Thomas the Tank Engine Turns 65

Let’s face it – Ringo Starr is going to go down in history as the coolest Beatle ever, simply because it’s his voice we heard throughout our childhoods, narrating the stories of the Island of Sodor. It might not have graced our screens until 1984, but this year, Thomas the Tank Engine is turning the grand old age of 65!

You could celebrate with a day-long dvd marathon, or you could save at least part of your sanity and pop along to your local Toys’R'Us, where on the 22nd May from 11am-1pm they’ll be holding special birthday celebrations for the cheeky blue engine. There’ll be stories, trivia, colouring, card-making and a nifty Thomas & Friends playmat so you can bring your favourite engine along (or purchase one on the day, hint hint) for playtime.

If you can’t make it on the 22nd, never fear, because the whole month of May is Thomas month at Toys’R'Us! Yep, you’ll be humming the theme song for weeks…

Thomas has come along way since Ringo first narrated the die-cast models trundling along the Island of Sodor. The Fat Controller isn’t actually very fat any more, for starters - and he’s certainly not known by that name nowdays! Sir Topham Hatt is, I guess, a bit more dignified. And it’s not just James and Henry and Edward and Gordon & co that steam around the Island either. A whole host of characters, including lots of lady engines, now populate the classic learn-a-lesson tales. Even celebs like Alec Baldwin and Pierce Brosnan have had a go at storytelling.

Thomas is, in all honesty, one of my favourite children’s characters, and I’m not a fan just out of submission (my brother was obsessed, there was no escaping it, we had die-cast trains from one end of the house to the other) or because I’m a die-hard Beatles fan – it’s just because Thomas and his friends tell stories of bravery, stupidity, selfishness, kindness, hard work, fun and above all, friendship, with simple, good old-fashioned common sense. You don’t feel like some BBC-supported team of child psychologists is trying to subversively understand and influence your kids when they watch or read about Thomas. They’re just simply enjoying it, the same way we did.