Down the Mine

Down the Mine is the twenty-fifth episode of the first series. It is based on the story of the same name from the Railway Series book Gordon the Big Engine.

Plot
One day while Thomas is waiting at Lower Tidmouth, Gordon, who is in disgrace after recently causing trouble by falling into a ditch, pulls in with some trucks. As soon as Gordon stops, Thomas jokes about him smelling of ditch water. Before Gordon can respond, Thomas leaves with his coaches.

Annie and Clarabel are shocked at Thomas' rudeness and scold him for it, but he does not care. Thomas is pleased with his clever joke as he heads off to collect trucks at the lead mines, leaving his coaches still in shock. The mine consists of many underground tunnels dug by lead miners long ago. The tunnels' roofs are strong enough to hold up the weight of trucks, but not engines. At the points, there is a board, warning engines not to enter the area.

Thomas has often tried to pass the board but has always failed. This time however, he has made a plan. When his fireman leaves the cab to change the points, Thomas bumps the trucks hard enough that he knocks his driver off the footplate, allowing him to pass the board. The unsafe rails collapse, leaving him lodged in a small chasm and feeling very silly. The Fat Controller arrives, having seen everything and chastises Thomas for his naughtiness. Because a crane would be too heavy for the ground to support, he decides to call in Gordon to pull Thomas out. Thomas feels uneasy about this, given how much he has teased Gordon.

Shortly after hearing about Thomas' situation after, Gordon heads to the rescue laughing. Arriving at the scene with a winch attached to his buffer beam, Gordon promises to have Thomas out in no time. A long cable is fastened between them and after a lot of hard work and pulling, Gordon manages to finally free Thomas from the chasm. Thomas apologizes to Gordon for his cheekiness earlier. Gordon accepts Thomas' apology and admits to him that hearing of the incident made him laugh. Now that both engines are in disgrace, they agree to form an alliance and help each other in the future. With that, the two allies head back to the sheds.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Gordon
 * Annie and Claracbel
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * Troublesome Trucks
 * One Little Boy

Locations

 * Lower Tidmouth
 * Knapford
 * The Lead Mines
 * Rail Under Road Bridge and Signalbox

Trivia

 * A deleted scene from Thomas and the Guard and stock footage from Thomas and Bertie are used.
 * The dialogue script for this episode was completed on 3rd August, 1983.
 * This episode was originally written and filmed in 1983 as the test pilot for the television series. The pilot had simpler, fewer characters, and flatter lighting. The pilot was test screened in 1983 and was greenlit by ITV. As of 2023, footage of the pilot has never been seen other than short stock footage in the final episode.
 * The pilot was handed to Rick Siggelkow, who showed it to his wife and then to a preschool class; the results were positive, launching Shining Time Station, with Siggelkow being the show's co-creator. According to Ian McCue, the pilot footage currently resides in Mattel's storage unit in Southampton with plans of remastering it to be released as a bonus feature on a special DVD for the 80th anniversary in 2025.
 * The events of this episode directly continue into the fourth series episode, Paint Pots and Queens. The events of this episode are later mentioned by Thomas in the second series episode, Percy Takes the Plunge, James in Journey Beyond Sodor, Diesel in Big World! Big Adventures! during the song, Where in the World is Thomas? and Thomas again in the twenty-third series episode, Deep Trouble. Furthermore, there is a full-on flashback to this episode in Blue Mountain Mystery. The scene where Thomas falls down the mine was recreated in full CGI. In the flashback, he frantically tries to reverse out of the chasm after falling in, which did not happen in the episode.
 * When originally broadcast in the United Kingdom in January 1985, it was paired with the previous episode. Early VHS releases instead pair it with the first Christmas special, as do Norwegian and Swedish broadcasts.
 * Some of the trucks at the mine have "N.E." written on their sides, which is likely a reference to the livery worn by LNER rolling stock (including locomotives) during World War II.
 * The buffers on the truck Thomas bumps into are lowered specifically so that Thomas can hit them properly.
 * According to Britt Allcroft, this episode and the third series episode, All at Sea are her favourites.
 * In the Welsh dub, Thomas is not seen bumping the trucks.
 * The Korean title of this episode shares the same as the series premiere.
 * Pictures of this episode were used for the end credits section of Mister Moose's Fun Time and for Storytime with Thomas.
 * This episode marks the first time a danger sign is used. Coincidentally, the one shown in this episode would later appear in the second series episode Percy Takes the Plunge, where Thomas references the events of this episode.
 * Roland Rat introduced this episode alongside Off the Rails when the pairing was first aired in 1985. On its airing in December 1985, the episode was introduced by Rod Hull and Emu on 20th December 1985 individually before the airing of Thomas' Christmas Party just four days later.
 * This is the only episode narrated by Ringo Starr not to be featured on any other DVDs in the UK apart from The Complete Series 1.
 * This episode marks the last appearance of Thomas' first series worried face and his devious/cheeky face.
 * Scenes from this episode were recreated for the Japanese web video series, Salaryman Thomas.
 * This episode marks the first time an engine has shed tears on screen.

