| Thomas Comes to Breakfast | |
|---|---|
 Original UK title card | |
| No. of season: | 2 |
| No. of epsiode: | 18 |
| No. of series: | 44 |
| Director: | David Mitton |
| Producer: | David Mitton
Robert D. Cardona |
| Writer: | Reverend W. Awdry (original), Britt Allcroft and David Mitton (adapted) |
| Narrator: | Ringo Starr and George Carlin (US only) |
| Original air date: | October 17th, 1986 (UK), May 11th, 1988 (Australia), March 26th, 1989 (US; Ringo Starr) and December 18th, 1991 (US; George Carlin) |
| Previous: | The Deputation |
| Next: | Daisy |
Thomas Comes to Breakfast is the 18th episode of the 2nd season and the 44th episode of the series. This episode is based on the story of the same name from The Railway Series book, Branch Line Engines. In the US, this episode first aired on the Shining Time Station episode, Two Old Hands in 1989 and then later, Nickel In a Pickle in 1991. In this episode, the Ffarquhar stationmaster gets a nasty surprise when Thomas crashes into his dining room.
Plot[]
Thomas' driver jokes that Thomas could almost run his branch line without him. Thomas doesn't realize he was joking though and becomes very conceited. He brags to Percy and Toby later at the sheds and both tell Thomas that he needs a driver, but to no avail.
The next morning, a fire lighter came and started the engine's fires. Thomas woke up as the warmth spread through his boiler and then realised his opportunity to run by himself and prove Percy and Toby wrong by stopping and wheeshing in front of them. Thomas slowly started moving along the track, but didn't know that he was only moving because a careless cleaner had fiddled with his controls. Thomas quickly realises he has made a huge mistake, but can't do anything about it without his driver; at the end of the tracks sits the stationmaster's house. Thomas crashes through the front window just as the family was sitting down to breakfast. Plaster and broken glass was everywhere - the stationmaster's wife was furious with Thomas for ruining their breakfast.
After workmen laid rails through the garden, Donald and Douglas arrived and pulled Thomas free of the house. Thomas' front has been badly damaged by his visit and was in disgrace.
Back at the shed, the Fat Controller was serious with Thomas and grounds him for his absolute silly actions and tells him that he's going to have to spend a long time at the works being mended. While he is away, a Diesel railcar was going to be brought in to run his branch line.
Characters[]
- Thomas
- Percy
- Toby
- Donald and Douglas
- Sir Topham Hatt
- The Ffarquhar Stationmaster and his Family
- The Careless Cleaner (does not speak)
- Daisy (mentioned; not named)
Locations[]
- Tidmouth
- The Windmill
- Ffarquhar Sheds
- The Watermill
- The Works (mentioned)
Notes[]
- Stock footage from Thomas and the Guard is used, as is as a deleted scene from Thomas, Percy and the Coal.
- This episode may have been filmed alongside Break Van, as Donald's tender can be seen in the signalbox.
- In the US, this episode aired before Toby the Tram Engine and Donald and Douglas, so the viewers don't know who Toby, Donald, and Douglas are.
- A large scale model of Thomas was used for the scenes inside of the house.
- This is the second episode that features Thomas between Toby and Percy at Ffarrquhar Sheds. The first is the The Runaway.
- There are some differences between the UK version and the US versions:
- In the UK version, the Fat Controller tells Thomas, "You are a very naughty engine," but in the US version, he says, "You're in a lot of trouble, Thomas."
- In the UK version, the narrator says "Meanwhile, Donald and Douglas arrived". But in the US version, the narrator says "Then, the Scottish twin engines, Donald and Douglas arrived".
- The line "He told the others" is omitted in the UK version.
- In George Carlin's US narration, when the stationmaster's wife shouts "Now I shall have to cook some more!" the sound of the door being banged sounds quieter.
- In Germany, this episode is called "Unwelcome Guest Breakfast". The Italian title is "The Conceited Locomotive". In Japan, this episode is called "The Ojama of Thomas". It was called "Thomas in Trouble" in Welsh. In Spanish this episode is called "Thomas' Visit". In Brazil, this episode is called "An Unexpected Visit".
