The Railway Series - A Brief History

Without doubt, over the past sixty years Thomas The Tank Engine has played a major role in children's lives. The product of a Railway Enthusiast Clergyman, who drawing from his experiences as a child gave life to three stories whilst nursing his ill three year old son, Christopher. The stories comprised of three characters, Edward, Gordon and Henry. Edward was small and hadn't been out for a long time; Gordon was proud and boastful, but soon got his comeuppance; Henry was worried in case the rain would spoil his paint and wouldn't come out of a tunnel, and in the end became bricked up in it! These stories were told regularly to amuse the mind of the three year old and later written down by his father so as to prevent making further mistakes when reading them. It was suggested by Mrs Awdry that the books should be sent on for publication, which after much persuasion, Mr Awdry did try to do. After many rejection letters he finally found a publisher in the form of Edmund Ward, who asked Mr Awdry to write a fourth story where Henry was released from his incarceration and therefore providing a happy ending. Mr Awdry obliged and the book went on to become a popular title following publication in 1945.

The popularity of the first book prompted a second, introducing a popular character in the form of Thomas The Tank Engine, who would go on to become the face of Awdry's creations. Awdry wrote his first preface in this book, dedicating it to the child who had began it all. The story was a heart warming tale of determination in which Thomas finally did break free from the Big Station and got to see the world in the end as had been his want throughout.

Following a year's hiatus in 1947, Awdry was asked to write another book, which he used to properly introduce James The Red Engine and later went on to produce a new book every year with the exception of 1971, until Tramway Engines in 1972. Awdry had promised Kaye and Ward another title the next year, promising to scrape the barrel as best he could. But scrape as he might, the barrel was empty and there was nothing to salvage. Instead of trying to produce something he felt to be second rate, Awdry did the honourable thing and conceded defeat. With a grand total of 26 books and 105 stories to his name, he had achieved a great deal in the years he had written.

The stories drew from real life in a manner of ways. Awdry usually took his stories from events that had actually happened to engines in reality, therefore adding ecological validity to his writing. Majority of the stories you read in the series have actually happened, albiet not to Thomas or any of the other engines he lives with however! A number of his writings were drawn from the Railway Gazzette, and on rarer occasions, he drew from his own imagination and from that of others too. The best examples of stories drawn from the author's own imagination would probably be the stories Escape and Thomas and Bertie, it has been very unheard of at any time in British history for Buses and Railway locomotives to have friendly races with one another in such a fashion. However, it was merely the author taking a break from the seriousness of the Island of Sodor, and relaxing his own rules for the sake of some fun.

The trend for using real life resulted in using Welsh Preservation Pioneer - The Talyllyn Railway - as inspiration for his Skarloey Railway. As a result, we were presented with engines who were twinned with real life locomotives on the Talyllyn line! Many of their adventures proving worthy for the great storyteller to use, such as Gallant Old Engine based on the LTC Rolt book - Railway Adventure based on Tom Rolt's efforts to keep the Talyllyn running in the early days of it's preservation. Awdry went on to build up a very strong bond with the Talyllyn Railway following joining them in 1951, when the Preservation Society to save the railway was just starting up and beginning operations. As he did, he promoted them a little more openly by having Skarloey admit in LITTLE OLD ENGINE that the Skarloey and Talyllyn Railways were holders of a set of twins! And so the long running friendship endured, and still has to this day, with the Talyllyn being mentioned in several books featuring the Skarloey Engines, even to the extent that engines from the Skarloey line have been known from time to time to take trips across to Wales to enjoy the hospitality of their counterparts.

The Talyllyn wasn't the only railway given this honour. Awdry also saw fit to include what were to be known as "Verra Wee Engines" or the Small Railway Engines as their book was known, based upon the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway in Cumbria. They were featured in three other books too, DUKE THE LOST ENGINE, JOCK THE NEW ENGINE and WILBERT THE FOREST ENGINE.

Awdry also wrote of an unusual Railway unlike any other on Sodor, one where the engines climbed the hills! The Culdee Fell Railway, home of the Mountain Engines was based upon yet another Welsh counterpart, the Snowdon Mountain Railway. Awdry drew once again upon the real life events of the Railway such as the disastrous opening, which resulted in engine Number 1 falling down the side of a mountain and later, never being rebuilt and simply used for parts.

