Special Express Coaches

The Special Express Coaches are a set of red coaches used for carrying and transporting special visitors across the Island of Sodor.

Biography
Gordon and James have used some of the coaches several times to transport people such as Dowager Hatt, Mrs. Kyndley and the Mayor. Edward also pulled them once. Thomas also borrowed one of these coaches (specifically one of Spencer's) when he took Sir Topham Hatt to London to receive an award from the Queen.

On the Mainland, Spencer has his own set of these coaches he uses primarily to transport the the Duke and Duchess of Boxford to and from Sodor, though they have also been loaned to carry other important figures such as Sir Robert Norramby and the Deputy Minister. Duchess also has a set of these coaches which are used to carry the Royal Family.

Basis
In the model series, the coaches were based on GWR Collett and LMS Period III coaches, while in the CGI series they are loosely based on Pullman luxury coaches. They closely resemble the Pullman First Class Parlour Car "Topaz" of 1914, which is preserved at the National Railway Museum. Aubrey and Aiden are also based on this coach, as well as the ones used by Connor and Caitlin.

Livery
The coaches were painted maroon with silver buffers, grey roofs and red lining, bufferbeams and couplings.

After their redesign, the coaches are painted in the South Eastern and Chatham Railway red coach livery with gold lining and beige roofs. The buffers, bufferbeams and couplings all became black. The coaches also carry the Boxford crest on the doors, which is absent on Duchess' coaches.

Appearances
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Thomas & Friends

 * Series 5 - A Better View for Gordon, Gordon and the Gremlin and Make Someone Happy
 * Series 6 - A Bad Day for Harold the Helicopter
 * Series 7 - James and the Queen of Sodor and Gordon and Spencer
 * Series 8 - Edward the Great
 * Series 10 - Topped Off Thomas
 * Series 11 - Emily's Rubbish and Dream On
 * Series 13 - Snow Tracks
 * Series 15 - Edward the Hero
 * Series 16 - Whiff's Wish, Welcome Stafford and Happy Birthday Sir!
 * Series 18 - Spencer's VIP
 * Series 19 - Who's Geoffrey? and Two Wheels Good
 * Series 20 - Cautious Connor
 * Series 21 - Confused Coaches
 * Series 22 - An Engine of Many Colours
 * Series 24 - Thomas and the Royal Engine

Specials

 * 2010 - Misty Island Rescue
 * 2013 - King of the Railway
 * 2017 - Journey Beyond Sodor

Music Videos

 * Series 5 - It's Great to be an Engine, Come for the Ride and Percy's Seaside Trip
 * Series 6 - James the Really Splendid Engine
 * Series 7 - The Whistle Song
 * Series 9 - Togetherness
 * Series 10 - There's Always Something New
 * Thomas' YouTube World Tour - A World Around You, Navigation, Never, Never, Never Give Up, It's Great to be an Engine, The Whistle Song and Ode to Gordon
 * Series 19 - Spring is Here! and Engine Roll Call

Learning Segments
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 * Series 9 - What Goes Where?

Merchandise

 * ERTL
 * Wooden Railway
 * Motor Road and Rail
 * TrackMaster
 * Motorized
 * Bachmann
 * Hornby
 * My First Thomas
 * Capsule Plarail

Trivia

 * Originally, Gordon's Special Coaches were created to be Spencer's coaches, however they were later replaced by the maroon coaches.
 * In the sixteenth series episode Whiff's Wish, Spencer is seen with a third one of these coaches, as opposed to the usual one or two.