‘Thomas the Tank Engine clung to me like a disease’: the film about the choo-choo’s global superstardom

From the UK to the US, from Japan to Australia and beyond, men in their 20s and 30s are still obsessed with the lovable blue locomotive. Why? The maker of a new film reveals all‘I kept it a huge, dark secret,” says Matt Michaud. “I tried to push people away. I wouldn’t call it shame. I wasn’t sure if it was right or wrong. I wasn’t sure if it was something I could share with other people.”It is curious to hear these words spoken at the outset of a disarmingly sweet documentary. What kind of perversion, or even crime, is twentysomething Michaud confessing to in his own living room? A glimpse behind him provides a clue to his obsession and anxiety: displayed on a table is a collection of toy locomotives and model railway books. And the centrepiece is a model of Thomas the Tank Engine. Continue reading...

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