It often seems almost every child in the world knows the Thomas the tank engine and friends television show. A lot of them also have at least one of the great Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends toys. Sadly, some parents haven't still heard of these cute railroad adventurers that live in a shed in the magical island of Sodor, despite the fact that Thomas has been around since their childhood too! For those parents, here is a brief list of the characters featured in the Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends TV show.

Our first pal is also the star of the show: Thomas. Thomas is a blue tank engine locomotive, the number one engine in the Fat Controllers railway line. He is cheeky, friendly and kind, but he has the habit of doing jobs that are meant to be performed by bigger engines. He carries two coaches named Annie and Clarabel. Both Annie and Clarabel carry passengers, but Clarabel can also carry luggage.

The second engine in the Fat Controller's team is Edward. He is proud to be Thomas' friend and co-worker. His color is also blue, but he is older than Thomas. Like Thomas the Tank engine, Edward is very nice and kind to everyone in the island of Sodor. He is glad to help smaller engines in their work, and also when they get into any kind of trouble. Coaches love him, as all others do. Edward also plays the part of a "pacifier" locomotive: whenever the other engines are somehow misbehaving, the Fat Controller asks Edward to calm them down, and then Edward talks to them and soon things are back to normal.

The third engine in the team is Henry. Henry is a green locomotive. He is always proud of his shiny green paint, and everybody think he is a very handsome engine. He is a very long locomotive, and he is also very fast. Sometimes Henry gets ill, but he never says no to a job. I just don't know why, but this is my favorite character of the Thomas the Tank Engine and friends show.

The number four engine is Gordon. Gordon is the locomotive that pulls the Big Express train. He is the fastest and most powerful locomotive in the entire island of Sodor, and he is very proud of that. In fact, he is so proud that sometimes he can get too arrogant. Gordon is the senior engine in the Fat Controller's team. Usually, the other engines like to play tricks on him, which makes Gordon angry. However, he has a kind heart, and always forgives them. He usually uses his strength to help other engines.

The engine number five is James. He is a medium size engine that is really proud of his shiny red paint. He has six wheels.

The last one of the troupe is Percy. He is the engine number six in the Fat Controller's team, and is also the youngest one of the locomotives. He is very kind and happy, and his job consists of sorting out the trucks in the yard.

The Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends TV show is a great learning partner for little kids, and knowing the basics about the characters will help you better relate with your children and help you follow along as both of you enjoy the delightful episodes of Thomas the Train, one of the best family shows on television.

Copyright Jared Winston, 2006. All Rights Reserved.