Winston drives towards Official Website's Engine Depot

Winston the Track Inspection Vehicle has arrived at the official Thomas & Friends website, earlier than expected.

The newcomer of Season Sixteen and Blue Mountain Mystery fame is already depicted on an Engine Depot profile.

His page and icon were due to have opened up on April 15th in conjunction with the Narrow Gauge film's minisite countdown calendar.

His description reads; Winston is Sir Topham Hatt's track inspection vehicle - a car on the rails! Winston is well meaning and fun, although not the brightest engine on the rails.

Furthermore, the actitivies of a poster, colouring page, birthday card and a puzzled devoted to him are made public.

READ ALL ABOUT WINSTON ON THE THOMAS & FRIENDS WEBSITE

UK

US

AUSTRALIA

Thanks to The Colonel for the alert.

Sir Topham Hatt Japanese voicer Takeshi Aono dies

Takeshi Aono, best known to Thomas fans as the second voice of The Fat Controller in the Japanese version of the TV Series has died.

Aono had an extensive career as a voice actor in the nation of Japan, responsible for roles in many anime cartoons and shows such as Dragonball Z and Yu-Gi-Oh! GX.

The 75 year old who passed away in the city of Hokkaido due to cerebral infarcation, took on the reigns of Sir Topham Hatt's vocal performance during the late 20th and early 21st Century.

He replaced Kōhei Miyauchi to star in the Fifth to Eighth Seasons before leaving the show in the Ninth Series to hand the role to Rokuro Naya, who still voices the railway controller to this day.

One of his most noticebale dubs was translating the character of Doctor Emmett Brown, originally portrayed by Christopher Lloyd in the Back to the Future films.

Thanks to Anime Boy for the alert.

TrackMaster repaints Rheneas to 'Blue Mountain' theme

Rheneas is heading back to the TrackMaster merchandising range ahead of the release of Blue Mountain Mystery: The Movie.

The Talyllyn Railway based engine also marks a returning point for the Wooden Railway franchise by Learning Curve as the mysterious Repainted Rheneas.

The portrayal has since been picked up by Fisher Price's motorized railway series as revealed by a Buy It Now auction happening over at ebay.com.

His blue lining and overall appearance for the film's promotion has been compared to Duncan, whom is yet to take on a revived presence in Thomas & Friends.

Repainted Rheneas from TrackMaster hits toy shelves worldwide soon.

BUY 'REPAINTED RHENEAS' ON EBAY

Thanks to Bass Tbone for the alert.

Australia first for 'Blue Mountain Mystery' in late July

Australia have been confirmed to be the first country to screen the new Blue Mountain Mystery movie in cinemas.

This marks the second time that the nation will hold the world premiere, a year after their Day of the Diesels blue carpet stint in the city of Melbourne.

Hoyts broke the news on their events page, presenting the schedule for the Hoyts Jnr cinema programming.

The feature-length special marks the highly anticpated return of the core Narrow Gauge Engines and the end of Nitrogen Studios and Sharon Miller's creative involvement for the series.

The United Kingdom and the United States' release dates are currently billed for a September rollout. This so far applies to DVD/Bluray products and theatrical performances.

Blue Mountain Mystery marks it's world premiere in Australia at Hoyts cinemas on Saturday July 21st 2012 and will screen the film until September 16th.

READ HOYTS' JNR CINEMA SCHEDULE

Mavis takes 'Rocky Delivery' duty for Fisher Price

Mavis the Quarry Diesel is the next engine in line for another TrackMaster product due from Fisher Price.

Mavis' Rocky Delivery is a lead in from her many stints at the Quarry, taking the set to a storylining perspective.

The description reads; It's a dirty, dusty day for Mavis at the quarry! As she stumbles over the rocky ground the quarry car flies out of her cargo car!

She comes covered with quarry dust residue, joined by a Cargo Car containing a pop out Quarry Car and an Action Track piece.

Mavis' Rocky Delivery from TrackMaster hits toy shelves worldwide soon.

SEE MAVIS' NEW TRACKMASTER SET

Thanks to SteamTeam for the alert.

Official Website's Engine Depot finally reinstates Duck

The Official Thomas & Friends Website has at last returned Duck the Great Western Engine to the Engine Depot section, properly.

The No. 8 engine's page always was previewed by fans using hidden links via the web address bar. But the page itself remained incomplete with missing information and tabs.

Duck's popularity has notably increased since his surprise returns in the Twelfth Series and his absence occuring afterwards during the Animation episodes. This was helped by fan calls and campaigning for a reprieve.

His description reads; Duck is a cheerful, busy engine. He's only a small tank engine, but he'll take no nonsense from larger engines who try to order him about.

Interestingly enough, the profile picture comes from the Best Friends story. Ironically the same image originates from his Thomas & Friends Wikia page, albeit, cropped.

READ ALL ABOUT DUCK ON THE THOMAS & FRIENDS WEBSITE

UK

USA

AUSTRALIA

Thanks to ellsworth for the alert.

Luke and Paxton star in promised TrackMaster sets

Blue Mountain Mystery participants Luke the Green Engine and Paxton the Young Diesel are now fully confirmed for Fisher Price's TrackMaster toyline.

The two mark their debuts in the merchandising franchise being implemented into the Greatest Moments sets, Hideaway Luke and Paxton in Trouble.

Luke is joined by two vans whilst Paxton hauls Blue Mountain Quarry open trucks. The products unveil more plot elements aiding the final Nitrogen Studios animated special.

One tidbit to occur in the story shows the now non-silent dark green Day of the Diesels engine to be trapped by a scattering of quarry stones. This is revealed via a screencap attached to one of the products.