Goofs

 * At the beginning of the episode, the narrator refers to Lower Tidmouth as "the junction".
 * When Thomas shunts Annie and Clarabel, his eyes are misaligned, and the coaches are missing their nameplates.
 * In the reused footage from the unaired pilot:
 * The lining on Thomas' cab and splashers are missing.
 * Thomas is also missing his lamp irons.
 * Smoke can be seen coming out of Thomas' eyes due to the model's performance.
 * After the fireman goes to turn the points, he disappears in the next shot.
 * In the close-up of the danger sign, it says "Engines must not pass this board," but when Thomas passes the sign, it says "Engines must not pass this point" instead.
 * The Fat Controller is smiling when he scolds Thomas.
 * A small piece of hair can be seen on the left side of Thomas' smokebox when he "didn't want to meet Gordon just yet."
 * Thomas' side rods are in different positions before and after Gordon pulls him out of the mine.
 * Thomas' wheels drag along the line for a few seconds before he blows his whistle when he and Gordon leave the lead mines.
 * The Croatian dub uses the dubbing track of Off the Rails.
 * After Gordon pulls Thomas out of the mine, Thomas' eyes are wonky, although it's hard to see if one doesn't look closely.

Take-n-Play

 * Tales from the Past Engines Pack

Books

 * Thomas and Bertie and Thomas Down the Mine
 * Thomas Down the Mine

Home Media Releases
{{Scroll box|

UK

 * Further Adventures of Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends
 * Coal and other stories
 * Troublesome Trucks, Coal and other stories
 * Bumper Special
 * Down the Mine and Other Stories
 * Your Favourite Story Collection
 * Chases, Races and Runaways
 * The Complete Series 1

DVD Boxsets

 * Classic Collection

US

 * Better Late Than Never and Other Stories
 * Thomas and His Friends Help Out
 * Thomas and His Friends Get Along
 * Thomas' Useful Stories
 * Best of Gordon
 * The Early Years
 * Thomas and Friends Classic Volume 1

CAN

 * Better Late Than Never and Other Stories
 * Thomas and His Friends Help Out
 * Thomas and His Friends Get Along
 * Best of Gordon
 * The Early Years

VHS/DVD Packs

 * Ultimate Thomas Collection
 * Thomas and His Friends Help Out/Thomas' Trackside Tunes Double Feature
 * Totally Thomas Volume 2
 * Totally Thomas Volume 3
 * Best Tales on the Tracks
 * Thomas' Useful Stories
 * Best of Collection

AUS

 * Coal and other stories
 * The Complete Series 1

DVD Boxsets

 * Complete Series 1-10
 * Classic Collection
 * Series One and Series Two Double Pack

NZ

 * Coal and other stories
 * Percy Runs Away and Other Stories
 * Bumper Video Collection Volume 2

FRA

 * The Talkative Trains
 * The Magic of Sodor

KOR

 * Stories to Raise Cooperation

JPN

 * Thomas the Tank Engine Volume 6
 * The Complete Works of Thomas the Tank Engine 1 Vol.7
 * The Complete DVD Box 1
 * I Love Thomas DVD Collection
 * Try to Get Along

PHL

 * Down the Mine

NL

 * A Nasty Case
 * The Greatest Stories: The Adventures of Thomas, Percy and Gordon

UKR

 * A Train Thomas and Friends

BRA

 * Helping the Friends

NOR/FIN/ISL

 * Thomas the Tank Engine 3

GER

 * Thomas and His Friends Vol. 3
 * Toby and the Elegant Men and 4 Other Adventures
 * In The Mine
 * Lots of Little Helpers

DVD Boxsets

 * Thomas and His Friends Box Set 2

SVN

 * Bertie's Race

IND

 * Down the Mine and Other Stories

MYS

 * Henry's Forest and Other Thomas Adventures
 * Tenders and Turntables and Other Adventures

ITA

 * The Grumpy Locomotive

ROM

 * Thomas and Percy

DVD Packs

 * Triple Pack 1

SER

 * Thomas the Tank Engine 2

HRV

 * Thomas in Trouble

WAL

 * Letting Off Steam and 8 Other Stories

CHN

 * Thomas and Friends Season 1-4

HK

 * Thomas and Friends Volume 3
 * Thomas and Friends Volume 1

THA

 * Thomas and Friends - Volume 4

DNK
}}
 * Thomas in Trouble and Other Stories

In der Mine En la Mina במורד המכרה La locomotiva sprofondata あなにおちたトーマス W Kopalni Паровоз провалился