Bertie

**Bertie** is a red bus who works alongside Thomas' Branch Line. He is owned by Sodor Roadways.

## Biography

### *The Railway Series*

After Thomas became stuck in a snowdrift, Bertie came to rescue Thomas' passengers. He later raced Thomas after claiming he was the faster of the two but lost after having to stop at a traffic light.

When Thomas' fireman did not come into work, Bertie promised to help his passengers catch Edward's train, however, he was late at the junction and missed him at the station. Bertie chased after him and almost caught him at the next station, but arrived just as he left. Due to being able to climb hills better than him, Bertie finally caught up to Edward at the third station. Edward apologised to Bertie for the chase and the passengers cheered at him.

When the Viaduct was being repaired, the Main Line engines were delayed in bringing Thomas his passengers, thus making Thomas late in meeting Bertie at the stations along the branch. Bertie teased Thomas about being slow because of this and even challenged him to another race, but had to eat his words after breaking down. Thomas took his passengers home and called for help at the next station. When he was repaired, Bertie apologised to Thomas for teasing him and thanked him for helping his passengers.

Bertie was once mentioned as being sick and unable to help Toby and Henrietta with carrying the quarry workers.

After the partial collapse of Henry's Tunnel, Bertie helped pick up visitors who wanted to see the bust of the Thin Clergyman unveiled at Tidmouth.

### *Thomas & Friends*

As in the television series, Bertie reprised some of his roles from the Railway Series, but was later chosen to take visitors to the Vicar's party and teased Trevor by calling him a "stick-in-the-mud" and old fashioned. However, he got his comeuppance when he got himself stuck in the mud and had to be pulled out by Terence. After that, Bertie thanked Trevor and gave him an apology for teasing him.

When Edward had an accident on the day before he was to take the Brass Band to a concert, Bertie had to take them instead but got stuck in the mud again. Luckily, Edward was repaired and took the Brass Band to their concert.

Bertie is continuously alluding to his race with Thomas and how he could win next time. He actually raced Thomas again in the seventh series episode, Three Cheers for Thomas, he won only because Thomas was sidetracked with collecting the sports medals.

Bertie and Thomas have seemed to continue this tradition of racing. However, in the seventeenth series, he was re-routed giving him an advantage. Thomas is still able to beat him occasionally.

In the nineteenth series, he, Thomas and Spencer got into an argument after Mr. Percival claimed two wheels was best; Bertie argued four wheels was in fact best. He tried to prove his point by taking The Duke and Duchess of Boxford to Callan Castle after both Thomas and Spencer failed to do so, but he too failed after receiving a flat tyre. Harold eventually came to the Duke and Duchess' rescue. He later teased Thomas by telling him about what was on the other side of a mountain on his branch line. Thomas was cross by Bertie's teasing and became determined to find out what was there. Thomas eventually discovered it was a roadside billboard Bertie was describing, though he got into an accident while trying to find out. Bertie visited him at the Steamworks and apologised, though Thomas was able to trick him into believing that he was getting fitted with wings.

In Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure, while he and Thomas were racing, Thomas nearly collided with Toby and he nearly collided with Oliver the Excavator. At Ffarquhar, he complained that he was always getting stuck behind slow construction vehicles since the construction of the new branch line had started. He was then seen on the road by the Harwick Branch Line. Sheep were in his way, but Bertie just smiled.

In the twenty-first series, Bertie ended up breaking down while he and Thomas were racing. This ended up with Thomas taking on his passengers but ended up getting requests for lots of unscheduled stops, which made him run late. However, Bertie was soon temporarily replaced by Bulgy, leading to Thomas running on time.

After being repaired, he shared the mantle of keeping Bulgy in line; he later broke down due to struggling with passenger transport (flourished due to train halting courtesy of Bulgy). Bulgy took his passengers while Butch towed him away.

#### *Thomas and the Magic Railroad*

In the film, when Thomas headed off to find Mr. Conductor after the meeting with the engines, Bertie asked Thomas if he wanted to have a race, but Thomas said he had no time and apologised to Bertie when he unable to race with him. Later, Bertie passed and greeted Thomas, informing him that he had five coal trucks instead of six.

## Personality

Bertie is friendly and ready to help anyone in need. However, he can be quite cheeky and can even be boastful about himself, especially to Thomas, always joking around and teasing him about their races. He can sometimes be quite grumpy, as whenever he breaks down or gets stuck, he grumbles about it. He is always, however, easy-going and cheerful to everyone he sees.

## Technical Details

### Basis

Bertie is based on an AEC Regal "T Class" London Country Area bus. 8 of these are known to survive in preservation. One of these, T31, is believed to have been the first bus to be privately preserved in the UK.

