Untitled Lost Thomas Episode

I used to work on Thomas and Friends back in the 80s as sort of a "beta tester" for episodes before they were dubbed and aired to spot any issues. It wasn't the most glamourous job, but it paid the bills. I was doing well until one fateful summer day during the production of Season 2. As I came into work, Mr. Mitton handed me an unmarked pre-production tape. "Here's the newest episode, just see if there's anything wrong with it," he said before rushing off somewhere. He seemed to be in a hurry, but I thought it as some work-related issue and went to my office to view the episode. I placed the tape into the player and started watching. The intro was normal except that the usual credits did not appear because it hadn't yet been finalised for home media release. The episode also didn't have a name, which I found somewhat odd. 
The episode started with a slow zoom in towards Tidmouth Sheds, which was bustling with the familiar cast of engines getting ready for the day's work. The camera zeroed in on an unfamiliar engine next to Henry. She appeared to be based on a Southern Railway U class, and looked nervous. I paused the episode there. I had never been told that we were adding a new character, unless I had not paid attention during the last meeting. And if she was a part of the series, then Awdry had surely given his approval. Thinking nothing of it, I unpaused the video and kept watching. The shot lingered on the engine for a bit, as if the narrator was to introduce her, before cutting to a different angle, with the Fat Controller now in front of the engine. 
There was no narration since this was a dubbing track, but from what I could tell, the engine was to pull a passenger train. The engine smiled and went to work, her dark green paint gleaming in the sunlight. The episode cut to the usual wide shot of Knapford, with Gordon sitting at the furthest platform waiting to depart with the express. The unfamiliar engine puffed in and coupled up to some leftover red coaches. The two seem to have a conversation, with the camera alternating between two separate shots of them, with only their faces changing. Gordon seemed to be acting his usual pompous self, while the other engine once again looked nervous. There was a brief shot of her driver and fireman in her cab before she blew her whistle, which was a higher-pitched version of Donald's, and set off. 
There were various shots of the engine travelling down the main line. She had her own theme song, which was bouncy yet forlorn. When she stopped at Crosby, the stationmaster is seen at the platform with an angry expression, presumably telling the engine she was late. Hearing this, the engine looked down sadly. Her crew is seen again for a brief moment before the guard's whistle blows and she sets off again. This time, she looks even more nervous and determined than before as her wheels slipped violently, sending sparks flying. Her journey continued as she passed by Edward at Wellsworth. The two engines greeted each other with a whistle as the unfamiliar engine reached Gordon's Hill.
As she charged up the hill, the engine looked out of breath, pushing herself harder and harder. There were some more shots of her crew before she reached the top. Then, as the narrator would usually say in the show, there was trouble. The engine's crew tried to slow her down by applying the brakes, but when they did, a loud snap was heard, indicating the engine's brakes had broke. The runaway theme started playing as the engine careened down the hill, through Maron station, and over the viaduct at high speed. The engine now had a terrified expression as she went faster and faster. She looked back at her crew, as if she were begging for them to make her stop, but they couldn't. The guard attempted to use the coaches' brakes, but they too were futile in stopping the runaway.
Things got worse when James was seen coming down the same line pulling a long slow goods train. Fortunately, a quick-thinking signalman switched the runaway onto the adjacent line on James' left. However, the engine was going too fast, and she flew off the rails into a ditch, taking the coaches with her. The worst part of this is that the engine let out a loud, shrill scream before falling in the ditch. The sound definitely did not belong in a show like this. Granted, something similar would happen much later in Season 6, but I digress. When she fell in, her model was severely damaged as well as the coaches. I could even hear stock screaming sound effects layered over each other, presumably the engine's passengers. A sad, yet ominous and unfamiliar tune comprised of four repeating notes hung over the scene before it cut to black and the tape ended without any credits. 
I was only a bit put off by what I had just witnessed. I had seen worse, but was this really the direction they wanted to take the show in? And why would the team make the costly decision of making an entirely new model and individual faces for it just to use it once and destroy it? I took out the tape and took it home later that day, never intending to show it to anyone. I'm not going to release the footage because Mattel's legal team would have my arse mounted on a wall if they found out. Mr. Mitton never asked me about the tape again, and I assumed everyone had likely forgotten about it as of now. I can't bring myself to watch the show anymore, but the reason why isn't because of the episode itself, but rather what happened after I had seen it.
In the months after I had watched the episode, I began experiencing strange visual and auditory hallucinations. In every subsequent episode I test-watched, I would catch a glimpse of the unknown engine puffing by, always in the background. One moment she was there, the next she wasn't. I always rewound the tape and played those specific moments back, but every time I did, the engine wasn't there, as if she was never there to begin with. I also kept hearing her death scream as well as a loud "HELP ME!". When I asked if anyone had heard something, they said they didn't. 
At first, I could easily ignore it, as it only happened once or twice every other day. Unfortunately, it got worse. Soon, every single model engine in each episode was replaced with her, and I heard her screams so often and so clearly in my mind that I could hardly work or sleep. I decided to quit my job and went to see a therapist. After three years, I had mostly recovered. I'm not posting this as a warning, I just want to tell my story. I also thought the Thomas fanbase would like to hear it, since they seem to enjoy scary stories involving the characters. 
That's all for now, I can hear her screaming again. And this time, she's not stopping.
Category:Lost Episodes
Category:Thomas & Friends
Category:TV Shows
Category:Unaired Episode
Category:Mental Illness
Category:Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends