Thomas Land (Drayton Manor)

Thomas Land is a themed area at Drayton Manor Theme Park in Staffordshire, England, based on the children's television series Thomas and Friends. It stands on the former site of Robinsons Land, a themed area sponsored by the soft drinks brand of the same name. The construction began while the park was still open in September 1997, and many of the Robinsons Land rides were moved to other areas of the park for the remainder of the season. Many of the rides housed in Robinsons Land except the Veteran Cars (now Sodor's Classic Cars) were sold to Funland in Hayling Island. Thomas Land officially opened to the public on 10 June 1998. An expansion of Thomas Land with additional attractions and private party rooms opened on 8 April 2005.[1]

Thomas Land
Drayton Manor
Coordinates52.6128°N 1.7133°W / 52.6128; -1.7133
Opening date10 June 1998 (1998-06-10)
Staffordshire, England, U.K.
ReplacedRobinsons Land
General statistics
Attraction typeThemed area
ThemeThomas and Friends
Rides18
WebsiteOfficial website

Rides

Thomas Land is set in 3 acres (12,000 m2) of parkland and features 18 themed rides.

  • Thomas, Rosie and Percy engine tours (Opened 2008 as Thomas and Percy engine tours / Renamed 2009 when Rosie was added)
  • Troublesome Trucks roller coaster (Opened in 2008)
  • Jeremy's Flying Academy (Opened in 2008 / Relocated in 2015)
  • Terence's Driving School (Opened in 2008 / Relocated in 2011)
  • Diesel's Locomotion Mayhem (Opened in 2008)
  • Bertie Bus (Opened in 2008)
  • Lady's Carousel (Opened in 2008)
  • Sodor's Classic Cars (Opened in 2008)
  • Harold's Heli-Tours (Opened in 2008)
  • Cranky's Drop Tower (Opened in 2008)
  • Emily's Indoor Play Area (Opened in 2008)
  • Spencer's Outdoor play area (Opened in 2008)
  • Rockin' Bulstrode (Opened in 2008)
  • Blue Mountain Engines (Opened in 2011 / Relocated and Merrick was added in 2015)
  • Winston's Whistle Stop Tour (Opened in 2013)
  • Captain’s Sea Adventure (Opened in 2015)
  • Flynn's Fire Rescue (Opened in 2015)
  • Toby’s Tram Express (Opened in 2015)
  • James and the Red Balloon (Opened in 2017)

Train rides
Thomas at Knapford Station

Models of Thomas, Percy and Rosie are used on a 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge[2] railway that takes visitors through the park. The line features Tidmouth Sheds with stationary facades of other engines, Knapford Station, which serves as the main station and a refreshment stand, Dryaw and Tidmouth Hault. It also has many sidings and sheds along the way, one of which used to feature a "sleeping" model of James, which was moved to where the James and the Red Balloon ride is in 2017, akin to the ride's opening.

Discover Thomas & Friends

In early 2009, HIT Entertainment announced that models from the live-action television series would be put on display at Thomas Land in an exhibit called "Discover Thomas & Friends", as production was to move to Canada, now that the series was to be animated with CG animation. The exhibit opened in July 2009. Various props from the show are on display, including brass operating models of Thomas, Edward (removed from the layout in 2020 for possible restoration), Toby (stolen in 2011) Stepney (removed for possible restoration or returned to Hit Entertainment in 2018), Harvey (returned to Hit Entertainment in 2012) and Rosie. 2020 later brought in Daisy, D261,(aka Class 40.) Cranky, Old Slow Coach, Molly, Mighty Mac, Rocky and Hank along.

See also

References
  1. "Thomas Expansion Announcement". Drayton Manor website. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  2. Tourist and Enthusiast Railways - West Midlands

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