Drip Tank is an unproduced episode of Thomas & Friends. Originally planned as the sixteenth episode of the second series, the episode was cancelled due to the abundance of Percy-centric episodes, which would have made this one redundant.[1] It was to be based on the story of the same name from The Railway Series book More About Thomas the Tank Engine.[2]
Plot
Percy wants to make amends with Thomas after their quarrel, but is so distracted that he runs into a broken tree branch hanging over the line, which hits him in the smokebox. Thomas is unsympathetic later that night, so Percy decides not to apologise to him and spends the rest of the night talking to Toby instead. The next evening, Percy asks Toby what a "drip" is, having heard a boy on the platform call his friend one. Thomas, frustrated with being ignored, interrupts the two and says that the boy was calling his friend silly. Percy asks if that would mean Thomas is a "drip" since he stopped him from doing something nice, but Thomas calls him a "drip" and tells him to go to sleep and stop talking nonsense.
The next day, Henry's train is late at the junction and Thomas tries to rush to make up for lost time, but his coupling rod snaps and punctures his water tank, leaving him and his train stranded. Percy is told about the incident and refuses to help Thomas, but gives in when his driver reminds him of the passengers. Thomas apologises to Percy for being rude, and the two engines become friends again.
Characters
- Thomas
- Percy
- Toby
- Henry (does not speak/mentioned)
- Annie and Clarabel (do not speak)
Locations
Trivia
- The transcript for the episode given to Britt Allcroft appears to be a slightly alternate version of the original book's text, featuring some handwritten revisions. Said revisions were reflected in the published book.
- Had this episode been made, it would have marked Ffarquhar's only appearance in the second series.
- As a result of the episode being cancelled, Thomas, Percy and the Coal ended with Thomas and Percy making up for their quarrel.
- This is the only episode adapted from Christopher Awdry's stories to be cancelled.
Gallery
(1/4)
(2/4)
(3/4)
(4/4)
References
- ↑ specialtrees01 [@specialtrees01]. Twitter. 10 September 2025. "I managed to get some pictures of stuff from both Series 2 script lots". Accessed 19 September 2025. Archived from the original on 19 September 2025.
- ↑ Sidekickjason [@Sidekickjason]. Twitter. 10 September 2025. "Additional stuff I received from Julien's". Accessed 19 September 2025. Archived from the original on 19 September 2025.
| #01 Thomas, Percy and the Coal | #10 The Runaway | #19 Daisy |
| #02 Cows | #11 Percy Takes the Plunge | #20 Percy's Predicament |
| #03 Bertie's Chase | #12 Pop Goes the Diesel | #21 The Diseasel |
| #04 Saved from Scrap | #13 Dirty Work | #22 Wrong Road |
| #05 Old Iron | #14 A Close Shave | #23 Edward's Exploit |
| #06 Thomas and Trevor | #15 Better Late than Never | #24 Ghost Train |
| #07 Percy and the Signal | #16 Break Van | #25 Woolly Bear |
| #08 Duck Takes Charge | #17 The Deputation | #26 Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree |
| #09 Percy and Harold | #18 Thomas Comes to Breakfast | Cancelled: Hullo Twins |
| Cancelled: Gordon Goes Foreign | Cancelled: Drip Tank | |