Bertie's Basis

### Livery

Bertie is painted in the common red livery of buses in the United Kingdom, mostly famously used by London Transport. His number plate, CRD54, refers to the fact that it was first seen in Edward the Blue Engine, published in 1954 and illustrated by C. Reginald Dalby.

## Appearances

* Railway Series
* Television Series
* Other Media

### *The Railway Series*

* **Tank Engine Thomas Again** - Thomas, Terence and the Snow (*indirectly mentioned*) and Thomas and Bertie
* **Edward the Blue Engine** - Bertie's Chase
* **The Eight Famous Engines** - The Fat Controller's Engines (*mentioned*)
* **Really Useful Engines** - Stop Thief! (*mentioned*)
* **More About Thomas the Tank Engine** - Better Late Than Never
* **Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines** - Rabbits (*mentioned*) and Golden Jubilee (*mentioned*)
* **Thomas and Victoria** - Overloaded (*mentioned*)
* **Thomas and his Friends** - Centenary (*mentioned*)

#### Companion Volumes

* **1983** - Bertie the Bus and Thomas the Tank Engine
* **1984** - Thomas the Tank Engine and the Tractor
* **1987** - Thomas and the Evil Diesel (*does not speak*)
* **1992** - Thomas and the Hurricane (*does not speak*)

### *Thomas & Friends*

* **Series 1** - Thomas and the Guard (*pre-filmed footage cameo*), Thomas, Terence and the Snow (*not named; does not speak*), Thomas and Bertie, Tenders and Turntables (*cameo*) and Thomas' Christmas Party (*cameo*)
* **Series 2** - Bertie's Chase, The Runaway (*mentioned*), Better Late Than Never, The Deputation (*cameo*), Edward's Exploit (*does not speak*) and Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree (*cameo*)
* **Series 3** - Gordon and the Famous Visitor (*cameo*), Donald's Duck (*does not speak*), Thomas Gets Bumped, Thomas, Percy and the Dragon (*cameo*), Thomas, Percy and the Post Train (*cameo*), Trust Thomas, Mavis (*cameo*), Edward, Trevor and the Really Useful Party, All at Sea, Tender Engines (*cameo*), Oliver Owns Up (*deleted scene cameo*), Bulgy (*does not speak*) and Thomas and Percy's Christmas Adventure (*cameo*)
* **Series 4** - You Can't Win (*cameo*), Steam Roller (*cameo*), Rusty to the Rescue (*cameo*), Bowled Out (*cameo*), Thomas and the Special Letter (*mentioned*) and Mind that Bike (*does not speak*)
* **Series 5** - Lady Hatt's Birthday Party, Toby and the Flood (*cameo*), Toby's Discovery (*cameo*), A Surprise for Percy and Busy Going Backwards (*cameo*)
* **Series 6** - Harvey to the Rescue, Scaredy Engines (*cameo*), James and the Red Balloon (*cameo*) and Thomas the Jet Engine
* **Series 7** - Edward's Brass Band, Harold and the Flying Horse (*cameo*) and Three Cheers for Thomas
* **Series 8** - Thomas and the Tuba, Percy's New Whistle, Gordon Takes Charge (*does not speak*) and As Good as Gordon (*does not speak*)
* **Series 9** - Thomas and the Rainbow (*does not speak*), Duncan and the Old Mine (*mentioned*) and Thomas and the Golden Eagle
* **Series 10** - Seeing the Sights, Topped Off Thomas (*does not speak*) and Thomas and the Colours
* **Series 11** - Gordon and the Engineer (*does not speak*), Smoke and Mirrors and Thomas in Trouble (*cameo*)
* **Series 12** - Rosie's Funfair Special (*does not speak*) and Saved You!
* **Series 13** - Double Trouble (*does not speak*)
* **Series 14** - Charlie and Eddie (*does not speak*) and Being Percy (*cameo*)
* **Series 15** - Gordon and Ferdinand (*cameo*), Stop That Bus! and Wonky Whistle
* **Series 16** - Race to the Rescue
* **Series 17** - Wayward Winston and Thomas' Shortcut
* **Series 18** - Disappearing Diesels (*cameo*), Thomas and the Emergency Cable (*cameo*) and Samson Sent for Scrap
* **Series 19** - Who's Geoffrey?, Very Important Sheep, Den and Dart (*cameo*), Two Wheels Good, Thomas the Babysitter and The Other Side of the Mountain
* **Series 20** - The Way She Does it (*cameo*)
* **Series 21** - A Most Singular Engine (*cameo*), Hasty Hannah, Unscheduled Stops and The Big Freeze
* **Series 22** - Seeing is Believing (*stock footage cameo*)
* **Series 23** - Free the Roads

#### Specials

* **1992** - Thomas and the U.K. Trip (*cameo*)
* **2000** - Thomas and the Magic Railroad
* **2008** - The Great Discovery (*does not speak*)
* **2010** - Misty Island Rescue (*cameo*)
* **2015** - Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure
* **2016** - The Great Race (*cameo*)
* **2018** - Big World! Big Adventures!

