Season 1

**Season 1** of Ready Steady Engine! will begin airing in January-June 2020.

## Production

Series ?? alongside Ready Steady Engine! (not counting Big World! Big Adventures!) marks the major reboot of the franchise. Both productions were the result of the market research Mattel conducted with audiences around the globe. It was about how Mattel could keep Thomas & Friends relevant in a competitive market, as well as reversing declining toy sales. The one suggestion Mattel was intrigued with came from a child declaring "Thomas is a train but he never really goes anywhere". This evolved into Thomas travelling around the globe and learning about different cultures.

The episodes retained their eleven minute-long runtime but were now broken into seven-minute-long stories, with an additional four minutes reserved for a variety of segments like sing-along karaoke songs, music videos or segments of Thomas talking directly with the audience about lessons learned during a particular episode. Additionally, all episodes have a fantasy sequence and six of the seventeen development goals Mattel chose from the United Nations are featured. Among many other changes, Edward, Henry and Duck were removed from the Steam Team to make room for Emily (even though she was a main character in Series 13-21 while Duck was absent in Series 13-16, then returned in Series 17 and has appeared ever since), Nia and Rebecca in order to move the gender ratio among the main cast to a 50/50 split between male and female characters, with an episode focused on addressing their removal. Toby was also quietly dropped from the Steam Team for the same reason, and the narrator was replaced with Thomas in a first-person perspective. Despite this, Mark Moraghan has said that he will still work on the series. In the twenty-second series episode, School of Duck, he voiced an old coach named Dexter who was converted into a school classroom. He also now portrays a character in live-action segments named Mr. Evans, replacing the late Ben Forster's role as Mr. Perkins a year after Forster died on 2nd January 2017 after following a battle with cancer.

Season 1 of Ready Steady Engine! is set after the Spin-Off Series, Big World! Big Adventures! The series is split into two halves: one half with Thomas travelling around the world, visiting China, India and Australia and one half taking place on the Island of Sodor.

## Episodes

1. Percy and the Lion
2. TBA
3. TBA
4. TBA
5. Paxton and the Creaking
6. TBA
7. Ghost Busters
8. Rebecca and the Bees
9. TBA
10. A Day At the Steelworks
11. TBA
12. TBA
13. TBA
14. TBA
15. TBA
16. TBA
17. Philip's Special Special
18. TBA
19. Thomas in the Outback
20. The Australia Football Game
21. Ace on the Rails
22. A Igloo for Thomas
23. Thomas in the Bamboo
24. The Chinese Dragon
25. Chaos in China
26. Yong Bao and the Tiger
27. Going to India
28. Ashima and Rajiv
29. Yoga Thomas
30. Monkey Mania

## Characters

* Thomas
* Gordon
* James
* Percy
* Emily
* Nia
* Rebecca
* Belle
* Ashima
* Rajiv
* Shane
* Yong Bao
* Fei-Long
* Hong-Mei
* Diesel
* Den
* Dart
* Sidney
* Paxton
* Norman
* Philip
* The Chinese Diesel
* Shankar
* Noor Jehan
* Sly and Maverick
* Flynn
* Tamika
* Annie and Clarabel
* Rocky
* The Chinese Breakdown Cranes
* An An and Yin-Long
* Aubrey and Aiden
* Harold
* Captain
* Ace
* Isla
* Cranky
* Sir Topham Hatt
* Emily Helen Hatt
* Charubala
* The Teacher
* The Lady with the Big Hat
* Doctor Claire
* Hurricane (*fantasy*)
* Frankie (*fantasy*)
* Flying Scotsman (*does not speak*)
* The Indian Breakdown Cranes (*does not speak*)
* Lei (*does not speak*)
* Rosie (*cameo*)
* The White Tank Engine (*cameo*)
* The Maroon Tank Engine (*cameo*)
* The Purple Tank Engine (*cameo*)
* The Brown Tank Engine (*cameo*)
* The Grey Tender Engine (*cameo*)
* The Brown Tender Engine (*cameo*)
* The Purple Tender Engine (*cameo*)
* A Brazilian Diesel Shunter (*cameo*)
* Winston (*cameo*)
* Butch (*cameo*)
* Carly (*cameo*)
* Big Mickey (*cameo*)
* The Grumpy Passenger (*cameo*)
* Owen (*mentioned*)

