{"id":207258,"date":"2025-01-03T19:29:07","date_gmt":"2025-01-03T19:29:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/03\/britt-allcroft-who-brought-thomas-the-tank-engine-to-tv-dies-at-81\/"},"modified":"2025-01-03T19:29:08","modified_gmt":"2025-01-03T19:29:08","slug":"britt-allcroft-who-brought-thomas-the-tank-engine-to-tv-dies-at-81","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/03\/britt-allcroft-who-brought-thomas-the-tank-engine-to-tv-dies-at-81\/","title":{"rendered":"Britt Allcroft, Who Brought Thomas the Tank Engine to TV, Dies at 81"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align:center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2025\/01\/03\/multimedia\/03xp-allcroft-xckj\/03xp-allcroft-xckj-facebookJumbo.jpg?ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Britt Allcroft, Who Brought Thomas the Tank Engine to TV, Dies at 81\" title=\"Britt Allcroft, Who Brought Thomas the Tank Engine to TV, Dies at 81\" \/><\/div><p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Britt Allcroft, a British producer, director and writer who adapted the antics of a cheerful, impetuous locomotive into a TV series, \u201cThomas &amp; Friends,\u201d that became a sprawling franchise and a longtime favorite of children and adults, died on Dec. 25 in Los Angeles. She was 81.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Her death was confirmed by her daughter Holly Wright.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Allcroft was the driving force behind bringing Thomas the Tank Engine, an animated locomotive first conceived in a series of children\u2019s books in the 1940s by <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1997\/03\/23\/nyregion\/w-awdry-85-children-s-book-author-dies.html\" title=\"\">Rev. Wilbert Awdry<\/a>, to television screens. The series spawned a movie, merchandise and even theme parks, ballooning into a billion-dollar franchise.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Her original adaptation was a live-action production with a small budget that premiered in 1984 on the British channel ITV as \u201cThomas the Tank Engine &amp; Friends,\u201d later shortened to \u201cThomas &amp; Friends.\u201d Audiences were quickly drawn to the show\u2019s life lessons packaged with catchy music, lush landscapes and an entertaining ensemble cast of humanlike locomotives. It became a runaway success that aired for more than three decades.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cChildren live these days in a fast-paced world, but I don\u2019t think children really change,\u201d Ms. Allcroft said in a 1995 BBC documentary. \u201cThey need in their lives gentleness, comfort. They need fun, and they need stories that, whilst being entertaining for them, also help them interpret the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Allcroft first encountered the series while researching a documentary on railroads. Earlier attempts to adapt the books to TV had faltered, but she pushed for the rights, envisioning a series with a narrator who hewed closely to the original books.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Her conviction led her to finance much of it herself, even mortgaging her house, she said in an <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-szJNV5Qw34&amp;ab_channel=SuperNificentWeezy123\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">1995 interview<\/a> with Australia\u2019s \u201c60 Minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">As for the narrator, Ms. Allcroft had been searching for the right voice when she heard it on television: \u201cI walked into the room and Ringo Starr was being interviewed on a chat show,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The former member of the Beatles became the first in a long line of stars to narrate the franchise, among them Michael Angelis, George Carlin, Alec Baldwin and Pierce Brosnan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThis was a woman pioneering the TV industry in the early 80s, and it was mostly male dominated,\u201d said Brannon Carty, the director of \u201cAn Unlikely Fandom,\u201d a 2023 documentary on the series\u2019 enduring appeal. \u201cShe had all these things going against her which would make the average person give up,\u201d he said. \u201cDespite all that, she took the lead.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-2\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The series found its way to American children in 1989, when Ms. Allcroft brought it to PBS in the form of <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1988\/08\/14\/arts\/television-all-aboard-for-a-magical-mystery-ride.html\" title=\"\">a spinoff series<\/a>, \u201cShining Time Station,\u201d that included clips from the British version of the show.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cShe was a very good businesswoman,\u201d said Rick Siggelkow, a television producer who collaborated with Ms. Allcroft. \u201cShe had a vision, and she had this intuitive understanding of children. She would just forge ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">There was skepticism from some executives at first that the show would be a success, Mr. Siggelkow said, but Ms. Allcroft believed that children would be drawn to a slower-paced tale that had the intimacy of a bedtime story.