Awdry also took a Hybrid of the Corris Railway and Ffestiniog in Wales to create the Mid Sodor Railway, introducing us to Duke and a very unusual and heartwarming senario. The old engine had been locked in a shed for a number of years and then in the end, he was rescued and put back to work. This has been true of two other real life stories - one where an engine in South America was found in the Jungle and put back to work - and another which the Reverend was involved. The second real life story involved the Reverend Teddy Boston (or the Fat Clergyman as he was known in the books!) finding an engine in a shed and putting it back to work, this being his own engine, Pixie which is still in service today. Real life stories such as Linda's Leap of the Ffestiniog were used in the book too, and Awdry stuck rigidly to the closure of the Corris as best he could with great results.

Real life also crept into the series in less than subtle ways too such as when the engines were sent to visit the UK in EIGHT FAMOUS ENGINES and the engines from the other Railway, (two of whom were mentioned by name as Jinty and Pug), came to help out in their place. As well as Gordon's trip to London in the same book, and Duck's continual mentioning of the Great Western Railway. Not only this, but there were also mentions of the Talyllyn Railway on more than one occasion in the Skarloey Railway books where the engines encouraged people to visit their real life counterpart! Not only that, but the inclusion of Stepney the Bluebell Engine, who visited from his own real life Preserved Railway and Wilbert the Forest Engine who came and did the same, but to perform tests! Flying Scotsman put in an appearance in Enterprising Engines to assure Gordon that all was going to be well on the UK Main Lines, and even Sir Handel has been known to visit the Talyllyn Railway in Wales in Great Little Engines. Even Christopher Awdry's addition of temporary High Speed Train Unit - Pip and Emma - highlighted the world beyond Sodor.

The evolution of the Railway Series as a whole is an interesting subject. In the early days, the Island of Sodor was a warm, colourful and vibrant place as depicted in the illustrations of the original artist, C Reginald Dalby. You could have been forgiven for mistaking the Island for a toy world with the goings on, none of which were in any way presenting any great danger. The engines were merely getting into light hearted scrapes and then getting themselves back out of them eventually.

There was very much uncertainty for the futures of steam engines from there in within the books, this being continued in “Stepney the Bluebell Engine”, where an assurance that steam was going to be saved as best it could be through the preservation movement, and “Enterprising Engines”, possibly the darkest of all the Railway Series books. The book showed the effects of Dieselisation at its worst. Gordon was told all of his “Doncaster Brothers” except one had been scrapped and Douglas encountered an engine escaping from scrap, that he was inclined to help, remembering his own plight. Quite fittingly, the book was published in 1968, the year when Steam was officially given its finale on the British Main lines with one last summer.

However, there was the assurance that steam would always exist on Sodor, and this was fulfilled by Christopher Awdry when he began writing for the series in the mid 1980s, which there will be more about below.

Awdry never completely gave up the Railway Series characters in what became "The Lost Years". He wrote two Thomas The Tank Engine Annuals between 1979 and 1980. There is a wealth of factual information on the real Railways and engines that Awdry drew from to write his Railway Series books, these include the Isle of Man Railway, The Talyllyn, Ffestiniog and Bluebell among others. There was even an interesting feature in the 1980 Annual where Awdry presented pictures and information on his own model Railway. Which incidently, tells how Duck really got his name! Both were illustrated by Edgar Hodges, a man whose style is highly similar to that of Peter Edwards, and did some brilliant adaptations of the previous Railway Series illustrations.

Whilst Wilbert Awdry never wrote any further Railway series books, he did keep writing about his beloved characters after his son took up the pen. One was fictional, but based on a story written prior by David Mitton and Britt Allcroft - Thomas's Christmas Party. This was written as a spin-off book from the Railway Series, and was released as a singular story book with illustrations by Clive Spong. He also condensed and partially rewrote his own Branch Line Engines book into one book too, with illustrations also by Clive Spong called "Thomas Comes To Breakfast".

The pen was later taken up by Christopher Awdry, who in turn with what his father had done, was writing Thomas stories for his son, Richard. Christopher entered the arena with Really Useful Engines, using the template his father had used before him, focussing on three engines, this time, Thomas, Percy and Duck, and then throwing them all together in the final story. Christopher's book was published in the year prior to the release of Thomas The Tank Engine and Friends, another phenomenon that was due to sweep the world and to turn the world of Thomas on its head in some respects.

