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Peter Andre, Spencer Matthews and Harry Judd have teamed up to present new Thomas the Tank Engine stories for its 75th anniversary celebrations
Three of the nation’s favourite celebrity dads, Peter Andre, Spencer Matthews and Harry Judd have teamed up to deliver a unique digital story showcase, “Reading with Friends,” to mark the start of the 75th anniversary celebrations of Thomas & Friends.
To celebrate the magic of Thomas & Friends’ storytelling, the three dads read aloud a story from the very first book up to current day stories to celebrate Thomas’ journey so far. Each of them have been captured on camera and the videos of the celebrities will be hosted on the official Thomas & Friends UK YouTube channel from today.
Musician and author Harry Judd will be seen re-telling the first story to feature Thomas titled “Thomas the Tank Engine”; TV personality and Performer, Peter Andre continues with his take on the action-packed story “Thomas and the Dinosaurs” and TV personality and entrepreneur, Spencer Matthews will conclude with the celebratory story “Happy Birthday!”
“Reading with Friends” is designed to highlight the exciting and heart-warming tales featuring important life lessons for children that have remained at the heart of Thomas & Friends, since the books were first created in 1945, when the first “Railway Series” written by Reverend W. Awdry was published.
On taking part in the digital storytelling series, Peter Andre said, “When I was approached about Reading with Friends, it made perfect sense especially as I voiced the character of Ace in the Thomas & Friends movie; Big World! Big Adventures! My son Theo, who’s three, is obsessed with Thomas, and I love all of the characters too.”
Spencer Matthews said, “I loved being able to come up with the different character voices for Reading with Friends. I grew up with Thomas & Friends and my son Theo, who’s now 16-months-old, loves the books and the toys.”
Musician and Author, Harry Judd best-known for being in McFly added, “Thomas & Friends is a global phenomenon and I loved reading the very first Thomas story. It’s been so lovely to introduce Kit to the books as Thomas was such a big part of my childhood. He’s now a big fan! Happy Birthday Thomas & Friends!”
The series of three videos are available on the Thomas & Friends UK YouTube channel from today. In its special 75th anniversary year in 2020, Thomas & Friends will be celebrating its strong storytelling and highlighting how even after 75 years no-one else does this better than Thomas & Friends!
The celebrations are not just happening in the UK. Fans around the world will be able to join in celebrating Thomas' storytelling heritage in lots of different ways. The world’s most famous No.1 Blue Engine will be exciting fans with a wide range of activities including brand new content, special anniversary moments at live events and attractions, new engaging apps, gaming and new music.