Felicia Roberts
Meet Bruno the Brake Car: Thomas & Friends‘ new autistic character!
Nearly four decades after the popular children’s show was released in October 1984, Thomas & Friends is now including some diversity and representation in their team of tank engines.
Bruno stars in the new Mattel adaptation Thomas & Friends: All Engines Go! which began in 2021 and airs on Channel 5 and Nick Jr. He will make his first appearance in the first episode of series 2 (Percy Disappears) on 21st September via Channel 5’s Milkshake in the UK.
Autistic Coded Characters
It is estimated that 1 in 100 children worldwide are on the spectrum, however, only 3.1% of TV characters have a disability (the number of autistic characters is unknown, but it is very few). Within that statistic only 21.6% (56) of disabled characters were authentically represented with the actor having the same disability as the character they were portraying.
Despite the representation of autistic characters rising within the last few years, it has to be said that most instances are stereotypes. The majority of autistic characters are written for the neurotypical viewer’s entertainment and are almost always depicted to be inspirational or superhuman. They’re exaggerated.
This has led to an abundance of fan theories trying to spot the ‘coded’ characters – meaning the character isn’t officially autistic, however, they show a lot of the characteristics of the neurodevelopmental disorder.
“…it is never too late to understand yourself”
One character believed to be on the spectrum is Gordon, who also appears in Thomas & Friends. One specific fan delved deep into all the reasons they think Gordon is autistic, and they presented very detailed and persuasive points. It would be great to see Gordon get a diagnosis because it would demonstrate that it is never too late to understand yourself and receive accommodations in order to unmask.
Representation Matters
A 2014 Campaign report revealed that over 20% of parents said their autistic child had been formally excluded. Findings also showed that 4 in 10 young people with autism were excluded informally.
“…stereotypes in the media have a huge impact”
Stereotypes in media have a huge impact on how we see and interact with each other. For this reason, it is important that young, impressionable minds have access to accurate portrayals of people with disabilities and neurodiversity’ in order to become well-rounded individuals who can navigate emotions and social interactions easily. This could also help to limit discrimination as much as possible.
After Australian singer, Sias’ Controversy it has become very clear that authentic representation is so important and anything less will not be tolerated any longer.
Developed By Fellow Persons’ with Autism
Christopher Keenan, the Senior Vice President and Executive Producer of Global Content Development at Mattel Inc., explained how it took significant “care and thought” to create Bruno as the character because Bruno will be representing an underrepresented community. This sentiment is validated in the fact that Bruno’s train number is 43, which is a nod to the year autism was first identified in 1943.
Another example of this is Mattel worked with organisations such as the Autistic Self Advocacy Network and the National Autistic Society UK who helped find a voice actor for the role. Nine-year-old actor Elliott Garcia, who voices Bruno, also has autism.
Garcia explained why Bruno is important to him by saying, “It is great that they are representing autistic characters because I watch the Thomas & Friends series and for there to be an autistic character makes me feel very happy and excited.”
“they will get insight and understanding into what it can be like to be autistic”
National Autistic Society’s Head of Guidance, Volunteering & Campaigns, Tom Purser, justified neuro-diverse characters in children’s TV further. He explained neurotypical children will also benefit from seeing an autistic character, as well as those without the disorder because they will “get insight and understanding into what it can be like to be autistic.”
Accurate Characterisation
Bruno is a witty brake car who is detail-orientated, enjoys schedules and is knowledgeable on the train tracks of Sodor. In the Autistic community, this would be known as a ‘special interest’.
“Bruno expresses himself through ‘strimming.'”
Also, like many people living with neuro-diversities, Bruno expresses his emotions through ‘stimming‘. He exercises his ladders and lantern in a repetitive motion, which helps him regulate his feelings and feel at ease. This is similar to biting nails, chewing the inside of your cheeks, clicking and unclicking pens as well as bobbing your knee up and down to soothe anxiety or stress.
For autistic people, the place in the brain that processes sound and pain is connected. Although nothing is happening physically, noise may be interpreted as painful. To combat this sensory overload, Bruno wears ear defenders which limit his hearing – hence protecting him from unnecessary pain.
Final Thoughts
As a child, I loved Thomas & Friends. I have a very vivid memory of sitting with my cousin in her bedroom, stocked out with Thomas memorabilia, waiting for her late grandad to play the VCR so that we could watch Thomas & Friends as we drift to sleep.
Growing up, I would have absolutely loved to have more diversity in characters. I would’ve found it easier to see a resemblance of myself in one of Thomas’ friends. It would’ve also helped me learn how to interact with different kinds of people in real life because it would give me the ability to connect them to a character that I experienced on TV.
In my opinion, it will be massively beneficial for today’s children to grow up with a character like Bruno. They will learn from an early age that everyone is different.
Featured image courtesy of Henry Burrows via Flickr. Image license found here. No changes have been made to this image.
