The Engine Driver Segments are a series of interactive segments included in various Thomas and Friends DVDs in the US and UK between 2009 through 2013. They take place in the Engine Drivers Common Room (originally known as Locker Room) in Knapford and hosted by one of the engine drivers. Mr. Arkwright hosted them, then preceeded by Mr. Perkins.
Locker Room Segments (2009)
Mr. Arkwright's Special Job
Sir Topham asks Mr. Arkwright to build an engine made out of cardboard boxes for Stephen and Bridget Hatt's birthday.
It appears on the Team Up With Thomas DVD.
Mr. Arkwright Gets Ready
Mr. Arkwright is to deliver wood with Thomas all over Sodor, but first, he must prepare by making a packed lunch, putting on his uniform, and checking a map.
It appears on the Percy and the Bandstand DVD.
Common Room Segments (2010-2013)
Mr. Perkins' Talent
Mr. Perkins is assigned to make a birthday cake for Sir Topham Hatt and makes one that looks just like Thomas.
It appears on the Splish, Splash, Splosh! DVD.
Mr. Perkins and the Parrot
He takes care of Dowager Hatt's parrot Beaky and finds him to be more trouble than expected.
It appears on the Thomas and the Runaway Kite and Animals Aboard! DVDs.
Mr. Perkins' Party
He is busy preparing Mr. Arkwright's surprise birthday party.
It appears on the Creaky Cranky DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Winter Holiday
He busily prepares for a Christmas party, but is interrupted by carollers and wraps up the wrong "gifts". In the end, Mr. Perkins stands in for Mr. Arkwright, as Edward is broken down, by dressing up as Father Christmas.
It appears on the Merry Winter Wish DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Railway Lesson
He sets up a model railway and explains how railways work.
It appears on the Lion of Sodor DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Seaside
He attempts to get to the beach on his day off, but is delayed as Henry is late with his delivery. In the end, Mr. Perkins decides that if he cannot get to the beach, the beach will come to him. So he opens Henry's delivery, sacks of sand, and sets up the picnic he had prepared earlier.
It appears on the Wobbly Wheels and Whistles DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Fancy Costume
Mr Perkins has to get dressed for a costume party. But every time he gets a costume put together, the phone rings and one of his friends would say they are going as what he is dressed as. In the end, he uses parts of all of the costumes to dress as the Fat Controller.
It appears on the Pop Goes Thomas DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Sodor's Got Talent
Mr. Perkins gets ready for a talent show, but after practising different acts, there is always some sort of dilemma keeping him from performing that act. When the time comes, he tells Sir Topham Hatt that he is not very talented, but Sir Topham Hatt tells him that he is a very useful engine driver.
It appears on The Birthday Express DVD.
Mr. Perkins' One Man Band
Mr. Perkins, Mr. Arkwright, and Mr. Roberts are going to play a band song at Knapford. But due to some confusion and delay around the line, Mr. Arkwright and Mr. Roberts are going to be late. This upsets Perkins, then he thought that he can play all the instruments at the same time. Soon he tied the cymbals on his legs, strapped the drum on the back, and played the accordion.
It appears on the Thomas in Charge! DVD.
Mr. Perkins is Snowed In
Mr. Perkins has just arrived out of the snow and tries to get warm, but no coal is left in his stove. He attempts to ring the coaling plant, but the thick snow has blocked engines from going anywhere. He attempts to get warm by running in place, but it does not work until Thomas, who is also stranded at Knapford, kindly gives Perkins some coal. That soon has him warmed up again.
It appears on the Merry Christmas, Thomas! DVD.
The Great Perkino
Mr. Perkins is arranging a show for the magician, the Great Perfino, by straightening out the common room for everyone to fit in. After he arranges the seats and sets up the curtains, he receives a call from the Fat Controller, explaining that the Great Perfino is unable to make it so Perkins is to take his place. Soon all of the drivers and the Fat Controller are seated and Perkins, nervous but determined, presents the show and gets a round of applause.
