Toad

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This article is about the brake van. You may be looking for the animal.

Toad the Brake Van
Background Information
First appearance	Enterprising Engines (RWS) Escape (T&F)
Last appearance	Sodor: Reading Between the Lines (RWS) Journey Beyond Sodor (T&F)
Creator(s)	Rev. W. Awdry
Voice Actors
UK/US voice actor	Joe Mills (2014-2017)
Character Overview
Name	Toad
Title	Toad the Brake Van
Gender	Male
Country	Island of Sodor England (formerly)
Affiliation	North Western Railway Thomas Gordon James Marion Skiff The Little Western Duck Donald and Douglas Oliver Isabel and Dulcie Gator
Technical Details
Basis	GWR AA21 diagram 20-ton brake van (RWS) GWR 16-ton brake van (T&F)
Gauge	4'8½" (1,435 mm; standard gauge)
Vehicle	Rolling stock
Type	Brake van
Wheels	4
Builder(s)	Swindon Works
Year built	1940
Arrived on Sodor	1967
Number	GWR 56831
Railway	North Western Railway British Railways (formerly) Great Western Railway (formerly)
Owner(s)	Sir Topham Hatt

Toad is Oliver's loyal brake van who escaped from scrap with the help of Douglas.

Biography

The Railway Series

Toad worked with Oliver on the Great Western Railway before being threatened with the prospect of scrapping. Oliver, Toad and an autocoach named Isabel ran away for the greener pastures of the North Western Railway, but Oliver ran out of coal en route. Luckily, they were rescued by Douglas and brought back to Sodor. Afterwards, Toad asked to be Douglas' brake van as a show of thanks.

When S.C. Ruffey began to start a trend of disrespecting the engines, Toad had the idea for Oliver to show him and his lieutenants the error of their ways. This turned out better than expected, for Oliver pulled S.C. Ruffey apart and won back the respect of the trucks.

Thomas & Friends

Toad was tired of always going backwards and wanted to be a leader for a change. The trucks decided to teach Toad to be careful what he wishes for by breaking away from Oliver on Gordon's Hill and as a result, he crashed into some level crossing gates, narrowly avoided Gordon and James and stopped by taking a plunge into a muddy pond. Afterwards, Toad decided that always going backwards was not so bad after all.

While Gator was on Sodor, he once took some of Oliver's trucks with Toad, who kept insisting that Gator should stop and relight his lamp. After being briefly taken off the train after forcing them to stop with his brakes, Toad had the "bright" idea of giving Gator one of his lamps to replace his broken one. This idea worked and Gator thanked Toad once they had finished their journey.

Toad soon became bored of repeatedly hearing the story of Oliver's escape and longed for an adventure story of his own to tell. His wish was granted when he went to work with James, who ran much too fast and hit a fallen branch on Gordon's Hill, uncoupling his trucks. Toad managed to stop the trucks and prevented a crash with Thomas and Percy. When he returned to the Yard, he told a disbelieving Oliver all about it.

Toad eventually began to sing during his journeys with Oliver, which the Western engine liked at first, but quickly got fed up of listening. Later, as they were passing Bluff's Cove, Toad spotted a whale stranded on the beach and tried to tell Oliver, but Oliver thought Toad was joking. But later that day when the two passed the same area again, Oliver saw the whale and apologised to Toad. They informed the Sodor Search and Rescue Centre, but after a few attempts at moving the whale proved unsuccessful, Toad had the idea of using a flatbed to transport the whale to Brendam Docks, where Cranky gently placed the whale back into the water. Now whenever Toad passes through Bluffs Cove, he remembers his friend and sings about him.

Toad, along with Oliver, helped to build the new Harwick Branch Line and attended the line's opening.

Toad was traveling with Oliver when Skiff bravely warned both him and Duck to stop for a fallen tree during a storm.

Personality

Toad is a polite, gentlemanly brake van. He is also somewhat imaginative and a bit of an optimist. Toad minds his manners well and is always quick to refer to the engines as "Mr.", "Miss" or "Sir". He escaped from scrap with Oliver, with some help from Douglas. Toad is very loyal, keeps Oliver's trucks in order and has his best interests at heart. He has a cunning streak within him should the trucks cause any particular bother and does like fun when it comes his way, but he is typically calm, obedient and content in his work.

