Donald and Douglas are fictional steam locomotives from The Railway Series by W.V. Awdry. A steam locomotive is a Locomotive powered by Steam. The term usually refers to its use on Railways but can also refer to a "road locomotive" We know how exciting this is but WPTHOMAS/FAQ explains WikiProject Thomas' Wilbert Vere Awdry, OBE, ( 15 June 1911 &ndash 21 March 1997) better known as the Reverend W They also appear in Thomas and Friends, the television series based on the books. They are twin Scottish engines. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain.
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Introduction
The Fat Controller originally only ordered one engine from Scotland, but was surprised when two arrived, neither with numbers or any distinguishing features - both engines were painted completely black. Sir Topham Hatt, (less formally but more commonly referred to as the Fat Controller) is the head of the railway in The Railway Series of books written He could not tell which engine was which, and so decided to keep whichever one was the more useful. Unfortunately, Donald managed to demolish a signal box and Douglas destroyed a spiteful brake van by mistake. A caboose (North American Railway terminology) or brake van or guard's van (British terminology is a manned rail transport vehicle coupled at
However, the twins proved their worth to the railway in winter, when their experience and expertise with snow made them excellent snowplough engines. A snowplow (also spelled snow plow, snowplough or snow plough, see miscellaneous spelling differences) is a vehicle or a device intended The other engines appealed to the Fat Controller in "The Deputation" and he decided to keep the both of them. In the Railway Series, they were painted blue shortly afterwards and given nameplates. We know how exciting this is but WPTHOMAS/FAQ explains WikiProject Thomas'
The twins are almost identical, and some episodes of the television series have depicted them as being inseparable (notably the episode 'Twin Trouble'). The reason for their both arriving on Sodor was that Donald was bought and saved from scrap, but Douglas was not and was due to be cut up (this fact is revealed in the story The Missing Coach). They could not bear the thought of one being saved and the other not so they decided to go to Sodor together and hope for the best. As their crews were also related, it was not difficult for them both to stay on the island. To allow the engines to be told apart, the Fat Controller ordered that numbers be painted on their tenders. Following an incident in which the engines swapped tenders, he decided that it would also be wise to give them nameplates on their boilers as well.
Donald and Douglas are popular among the other engines, not only for their versatility but also their practical and friendly demeanour. They enjoy a good joke, as exemplified when Duck's driver slipped a duck into Donald's tank, resulting in Donald gaining a new friend in Dilly the duck. They put their all into any job, no matter how difficult. And, because of their own brush with scrapping, they have the utmost sympathy for engines escaping the scrapyard. It was this sympathy that made Douglas a hero, when he rescued Oliver and Toad from scrap and bought them to Sodor. In the Railway Series, Toad became his brake van following this incident. We know how exciting this is but WPTHOMAS/FAQ explains WikiProject Thomas'
The Twins are mainly used for goods work, but can be used for all sorts of jobs all over the railway. They are very much the "odd job engines" of the line. They carry out track repair, collect engines from the Works, rescue engines that have broken down or crashed and, of course, clear snow in the winter. The railway would not be the same without them. They are, in the Fat Controller's words, "Really Useful Engines". Sir Topham Hatt, (less formally but more commonly referred to as the Fat Controller) is the head of the railway in The Railway Series of books written
They first appeared in the book The Twin Engines, published in 1960. This list consists all of The Railway Series books by both the Rev Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Their first appearance in the television series was in Season 2. They appeared at regular intervals until Season 7, then were not seen again until Season 11, although they did get a mention in the Season 8 episode "You Can Do It, Toby!" and also appeared in a deleted scene in Season 8's "Edward the Great".
In the Japanese version of the TV Series Donald is voiced by Hiroyuki Satō, while Douglas is voiced by Takeshi Endo. is a Seiyū who is represented by Aoni Production. He was formerly credited as.
Scottish Engines
Donald and Douglas are unusual among characters in the Railway Series, in that they speak in a strong Scots dialect. We know how exciting this is but WPTHOMAS/FAQ explains WikiProject Thomas' Scots ( The Scots leid) refers to Anglic varieties derived from early northern Middle English spoken in parts of Scotland and Northern A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος dialektos) is a variety of a Language that is characteristic of a particular group of This can be difficult to understand at times (and indeed, Rev. W. Awdry received a number of letters complaining of this very problem). This is exemplified in their excuse for not carrying numbers: "They maun hae slyly slippit aff, sir!" (They must have slyly slipped off, sir).
