A national blue plaque has been unveiled at the former home of Thomas The Tank Engine creator Reverend Wilbert Awdry.
The unveiling, at 30 Rodborough Avenue in Stroud, Gloucestershire, marked 80 years since the first of the classic Thomas & Friends books, The Three Railway Engines, was published.
Rev Awdry first told the tales of an imaginary railway and its engines, Edwards, Gordon and Henry, to his son Christopher to distract him from chickenpox in 1943.
Two years later, The Three Railway Engines was published. Thomas The Tank Engine appeared in the second book and quickly became the most popular of the engines.
In 1965, Rev Awdry retired from the Church and moved to Stroud, where he wrote the final six books of the series in the study of his home â which was known as Sodor to his family.
He even named two characters, Oliver the Western Engine and Mavis, a tramway engine, after his next door neighbours Oliver and Mavis Wicks.
On Friday, Rev Awdryâs daughter Veronica Chambers unveiled the Historic England blue plaque outside the home.
Local primary school children read parts of The Three Railway Engines, while a band played theme tunes from the popular Thomas & Friends television series.
Mrs Chambers said: âWe as a family are very honoured that father was one of the very few chosen by Historic England this year to be awarded a blue plaque out of a very large number of proposals.
âThe final six books in the series were written here in the study, and later my brother Christopher carried on and wrote 16 more.
âSodor is the home that all the seven grandchildren knew as being the place where they were always welcomed by Wilbert and Margaret when they were growing up and Iâm sure they remember it with great affection.â
Mrs Chambers recounted visits at the home from various clergy and friends, as well as a âprivate and discreetâ meeting there with Ringo Starr and his wife.
Starr, who narrated the 1984 Thomas & Friends television series, spent time with Rev Awdryâs model railway as well as in his garden.
âI believe none of the neighbours had any idea that such prestigious company had been at number 30,â Mrs Chambers said.
She added that the home, which still belongs to the family, holds âvery many happy memoriesâ for them.
Rev Awdry was born in June 1911 in the small village of Ampfield in Hampshire, and developed a fascination with railways at a young age.
His family moved to Box, Wiltshire, where their home was close to Box Tunnel â with Rev Awdry hearing freight trains and whistle signals at night.
He decided to follow in his fatherâs footsteps as a vicar and was ordained in 1936, serving in several parishes before moving to Kings Norton, Birmingham, in 1940.
It was there that Rev Awdry created his stories and later, working with illustrators Reginald Payne and later C Reginald Dalby, brought to life the Island of Sodor which had its own geography, history and railway network.
By 1970, more than three million copies had been sold. His son Christopher, who later continued the series, helped it to reach more than 10 million sales by the 1990s.
Speaking after the unveiling, Mark Chambers, the grandson of Rev Awdry, said: âItâs a real honour and privilege that this has been suggested as a site for a blue plaque and for everybody to be here to remember my grandfather.
âThe stories were written over quite a number of years and when my grandfather retired from being a parish priest, he came here in 1965 and the last six books in the series were written here.
âI have very fond memories of coming here with my parents and my sister several times a year and staying here with my grandmother and grandfather, who were very important in my life.
âI read all the books and had all the books read to me as a child, both by my father and by my grandfather. I was very privileged, in hindsight, that he read the books to me himself.â
When asked about his favourite engine, Mr Chambers said it had been Thomas or Percy when he first read the books 45 years ago but now believes Edward â from the first book â is the âbest engineâ.
He added: âItâs lovely for us to hear about how my grandfatherâs creation has touched lives, from people decades older than me to decades younger than me and on it goes. Itâs just extraordinary and wonderful.â
The plaque inscription reads: âThe Reverend Wilbert Awdry, 1911â1997, Childrenâs Author, who created Thomas the Tank Engine, lived hereâ.
During his time in Stroud, Rev Awdry devoted himself to his railway interests â building and exhibiting model lines, editing railway histories and chronicling Thomas and his home on the Island of Sodor.
The author died in nearby Rodborough in March 1997, at the age of 85, a year after receiving an OBE.
He wrote 26 books in The Railway Series in total, while his son Christopher added a further 16 tales.
Duncan Wilson, chief executive of Historic England, said: âWeâre here to celebrate an unsung hero who means an awful lot to many people, of all ages.
âThis is exactly what the blue plaque scheme is designed to do, to celebrate people â either famous people who come from places you wouldnât expect or people who arenât famous and deserve to be celebrated.
âIn this case, Rev Awdry was a very well-known person but recognising that he lived here is a really interesting thing.â
Mr Wilson described reading The Flying Kipper, part of The Railway Series, as a child so much that the book fell apart.
The National Blue Plaque Scheme was launched by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in 2023 and is administered by Historic England.
It aims to celebrate people who have made a significant impact on buildings across England, outside London where a scheme already exists.
The scheme opens for public nominations each May. Rev Awdryâs plaque is the first national blue plaque to be unveiled that has been nominated by a member of the public, who submitted the nomination in 2024.
Heritage minister Baroness Twycross said: âChildren across the country have grown up dreaming of a train ride with Thomas, Gordon, Percy and friends.
âOur railways are a vital part of our national heritage, and Reverend Awdryâs books are an excellent example of how they can spark creativity and imagination.
âIâm thrilled that Reverend Awdry is being commemorated with a blue plaque at the perfect time during the Railway 200 celebrations.â