Christopher made the Railway Series very much his own entity, creating what could be called a new age for the characters. It was not always the intention of the new author to fill his father's shoes. He had originally intended to write Detective novels, however, they were never published. However, his writing style and ideas for continuing the series not only gave the books a new lease of life, but also for Christopher himself. Through writing for the Railway Series, he was able to leave his job by the time his fifth book was published and begin writing full time. Christopher was also quite adamant that his stories should be set in real-time like those of his father's, and so to reflect this, the Railway Series saw the introduction of the most modern machine ever to grace Sodor's shores, a High Speed Train, who went by the name of Pip and Emma. These characters were never of permenant fixture, but did make two appearances within the series, first in GORDON THE HIGHSPEED ENGINE and again in the 50th Anniversary book - THOMAS AND THE FAT CONTROLLER'S ENGINES.

Also with the rise of the TV series, characters Awdry only ever wrote about once such as Harold the Helicopter and Terence the Tractor were making brief comebacks in the new Railway Series books. Not only did this serve well with continuity, but it would help those unfamiliar with the old books to settle in more easily with more familiar faces from the TV series. Another old face who put in more than a few appearances was Thomas. He began to dominate the books by order of the publisher, even to the extent that they rejected a book written by Christopher for the 50th anniversary of the Railway Series, which would have been number 39. Barry the Rescue Engine was supposed to focus on an engine from Barry Island scrap yard being rescued and put back into service on Sodor. However, this was not to be as it was passed up for another Thomas book, this being Thomas and The Fat Controller's Engines. This was undoubtedly a shrewd move by the publishers, keen to sell more copies and exploit Thomas's fame and popularity to do it. However, the title of the book was argued to be flawed by Christopher as he flet it implied that Thomas was not one of the Fat Controller's engines!

Christopher, like his father continued to produce a new title every year, up until 1996 when due to circumstances beyond his own control, he was forced into retirement by his publishers. A horrid move that ended the series quite fittingly on a rounded number of 40 titles. However, all seemed lost around 1972 when Awdry laid down his pen for the last time...could it be that the Railway Series is not dead but sleepeth?

The original plan devised by Egmont and Britt Allcroft had been to redesign the books and republish them over a period of years, while still incorporating new ones into the series. The idea did not fare well at all, with the new format books proving far less popular than the originals, owing to their distortion of Dalby, Spong and Kenney's illustrations, often spread out across the pages, and ommitting much of the original image. A print run of 14 books - 12 of Rev Awdry's and 2 of Christophers was completed, and nothing followed afterward.

During this hiatus and lapse in confidence by the publishers, Christopher opted instead to write other railway-based books for children, which can be obtained through Sodor Enterprises, basing his work on real railways within the UK such as the Eastbourne Railway and the Corris Railway, of which he is Society President, to raise funds for the railway. It was through Sodor Enterprises in 2005 (60th Anniversary of The Railway Series) that he was able to write Sodor: Reading Between the Lines, a follow up to The Island of Sodor, in which he chronicled the inspiration behind most of the forty Railway Series books, stories and characters, as well as shedding light on his own thoughts about the situation with Thomas and the lack of Awdry family involvement.

And in late summer 2007, after ten years of setbacks, disappointments and tireless campaigning by Christopher Awdry, his family and many tireless supporters, the efforts of the Get Thomas Back on Track campaign are speculated to finally reach their anticipated climax.

Since 2004, the original 26 Railway Series books written by the Reverend Awdry have been subject to an individual print run by Egmont, with the original format of the books reinstated accordingly as opposed to the hugely disliked new format. Christopher had continued to lobby the executives of both rights holders HiT Entertainment and that of Egmont, who hold the publishing rights to all Thomas related material. Following yet another failed meeting in 2005, Christopher began the "Get Thomas Back on Track" campaign, and started a full petition to get the original books back into a full print run of 40.

Thousands are thought to have signed the petition from across the world in order to show their support for the family to be involved in the product once more. Through his involvement in Days Out With Thomas events, and touring various book shops throughout Britain, Christopher appears to have finally convinced Egmont publishing to begin reprinting the original books.

Initial confirmation was recived by a member of the Sodor Island Forums, which revealed that the books from 27 to 40 were earmarked for republication in August 2007. It was revealed by online shop Amazon that the first new book by Christopher Awdry since 1996 would be available in September 2007. Thomas and Victoria became the 41st Railway Series book, supposed to be released in 1998 as a new format publication, however, due to Egmont's lack of confidence in the selling power of the books, they declined to do so at that time. The new release was followed with an anthology of Christopher Awdry's work, which has gone into a secondary print run following publication in September, following popular demand for the books' return.