| For other uses, see Thomas' Train (disambiguation). |
- “Henry says it's hard to pull trains but I think it's easy.”
- ― Thomas
Thomas' Train, retitled A Big Day for Thomas on North American releases, is the fifth episode of the first series. It is based on the story of the same name from The Railway Series book Thomas the Tank Engine.
Plot
Because Thomas is not allowed to take passenger trains, he grumbles about only being used to collect the coaches for the other engines and wanting to pull them as well. The other engines laugh, telling him he is too impatient and would leave something behind. Thomas is determined to get a chance to prove them wrong.
One night, Thomas is alone in the shed with Henry who is ill. The workmen are trying their hardest to make him better, but to no avail, and Thomas feels sorry for him. The next morning, Henry is due to take the first train and Thomas is needed to get the coaches ready. He starts to hope he will be allowed to pull the train if Henry is not able to since he is sick and excitedly leaves to fetch the coaches.
Thomas brings the coaches to the platform and is eager to run round in front. His driver does not let him, telling him to be patient. Soon, all the passengers are onboard and the coaches are ready to leave and there is still no sign of Henry, to Thomas' excitement. The Fat Controller arrives to see what is going on and is told about Henry. He orders to find another engine and as Thomas is the only one available, he allows the tank engine to take the train.
Thomas, full of joy, quickly moves to the front of the coaches despite his driver again warning him not to be impatient. Thomas ends up leaving the station without the coaches and the passengers for unknown reasons - either he is too impatient to wait, his driver has pulled a lever by mistake, or his crew have forgotten to couple him to the train. Either way, the men in the signal box outside the station wave and shout, though Thomas thinks they are cheering. Thomas puffs along the line, thinking pulling coaches is easier than he was told. He keeps seeing people waving at him and assumes it is because he has never pulled a train before.
Eventually, Thomas is stopped at a signal set to "danger". Thomas is cross at being stopped when he was going so nicely and blows his whistle, alerting the signalman who asks Thomas what he is doing on this part of the line. Thomas replies he is pulling a train but the signalman asks him where the coaches are. Thomas looks back and realises that he has left his train behind. He is very upset at his mistake and almost cries. His driver tells him not to be upset and he sadly reverses back to the station.
At the station, all the passengers are complaining to the Fat Controller about what happened but, when Thomas returns, they see how sorry he is and allow him to try again. This time, Thomas is properly coupled to the coaches and he really gets his chance to pull the train. But sometime later, the other engines begin to tease Thomas and remind him of his mistake, to his annoyance.
Characters
- Thomas
- Henry
- Gordon
- Green Express Coaches
- Sir Topham Hatt
- Edward (not named)
- James (not named)
- Orange Branchline Coaches (do not speak)
- Lady Hatt (cameo)
- Stephen Hatt (cameo)
- Jeremiah Jobling (cameo)
- The New Ffarquhar Constable (cameo)
- Märklin Engine (deleted scene cameo)
Locations
Trivia
- The events of this episode were recreated and retold in the 2015 special The Adventure Begins.
- This episode, the next one, Thomas' Christmas Party and Better Late than Never utilize the same close-up of Thomas' whistle in the original versions. The restored versions of all four episodes replace the shot with mirrored footage from Thomas and the Guard.
- Davey Moore has cited this episode as one of his favourites, alongside the fifth series episode Rusty and the Boulder and the seventeenth series episode Luke's New Friend.
- A clip of this episode was shown during the review of the Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends (Cassette 1) Betamax/VHS release on TV-AM.
- On the back cover of the 1990 Thomas Gets Tricked and Other Stories VHS, this episode was erroneously re-titled as A Big Day Out for Thomas.
- This episode and the next one were repeated one final time on 27 February 1989 before repeats of the second series started aired a week later.
- Despite their appearances in the episode, Edward and James do not appear in the nameboard sequence at the end of the episode in the Japanese version.
- This is the first episode of a few things:
- The first episode released by DVD Acadamy in South Korea.
- The first episode to have three dubs in South Korea.
