Thomas & Friends (series 12) facts for kids

Thomas & Friends
DVD cover art
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of episodes	20
Release
Original network	Five
Original release	1 September (2008-09-01) – 26 September 2008 (2008-09-26)
List of Thomas & Friends episodes

Thomas & Friends is a popular children's TV show about trains and other characters living on the Island of Sodor. The show is based on The Railway Series books, written by the Reverend W. Awdry.

This article tells you all about the twelfth series of the show, which first aired in 2008. This series was originally going to have a new narrator, Pierce Brosnan, who would take over from Michael Angelis (for the UK) and Michael Brandon (for the US). This change was planned to start with the movie The Great Discovery. However, for reasons we don't know, Pierce Brosnan didn't narrate the series. So, Michael Angelis narrated the UK versions, and Michael Brandon narrated the US versions.

Most episodes in this series have two different titles: one for the UK and one for America. You'll see the UK title on top and the American title underneath in the episode list.

This was also the last season that used real-life models for the trains and scenery. After this, starting in 2009 with Hero of the Rails, the show switched completely to CGI (computer-generated imagery).

How Series 12 Was Made

From Models to Computers

Series 12 was a big step for Thomas & Friends because it started using CGI (computer-generated imagery). This meant that the characters' faces were animated using computers. To do this, the old faces on the physical models were replaced with special white targets. These targets helped the animators add computer-animated faces later, during post-production (after filming).

Even the people and animals, which used to be static models, were replaced with 3D computer animations. Small metal sticks with colored points helped with this. The company that did this animation was Nitrogen Studios, which also worked on the future full-CGI episodes. This change also meant that the show's production moved from the United Kingdom to Canada, though the model scenes were still filmed in the UK at Shepperton Studios. This was the last series where Ed Welch created the music. Robert Hartshorne then took over, composing music until Chris Renshaw started with Thomas & Friends in 4-D: Bubbling Boilers.

Christopher Skala, who was in charge of production for HiT Entertainment, explained that the change to CGI wasn't just about saving money. It was also meant to help the stories show more emotion and be more flexible. He said that even people who felt Thomas shouldn't change ended up liking the new animation when they saw it.

Episode Guide

Who's Who

This section lists the characters who appear in Series 12.

New Characters in Series 12

Returning Characters