Most people born in the 1980s will be familiar with the character Thomas the Tank Engine. First published in a book in 1945, his adventures were later adapted into a TV show Thomas and Friends which ran from 1984 until 2021.
To celebrate the 80th anniversary of this British classic, an unseen version of the pilot episode, discovered in the Mattel archives, filmed back in 1983, has been made available on YouTube.[1]
The pilot includes hand-pushed carts, puffs of steam, carriage shunts, whistles and the narration by former Beatle Ringo Starr.