Technical Details

Basis

In the Railway Series, Toad is based on a Great Western Railway (GWR) AA21 diagram 20-ton brake van. These were built between 1939 and 1940 with 100 being made, these being numbered 17390 – 489. They were all fitted with vacuum brakes and a brake setter (emergency brake valve) which allowed the Guard to apply the brakes on the whole train. These vans were used on ‘fully fitted’ goods trains which could run at higher speeds.

In the TV show, Toad is based on a GWR 16-ton brake van. Early vans were just 10 or 16 tons weight, but this gradually increased to 20 and 25 tons. A brake van on the Mid Hants Railway (No. 35907) was renumbered 56831 and given 16 ton markings to match Toad in the television series. A number of these brake vans are preserved by heritage railways, such as the Dean Forest Railway.

Toad's basis

Livery

Toad is painted grey with "GW 56831" written on his side in white. Before being repaired in Enterprising Engines and in an illustration portraying him before Escape from the subsequent book, Toad was painted bauxite. In the Railway Series, his face is the same colour as his bodywork, but in the television series he has a light grey face.

Appearances

• Railway Series
• Television Series
• Other Media

The Railway Series Enterprising Engines - Escape (does not speak) and Little Western (mentioned) Oliver the Western Engine - Resource and Sagacity (does not speak) and Toad Stands By Companion volumes 1976 - Famous Engines 1987 - The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways (mentioned) 1996 - Thomas the Tank Engine: The Complete Collection 2005 - Sodor: Reading Between the Lines (mentioned)

Thomas & Friends Series 3 - Escape (does not speak) and Oliver Owns Up (cameo) Series 4 - Toad Stands By and Mind that Bike (cameo) Series 5 - Gordon and the Gremlin (cameo), Oliver's Find and Busy Going Backwards Series 6 - James and the Red Balloon (faceless, deleted scene cameo) Series 7 - Emily's New Coaches (cameo), James and the Queen of Sodor (stock footage cameo) and Snow Engine Series 8 - Thomas and the Circus (faceless, cameo) Series 12 - Gordon Takes a Shortcut Series 18 - Signals Crossed (cameo), Toad's Adventure, Duck in the Water (cameo), Spencer's VIP (cameo) and Toad's Bright Idea Series 19 - Toad and the Whale and The Little Engine Who Raced Ahead (cameo) Series 20 - Blown Away, The Way She Does It (cameo) and Skiff and the Mermaid Series 21 - Oliver's Fear of Fireworks (episode rewritten for twenty-second series, role replaced with Bradford) He was to appear in the sixth series with Oliver, but was cut out for unknown reasons. However, Oliver did appear in said series. He appeared in a deleted scene, but without a face. His clenched face was also used on some trucks in the eighth and ninth series episodes, Fish and Emily Knows Best respectively. His shocked face was used on a truck, but only in the ninth series episode, Emily Knows Best. Specials 1992 - Thomas and the U.K. Trip (cameo) 2005 - Calling All Engines! (faceless; music video cameo) 2014 - Tale of the Brave (trailer cameo) 2015 - Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure 2016 - The Great Race (cameo) 2017 - Journey Beyond Sodor (cameo) Music Videos Series 4 - Don't Judge a Book By its Cover and The Island Song Series 5 - Accidents Will Happen and Come for the Ride Series 6 - Little Engines and Boo! Boo! Choo-Choo Series 7 - Troublesome Trucks and The Whistle Song Series 8 - A World Around You (faceless), Emily and Surprises Calling All Engines! - Busy (faceless) Series 9 - Party Time (faceless) Tale of the Brave - Let's Be Brave Thomas' YouTube World Tour - Down by the Docks, It's Great to be an Engine, The Island Song and Rules and Regulations Series 19 - Engine Roll Call Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure - We Make a Team Together Series 20 - James the Really Splendid Engine and Accidents Will Happen The Great Race - Will You Won't You (cameo) and Be Who You Are, and Go Far (cameo) Journey Beyond Sodor - I Want to Go Home (cameo) Series 21 - Set Friendship in Motion, Doing it Right and Little Engines Series 22 - Engine Roll Call and The Steam Team Series 24 - Party Train Videos 2018 - Still the Best of Friends (cameo) and Different Ways to See the World (cameo)