- The first episode to be voiced over the English narration in South Korea.
- The first appearances of Thomas' shocked and worried faces and Henry's ill face.
- The first sign of Henry's illness.
- The first speaking role of James.
- In the original Polish dub, Ringo Starr's narration can be heard in the background as a dubbing track was not used.
- In the Korean version released by DVD Acadamy, George Carlin's narration can be heard in the background as a dubbing track was not used.
- In the original Swedish version, the episode title was not translated in Swedish.
- Some scenes from the Ladybird book show Thomas wearing a differently styled face (which is his second series cheerful face with teeth added, which was later used in the sixth series) and James wearing his second series laughing face.
Goofs
- This episode was mistakenly dated 1986 in the end credits of the Shining Time Station episode Stop the Press, even though it was actually produced in 1984.
- Thomas' eyes are misaligned in several scenes.
- In the opening spot, the goods train's brake van wobbles a bit.
- In the first scene at Knapford Station, blu-tack is visible underneath his face and the yellow object is also reflecting his smokebox.
- Edward's tender is crooked in the close-up of Gordon at Knapford and at Tidmouth Sheds.
- When the others tease Thomas, Gordon is outside the station but later, he is inside.
- In the shot of Henry being worked on, one of the workmen does not have his overalls completely painted on and a gap between Henry's face and eyes is also visible.
- At Tidmouth Sheds in the morning:
- A piece of blu-tack is visible in the workmen's feet.
- Gordon's eyes are misaligned.
- When Thomas says "If Henry is ill, perhaps I shall pull his train," the voice tone sounds like he is getting excited despite wearing his sad face.
- When Thomas shunts the coaches, a gap between his eyes and face can be seen and James is also seen passing by with a train yet he was at Tidmouth Sheds when Thomas left.
- The brake coach of Thomas' train is at the front and flipped where it is supposed to be at the back.
- When Thomas first shunts the coaches, the back buffers of the coach are at their normal height. A few scenes later, however, the buffers are lowered to accommodate Thomas' buffers. Then in every scene after that, they are at their normal height again. Furthermore, a small light also flickers on Thomas' smokebox.
- A window pane is missing on a coach and the camera is reflecting on a door when the porter closes one.
- When the Fat Controller says "Find another engine," he has several holes on his face.
- When Thomas runs round to the front of the coaches, a handle appears on the top of his lamp but in the next shot it disappears.
- In the close-up shots of Thomas, his wheels are going at a different pace to the background and a camera connector can also be seen.
- Two of Thomas' passengers can be seen at the crossing after he leaves without his train.
- Bridget and Stephen Hatt, the man with the red hat and blue coat and the Ffarquhar Policeman are smiling in the shot of them waving at Thomas, when they are supposed to be shouting.
- When Thomas couples up to the train, the coach is touching his buffers but in the panning shot of him pulling the train, there is a large gap in between him the first coach.
- At the end of the episode:
- As Thomas puffs backwards into platform 4, he is heard chuffing before he moves.
- Thomas' eyes are misaligned.
- Henry's train is missing a brake coach.
In Other Languages
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Merchandise
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Magazine Story
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Home Video Releases
Episode
References
| #01 Thomas and Gordon | #10 James and the Express | #19 The Flying Kipper |
| #02 Edward and Gordon | #11 Thomas and the Guard | #20 Whistles and Sneezes |
| #03 The Sad Story of Henry | #12 Thomas Goes Fishing | #21 Toby and the Stout Gentleman |
| #04 Edward, Gordon and Henry | #13 Thomas, Terence and the Snow | #22 Thomas in Trouble |
| #05 Thomas' Train | #14 Thomas and Bertie | #23 Dirty Objects |
| #06 Thomas and the Trucks | #15 Tenders and Turntables | #24 Off the Rails |
| #07 Thomas and the Breakdown Train | #16 Trouble in the Shed | #25 Down the Mine |
| #08 James and the Coaches | #17 Percy Runs Away | #26 Thomas' Christmas Party |
| #09 Troublesome Trucks | #18 Coal | |