Thomas & Friends first aired in 1984. Its first series premiered in the United Kingdom on ITV on 9 October 1984, originally under the title Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends.
The television series was developed by Britt Allcroft and adapted from Rev. W. Awdry’s Railway Series books. Clearwater Features produced the early model episodes, which used detailed miniature sets and locomotives rather than conventional hand-drawn animation. Ringo Starr narrated the first two series for the UK broadcast.
The date can be confused with later international launches or the programme’s 2021 ending. In the United States, Thomas first appeared through Shining Time Station in 1989, several years after the British debut. The original series eventually ran for 24 series and more than 500 episodes, with production methods changing from physical models to CGI.