It appears on the Rescue On the Rails DVD.
Mr. Perkins Tidies Up
Perkins has just returned from working at Whiff's Waste Dump with Percy and finds the common room a mess. Sir Topham Hatt rings up and tells him he is coming to inspect the common room. Perkins hurries with the washing, but ends up breaking dishes until he decides to slow down. He then decides to recycle some old papers and hurries next door to borrow a sack, but the wind blows everything all over the place. When he is finished, the common room is nearly clean until he finds a dirty floor. Again he attempts to hurry, but mops himself into a corner. Perkins then gets himself out of it as the Fat Controller rings up, telling him his inspection is cancelled.
It appears on the Curious Cargo DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Vegetable Show
It is the day of the Sodor Fruit and Vegetable Show and Perkins plans on entering his prize carrots. But before he can go, he has to wait for the other entries. Whist waiting, he attempts playing music to his carrots to help them grow and shows how to grow fruits and vegetables. The entries soon arrive, including Mr. Arkwright's prize cabbage and Dowager Hatt's peppers. Perkins soon becomes concerned that his carrots will not be big enough and decides to check on it. Disappointed, he pulls up three that are very tiny, but he is amazed to find a rather large carrot in his pot. The carrot is so large, it wins the trophy at the Sodor Fruit and Vegetable Show.
It appears on the Up, Up and Away! DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Painting
Perkins decides that the common room needs brightening up. He first decides on balloons, but there are none. He then thinks to paint the walls, but there is not enough paint. He then decides to paint a picture of a bowl of tomatoes. On his first attempt, he accidentally knocks over the picture when Sir Topham Hatt phones to tell him that a crate will be delivered to the common room. Fortunately, he has another canvas and starts again. But when the crate arrives, he does not look where he is going and knocks over his second picture. He has one final go, but just as he is about to finish it, he trips over the crate and splatters his final picture. But he then has the idea to turn all three pictures into a large canvas painting of James. Perkins thinks it has made the common room very bright.
It features on Schoolhouse Delivery.
Mr. Perkins' Sleepover
Mr. Perkins is about to go home when he receives a phone call from Sir Topham Hatt, who tells him that the engine inspector will be coming with Gordon tomorrow for a tour of the Island and that Perkins will have to wake up early in the morning. Perkins decides to stay in the common room for the evening, but has trouble getting to sleep. First an owl keeps him awake, so he reads a book called "The Little Engine's Big Day", but gets excited rather than sleepy. He then tries listening to music, counting sheep, then engines, then pictures, but still nothing works. It is not until Edward chuffs through with a late night special that Perkins drifts off to sleep.
It features on A Very Thomas Christmas.
Mr. Perkins' Treasure Hunt
It is the day of the children's treasure hunt and Perkins is preparing for the event. He discovers that the specially made gold coins of Thomas, James, and Gordon have gone missing, not knowing that Sir Topham Hatt had hidden them as a practice challenge. Perkins searches for the first clue, ending with a word rhyming with "spot". He thinks of "pot" and soon finds Gordon's coin under the teapot. The second clue is to find something that rhymes with "hoot". Perkins at first thinks of "boot", but they are not there. He then thinks up "fruit" and finds James' coin hiding in the bowl of fruit. The final clue is to rhyme with the word "that", but it is the trickiest one so far. Perkins is about to give up when he receives a call from Sir Topham Hatt, who helps Perkins with the final clue. The final coin is behind Sir Topham Hatt's portrait.
It features on Sticky Situations.
Mr. Perkins' Jumble Sale
Mr. Perkins organises a jumble sale in the engine driver's common room.
