Producer of TV show ‘Thomas the Tank Engine’ was 84
Britt Allcroft, a British television producer and writer who helped develop “Thomas & Friends” based on the “The Railway Series” books and its characters including Thomas the Tank Engine, died on December 25, 2024. She was 81.
Allcroft’s daughter, Holly Wright, confirmed her death at the New York Times. Director Brannon Carty announced her death in writing earlier today on X: “It is with great sadness that I share with you the passing of Britt Allcroft…Britt was an adoring mother and wife. A visionary producer. She brought so much joy and happiness to people all over the world during her time on earth.”
Born Hilary Mary Allcroft in 1943, she later changed her name to Britt at the age of 16 as her career in British television expanded.
She was from Worthing, England and was a producer on a number of British television shows in the 1970s. One of her first projects was ‘Get It-Got-It-Good’. She eventually secured the rights to the ‘Railway Series’ books from which the character Thomas the Tank Engine was adapted to the screen.
Allcroft’s interest in the characters of this book series arose from her involvement in a 1979 documentary about a Sussex railway, which appears in the books themselves. She had previously said, “It didn’t take long for me to become intrigued by the characters, the relationships between them and the nostalgia they evoked.” Allcroft later founded the Britt Allcroft Company with her husband and fellow producer Angus Wright. The two divorced in 1997.
She spent four years raising money to cover the production costs of the first 26 episodes of what would become 1984’s “Thomas & Friends.” The series received positive critical reception and remained popular among young audiences worldwide. The film was shown in the US through the children’s show ‘Shining Time Station’.
Allcroft went on to write and direct the 2000 feature film ‘Thomas and the Magic Railroad’ and voice the character of Lady. In 2023, she appeared in the documentary ‘An Likenly Fandom’, directed by Carty and chronicling the widespread internet fandom surrounding the ‘Thomas’ franchise.
“Thomas & Friends” existed for 27 years and today has resulted in additional adaptations, spin-offs, films and merchandise opportunities such as “Diesel: Impossible”, “The Looney Diesels” and “Thomas & Friends ERTL Adventures: The Biggest Christmas Adventure .”
Allcroft is survived by her daughter, son and grandchildren.
