Air date: March 23rd, 2011 (UK), May 21st, 2011 (US)
It is the day of the country show on Sodor and Thomas is at the Steamworks having his whistle replaced. Then the Fat Controller arrives to tell Thomas that he is to pick up Farmer McColl's animals and take them to the country show. He also tells Thomas to whistle to everyone and tell them about the show. Thomas is excited and tells Kevin to hurry up. The workmen soon fix the whistle, but it is wonky, and they are just about to straighten it when Thomas speeds off. As he leaves, Thomas blows his whistle which makes a horrible noise. The noise startles Kevin, who rolls into a wall.
At McColl Farm, Thomas collects Farmer McColl's ducks, Katie the sheepdog, and his prize cow. Unfortunately, Thomas eagerly races off before the van's door is properly shut. Thomas decides to puff to the bridge; he is sure there will be a lot of people there that he can inform about the country show. Once there, Thomas tells them to visit the country show and blows his wonky whistle. This noise scares Katie, who leaps from the van and runs off. The people on the bridge call after Thomas, but he thinks they are waving hello. Thomas decides to visit Maithwaite station, but on the way he sees Bertie at a crossing. Thomas is sure his passengers will want to know about the show. He tells them all and then whistles, scaring the ducks out of the van. Bertie calls after Thomas, but Thomas thinks Bertie is tooting hello and carries on to Maithwaite station, where he blows his whistle once again. This time it frightens the prize cow, who runs out of the van and across the platform. The stationmaster shouts after Thomas, but once again, Thomas thinks he is calling hello.
Soon Thomas arrives at the country show. Thomas is surprised to see that there is no one at the show. But not as surprised as Farmer McColl when he opens Thomas' van. Thomas is upset, since he was told to tell everyone about the show and to deliver the animals, but has done neither properly. Thomas blows his wonky whistle and scares some sheep, who run out of their pen. Farmer McColl waves and shouts at Thomas as he runs after the runaway sheep. Thomas concludes that his wonky whistle has scared the sheep and must have scared the other animals away too.
Thomas races to the Steamworks to have his whistle straightened and then chuffs to McColl Farm to collect the animals' favourite foods. First Thomas collects Katie the sheepdog, then the ducks, and finally the prize cow. Eventually, Thomas arrives back at the country show where Katie rounds up the runaway sheep. Then Thomas goes around the Island telling everyone about the country show again. Back at the showground, the country show is crowded with people. The Fat Controller is delighted and gives Thomas one last job: to declare the show open by blowing his whistle. The country show officially opened and everyone cheered - even Katie wagged her tail.
Tropes featured in the episode:
- Added Alliterative Appeal: About a third of the dialogue, complete with title drops.
- Thomas' "wonky whistle"; which becomes his "wonderful whistle" when fixed.
- "With a bounce and a bound..."
- "With a flap and a flutter..."
- "With a bang and a bump..."
- Alliterative Title
- An Aesop: Always wait until you’re repaired for best results. Also, don’t assume someone’s saying hello when they’re really trying to tell you something.
- Bowdlerise: In the UK, when Victor notices Thomas' whistle is wonky, he says, "Fix that whistle", whereas in the US, he says "Fit the whistle".
- Funny Background Event: When Thomas blows his wonky whistle the first time (as seen in the picture above), you can see his driver utterly bewildered at the awful sound it makes.
- Given Name Reveal: Farmer McColl's sheepdog is named Katie.
- Idiot Ball: Thomas somehow can't hear his whistle sounds strange. In human terms, it would be the equivalent of someone not being able to tell their voice is oddly scratchy.
- Lethally Stupid: Thomas going off without warning while workmen were still on him could've led to their death.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Thomas when he finally realizes his wonky whistle scared the animals away.
- Rhymes on a Dime: "Hurry to the country show, tell your friends and don't be slow!"
- Rule of Three: Thomas scares Katie the sheepdog at the bridge, the ducks at the level crossing, and Farmer McColl's prized cow at Maithwaite.
- Running Gag: Thomas unknowingly scaring the animals with his wonky whistle, and thinking the pointer outters were just saying hi to him.
- Poor Communication Kills: Whenever Thomas scares an animal with his wonky whistle and those nearby warn him, he mistakes such for them being excited about the show.
- Title Drop: Several times over the course of the episode.
- A Tragedy of Impulsiveness: Thomas wanted to get the job done without having his whistle fixed, and made everything worse when he unintentionally scares the animals with his wonky whistle.