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThere was a gentleness to Thomas that was really very different from everything else that was on the air,\u201d he said in an interview. <\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cShining Time Station\u201d became a hit with American children, winning PBS some 1.2 million viewers \u2014 rivaling that of \u201cMr. Rogers\u2019 Neighborhood,\u201d <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1991\/12\/12\/garden\/on-pbs-the-little-engines-that-could.html\" title=\"\">according<\/a> to an article in The New York Times in 1991. The series was also aired internationally, seeding a global commercial demand for merchandise, from toys and train sets to posters and puzzles.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThomas &amp; Friends\u201d is now one of the world\u2019s <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2012\/12\/31\/business\/media\/mattel-to-give-thomas-the-tank-engine-a-multimillion-dollar-sheen.html\" title=\"\">largest toy<\/a> and television franchises for preschoolers, with analysts <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/03\/26\/business\/media\/thomas-the-tank-engines-expanding-world.html\" title=\"\">estimating<\/a> annual global retail sales of more than $1 billion in 2016. Mattel bought Hit Entertainment, the British owner of Thomas, in 2012 as part of a $680 million deal.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-3\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">After some criticism that the show\u2019s characters lacked diversity, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/03\/26\/business\/media\/thomas-the-tank-engines-expanding-world.html\" title=\"\">recent adaptations o<\/a>f the Thomas world, both onscreen and in merchandise, have added locomotives from Brazil, China, India and Mexico.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The franchise made it to the big screen with the 2000 film \u201cThomas and the Magic Railroad,\u201d and a separate, animated version of the series, \u201cThomas and Friends: All Engines Go,\u201d which aired on the Cartoon Network in 2021. A second film is in the works, according to Mattel.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-4\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Britt Allcroft was born Dec. 14, 1943, in West Sussex, England before moving to London. <\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">When she was 16, she developed an interest in local theater and the work that went on behind-the-scenes. Ms. Allcroft joined the B.B.C. when she was 19, presenting on shows that included \u201cBlue Peter,\u201d on which she later moved to the production team.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In the early 1970s, she transitioned to Southern Television and later formed her own production company, Britt Allcroft Productions, under which she created television and stage shows while also working at local television stations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-5\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">At the end of the decade, she was hired to make a short documentary on British steam trains, and recalled the books from her youth.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">She was married to Angus Wright, a television producer who worked closely with her on developing \u201cThomas &amp; Friends\u201d for the screen. They divorced in 1997.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In addition to her daughter, her survivors include a son and grandchildren.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The show\u2019s longevity, enduring through generations, has made it a nostalgic favorite for adults, as well. In recent years, online communities have cropped up to celebrate the show and even create their own model versions of beloved episodes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">When Ms. Allcroft attended a screening of the 2023 documentary, \u201cpeople were cheering and screaming\u201d for her, said Mr. Carty, the director. \u201cIt was like the Super Bowl in there when she walked out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ultimately, Ms. Allcroft said in the documentary, she wanted her world to be an escape.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cI wanted to make it so that any little child watching could feel that that\u2019s where they could go,\u201d she said. \u201cThat they weren\u2019t alone, and they were comforted and that they were inspired.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-798hid etfikam0\">Emmett Lindner<!-- --> contributed reporting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/01\/03\/arts\/britt-allcroft-thomas-tank-engine-dead.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Britt Allcroft, a British producer, director and writer who adapted the antics of a cheerful, impetuous locomotive into a TV series, \u201cThomas &amp; Friends,\u201d that became a sprawling franchise and a longtime favorite of children and adults, died on Dec. 25 in Los Angeles. She was 81. Her death was confirmed by her daughter Holly [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":207259,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2025\/01\/03\/multimedia\/03xp-allcroft-xckj\/03xp-allcroft-xckj-facebookJumbo.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[163464,163463,163461,14292,163460,16,5756,113,23481,19033,163462],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207258"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=207258"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207258\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":207260,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207258\/revisions\/207260"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/207259"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=207258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=207258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=207258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}