Non-Rail Character Profiles

Non Rail Characters

Now read about Thomas's friends on the roads, air and on the water!

Road Characters

Terence the Tractor

Terence

Terence the tractor is slow but adaptable, he can go anywhere thanks to his caterpillar treads.  Despite being teased about them, he just laughs it off and carries on with his work.  When we first met Terence, Thomas was quick to criticise his treads - but soon realised their worth when Terence was able to pull him free of a snowdrift.  His services have also proved most helpful in rescuing Mrs Kyndley, Elizabeth and Bertie from sticky situations too - involving snow and mud respectively. But most often, Terence can be found happily ploughing fields by the side of Thomas's branch line.

Bertie the Bus

Bertie the Bus

Bertie is a cheerful red bus, always ready and able to help the engines with their passengers, although he does get above himself when he boasts that roads are best sometimes. He first met Thomas when he got stuck in the snow, and afterward got to know him a little better following a race to prove which of them was faster.  Bertie is always happy to help Thomas and the other engines when needed, and is a true friend to all.

Trevor the Traction Engine

Trevor

When Edward first met Trevor, he was still in good condition but he was due for scrap because his master thought he was old-fashioned.  But with the help of the blue engine and Trevor's old driver Jem Cole, they saved him from scrap when they convinced the Vicar of Wellsworth to buy him.  He now lives in the Vicarage Orchard, owned by the Vicar. Slow and versatile, he's a very hard worker, but his favourite time is the Vicarage Fete, where he patrols around the Orchard giving rides to children, who he enjoys most of all.

Bulgy the Double-Decker Bus

Bulgy

Bulgy was a rude double-decker bus. He tried to convince passengers that railways were useless by telling “whoppers” and having a few grudges with Duck and Oliver. However, he ended up in a tight spot when he crashed into a low railway bridge, and had been turned into a henhouse.  Just recently, he was taken out of “retirement” to aid the Fat Controller during a busy summer period when Thomas and Emily were unavailable for work.  But after a disastrous run with his old friends the hens, he's now living his new, happier life as a vegetable bus!

George the Steamroller

George the Steamroller

George is a rude and grumpy steamroller.  He is part of the “Anti-Rail” league, always rebelling that “Railways are no good - turn ‘em into roads!”  George has had several run-ins with the railway - firstly with Sir Handel, and then causing trouble for Duck, Gordon and Thomas, where he had his roller removed for a whole week as a punishment!  However, George proved his worth when there was trouble at the new Sodor Airport.  He was brought to flatten the new tarmac after Thomas caused an accident prior to the first aeroplane that was due to land.  Not all bad then, eh?

Caroline the Car

Caroline the Car

Caroline is an ancient car. Although she can be temperamental at times, she’s a dear old soul, who really enjoys calm, country runs, which certainly wasn't what she got on the day she had to chase after Stepney the Bluebell Engine when the cricketers' ball landed in one of his trucks!  However, she was very grateful to him following her chase when Stepney graciously took her back to the cricket field on a flat-truck.  Requiring delicate handling, Caroline doesn't react well to high speeds, which cause her to overheat tremendously.

The Horrid Lorries

Horrid Lorries

Lorries 1, 2 and 3 were real mean machines when they came to tide over a crisis of workload.  They were rude, spiteful and positively horrid, threatening to take over the engines’ work. However, they soon had their downsides: Lorry 2 crashed down a cliff, Lorry 3 broke down due to overloading and Lorry 1 fell into the harbour. And they were christened The Brothers Grim - "Smashed, Broken and Sunk!”  They were repaired but were sent away soon afterward and have not returned to poach work from the engines since.

Butch the Breakdown Lorry

Butch

We don't know much about Butch, but what we are sure of is that he's a friendly Breakdown truck, with great strength and a good friend of the railway, who was once responsible for hauling in one of the horrid lorries, and assisting with various demolition and reconstruction work.  Despite his size, he always takes pride in his work.

Thumper the Mining Machine

Thumper

Thumper was built by the Sodor Mining Co, his purpose was to dig rock from the cliffside faster.  But sometimes he does go over the top with his work, and this caused him to shake loose a huge boulder, which caused chaos down the line. Since then, he has only been used for Slate mining!

Elizabeth the Vintage Lorry

Elizabeth

Elizabeth is an old steam lorry, who was actually the first ever lorry that The Fat Controller drove in his young days. No one knows how but she had been locked in an old shed for years, but was only discovered and restored into her former beauty when he was brought out to help Thomas.  She can be very proud and stubborn at times, but can move great loads in nimble timing, which what makes her special.  And more importantly, she's a great friend of the engines on the Fat Controller's railway.

