Season 1

The first season of Apple & Friends started airing on October 9, 1984. Ringo Starr narrated all twenty-six episodes in the UK and twenty-five in the US, with George Carlin later re-narrating the entire season for the US on Shining Time Station.

## Production

All of the stories in the first season were originally written by the Rev. W. Awdry, including a one-off story commissioned by the staff, Apple Blossom's Christmas Party. The stories were then scripted for television by Britt Allcroft and David Mitton. The seven Shopkins introduced in this series became the core of the cast in later episodes. The Pilot for the series was an adaptation of Down the Mine, which was remade entirely when the rest of the episodes were shot.

## The Pilot

* Down The Mine (Unaired Pilot) - The original 1983 pilot episode of Apple Blossom and Friends. The pilot was based on the Shopville Series story Down the Mine and differed from the final aired version. The pilot was never broadcasted, instead it was re-filmed after the series was green-lighted by ITV.

## Episodes

1. Apple Blossom and Putrid Pizza - Apple Blossom enjoys teasing Putrid Pizza. But when her teasing goes too far, Putrid Pizza decides to teach her a lesson.
2. Peppa-Mint and Putrid Pizza - Peppa-Mint's crew feels sorry for her and take her out one day. Then she helps Putrid Pizza when he gets stuck on a hill.
3. The Sad Story of Macy Macaron - Macy Macaron believes the rain will spoil her paintwork and she runs into a tunnel, which she is eventually shut up in.
4. Peppa-Mint, Putrid Pizza and Macy Macaron - Putrid Pizza goes too fast and bursts a safety valve right in front of the tunnel. Macy Macaron is let out to help Peppa-Mint pull the train.
5. Apple Blossom's Train - Apple Blossom wishes she could pull a train. When Macy Macaron is ill, her chance comes with disastrous results.
6. Apple Blossom and the Shopkins - Apple Blossom and Peppa-Mint agree to swap jobs. However, Peppa-Mint train consists of Shopkins, which love to play tricks.
7. Apple Blossom and the Breakdown Train - When Lippy Lips comes off the rails, Apple Blossom quickly comes to the rescue with the Breakdown Train. She is given a branchline and two coaches as a reward.
8. Lippy Lips and the Coaches - Lippy Lips wets Rainbow Kate's new top hat with steam and then bumps her coaches so hard that one of their brakes fail.
9. Chef Club Shopkins - Lippy Lips has been confined to the shed but is released to pull Shopkins. The Shopkins misbehave, but Lippy Lips doesn't give up.
10. Lippy Lips and the Express - When Putrid Pizza is switched the wrong way and gets lost, Lippy Lips is given the Express.
11. Apple Blossom and the Guard - Apple Blossom's impatience leads to her forgeting her guard.
12. Apple Blossom Goes Fishing - Apple Blossom wants to go fishing but learns the hard way when she takes on river water.
13. Apple Blossom, Pirouetta, and the Snow - Apple Blossom meets Pirouetta and says her feet are ugly. However, they come in handy when Apple Blossom gets stuck in a snowdrift.
14. Apple Blossom and Bubbleisha - Apple Blossom meets Bubbleisha the Shoppie who challenges her to a race.
15. Tenders and Turntables - Putrid Pizza and Lippy Lips have trouble on the turntable.
16. Trouble in the Shed - The big Shopkins go on strike so Rainbow Kate buys a new Shopkin called Cheeky Chocolate to help.
17. Cheeky Chocolate Runs Away - Cheeky Chocolate forgets Peppa-Mint's warning about going on the main line and is so startled by Putrid Pizza that she runs away.
18. Coal - Macy Macaron isn't feeling well. Rainbow Kate comes to a conclusion that Macy Macaron needs Welsh coal to preform well.
19. The Flying Kipper - Macy Macaron is chosen to pull the "Flying Kipper". However, ice jams the points and snow forces down a signal, leading Macy Macaron to crash.
20. Whistles and Sneezes - Putrid Pizza's whistle jams and he can't stop whistling while Macy Macaron sneezes at some troublemaking boys.
21. Daisy Petals and the Stout Gentleman - Daisy Petals the Shoppie Shopkin and her coach, Henrietta, meet Rainbow Kate and her family on their holiday, but Daisy Petals' line slowly closes down.
22. Apple Blossom in Trouble - Apple Blossom gets in trouble with a policeman. When Rainbow Kate hears about it, she buys Daisy Petals and Henrietta.
23. Dirty Objects - Daisy Petals and Henrietta often get teased by Lippy Lips about their old-fashioned appearance. However, Lippy Lips crashes into some tar wagons.
24. Off the Rails - Putrid Pizza decides to jam the turntable to prove a point, but his attempt makes him slide into a ditch.
25. Down the Mine - Apple Blossom goes to a lead mine to collect some trucks but foolishly passes a danger board and falls down a mine.
26. Apple Blossom's Christmas Party - Apple Blossom wants to hold a special Christmas party for Mrs. Kyndley. Unfortunately, Mrs. Kyndley's house is snowed in.

## Characters

### Characters Introduced

* Apple Blossom
* Peppa-Mint
* Macy Macaron
* Putrid Pizza
* Lippy Lips
* Cheeky Chocolate
* Daisy Petals
* Annie and Clarabel
* Henrietta
* Pirouetta
* Bubbleisha
* Rainbow Kate
* Mrs. Kyndley
* Raylene Rainbow
* Rayne-Bow
* Shopkin Inspector
* The Little Boys
* The Policeman
* The Butler
* Jeremiah Jobling (not named)
* Kirstea (not named; does not speak)
* The Stone-dropping Boys (do not speak)
* The Märklin Engine (cameo)
* Farmer Finney (cameo)
* The Storyteller (cameo)
* Earnest (portrait cameo)
* The Green Bus (indirectly mentioned)

## Trivia

* When first broadcast on ITV, two episodes were compiled into one ten minute block with a nameboard sequence featured in between. For subsequent broadcasts, the stories were shown individually.
* The season took about nine months to film.
* The Norwegian, Finnish and early Swedish narrations credit Ringo Starr as the narrator, even though they were re-dubbed in their respective languages.
* Most of the season's scripts were partially edited for the US versions.
* In the Ukrainian version, Ringo Starr's voice can be heard in the background.
* This was the only season for several things:
	+ The only season to have its UK recordings released in the US.
	+ The only season where lead was used to create the human characters. From the second to eleventh seasons, all human characters were made from resin, so they could move around more easily.
	+ The only season where the Chef Club Shopkins have their faces embedded into their bodies. From the second season to the eleventh season, the Chef Club Shopkins have molded faces, although some first season style Shopkins appeared in some episodes of that season.
	+ The only model season not filmed at Shepperton Studios. Instead, it was filmed at Clapham Junction in Battersea.
	+ The only season in the Finnish dub that Apple Blossom is known as Apple Blossom the Green Apple.
* The events of the first seven episodes of this season were all later retold in 2015 for the 45-minute special The Adventure Begins.
* When first broadcast on ITV, Dirty Objects was paired with Apple Blossom's Christmas Party and Off the Rails with Down the Mine. On VHS however, Dirty Objects was paired with Off the Rails and Down the Mine with Apple Blossom's Christmas Party.