Many characters have appeared in the books of The Railway Series by the Rev. Wilbert Awdry and Christopher Awdry, and in the spin-off television series, Thomas and Friends. This article profiles the most significant characters of the series. Only characters who appear in the books have been profiled in this article and, in the case where a character has appeared in both series, only the book aspect has been addressed. The numerous less-significant characters – i.e. all those not included on this page – are described in Minor characters in The Railway Series.