Madge the Snub-Nosed Lorry

Madge

Madge works in the hills of Sodor for the Narrow Gauge Railway, doing jobs that the railway can't reach.  She is of sorts a motherly figure to the narrow gauge engines and always puts the wants and needs of others before her own, which can sometimes lead to trouble for herself - whether it be her getting covered in mud after making sure Skarloey and Rheneas are clean and shiny, or teetering over the edge of a cliff when she goes fast when delivering Duncan to the Transfer Yards!  All the same, a loveable and warm character who is a friend to all the narrow gauge engines!

Kevin The Steamworks Crane

Kevin The Crane

Kevin is a young, enthusiastic crane who works at the Sodor Steamworks with Victor.  Kevin is often seen rushing around the Steamworks, very keen to give a helping hook to all the engines who pay a visit for repairs.  However, his haste and speed can often cause mishaps, and Kevin is well known for dropping things on the floor of the Steamworks by accident.  But Kevin means well, and under the watchful eye of kind 'boss' Victor, he is learning to be a really useful crane and become a real credit to the Steamworks.

Captain the Lifeboat

Captain

Captain is the Sodor Search and Rescue Centre’s resident lifeboat, ready to take to the seas to help people in trouble and bring them back to safety.  He is enthusiastic and always raring to go, calling out “Full Steam Ahead!” as he races to the rescue.  When Thomas went missing on Misty Island, the Fat Controller used Captain to look for Thomas out at sea, but while they came up with nothing – Captain kept a positive outlook for the Fat Controller’s benefit.

Other Non Rail Character

Bulstrode the Barge

Bulstrode

Bulstrode is a grumpy, miserable barge. Nothing is ever right for him and is always having a moan about something to someone. However, this disagreeable fellow was firmly put in his place when Percy and some trucks accidentally caused a hole in his hull - to this day he is a “special attraction” on Knapford beach.  Children play in him all day long, and despite still moaning and droning on, no-one really listens anymore - they don't have to!

Harold the Helicopter

Harold

Harold lives at Dryaw Airfield. He once thought railways were “slow and out of date”, but had to eat his own words when he lost a race against Percy, whom he become a good friend to.

He is a brave and loyal rescue helicopter, patrolling the skies of Sodor, looking for anyone in distress, always the first to report any urgent news or arrive on scene to performe a rescue. The Fat Controller finds him a great use to fly the skies to travel long distances quickly.

Cranky the Crane

Cranky

Cranky the Crane resides and works at Brendam Docks, constantly loading and unloading goods from ships and trucks. Because the Docks are so bustling, he hardly gets any rest and becomes very irritable and snappy - hence his supposed name! He also has a high and mighty attitude, which annoys the engines sometimes, and once was especially rude to Thomas and Percy. But when he was toppled over during a horrendous storm, the two tank engines came to his rescue and he hasn’t been as rude to them since!

Tigermoth the Bi-Plane

Tigermoth

Tiger Moth is a rude Bi-Plane, who lives at Dryaw airfield alongside Harold. He tends to show off and flies much too low, on one occasion this resulted him to crash land into a haystack. Since he had been grounded, he has become an “easy flier” nowadays!

Jeremy the Jet Plane

Jeremy

Jeremy is a new arrival on the Island of Sodor who lives at the Sodor Airport.  When Jeremy first met Thomas, he was very boastful about being able to fly, which made Thomas feel sad and left out.  But when they worked together to save the children's picnic from a summer storm, both Jeremy and Thomas realised that no matter how you're able to travel, you can still be really useful!

Colin the Crane

Colin

Colin the Wharf Crane works with the narrow gauge engines unloading barges for them to take into the high hills of Sodor from the canal.  Colin is fixed in place, and sometimes as a consequence of this, he feels lonely and left out of important or special events that are taking place away from the busy, bustling Wharf.  However, his good friends on the Narrow Gauge Railway always do their best to make sure Colin is included, and one Christmas, Freddie even managed to persuade the Thin Controller to hold the Christmas Party at the Wharf so that Colin could be there.