It features on the Muddy Matters DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Trainee
Perkins introduces trainee engine driver Archie Higginbottom to the common room. Archie is spending the day with him to learn how to become a driver, however, his curiosity distracts him, much to Perkins' annoyance. Perkins sets out some uniforms and outfits for Archie to try on whilst he speaks to the Fat Controller over the phone. Instead Archie practices blowing a whistle whilst Perkins is on the phone. Perkins then tries to test Archie's concentration using signal flags, but Archie stops at a green signal runs through a red one. After a while, Archie looks to be ready, but cannot find his way out of the common room, so Perkins tests him with a map. But Archie at first does not unroll it, then has it back to front, and finally upside down. In the end, Perkins feels sorry for being a poor teacher, but is surprised when Archie speaks to the Fat Controller over the phone and hears his knowledge of Edward's parts and wheel arrangement. After hearing this, Perkins thinks Archie will make a fine engine driver after all.
It features on the Go Go Thomas! DVD.
Mr. Perkins' Soccer Match
Perkins is excited about the engine drivers football match between the steam engine and diesel engine drivers, but Mr. Arkwright is unwell and cannot be the referee. The Fat Controller phones Perkins and asks him to take Mr. Arkwright's place. Perkins agrees, but he does not have what he needs to be a referee. He finds Mr. Arkwright's referee kit, but it needs washing. He then finds a stopwatch and shows how it works by standing with one leg in the air and balancing books on his head. He then finds a football, but it is not bouncy enough, so he pumps more air into it. Lastly he needs a whistle. Not having a spare he rings up the stationmaster, but he has gone out to the game. Fortunately, Thomas, who is waiting to take Perkins to the game, has a whistle loud enough to referee. When Perkins returns from the match, he reports that the steam engine drivers won and shows a special medal given to him by the Fat Controller for being a really useful referee.
It features on Railway Mischief.
Mr. Perkins Clowns Around
The Fat Controller asks Mr. Perkins to put on a show for his grandchildren.
It features on the Big Bang Surprise DVD.
Characters
- Mr. Gilbert Perkins
- Mr. Arkwright
- Archie Higginbottom
- Sir Topham Hatt (not seen; heard on telephone)
- Thomas (mentioned)
- Edward (mentioned)
- Henry (mentioned)
- Gordon (mentioned)
- James (mentioned)
- Percy (mentioned)
- Whiff (mentioned)
- Diesel (mentioned)
- Dowager Hatt (mentioned)
Trivia
- The segments are produced by Scruffy Dog Media and directed by John Gilluley.
- The segments were filmed in a studio in Altrincham.
- On the segment Mr. Perkins' Parrot, a deleted scene of the Parrot is used on the Animals Aboard! DVD.
- The hand-knitted scarf, worn by Perkins in Mr. Perkins' Soccer Match, is preserved by the Top Props preservation group, after it was sold by The Prop Gallery.
- The toy train engine seen in Mr. Perkins' Jumble Sale appears to be a large scale Denver and Rio Grande 4-6-0 model produced by Bachmann, that has been stripped of its smokebox, thus eliminating its funnel, cylinders, front bogie, cowcatcher, and headlamp. The engine is also missing its bell and tender.
Goofs
Mr Perkins' Railway Lesson
- The engine is said to be pulling carriages, yet only one coach is attached.
- The train starts at the small station, yet returns to the same destination, between segments the engine is turned around, at one point the engine crosses over to the station line where it started from, but in the next shot it is back on its main line.
- Although the train set is nearly made up of old Tri-ang Hornby items, the Hornby Power track is shown that powers the layout, which was not introduced by Hornby until 2004.
- Blowing the guard's whistle cannot make the engine move.
- If the train was running on the main line, Mr. Perkins would not have enough time to open the crossing gates, move the car across, then close the gates before the next time the train passes. As he is doing this, the engine can be heard running, but it never approaches the crossing.
Mr Perkins' Jumble Sale
- Perkins picked up a cattle wagon for the toy train on display, but refers to it as a coach.
- The long red block has a Brio sticker label, which disappears in close-up shots, but can be seen again once zoomed back out.