### Characters Introduced

* Coran
* Rajinda
* Da Li and Xiao-Hu
* Abiar
* The South Pole Helicopter
* The South Pole Tractor
* The South Pole Crane
* The Chinese Crane
* The Chinese Railway Controller
* The Australia Tender Engine (*cameo*)
* The Outback Tender Engine (*cameo*)
* The Red Tank Engine (*cameo*)
* The South Pole Steam Engine (cameo)
* The South Pole Diesel Engine (cameo)
* The Indian Diesel Engine (*cameo*)
* The South Pole Narrow Gauge Engine (*cameo*)
* The Red Vehicle (*cameo*)

## Trivia

* This series marks the first of several things:
	+ The first series to use the new intro, credits and Set Friendship in Motion as an intro song.
	+ Yong Bao's first speaking role in the main TV series (not counting the Spin-Off Series and the special, Big World! Big Adventures!).
	+ The first series since the twelfth series to introduce more than one engine.
	+ The first series to feature the newly updated Engine Roll Call.
	+ The first series since the fourteenth series dubbed in Swedish.
	+ The first series since the fifteenth series dubbed in Finnish.
	+ The first series since the eighteenth series dubbed in Danish.
	+ The first series since the nineteenth series dubbed in Norwegian. It is also the first series since the nineteenth to have 26 episodes since said series.
	+ The first series to feature Thomas as the narrator.
		- Because of this, this is also the first series since the sixteenth series to have a different narrator in both the UK and US dubs, as well as the first since said series to not feature Mark Moraghan as the narrator.
	+ The first series to feature the new Steam Team - Thomas, Gordon, James, Percy, Emily, Nia and Rebecca.
	+ The first series since the twelfth series to have seven-minute-long story segments.
	+ The first series since the ninteenth series where Maron station does not appear.
	+ Flying Scotsman's first appearance in an episode since the third series and his first full appearance and speaking role in an episode.
	+ Sly and Maverick's first appearances in an episode.
	+ Ashima, Rajiv, Shane, The Chinese Diesel, Shankar and Charubala's first appearances in an episode of the main series.
	+ Rajiv, Shane, Shankar and Charubala's first speaking roles in the main series.
	+ The first series to feature Learn with Thomas segments at the end of every episode.
	+ The first series to have episodes written by Michael White, Tim Bain, Camille Ucan and Rose Johnson. It is also the first series to have episodes written by Becky Overton since the nineteenth series.
	+ The first series not to receive any DVD releases in the United States.
	+ The first series to use a fantasy sequence in every episode.
	+ The first series in which Edward, Henry, Toby, Hiro, Scruff, Stephen, Connor, Caitlin, Samson, Glynn, Ryan, Theo, Lexi, Merlin, Mavis, Hugo, Stafford, Marion, Skiff, Victor, Millie, Bert, Rex, Mike, Henrietta, Judy, Jerome, Bradford, Hannah, Dexter, Bertie, Kevin, Brenda, Darcy, Fergus Duncan, The Thin Clergyman, The Fat Clergyman, Willie and Captain Joe since their introductions.
	+ The first series in which Duck, Donald, Douglas, Oliver, Whiff, Daisy, Toad, Terence, Bulgy, Jack, Alfie, Oliver, Max, Monty, Farmer Finney, Cyril the Fogman, Jenny Packard and Lord Callan do not appear since their returns in Misty Island Rescue, King of the Railway, seventeenth series, Tale of the Brave, eighteenth series, nineteenth series, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure, twenty-first series, twenty-second series and the twenty-third series.
	+ The first series since the CGI switchover not to feature Spencer.
	+ The first series where Arlesburgh Harbour, Ffarquhar, Hackenbeck Tunnel, Terence's Field, Dryaw, Dryaw FC and Kellsthorpe Road do not appear since their returns in the seventeenth series, The Adventure Begins, the nineteenth series, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure and the previous series.
	+ The first series where Sodor Steamworks, Victor's Shed Ulfstead Mine, Harwick, Arlesburgh West, Arlesburgh West Shed, Arlesburgh Goods Yard and Arlesburgh Yard Shed do not appear since their introductions in Hero of the Rails, King of the Railway, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure and the twentieth series.