Jack and the Pack

JACK AND THE SODOR CONSTRUCTION CREW were developed by Phil Fherle in 2002 as part of 2 episodes of Series 6, and a later spin-off series of thirteen episodes, which was cancelled when HiT Entertainment took over Gullane Productions.  These episodes were the first to be directed by Steve Asquith prior to his appointment as full Thomas Director in 2004.  Jack and his team have however made comebacks in 2007/8 being responsible for helping to rebuild Great Waterton in The Great Discovery, and building a new bandstand there also.

Jack the Front Loader

Jack the Front Loader

Jack is a front loader and the newest addition of the Pack.  He’s very active and enjoys hard work.  He learned all about the importance of “Safety First” on his first day when he had an accident whilst trying to do the work of a bigger and more capable machine.  Despite that, he's a keen and enthusiastic worker and a good friend to Thomas and the other Pack members.  Jack also helped to lead The Pack during the construction of Great Waterton, rallying the others to do a good job for Thomas and Stanley.

Alfie the Small Excavator

Alfie

 Alfie, like Oliver, is an excavator and lives to the motto -  “More Work means more Dirt!  More Dirt means more Fun!”

Alfie is the smallest member of The Pack, but despite his diminutive size, he still manages to get the work done without fuss; and in the past has even shown the bigger machines that his smaller size can be a big asset to the group and the work they do.  Alfie is particularly good friends with both Jack and Percy, and like them, enjoys being really useful.

Kelly the Crane

Kelly

Kelly the crane is large and strong and can lift just about anything; he is also a good friend with Isabella - especially when he’s the only one who can keep her in her place!  Kelly is the oldest member of the Pack, having been the first machine that Miss Jenny's father ever bought to work on his team, and uses his experience to guide the others and help them when they're all working together on jobs.

Oliver the Big Excavator

Oliver

Oliver is a brown excavator, and one of the “Elders”. He is an excavator of considerable size, power and precision capability of moving and digging tons of earth in a single day. Despite his size and wieght, he is incredibally graceful and his manners are impecable. Oliver can always be relied apon by Miss Jenny as the team leader when Kelly is not available.

Byron the Bulldozer

Byron

Bryon is a mighty bulldozer. He’s one of the oldest machines on the site and likes nothing better than showing the other machines how to do a good job, whether it be moving rock or leveling site foundations for the important building work to begin.  But while Byron takes a great deal of pride in his own work, he bears in mind that he's part of a team, and works hard for Miss Jenny alongside the other Pack members.

Isabella The Steam Lorry

Isabella

Isabella is a tough little steam lorry, who takes a great deal of pride in her appearance and goes to great lengths to preserve her paintwork's gleam.  Isabella is the only female member of The Pack, and is used for transporting materials to and from the sites to be used for construction work, as well as being used for other sorts of removals beyond the work The Pack is involved in.

Ned the Steam Shovel

Ned

Ned is a large, old steam shovel, and one of the biggest machines in Miss Jenny's team.  He’s sometimes known to be absent-minded and clumsy, and is always liable to cause accidents around the sites because of these attributes.  But the other members of The Pack don’t mind too much about his mishaps, because they know he’s really a kind soul with a heart as big as his bucket.

Max and Monty the Dump Truck Twins

Max and Monty

Max and Monty are the devious and troublesome Dump Truck twins. They're known to cause trouble for the Pack Members and also the engines; but are sternly scolded by Miss Jenny when found out! Despite being unruly at times with dangerous stunts, they have a good side in them - somewhere! - and still do the work like everyone else.

Patrick the Cement Mixer

Patrick

Patrick was found to be quite a boastful soul in his first apperance.  He knows all there is to know about cement and thinks it's one of the essential means of keeping the building site running!  Patrick is older than a lot of the other machines and has a lot of experience in construction, he means well despite his pride and boastfulness, and likes to help the younger less experienced machines.

Buster the Steamroller

Buster

Buster is an eager and cheerful little steamroller who is always keen to do a wheel's turn of work for Miss Jenny.  Like Alfie and Jack, Buster is one of the younger machines in The Pack and delights in having fun when going about his duties on the construction site.  He also has a rather vivid imagination also - winning races against Max and Monty when mending the racing track, and comparing the mole ridden football pitch to "A giant fruit bun...only green!"

Nelson the Transporter

Nelson

Nelson is an intellegent transporter whose job is to haul heavy machinery to and from the Construction sites.  As the bearer of such weighty loads, he often feels overworked, but will never complain.  However, Nelson's dreams of being carried himself did come true one day when he had to haul Thomas to the repair yard, and he himself managed to get a lift back to Miss Jenny's yard on Percy's flatbed.