Christopher Awdry, who went on to write numerous Thomas books himself after his father retired in 1972, disagrees, arguing that the engines are punished for displaying “arrogance” or ...

Now 70, Christopher Awdry shares his memories of his father and his beloved trains with NPR's Robert Siegel. "These toys were created for me … as amusements while I was ill," Awdry explains.

W.V. Awdry, the man behind Thomas The Tank Engine, ... Christopher Awdry has told me that the spotless engines, in fact, seemed anachronistic for the time: post-war trains were usually filthy.

Christopher Awdry took over writing the stories in 1972. Image source, Getty Images. Image caption, The Thomas The Tank Engine books spawned TV shows, films, toys and theme parks.

In a 2010 interview with NPR, Christopher Awdry explained that his father’s lifelong fascination with trains brought a lot of reality to the engines of Sodor—and to the fictional island itself.

Christopher Awdry’s wife, Diana, says: "However, instead of letting the books go out of print gradually as they were re-formatted, they withdrew the whole series.

WV Awdry, his son Christopher and grandson Richard on the Talyllyn Railway, 1982 "He came and volunteered for the first time in '52.

Christopher Awdry was talking to Terence Handley MacMath. Brian Sibley’s newly updated biography The Thomas the Tank Engine Man: The life of Reverend W. Awdry is published by LionHudson (£18.99 (CT ...

Some of the featured guests will be Andrew Brenner, one of the many head writers, Ian McCue, series producer, and members of the Reverend Wilbert Awdry’s family, creator of Thomas the Tank ...

When the Telegraph revealed that the classic British children’s character Thomas the Tank Engine was a figure of hate among some Left-wing parents and academics, readers registered their ...

WV Awdry, his son Christopher and grandson Richard on the Talyllyn Railway, 1982 "He came and volunteered for the first time in '52.