Toby the Tram Engine

Toby is an old fashioned J70 0-6-0 Steam tram, in both looks and outlook. His old tramway was closed because of business with other transportation, and having nearly been scrapped, he is always happy to work. He isn't above being easily upset sometimes, but since he works up on the Ffarqhaur Quarry line, he can usually work off his moods without causing grief to anyone, except his own faithful coaches, Henrietta and Victoria. Toby is wise, cheerful, friendly and careful in all he does, and has a great knowledge of running a Branch Line.

He is a recurring character in The Railway Series and the model series and a major character in the CGI series. He is a secondary character in Thomas & the Magic Railroad, a minor character in Calling All Engines, The Great Discovery, Hero of the Rails, Misty Island Rescue, Day of the Diesels, and The Great Race, and a supporting character in Blue Mountain Mystery, King of the Railway, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure, Journey Beyond Sodor, and Big World! Big Adventures!.

He is good friends with Thomas, Percy, Daisy, Mavis, and (sometimes) James.

Toby was built by James Holden at the Great Eastern Railway's Stratford Works in Stratford, London, England in 1914 and originally lived at Great Yarmouth Docks, Norfolk with his brothers before working on an unnamed tramway. In 1951, Toby came to work at the quarry on Thomas' Branch Line after his old railway in East Anglia closed, as it was found to be illegal for Thomas to go on the Quarry Tramroad without sideplates or cowcatchers causing Thomas to get in trouble with a policeman so The Fat Controller brought Toby to Sodor. At first, Toby was teased by James for his shabby paint. James stopped insulting Toby and Henrietta after he crashed into some tar wagons and Toby was given chocolate-brown paint for his hard work and a new coat for Henrietta as well.

Toby also got into a bit of a controversy with a female diesel shunter named Mavis, as she was not willing to shunt the trucks where they needed to be. After an accident with some trucks, the two engines made up their quarrel and are now good friends.

When Mavis was sent to the works after her accident with a lorry, Toby was sent to do her work at the quarry, leaving Percy to do Toby's work as well as his own. Toby once came off the rails at a crossing when the earth was swollen over the rails and ended up on the road. Luckily, with the fireman guiding the driver, they managed to reverse Toby back on the rails. The Fat Controller, however, heard about it, but rather than being cross, he only joked with him and told him that he should leave the roads to what they were made for.

By 2007, Toby was having trouble taking the workmen to the quarry as Henrietta did not have enough room in her to carry them all at once. Bertie usually helped, but one day, he was ill and Henrietta was so full that some workmen even had to ride on her balcony. As he went past a part of his line that went through a town, he stopped quickly when a car came out of a side street and nearly collided with him. To make matters worse, a policeman witnessed the workmen riding on Henrietta's balcony and after he made a report, an inspector spoke to the quarry manager, telling him that passengers were not allowed to ride on coach balconies. Luckily, Thomas managed to help Toby when he found an old and worn out coach named Victoria, who was used as a summer house for many years when she was taken out of service. Victoria was eventually restored and now works with Toby and Henrietta along their line.

Heroic deed: When Toby rang his bell it made the policeman jump that Toby & Thomas had been friends ever since Book 7 "Toby The Tram Engine" in "Dirty Object's" Toby was getting picked on by James for his shabby paint but when James ran into Tar Wagon's Toby & Percy cleared away the unhurt trucks and helped James back home to the sheds where Sir Topham Hatt promised Toby & Henrietta a fresh coat of paint after that James had stopped bring rude to the engines ever since.

Thomas & Friends[2]

When the Horrid Lorries arrived on the Island, Toby found his work at the quarry being taken over by Lorry 2 and his work at the mill being taken over by Lorry 3. When the two lorries became damaged and sent back to the docks, Toby threw Lorry 2's remarks about usefulness back at him.

After many weeks of rain, Toby inspected a dam for potential damage due to rising floodwaters along his branch line. While crossing the dam, Toby found that it was breaking and tried to return to safety, but the dam collapsed just as Toby was crossing a wooden bridge, which broke off and carried Toby toward a waterfall. Harold managed to drop one end of a rope to Toby and the other end to Percy, who pulled Toby to safety. Afterwards, a party was held for Toby and the Fat Controller praised Toby's bravery.