	+ The first series since they joined in Hero of the Rails, King of the Railway, Tale of the Brave, the eighteenth series, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure and the twentieth series not to feature Joe Mills, Jonathan Forbes, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Olivia Colman, Jamie Campbell Bower, David Bedella, Miranda Raison, Tom Stourton, Tim Whitnall and Maggie Ollerenshaw as part of the Voice Cast.
	+ This is also the first series since the thirteenth series not to have a Christmas episode and to have only one winter episode.
	+ The first series since he became the narrator in King of the Railway not to feature Mark Moraghan in any way.
* This is the only series for a few things:
	+ The only series to date in which Flying Scotsman and Carly appear, but do not speak since their introductions.
	+ The only series to date in which Porter and Sir Robert Norramby do not appear since their debuts. However, TBA appear in Music Videos.
	+ The only series to date in which Salty does not appear since his return in Misty Island Rescue.
	+ The only series to date since they joined the voice cast in King of the Railway not to have David Menkin and Mike Grady as part of the cast. It is also the only series to date since they joined the voice cast in the twenty-first series and Journey Beyond Sodor not to have Nicola Stapleton and Lucy Montgomery as part of the cast.
	+ The only series where the beginning of the ending sequence does not have any music.
	+ The only series where the director's credit is shown after the episode title and writer's credit. In the next series, all three would be shown together.
	+ The only series to date in which since gaining a face where Big Mickey appears, but does not speak.
	+ The only series since gaining a new livery where Rosie appears, but does not speak.
* This is the final series of a couple of things:
	+ The last series to have.
	+ The last series to have.
	+ The last series to have.
	+ The last series to have.
	+ The last series.
	+ The last series.
* Two days before the YouTube broadcast on Wednesday 1st January 2020, Percy and the Lion, A Day At the Steelworks, A Igloo for Thomas, Yong Bao and the Tiger and Untitled Christmas Special were first shown at Vimeo.
* Nikhil Parmar, Siu-see Hung, Windson Liong, Sheena Bhattessa, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Rose Robinson, Genevieve McCarthy, Tim Bain, Tariro Mavondo, Shane Jacobson and Jass Patel return to the voice cast.
* This series introduced a new sequence used at least once in almost every episode, featuring an engine backing up to the selected rolling stock and a close-up of their couplings being hooked, followed by a close-up of their whistle being blown (horns for diesels and a bell if they have one) before the start of the main plot.
* David Stoten wrote the most episodes in the total of nine episodes written, whilst Becky Overton and Michael White wrote only two episodes, making both write only two episodes each this series.
* The mist surrounding the frame in the fantasy sequences is very similar to classic cartoon thought bubbles. Depending on who is having the fantasy, it is white for steam engines (and rolling stock) and black for diesels.
* Emily is the only current Steam Team member to not get a starring role in this series.
* Apart from Thomas reading the titles aloud and talking directly to the audience before and after the stories, Thomas in the Outback, Thomas in the Bamboo, Going to India and Monkey Mania are the only episodes this series to not feature narration.
* Many episodes from this series have been released in audio format on Amazon's US website and on Spotify. An unknown narrator explains what is happening during some scenes of each episode. The only episodes that have yet to have audio versions released are Paxton and the Creaking, Rebecca and the Bees, Philip's Special Special, The Australian Football Game, The Chinese Dragon and Yoga Thomas.