Thomas and Friends Duke

In Thomas and Friends, Duke, who is named after the Duke of Sodor. Is a narrow gauge engine that formerly operated on the Mid Sodor Railway.

Personality

In Thomas and Friends, Duke is a wise engine that is authoritative towards younger engines. With a signature catchphrase of "That would never suit His Grace!" (referring to the Duke of Sodor) when something occurs that he takes exception to.

Biography

Duke worked on the Mid Sodor Railway before Peter Sam and Sir Handel (Stuart and Falcon at the time) were brought to work there. Not much is said about his time there but he did have multiple encounters with Smudger, a green narrow gauge engine that was rude and reckless. He also had a friendship with Bertram. Once Stuart and Falcon were brought onto the Mid Sodor Railway he took a headmaster's role towards them, teaching them about the things he had learned and telling them the stories he had to tell. Not long after the Mid Sodor Railway went bankrupt, leading to Stuart and Falcon being sold. Duke was also for sale but no one wanted him as he was seen as too old. Duke was neatly tarped in his old shed and forgotten, forgotten until a search expedition took place to find him. He was found by a rescuer who fell into his shed by accident. Once found he was taken to the Skarloey Railway where we works to this day.

Basis

In Thomas and Friends, Duke is based on a real-life engine named Prince. Prince is located in North Wales on the Ffestiniog Railway.

Duke's basis in service.

Livery

In Thomas and Friends, Duke is a light brown with a yellow lining.

Light Brown
Hex Color: #cc6227
RGB: (204,98,39)

Yellow
Hex Color: #fcd430
RGB: (252,212,48)

Voice & Whistles/Horns

(S4 Michael Angelis) Duke's UK Voice

(S4 George Carlin) Duke's US Voice

Model & TVS Background

In Thomas and Friends, Duke's model was made to run on O gauge track by Peter Eves. Notably, Duke's side rods and wheels were sourced from the UK-based modeling company "Slater's Plastikard". They would go on to provide a lot of the wheels and side rods for other narrow gauge engines. Like the other narrow gauge engines, they were infamously hard to work with. They were a lot smaller than the usual models, so the smoke mechanism couldn't fit inside and the batteries for his R/C eyes couldn't fit either. To solve these issues, the smoke came from under the set to give the illusion that it was coming from the model, and the battery pack required for his R/C eyes was hidden off-camera, usually using his tender to block it from view. There was also a large-scale model for close-up shots that lacked a lot of detail.

Duke debuted in the season 4 episode "Granpuff", he would have a few more spotlight episodes in "Bulldog", "You Can't Win" and "Sleeping Beuaty" but, aside from that Duke almost never spoke and was used sparingly. He would not have another non-cameo appearance after season 4, the latest on Duke having another speaking role was the concept for the season 15 episode "Kevin the Steamie", however, it never came together. Part of the reason why Duke didn't have another speaking role after season 4 is that he never had a gauge 1 model created like the other narrow gauge engines after season 4.

Toys & Merchandise

Thomas Wooden Railway Duke: This version of Duke came out in 1997 and discontinued in 2003, there was a later re release that came out in 2009 and was in production until 2012.
Brio Duke: This version of Duke came out in 1998 and discontinued a few years later in 2000.
HiT Toy Trackmaster Duke: This version of Duke came out in 2009 and discontinued shortly after in 2009.
Mattel Trackmaster Duke: This version of Duke came out in 2009 and discontinued shortly in 2012.
Take Along Duke: This version of Duke came out in 2009 and discontinued shortly in 2009.
Take n Play Duke: This version of Duke came out in 2010 and discontinued in 2011.
BANDAI TECs Duke: This version of Duke came out in 1995 and discontinued in 2005.
BANDAI Departing Now Duke: This version of Duke came out in 1995 and discontinued very shortly after.
Plarail Capsule Duke: This version of Ned came out in 2005, there is a sparkle variation of this release.