#### Music Videos

* **Series 3** - Thomas' Anthem and I'm Thomas the Tank Engine
* **Series 4** - Thomas' Anthem Grand Finale, Let's Have a Race, Toby, Don't Judge a Book By its Cover, The Island Song, Really Useful Engine and Thomas' Christmas Song
* **Series 5** - Night Train, The Snow Song, Come for the Ride and Harold the Helicopter
* **Series 6** - James the Really Splendid Engine, Little Engines, Down by the Docks, Winter Wonderland and Never, Never, Never Give Up
* **Series 7** - The Red Balloon and The Whistle Song
* **Series 8** - Surprises
* **Series 9** - Pride and Every Day's a Special Day on Sodor
* **Jack and the Sodor Construction Company** - The Work Song and One Friendly Family
* **Series 10** - Favourite Place, H is for Harold, Navigation, Jingle Bells and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
* **The Great Discovery** - Where, oh Where is Thomas? and Thomas, You're the Leader
* **Series 17** - Hey, Hey Thomas! and On a Journey Today
* **Series 18** - The Best Friends Express
* **Thomas' YouTube World Tour** - A World Around You, Navigation, Thomas' Anthem and Rules and Regulations
* **Series 19** - Let's Go! and Race with You
* **Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure** - We Make a Team Together
* **The Great Race** - Streamlining (*cameo*) and You Can Only Be You (*fantasy*)
* **Series 21** - Set Friendship in Motion
* **Big World! Big Adventures!** - Where in the World is Thomas?

#### Learning Segments

* **Series 8** - Being Blue, The Children Wait for Gordon and Helping One Another
* **Series 9** - Same Colour, What's New at the Station (*poster cameo*), Percy in the Dark, Knowing What to do?, Arthur's Tricky Travels and Sir Topham Hatt's Helping Hand
* **Series 10** - Who Can Take Them? and Percy's Story (*cameo*)

### Magazine Stories

* **1985** - Bertie Saves the Day
* **1987** - Hello, Thomas! (*mentioned*)
* **1988** - A Late Start for Thomas, A Bump on the Line, Thomas and Bertie, The Runaway (*mentioned*) and Edward's Exploits (*mentioned*)
* **1989** - Diesel's Christmas (*does not speak*)
* **1990** - Thomas and the Umbrella (*mentioned*) and Trouble on the Track
* **1992** - All Aboard! (*cameo*)
* **1993** - Trevor to the Rescue! (*does not speak*), All Steamed Up! and Fetching Freight
* **1994** - The Hot Soup Special!
* **1995** - School-time Thomas! (*mentioned*)
* **1996** - Proud Mavis! (*does not speak*), Night Lights and The Thomas Kart! (*cameo*)
* **1997** - Annie and Clarabel (*cameo*) and Trevor's Christmas Surprise
* **1998** - The Beached Whale! (*does not speak*), The Carnival!, The Big Speech! (*does not speak*), Thomas and Bertie!, The Exhibition!, The Best Bus and Oliver (*cameo*)
* **1999** - Thomas is Rescued
* **2000** - Thomas Gets Delayed and Rude James (*cameo*)
* **2001** - Dents All Round!, A Special Story About Bulgy, A Special Story About BoCo (*cameo*), The Pop Show (*does not speak*) and Rolling Around! (*mentioned*)
* **2002** - Birthday Bus, Whistling! (*does not speak*), Road Wreckers and I Used to be Red
* **2003** - Playbus, Sunshine! (*does not speak*), Feeling Fine (*does not speak*), Harvey to the Rescue! Gordon's Surprise (*mentioned*), Bridges (*cameo*), Where's Wag? (*does not speak*), Frozen Engine, Air Share!, Sandblasted! (*cameo*), Making a Splash! and Bertie's Bumpy Ride!
* **2004** - Thank You, Thomas!, Bertie and the Race, Holiday Hat (*does not speak*) and Bertie's Bad Day
* **2005** - Bus, Stop! (*does not speak*), Badgers' Way, George's Little Joke, Trying Time (*does not speak*), Cat and Mouse, Stranded (*does not speak*), As Good as Gordon (*does not speak*) and The Big Bell
* **2006** - Heavy Load, Bulgy's Back, Stop and Shop, Percy's New Whistle and The Carol Concert (*cameo*)
* **2007** - The Best Smile (*does not speak*), The Telescope (*does not speak*) and In for Treatment
* **2009** - Spring Special (*cameo*) and Spring Time Special (*cameo*)
* **2010** - Misty Island Rescue (*cameo*), Ready, Steady, Go! and Thomas and the Rainbow! (*mentioned*)
* **2011** - Horrible Hiccups (*does not speak*), Party Time and Show Time (*does not speak*)
* **2012** - Bulgy's Back, Double Trouble (*does not speak*), A Special Shelter (*mentioned*), Where's That Bus?, Charlie and Eddie (*does not speak*) and Wonky Whistle (*does not speak*)
* **2013** - Spring Special, Horrible Hiccups (*does not speak*), Spring Special, A Friend in Need (*cameo*), Toby to the Rescue (*mentioned*) and Wayward Winston (*speaks in speech bubble only*)
* **2014** - Engine Trouble (*mentioned*), Thomas Takes a Shortcut and Whistle-Stop Tour (*does not speak*)
* **2017** - Engine Trouble (*mentioned*)

