Thomas the Tank Engine and his many friends have been around for over fifty years. For fans there are now books, PBS kids shows, videos, railway toys, movies, printable coloring pages and video games.

Right now, there is even a stage show touring the world: Thomas & Friends Live! On Stage: A Circus Comes to Town, featuring life-size animatronic trains. There are also Thomas days out all over America.

Hit Entertainment recently announced a whole new range of Thomas Movies for 2010 aimed at the whole family not just pre-schoolers.

Recently a new range of 'Take Along Thomas' toys was released. These are great for days out or visits to friend's homes.

If you ever wondered where Thomas the Tank Engine comes from, this is the place to find out.

Where the Thomas and Friends Characters come from.

Thomas and Friends come from the series of books called The Railway Stories. The first book was written in the UK, way back in 1945 by the Reverend W. Awdry. Since 1972 his son Christopher Awdry has been regularly adding to the series. Many Thomas and Friends books are still very popular but it has been the PBS kids TV shows that have been the biggest hit.

The main character, Thomas the Tank Engine was a wooden toy before he appeared as a fictional character. The Reverend W, Audrey made the toy for his son, Christopher, to play with. He created stories to go with the toy when his son had measles.

The railway engine characters live on the fictional Island of Sodor but many of the stories are based on real events. The Reverend Awdry was a railway enthusiast and delighted in making his true railway stories emotionally appealing to children as well as educational and thought provoking for tiny minds.

Now, there are over one hundred and fifty characters in the various books, TV series and movies. The core characters are known as ‘The Steam Team.”

‘The Fat Controller’ oversees the running of the railway on Sodor and is called Sir Topham Hat

“The Steam Team” Engines

These are the most important engines beginning with Thomas the Tank Engine himself of course!

Thomas the Tank Engine

Thomas is a busy proud little engine who often gets into problems because he tries so hard and wants to do things that the bigger engines do. It was only after rescueing James that he was given a big job- running his own branch line of which he is very proud.

Edward

Edward is the oldest and wisest of the engines. In later series he becomes a bit more cheeky and a little less kind.

Henry

Henry has been sick from time to time but soon gets better. He likes trees and flowers more than the other engines.

Gordon

Gordon is one of the biggest and strongest engines. He pulls the express train. He often thinks he is better than the other engine but he soon learns every engine is important.

James the Red Engine

James is another big engine and often brags about his shiny, red paint color. Sometimes the other engines are annoyed with him for being too big for his boots but this soon passes over.

Percy the Small Engine

Percy is the youngest of all the trains. He can be very cheeky and sometimes plays tricks on the other engines.

Toby

Toby is an old and wise tram engine with a cow catcher on front. He works on the same line as Thomas, hauling stone from the quarry.

Emily

Emily has a Scottish accent and a pair of special coaches.

She is a good friend of Thomas though she sometimes gets angry with him.

Videos and Movies

There are dozens of episodes of Thomas and Friends on DVD and more are being added all the time.

The most recent Thomas and Friends movie outing was also one of the best.Thomas & Friends: The Great Discovery (2008) narrated by 'OO7' Pierce Brosnan, popular with children and parents!

Thomas is in charge of restoring a recent discovery on Sodor.

Take Along Thomas Toys

This is a new range of toys that is very popular with young kids. A complete Thomas and Friends set up can be easily taken out of the home to play with anywhere. The toys are a little smaller than the ones we are all familiar with and the tracks (if you want tracks) are quick to set up.

Trackmaster Railway Toys

Learning Curves wooden railway toys have a serious rival in Trackmaster's Thomas and Friends. Battery powered trains run fast and furious in this more macho Thomas And Friends set up.

Check out the video clip below for a huge battery powered Thomas and Friends railway.

Please note: Trackmaster is the new name of Tomy Thomas and Friends toy engines. Trackmaster have changed the color of the track from blue to brown but the tracks are compatible.

Die Cast Thomas and Friends

There is a wide range of very beautiful die cast (metal) Thomas and Friends Toys available.

The engines won't run on the wooden railway tracks so avoid disappointment and make sure you get the right versions!