Thomas (released as Thomas the Tank Engine until 2000) is a small blue tank engine.
Description
Character Card
The most famous of all the vehicles on the Island of Sodor, Thomas the Tank Engine is considered by all to be a "really useful engine". He is a cheeky, fussy little engine who is always eager to help.
2018 box description
Meet the story-starter. Every child's imagination has stories to tell – and this cheeky steam engine is the perfect helper. Children create the stories, Thomas just delivers inspiration.
Changes
- 1993 (small face, flat top thin funnel and dome, wooden smokebox, stepped footplate, ledge on rear, solid black painted coal, flat magnets, thin wheels, staples on chassis)
- 1993 (flat top wide funnel and dome)
- 1993 (beveled top funnel and dome, lower smokebox extension, flat footplate, speckled painted coal)
- 1994 (rounded funnel and dome, solid black painted coal, no staples on chassis)
- 1995 (big round magnets)
- 1996 (small round magnets)
- 1997 (big, flatter round magnets, thick wheels)
- 1998 (plastic rounded funnel, small plastic encased magnets)
- 1999 (larger face with minor changes, realistic funnel, plastic smokebox)
- 2001 (name printed on chassis)
- 2002 (new larger face, bigger smokebox, wide boiler, no ledge on rear, new details, shorter dome)
- 2004 (red stripes on boiler)
- 2011 (CG style face)
- 2013 (updated face, curved edges, longer magnet guards, other minor details)
- 2015 (hollowed out wheels)
- 2017 (smaller face)
- 2018 (printed details on exposed wood, flat dome, shorter length)
- Mid 2018 (metal pins in chassis, darker paint)
- 2019 (printed details on painted wood)
Variants
- "Hard at Work" Thomas from Thomas and Bertie's Great Race and Thomas 5-Car Value Pack
- 10 Years of Thomas in America Set
- Battery-Operated Thomas
- Thomas Comes to Breakfast
- Winter Wonderland Thomas
- Paint-Splattered Thomas
- 60th Anniversary Thomas from 60th Anniversary Set
- "Celebrating 60 Years" Thomas
- Collectible Golden Thomas
- Adventures of Thomas
- Gold Dust Thomas
- Happy Birthday Thomas and Box Car
- "Sodor Day" Thomas and Stanley
- "Mud Covered" Thomas
- "Goodbye, Hiro" Celebration Thomas from Farewell at the Docks Set
- Talking Thomas
- "Slippy Sodor" Thomas
- Early Engineers Thomas
- Stinky Cheese Thomas from Thomas and the Stinky Cheese
- "Trick or Treat" Thomas from Halloween Thomas and Caboose
- Day Out with Thomas 2010
- Sparkling Clean Thomas
- Thomas with Musical Candy Cane Car
- Easter Thomas
- Holiday Lights Thomas
- "Oil-Covered" Thomas
- Happy Birthday
- Thomas' Balloon Delivery
- Thomas' Pig Pick Up
- Thomas' Castle Delivery
- Santa's Little Engine Thomas from Santa's Little Engine and Countdown to Christmas Calendar
- Roll and Whistle Thomas
- Egg-splattered Thomas from Thomas' Birthday Surprise Set
- Snow-covered Thomas from Thomas' Christmas Wonderland Set
- Light-Up Reveal Thomas
- Thomas 1942 from Thomas Engine Gift Pack
- Thomas 2015 from Thomas Engine Gift Pack
- Thomas' Cranberry Spill
- Decorated Thomas from Celebration on Sodor Set and Sam and the Great Bell Accessory Pack
- Decorated Tidmouth Toys Thomas from Thomas the Really Useful Engine Book
- Snow-covered Thomas from Santa's Workshop Express
- Thomas Land themed Thomas from Drayton Manor Carousel Car
- Paint Thomas from 5-in-1 Builder Set
- Birthday Thomas
- Decorated Thomas from Animal Park Set
- Icing-covered Thomas from Holiday Cookie Delivery
- Recycle Symbol Thomas from Deluxe Eco Rescue Set
- Airport Banner Thomas from Busy Island Set
- Castle Banner Thomas from Castle Tower Set
Trivia
- Thomas has the most variations of any character in the Thomas Wooden Railway, with more prototypes, changes, and variants than any other character in the range.
- Thomas is included in more sets and multi-car packs than any other character in the Thomas Wooden Railway.
- The very first prototype of Thomas seen featured red wheels held in by nails, no coal bunker details, and a different face.
- Roy Wilson's original third handmade Thomas had a much thinner funnel and dome than later models.