Thomas & Friends is a British children's television series, which had its first broadcast on the ITV network on 4 September 1984. It is based on The Railway Series of books by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry and his son, Christopher Awdry. These books deal with the adventures of a group of anthropomorphised locomotives and road vehicles who live on the fictional Island of Sodor. The books were based on stories Wilbert told to entertain his son, Christopher during his recovery from measles. From Series one to four, many of the stories are based on events from Awdry's personal experience.

For Thomas, it’s all about sport. The young high-jumper sticks to the uncompromising training and dietary regime at a sports camp. We soon learn that this is creating an unhealthy situation – to put it mildly. It’s clear from the start that there’s something very wrong in this boy’s life. Not only does he regularly lock himself away to self-harm, or practise leaving a voice-mail for his absent father – the military-style control exercised by his mother, Margot, is absolutely suffocating. Both for Thomas, and for the viewer.