She discovered the character in a series of 1940s children’s books and thought Ringo Starr would make a great Mr. Conductor on television.

Related: Prince Harry Helps Celebrate Thomas the Tank Engine's 75th Anniversary with Special TV Episode Noting how Allcroft was not only an "adoring mother and wife," he added that she was a ...

Among the participants was the Reverend W Awdry, whose Thomas the Tank Engine books had been bestsellers since the 1940s. Filming on the Bluebell Line was halted by rain. “The Reverend Awdry and ...