Rev. W. Awdry’s Little Engines Weekend
July 18 – July 19
Celebrating the life and legacy of the Reverend Wilbert Awdry, creator of Thomas the Tank Engine & Talyllyn Railway Volunteer!
Tickets now on sale!
Full timetable available at the bottom of the page.
While the Awdry Extravaganza may be having a rest for now, we realise that a large community formed around the events and has used them as a safe space to meet like minded people, all while celebrating the life and legacy of TR Volunteer The Reverend Wilbert Awdry – and we want to help keep that community alive.
This event will be smaller in scale and more community focused, but promises to engage fans young and old with various activities to enjoy – and of course, plenty of trains to catch!
Our friends from Sodor, Sir Handel, Rusty & Fred, will be visiting Tywyn once again on the 18th & 19th July 2026.
EVENT ACTIVITIES
TRAIN RIDES
This is the perfect opportunity to take advantage of our Talyllyn Explorer tickets, which will give you freedom of the line using our intensive timetable of trains.
One train a day will be hauled by ‘Fred’, while another is double headed. See the full timetable here!
Adult – £29 | Child – £5
Members travel for free
THE FAN TENT
The Fan Tent at Tywyn Wharf Station returns and will feature model displays and a multi-gauge test track to display and run model engines.
It’s the perfect congregation spot!
The Fan Tent will be open 9am – 5pm on all days of the event.
THE EXHIBITION
The Exhibition at Wharf will be a showcase of models, paperwork and artifacts relating to the long history of Awdry’s works across the years.
The Rev. W. Awdry’s “Ffarquhar Branch” layout will also be displayed and in full operation.
Viewing slots begin at 9am, and are limited to 25 minutes, with 10 people in each slot. These tickets must be prebooked.
Adult – £10 | Child – £7.50
EVENING ENTERTAINMENT
At the Magic Lantern Cinema there will be a Bumper Evening Event.
We will present; the first in-person reading of the ‘Narrow Gauge Rails in Sodor’ Lecture and remastered versions of the Rev Awdry’s narrations of some iconic stories, including ‘Sir Handel – in live action!’ on the big screen.
On Friday only we will also reveal the special something that we recently teased!
Doors open at 19:00, with the show beginning at 19:30.
Adult – £25 | Child – £15
Friday and Saturday only
SPECIAL TRAINS
FRED & RUSTY’S SPECIAL TRAIN
A popular train returning for this event is the Fred Special, and this time he’ll be joined by Rusty as they double head this evening train!
Departs Tywyn Wharf at 16:30 on FRIDAY 17TH JULY
£29
THE GUIDED TRAINS
New for this year are our Guided Trains.
Join Sir Handel on ‘The Sudrian’ or travel with the little diesel on ‘Rusty’s Line Inspection’, and our Awdry experts will ride with you on the train to talk you through the Talyllyn Railway’s deep connection to the life and legacy of the Reverend Wilbert Awdry.
‘The Sudrian’ departs Tywyn Wharf at 9:00 on Saturday & 17:55 on Sunday.
‘Rusty’s Line Inspection’ departs Tywyn Wharf at 17:55 on Saturday & 9:00 on Sunday.
£47.50
THE PICNIC
The ever popular train ‘The Picnic’ returns with Sir Handel on the front.
Enjoy a scenic ride up the Talyllyn Railway in some of the carriages that inspired characters in the original book series – with time to hop out at Dolgoch Station to watch the engine take on water in a truly iconic location.
Included in this trip is a packaged Afternoon Tea to enjoy!
‘The Picnic’ departs Tywyn Wharf at 12:30 on Saturday & 13:35 on Sunday.
£44
TIMETABLE
