coaches

Orange-Brown Corridor Coaches (formerly)

Orange-Brown Non-Corridor Coaches (formerly)

Orange-Brown Suburban Coaches (formerly)

Red Express Coaches (formerly)

Thomas' Special Coach (formerly)

Appearances

• Railway Series

The Railway Series The Three Railway Engines - Edward and Gordon (mentioned) and Edward, Gordon and Henry Thomas the Tank Engine - Thomas and Gordon and Thomas and the Breakdown Train James the Red Engine - James and the Express Troublesome Engines - Tenders and Turntables and Percy Runs Away Henry the Green Engine - The Flying Kipper (mentioned) and Gordon's Whistle Gordon the Big Engine - Off the Rails Edward the Blue Engine - Cows Four Little Engines - Sir Handel Percy the Small Engine - Percy and the Signal The Eight Famous Engines - Gordon Goes Foreign and Double Header Duck and the Diesel Engine - Domeless Engines and Pop Goes the Diesel (mentioned) The Twin Engines - The Missing Coach (mentioned) Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine - Bowled Out Main Line Engines - Buzz, Buzz and Wrong Road Really Useful Engines - Triple-Header More About Thomas the Tank Engine - Better Late Than Never Gordon the High-Speed Engine - High-Speed Gordon, Smokescreen, Fire Escape and Gordon Proves His Point Henry and the Express - Overhaul and Henry Sees Red Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines - Birdstrike Thomas and his Friends - Thomas and the Swan and Centenary Companion Volumes 1984 - Henry the Green Engine Gets Out

Trivia

• On Wilbert Awdry's Tidmouth - Knapford layout, the Express consisted of four corridor coaches: three in the Great Western Railway chocolate and cream livery and one in the LMS maroon livery.
  • These coaches were also shared with the Sudrian, with one side of the consist being painted in the livery of the Express and the other in the livery of the Sudrian.
• The Express is loosely named after the North Western Railway.
• In The Railway Series version of Bowled Out, the Express is stated to consist of fifteen coaches. This number, however, is not always consistent.
• In The Missing Coach, it is stated the Express returns daily to Tidmouth at 3:30 in the afternoon.
• The route of the Wild Nor' Wester after Barrow-in-Furness is not specified, however in Gordon Goes Foreign, the Wild Nor' Wester terminates at St. Pancras. Additionally, The Island of Sodor: It's People, History, and Railways mentions that the North Western Railway borrowed engines and rolling stock from the Midland Railway. From this it can be concluded that the Wild Nor' Wester takes a path through Leeds southward along the Midland Railway, rather than down the West Coast Main Line into Euston.

North Western Railway

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The Main Line

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