Gordon the Express Engine

Gordon is a big blue express engine who works on the Main Line. He is Flying Scotsman's only surviving brother. In Sudrian Chronicles, Sam Brunt Voices the Big Blue Tender Engine.

### Origins

Gordon (the Big Engine) is bragging about pulling the express, but when Edward is shunting Gordon comes past with a long goods train. Gordon deliberately stalls at a hill and Edward comes as a "banker". At the top of the hill, Gordon races ahead, and Edward gets puffed out but is pleased with the prospect of a new coat of paint.

After Henry is shut up in the tunnel,Gordon is pulling the Express when he bursts his safety valve outside Henry's Tunnel. Edward tries to pull the train, but cannot. The Fat Director lets Henry out of the tunnel so that he and Edward can pull the train. They later help Gordon home, and Henry is rewarded with a new blue coat.

Thomas is a little blue tank engine who acts as the station pilot and takes pleasure in surprising Gordon. Gordon, furious, wonders how to pay Thomas out. Next day, Thomas is late and forgets to get uncoupled after shunting Gordon's coaches. Gordon takes Thomas on a wild high-speed journey across Sodor. Thomas later resolves to never tease Gordon again.

Gordon brags that he knows the right line by "instinct", but is proven wrong when he is switched off the Main Line onto the loop. The Fat Controller asks James to take the Express and after a successful run and the promise of being allowed to take the Express, James returns to see Gordon shunting. The two become friends and Gordon refrains from teasing James about the bootlace incident.

### Sudrian Chronicles

Gordon doesn't do much in the film, but he is one of the Main Characters. When they are electing a new controller, Gordon asks if its him, and is upset when it's actually Thomas. He is also one of the engines who break the fat controller out of prison and helps defeat Billy Smith.

Sudrain Chronicles: 2

Gordon is disappointed again when he finds out that Mr Conductor is going to be in charge of the Railway while The Fat Controller is on his business trip and he thinks that it’s silly that an American man (Mr Conductor) running a British railway.

### Gordon's Basis

According to The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways, Gordon is the experimental prototype for Sir Nigel Gresley's A1 Pacific design for the Great Northern Railway. Gordon was built at Doncaster Works in Yorkshire. Once the first batch of A1 Pacifics appeared in 1922 Gordon would have more than likely have been reclassified A0 indicating he is slightly different to the rest of the class.

### Trivia

* Gordon was named after a rude boy who lived on the Awdrys' street when Christopher was a child.
* According to the Rev. W. Awdry in the book The Thomas the Tank Engine Man, the reason why Gordon has square buffers is because not long after he got his new safety valve following the events of The Three Railway Engines, he was showing it off and not paying attention to his surroundings. He crashed into the end of the "Big Station" at Tidmouth, damaging his buffers and had to go to the Works to have them replaced. The only buffers available were long, square ones, which Gordon despised at first, but soon got used to them and became proud of being the only engine on the railway with square buffers. Then Henry had a similar incident to Gordon and got square buffers himself (explaining the illustration error in "Thomas and the Guard"), now the subject of buffers offends Gordon greatly when mentioned to him.