Bertie also appeared in the magazine stories, A Hole in One, Bertie's Bad Day, Bulgy's Dream, Clowning Around, Danger Signs!, Flag Day, Flying the Flag, Holiday Havoc!, Holidays, How Does Percy Work?, Lights On, On Inspection, Rhyming Engines, Road and Rails, Slow Down, Bertie!, Slow Tow, Special Bus Service, Squeaky Wheels, The Best Bridge, The Great Race and The Mystery Tour.

### Annual Stories

* **1985** - Thomas and the Important Visitor and Bertie Saves the Day
* **1986** - Funnel Trouble (*mentioned*) and Golden Oldies
* **1989** - The Trouble with Sheep (*mentioned*)
* **1990** - Thomas and the Cricketers (*mentioned*), Old Square Wheels (*mentioned*) and Points of No Return (*does not speak*)
* **1991** - Thomas and the Sunday School Outing (*mentioned*)
* **1992** - Bertie to the Rescue
* **1993** - James' Traffic Jam (*does not speak*) and Thomas and the Snow Block
* **1994** - Thomas and the Tickles (*mentioned*) and Bertie the Snow Bus
* **1995** - Easter Egg Special (*mentioned*)
* **1996** - All Pull Together (*does not speak*)
* **1998** - Engines to the Rescue (*does not speak*)
* **1999** - Blooming Railways (*does not speak*)
* **2001** - Very Special Engines (*mentioned*) and Best Friends
* **2002** - A Special Day for Thomas (*mentioned*) and Percy's Dream (*cameo*)

## Trivia

* In an original Wilbert Awdry drawing, Bertie is depicted as a double-decker bus.
* Bertie used to be one of twelve characters, as well as the only talking non-rail vehicle, to appear in every series of the television series until the twenty-second series in which he did not appear in any episode, possibly due to his model being updated for the twenty-third series.
* In the French dub, Bertie was known as *Bertrand* in the first seven series.
* From the first to the twelfth series of the television series, Bertie had a disgusted face mask that was never shown on-screen.[4]
* Bertie's happy face mask is now in possession of Twitter user ThomasTankMerch.

## Merchandise

* Wooden Railway (*two versions and battery-powered; all discontinued*)
* Wood (*redesigned in 2019*)
* Take Along (*discontinued*)
* Take-n-Play (*discontinued*)
* Motor Road and Rail (*discontinued; reintroduced in 2016*)
* TrackMaster (*discontinued*)
* Hornby (*two versions; both discontinued*)
* Bachmann
* Brio (*discontinued*)
* My First Thomas (*discontinued*)
* Royal Hampshire (*discontinued*)
* Capsule Plarail
* Puka-Q (*discontinued*)
* Limited Edition Collection
* Thomas Engine Collection Series (*discontinued*)
* Mini Die Cast Collection (*discontinued*)
* Thomas Town (*discontinued*)
* Capsule Collection
* Trading Cards (*discontinued*)
* Tomica
* De Agostini (*discontinued*)
* Mega Bloks (*discontinued*)
* Nakayoshi (*discontinued*)
* Capsule Plarail (*normal, clear and metallic*)
* Pocket Fantasy (*discontinued*)
* Boss (*discontinued*)
* Diablock
* My Thomas Story Library (*discontinued*)
* Push Along
* Micro Rubber Engines
* Bath Toys
* Choro-Q (*discontinued*)
* Switch-On Keychains
* Minis
	+ Classic Minis
	+ Slime Minis
	+ Camo Minis
	+ Neon Glow in the Dark Minis
	+ Sushi Minis
	+ X-ray Minis
* Pre-Cut Model Engine Books (*discontinued*)
* Big Buddy (*discontinued*)
* Adventures (*discontinued*)
* Diapet
* TrackMaster Push Along