- The close-up of the stationmaster is different in the restored version.
- The stationmaster's wife's reaction to Thomas is widely ridiculed by viewers given how she complains about the ruined breakfast as opposed to Thomas wrecking their home.
- In 2014, the park became a filming location for Nativity 3: Dude, Where's my Donkey? Percy with his face removed and Knapford station made a cameo too.
- In the Bob The Builder episode Scrambler to the Rescue, a toy train resembling Thomas is seen pulling the express. Thomas' whistle is also heard.
- Thomas' Bachmann HO model (along with HO models of Annie, Clarabel and Emily's coaches) makes an appearance in the 2015 Marvel film, Ant-Man. His large scale Bachmann model is also used in some scenes, although the model's face is different.
Cultural References[]
- The cereal box that the stationmaster's son was holding is a recreation of Kellogg's Corn Flakes.
Errors[]
- According to Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends, Branch Line Engines had been published since 1961 and Thomas's accident had caused confusion and delay.
- Clarabel was facing the wrong way and her roof was lifted when Thomas comes into Tidmouth.
- When the narrator mentions Thomas becoming conceited, Thomas looks sad. This reaction doesn't make sense for someone who's conceited.
- When Toby and Percy are sleeping, Toby was tilted to the left.
- In the close-up of Toby sleeping, his windows are open slightly, but in the wider shot of the three engines in the shed, Toby's right window (viewer perspective) is completely open. It then returns to be being slightly open when Thomas rolls out of the shed.
- Just after Thomas finds that he can't stop, he passes a station building on his left, but in the next shot he hasn't passed it yet.
- After Thomas rolled out of the shed, there was a shot of the inside of his cab. At the top right-hand corner, there's a gap where the roof was joined incorrectly.
- In the shots from Thomas' perspective before he runs into the house, the tracks on the right all seem to end abruptly at a wall (presumably the wall is to hide the edge of the set).
- Thomas should've called for help if he couldn't whistle.
- Just before Thomas crashes into the house, the window didn't have glass in the frame.
- As Thomas crashes into the house, his wheels aren't moving, nor do they move as he was being pulled out of the house.
- In the interior shots of the house, the people are almost as big as Thomas due to the fact that their large scale models are used.
- When Thomas is rescued, a bush is lying on his buffer beam, but when the Fat Controller is talking to him, the bush seems to have become larger.
- While Thomas was being pulled out of the house, a wire is visible underneath him.
- Bridget Hatt was the Stationmaster's daughter.
- When Donald and Douglas pull Thomas out of the house, he was wearing his lamp. In the close-up of Thomas' front, the lamp has disappeared.
- In a close-up of Thomas' driver, he was clean shaven, but in some non close-ups, he has a beard.
- There should've been secure and strong buffers at the end of the track instead of simple stopping signs. Especially since they were in front of people's houses.
- George Carlin doesn't use a muffled voice for Thomas when he speaks with the bush in front of him.
- When Thomas was pulled away from the house, he looks unharmed. However in the next shot, a bush suddenly appears on his suddenly damaged buffer beam and his head lamp vanishes.
- It's clear to see that a bent buffer beam had been placed on top of Thomas' own when it was damaged.
- When Thomas says "Silly stick-in-the-muds!", the sheds and the engines are all arranged facing the wrong way.
- During the close-up of Percy looking cross, Donald's tender is seen in the background, still jammed in the signal box. However, later in the episode, Donald appears with his tender intact.
- In the close-ups of Sir Topham Hatt, the faded marks of where a smile had been are visible behind his frown.
- The Portuguese dub credits George Carlin as the narrator, even though it was redubbed.
- Douglas' left nameplate was peeling off slightly.
- While Thomas is being pulled out of the house, a wire is visible underneath him.
- At the end of the episode, a piece of hair is on Thomas' front.
US Home Video Releases[]
Merchandise[]
- Wooden Railway (discontinued)
Gallery[]
Merchandise Gallery[]