Books 1996 - Annual 2001 - A Better View for Gordon and other Thomas the Tank Engine Stories 2004 - Oliver (does not speak) 2006 - Thomas, James and the Red Balloon (faceless cameo) 2008 - Thomas' Sticker Express 2009 - Thomas and the Circus (faceless cameo) 2010 - Movie Theater 2011 - The Big Book of Engines (mentioned) 2015 - Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure: Sticker Activity Book and Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure: The Movie Storybook (cameo) 2018 - Character Encyclopedia Magazine Stories 1997 - The Road Race 2004 - Snow Engine 2007 - Toad Returns Toad also appeared in the magazine stories, A Long Way Up! and The Snow Engine!. Annual Stories 1993 - Oliver Gets the Bird (does not speak) 1995 - Oliver's Sparkler (cameo) 1996 - All Pull Together (does not speak) Audio Stories 2020 - Toad and the Whale Video Games 1998 - Magical Adventure 2000 - Thomas the Tank Engine 2007 - DVD Bingo 2008 - Begins Educational Learning

Songs

• I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside (performed)

Trivia

• Toad's model was originally displayed at Nitrogen Studios.
• Toad's Ertl toy incorrectly states that his number is "5683".
• Toad's name originates from a nickname ("toad") given to brake vans on the Great Western Railway. It can also be considered a subtle pun: a brake van is 'towed' everywhere it goes.
• When Toad returned in the eighteenth series, he had some modifications. These include:
  • Grey buffers.
  • Grey handrails as opposed to his original white handrails.
  • His glass windows were removed and replaced with open windows.
  • Only one side has the Great Western insignia, number and tonnage.
  • He is slightly longer and taller than his model form.
    • His design also more closely resembles a 20-ton van than a 16-ton van.
  • He is a lighter shade of grey.
• Both Toad's physical and CGI models deviate a bit from their real-life counterpart: in real-life, Toad's basis has sandboxes near the handbrake and also has a white interior with a desk, seat, etc. Toad lacks these features, both in the model and CGI forms.
• Toad was called Crapaud in the French dub from Series 3 to 7.
• In the television series Toad does not become Douglas’s breakvan and is instead Oliver’s Breakvan.
• In Latin America, Toad gains an Argentinean accent in the eighteenth series episode, Toad's Bright Idea.
• In the Japanese dub, Toad refers to Oliver as Oribā-san (or another engine with a different name from Oliver), mainly because "-san" is a suffix attached to the end of a person (or in this case, an engine) to refer to them in a formal way in Japan.
• In the Days Out with Thomas events, his face was worn by Class 40.
• Toad's Hornby and Bachmann models incorrectly depict him as being a 20-ton due to their toolings being based on them.
• During the model series era, Toad had a total of eight facial expressions, one of which, an angry face, was not used on-screen.
• One of Toad's faces is now owned by Twitter user TomsProps.
• His happy face mask is currently on a model of a brake van that shares his basis at Drayton Manor since early 2020. Toad was faceless until 2019 or early 2020.
• Toad's Wooden Railway toy was among the toys that were part of the Lead Paint Crisis in 2007.

Merchandise

• Ertl (discontinued)
• Wooden Railway (re-introduced in 2006; discontinued)
• Take Along (discontinued)
• Take-n-Play (discontinued)
• Thomas Engine Collection Series (discontinued)
• Mini Die Cast Collection (discontinued)
• Motor Road and Rail (discontinued outside Asia)
• TrackMaster (discontinued)
• My First Thomas (discontinued)
• Trading Cards (discontinued)
• Hornby (discontinued)
• Bachmann
• Nakayoshi (discontinued)
• Capsule Plarail (normal and clear)
• Brio (discontinued)

References

North Western Railway

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* RWS only | ** T&F only | --- Dropped

Brendam Branch Line

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* RWS only | ** T&F only

The Little Western

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* RWS only | ** T&F only | *** Other Media only

Locomotives	Duck | Donald and Douglas | Oliver
Rolling Stock	Alice and Mirabel* | Isabel and Dulcie* | Branch Line Coaches** | Express Coaches** | Old Slow Coach** | Slip Coaches** | Toad | S.C. Ruffey | Fred Pelhay* | Quarry Trucks* | Judy and Jerome**
Vehicles	Bulgy | Bulgy's Friend | Algy*** | Skiff**
People	Captain Joe**
Locations	Tidmouth (Beach, Tunnel, Beach Village**, Harbour, Hault**, Hault Sheds**, Town Square**, Town Square Library**) | Dilly's Pond | Haultraugh (Bulgy's Bridge, Bulgy's Field) | Bluff's Cove** | Arlesburgh (West, Engine Sheds*, Harbour**, Maritime Museum**) | Callan **