When taking the Fat Controller and his grandchildren to the seaside, the Fat Controller decided to use Toby for an exploration in search of a castle, which they found as well as a mine. Toby was scared of the mine's spooky atmosphere (certain it was haunted) and stayed on guard at night during the restoration. Thomas told Toby about the Old Warrior Ghost, who was really a narrow gauge engine named Bertram. After this, the two engines became good friends and now take visitors to and from the castle and mine. Toby once took Sir Topham Hatt's family on vacation again, this time to a small river inlet.

Toby has had several winter escapades. The thick fog concealed Thomas' crash site from Toby's view and the foghorn had been damaged from the landslide Thomas had crashed into. Luckily, Cyril the Fogman managed to place a detonator on the rails to warn Toby just in time. During the holidays, Toby was unable to clear the snowdrifts by himself, so he needed Thomas' help to deliver a Christmas tree to the festivities on his branch line. During one harsh winter, Toby had to rescue Farmer McColl's lambs that were trapped on a hillside.

Toby was given a temporary three-chime whistle while his bell was being cleaned at the Steamworks. It helped with warning Thomas and Gordon that the tracks were blocked. He once was scared of Knapford Junction.

He once ran out of coal while delivering scrap to Crocks Scrap Yard and after a few unsuccessful attempts at stopping passing engines to ask for some of their coal, Reg decided to lift Toby into the air so that the next engine would see him. Unfortunately, Thomas passed by and thought Reg was about to scrap Toby. After the story spread across the island, Emily took Henrietta to the scrapyard so that she and Toby could explain the truth.

In Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure, Thomas nearly collided with Toby while racing Bertie. The next morning, Toby attempted to warn Thomas about his red signal, but Thomas was too late to stop and collided with Emily and derailed Gordon's coaches. Thomas tried to blame him along with Gordon and Emily, but Sir Topham Hatt saw through his lie.

In the twentieth series, Toby met Philip for the first time and was rather taken aback by the boxcab's talkative nature and desire to have races. Philip also had mistaken Toby as a boxcab before realising Toby was a steam tram. Later, he told Thomas the trees look very spooky. Toby told Thomas and Percy that reminded the others about how the littlest goat survived by going across the bridge first and told the troll to eat his bigger brothers.

In the twenty-first series, after Toby took Henrietta to the Steamworks to get her seats refurbished, he was given a replacement carriage named Hannah. Hannah ordered him to go faster down the line and pushed him down Gordon's Hill, nearly making him derail. He got fed up with Hannah and abandoned her on a siding beside the main line. When he returned to the siding to fetch her, he saw James going fast with Hannah until she broke away and crashed into a siding. After Henrietta had her new seats fitted, he took Hannah to the Steamworks to be mended, where she reunited with Henrietta and revealed to him that they were sisters. Afterwards, he began working with Henrietta once again.

During the winter, Toby was taking some trucks when he was diverted into a siding to avoid colliding with Donald and Douglas. In doing so, he ended up running into a snow bank and while his driver dug him out, he had a beard of snow on his face for the rest of the day. He also took some holidaymakers to the Anopha Quarry instead of the seaside after he became confused because of the new P.A. system which was not working properly.

Thomas & the Magic Railroad[3]

In the film, after Diesel 10 eavesdropped on Thomas and Percy talking about the buffers to the magic railroad, Toby told them to carry on taking the Mail Train while he followed him to the Smelters Yard. There, he distracted Diesel 10 by ringing his bell, which resulted in Diesel 10 demolishing the shed that he, Splatter and Dodge were in.

Personality [4]

Toby is old, but wise, hardworking and knowledgeable enough about running branch lines to justify running Thomas' line with Daisy after Percy's accident with the trucks until Thomas came back. He is also savvy enough to control the trucks. However, his advanced age and design means that he is weaker than the other engines. While Toby is always ready to work hard without any fuss, he can be a bit temperamental sometimes, especially when young and inexperienced engines who are full of themselves make things difficult for him. However, work at the quarry line often soothes off his moods without any cause of grief to anyone, except of course his old faithful coach, Henrietta.

From the eighth to sixteenth series, however, Toby had been portrayed as being nervous about the capabilities of his work and uncertain about being an old steam tram, believing that he is not a proper engine, only good enough as a museum piece and not really special at all. However, he enjoys listening to the birds in the birdhouse next to his shed and is friends with the pigs at Farmer Trotter's Pig Farm.

From King of the Railway onwards, Toby has been portrayed with his original wiser and more jovial personality, as well as having more subtle shades of nervousness. He has also been shown to be placid and easy-going, enjoying the peace and quiet of the countryside along Thomas' branch line.