Rapido have surprised the model railway world with a newly tooled range of items themed around the children's classic TV show 'Ivor the Engine'!
Following the success of their ‘Titfield Thunderbolt’ range Rapido have set their sights on Ivor - with history coming full circle and a Kent-based model manufacturer bringing Ivor the Engine to life in model form.
Working alongside Daniel Postgate (the son of the original creator) under an exclusive worldwide license, Rapido Trains UK will produce two Ivor the Engine packs in OO gauge - a main train pack including the eponymous Ivor himself and a rolling stock pack featuring some additional vehicles and characters.
This range of models is in tooling and engineering samples are expected early in 2025. Each pack is available to pre-order now here at Rails!
Pre-Order Now - Ivor Train Pack
THIS PACK INCLUDES:
Ivor the Engine - with working headlamps and glowing dragon egg in firebox
Two x Open/ Sheep Wagons
Full range of sounds & dialogue from the original colour animations on the DCC Sound versions
2D cardboard figures with bases for Jones the Steam, Dai Station, Idris the Dragon and three sheep - all produced from original animation artwork
Fold-up cardboard engine shed and water tower
A BRAND-NEW Ivor the Engine story written by Daniel Postgate
Pre-Order Now - Rolling Stock Pack
THIS PACK INCLUDES:
Passenger Coach
Coal Hopper Wagon
1-Plank Wagon with Crate Load
2D cardboard figures with bases for Evans the Song, the Choir, Mrs Porty and Bluebell the Donkey produced from the original animation artwork
Fold-up station building & platform
About Ivor the Engine
In 1959 Oliver Postgate and Peter Firmin, working under their Smallfilms name, brought Ivor the Engine to life in a series of six 10-minute black and white films. The animations were created using cut-out painted cardboard items held together with pins and Blutack. A single frame camera controlled by a small electric motor with some Meccano, a rubber band drive and a manual clicker allowed frames to be made in quick succession - a good thing as five minutes of animation required 8000 frames to be recorded.
On a good day two minutes of animation could be recorded; 12 times faster than most stop frame animation studios of their time. All of this was created in the pair’s workshop (a converted cow shed) at Firmin’s home in Blean near Canterbury, Kent. Postgate wrote the stories, narrated and voiced many of the characters which were brought to life by Firmin’s illustrations.
The original series was regularly shown by Associated-Rediffusion Ltd on ITV who had acquired the original rights, until their demise in 1968. In 1975 the creators re-acquired the rights and started producing the original episodes, alongside new episodes as a series of forty 5-minute episodes this time aired over the following two years on the BBC. Ivor the Engine would see regular screenings for the next decade. Numerous books and VHS cassettes were also produced alongside other merchandise such as board games and playing cards. In 2023 a remastered version was released on Blu-ray DVD.