Thomas & Friends: The Royal Engine includes special on-camera introduction from Harry, The Duke of Sussex to mark 75th anniversary.
A new royal special is helping to mark the 75th anniversary of the Thomas & Friends preschool brand.
Thomas & Friends: The Royal Engine features a special on-camera introduction from Harry, the Duke of Sussex.
The animated special sees Her Majesty the Queen and HRH The Prince of Wales as a child and has been produced as part of the brand’s 75th anniversary celebrations this year.
The Royal Engine will see Thomas the Tank Engine travel to London for the first time and introduces a new character, Duchess of Loughborough, who is voiced by actress Rosamund Pike.
Sir Topham Hatt has been invited to London by Her Majesty The Queen to receive an award for distinguished service to the railway, and her son, a young Prince Charles, has asked that Thomas be the engine to bring him to the Mainland. As this is Thomas’ first time visiting London, he gets lost along the way and finds himself in all sorts of messy predicaments.
“Since the beginning, Thomas & Friends has celebrated friendship and teamwork through storytelling which has cultivated fan love across generations,” said Chuck Scothon, svp and gm of infant and preschool at Mattel. “In this milestone 75th year, we are releasing more storytelling content than ever before to engage the next generation of fans.
“While families are spending more time at home, we are able to offer new content to enjoy together across videos, books, apps and through music and podcasts and are thrilled Harry, The Duke of Sussex is introducing this special.”
The on-camera introduction made by The Duke of Sussex was recorded in January earlier this year with a donation made to charity.
Global plans for the Thomas & Friends 75th anniversary include more storytelling touchpoints than ever before with new specials and episodes, exclusive YouTube content, a birthday music album, podcasts for kids in the form of audio stories and all-new book titles along with new partnerships where Thomas & Friends will show up in unexpected places.
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