Online store, Peep Peep Thomas broke the news of the duo's existence during the later part of March.

Hideaway Luke and Paxton in Trouble from TrackMaster hits toy shelves worldwide later this year.

TAKE A PEEK AT THE 'BLUE MOUNTAIN MYSTERY' SETS

Thanks to benjenden1 for the alert.

Hit presents Season Sixteen PBS Kids YouTube advert

The thomasandfriends Channel on YouTube have promoted the US version of Season Sixteen via a new commercial.

Using clips from certain 2012 episodes, the PBS Kids advert provides a glimpse of the American voices taking on the most recent series.

Percy and the Calliope, Thomas and the Sounds of Sodor, Express Coming Through, Sodor Surprise Day and Thomas and the Rubbish Train are the stories previewed.

Race to the Rescue and Bust My Buffers! made their debuts in the States recently on The Kentucky Channel.

Season Sixteen of Thomas & Friends continues in the United States of America on April 14th 2012 at 9:00am on KET with the story block, All Together Now.
 
Local PBS stations across the country begin transmissions through April where broadcast dates may vary.

Japan will screen the series every Sunday on NHK starting from Sunday April 8th 2012 with the episodes トーマスときゅうこうれっしゃ and トーマスとソドーとうのおと at 7:00am and 7:20am respectively.

The latest series will return for one more day in Australia on ABC2 during Christmas 2012 with the episode, The Christmas Express. Channel 5 will also air The Christmas Express in Britain circa Christmas 2012.

For a full list of the scheduling, visit the Dieselworks Turntable Roundhouse on the right hand sidebar for more details.

WATCH THE SEASON SIXTEEN PBS KIDS COMMERCIAL ON YOUTUBE

Hit Entertainment pulls own Season Twelve uploads

Hit Entertainment have removed the recent full episodes of Thomas and the Billboard and Steady Eddie from YouTube.

The company uploaded the complete US versions of the Season Twelve stories onto the video networking website last Friday in early April.

They have since been mysteriously pulled and privatised with no explanation given.

When the pair were available to watch in its HD glory, this led to a positive reaction from fans who were pleased with the move.

Full opening and closing titles appeared alongside Michael Brandon's narration as was The Island of Sodor intro and the Engine Roll Call music video, in both videos.

'Rescue on the Rails' back delivered through Play.com

The late May Season Fifteen home video of Rescue on the Rails is heading its way to the United Kingdom.

The Rescue Engines themed release now has expanded more on Play.com with its back cover being published.

However, in the same vein as its American accomplice, the listed episodes do not appear which to date only occurs on the non four part Animation DVDs.

Thomas and Rocky, seen at the Search and Rescue Centre, appear on the rear cover side. The whole feature runs at 54 minutes approximately.

The description reads; Ready to Rescue! The Sodor Search and Rescue Team is racing to the rescue - Bertie's stuck on Shake Shake Bridge, Gordon's derailed, and Thomas firebox is on fire!

In these exciting episodes, your favourite engines brave the rails to rescue their friends.

Discover that being heroic is more than having speed and strength; it's about teamwork and a big heart which puts every Really Useful Engine on the right track.

 

Rescue on the Rails hits UK DVD shelves on May 21st 2012.

PRE-ORDER 'RESCUE ON THE RAILS'
VIEW PLAY.COM'S PRODUCT PAGE 

Small takes on Charlie in Season Sixteen US premiere

Ben Small who is the voice of Thomas, Toby and Ferdinand in the UK version of Thomas & Friends has now been fully confirmed as the voice of Charlie in the American nation.

Small plays Charlie in the US version of Season Sixteen, screened recently on the eve of Easter Sunday in the country as part of the Chuffing With Pride block containing Race to the Rescue and Bust My Buffers! on KET.

He confirmed to a fan about the alteration back in May 2011. The person who wishes to remain anonymous had notified Roll Along Thomas during the same period.

Owing to the policy of Hit Entertainment, the following reveal comment on the blog had been locked away, till now.

I have been talking to Ben Small during the Easter holidays and he's confirmed that he is Charlie in the US version.

There has been a lot of confusion that the central Thomas voice actor lent his vocals to the Season Thirteen engine since his introduction in 2010's Play Time.

However, few eagle-eared fans have noticed that American cast member associate, Glenn Wrage was indeed the original voice up to his ending commitment as the character in the Fifteenth Series.

Wrage's vocal instincts of his Spencer and Rocky roles helped identify Charlie's first actor. In the UK, Keith Wickham changed his Whiff voice from nasally, to a soft, calm type from the Fourteenth and Sixteenth Series respectively.

WATCH CHARLIE TALKING IN A DIFFERENT WAY ON YOUTUBE

Hit game-changes own YouTube uploads with episodes

The official Thomas & Friends YouTube Channel manned by Hit Entertainment has made a refreshing change to their video uploads.

Rather than resorting to presenting clips from episodes set in the Animation state, for the first time, full television stories have emerged on the channel.

Thomas and the Billboard and Steady Eddie are so far the only two episodes to feature in their entirety on the social video networking site from Hit themselves.

The move has surprised fans but has gone down well in reactions. It is not currently known if the childrens character branded company will continue with the trend.

The ten minute shows from the Twelfth Series are portrayed in 16:9 Widescreen aspect ratio, in their original 720p HD appearances and narrated through the American forms by Michael Brandon.

WATCH SEASON TWELVE IN HD ON THE THOMAS & FRIENDS YOUTUBE

THOMAS AND THE BILLBOARD

STEADY EDDIE