Their accent has been identified by a number of readers as originating in Glasgow, although the writer Martin Clutterbuck notes a strong Robert Burns influence. In Linguistics, an accent is a manner of Pronunciation of a language Glasgow (ˈglæzgoʊ is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796 (also known as Rabbie Burns, Scotland's favourite son, the Ploughman Poet, the Bard of Ayrshire
The engines' Scottish heritage has been referenced in a number of stories. In the book Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine, Douglas mentions the song 'The Bluebells of Scotland'. This list consists all of The Railway Series books by both the Rev [1] While in Jock the New Engine, Douglas regards the unnamed engine's unusual colour (undercoat): "Some o' the engines up in the Highlands were yon colour. This list consists all of The Railway Series books by both the Rev Jocks, we used to call them. " He goes on to suggest that "Jock" might be a good choice, and so the title character gets his typically Scottish name, and is painted in the distinctive pale green livery of the Highland Railway. The Highland Railway (HR was one of the smaller British railways before the Railways Act 1921; it operated north of Perth railway station in [2]
It should be noted that in "The Railway Series", Donald and Douglas were painted NWR blue when Sir Topham Hatt (the Fat Controller) decided to keep them; however, in the television series they remained black. The North Western Railway is the main railway company featured in The Railway Series books by the Rev
Prototype
Donald and Douglas are based on the Caledonian Railway 812 Class. The Caledonian Railway 812 Class is a class of 0-6-0 steam Tender locomotive designed by John F In the Railway Series, it is stated that one of them is number 57646 (though it is only revealed to the reader that this is in fact Donald, when Douglas has the alarming thought "I hope the Fat Controller disnae realise I shouldna be here"). We know how exciting this is but WPTHOMAS/FAQ explains WikiProject Thomas' None of the original 812 class carried this number — the joke being that in real life, the highest numbered was 57645.
The blue they carry in the Railway Series is significant, as blue was the colour most associated with the Caledonian Railway. The Caledonian Railway was a major Scottish Railway company operating in Scotland In the book 'James and the Diesel Engines', Donald explains that while on the Caledonian Railway they were never painted blue, they always carried the black goods livery. Interestingly, the black that they used to carry (and indeed still do in the television series) is British Railways black with red and white lining, making them the only engines to carry a BR livery
The engines have deep-toned whistles, which Gordon and Henry observed made them sound like buses or ships. Gordon the Big Engine is a Fictional Anthropomorphic Tender locomotive in The Railway Series Henry the Green Engine is a Fictional Anthropomorphic 4-6-0 Steam locomotive from The Railway Series books A ship /ʃɪp/ is a large vessel that floats on water Ships are generally distinguished from Boats based on size Although unusual on Sodor, such whistles were typical of the Caledonian Railway.
One Caledonian '812' class survived into preservation: 828 is currently based on the Strathspey Railway, Aviemore, Scotland and is nearing the end of a long overhaul. The Strathspey Railway (SR in Badenoch and Strathspey, Highland, Scotland, operates a 10 mile (16 km preserved railway from Aviemore Aviemore (An Aghaidh Mhòr is a town and tourist resort situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain.
Douglas on the Mid Hants Railway
In 2000, the Mid Hants Railway in Hampshire converted a Hunslet Austerity 0-6-0ST class engine into a tender engine. The Watercress Line is the marketing name of the Mid-Hants Railway, a heritage line in Hampshire, England, running from New Alresford Wildlife Hampshire has wildlife typical of the island of Great Britain The Hunslet Engine Company Austerity 0-6-0ST is a design of Steam locomotive designed for Shunting. This rebuilt locomotive poses as Douglas for special events, and is still in service for mixed-traffic work.
References
- ^ Awdry, Rev. W. (1963). Wilbert Vere Awdry, OBE, ( 15 June 1911 &ndash 21 March 1997) better known as the Reverend W Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine. This list consists all of The Railway Series books by both the Rev Edmund Ward, p4. ISBN 0 7182 0017 9.
- ^ Awdry, Christoper (1990). Christopher Awdry (born 1940 is a British Author best known for his contributions to The Railway Series of books featuring Thomas the Tank Engine Jock the New Engine. Heinemann, pp44-5. ISBN 0 434 97611 3.