New Autistic Character on Thomas & Friends

Thomas & Friends has introduced an autistic cast member, in a move that has pleased diversity advocates worldwide!

Introducing... Bruno the Brake Car!

Bruno is a brand new character, voiced by an autistic child actor. He's set to zoom around the famous Island of Sodor, joining Thomas the Tank Engine and his group of friends as part of Thomas & Friends: All Engines Go.

Mattel television, who produce Thomas & Friends, worked with the popular ASAN (Autistic Self Advocacy Network) and the National Autistic Society in order to produce an autistic character that was accurate, authentic and relatable to as many autistic individuals as possible.

Zoe Gross, Director of Advocacy at the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) said:

“The most important aspect of Bruno's development was getting autistic input throughout the process of creating the character and his interactions with his world. It was great to be able to contribute to that as part of a team of consultants from ASAN. Autistic people have been involved in all aspects of creating Bruno, from us as consultants to writers on the show and Bruno's voice actor—this makes Bruno ring true as an autistic character. I hope that Bruno will provide viewers with meaningful examples of inclusion in everyday life."

Bruno was introduced by Mattel as; "...a joyful, pun-making brake car who helps other trains keep heavy cargo loads stable and likes to stick to schedules."

When will we meet Bruno the Brake Car?

The USA will first meet Bruno on Monday the 12th of September, with the UK set to meet Bruno later on this month - there's no date confirmed yet but we'll update you all when we hear more. The USA version will be voiced by Chuck Smith from Toronto, Canada, and the UK version will be voiced by Elliott Garcia from Reading.

elliot-garcia-1

Elliott Garcia - image credit to the BBC

Elliott has shared his excitement at his new role as the UK voice of Bruno the Brake Car...

"Bruno is a Brake Car, and he is a new friend for Thomas and his friends, and he's also autistic, like me. He is funny, smart, and he's a very relaxed character. He can get really overwhelmed, he can get worried, and he uses comedy to get past situations.

He can flap his ladders to tell you if he's upset or if he's really excited, so he can use his items to show you how he's feeling. His ear defenders, I do relate to, because if there's a really loud noise, I can't cope. I can get quite worried about things, I have to think of new strategies, same as Bruno."

We LOVE Bruno already - this is such a great move towards neurodiversity inclusivity, because representation matters! It's even more important that a neurodivergent character is being voiced by an autistic person, as it makes the inclusion of an autistic character all the more authentic!

Our verdict...

We have a large number of neurodiverse mummies and daddies over in our online parenting community, as well as parents of neurodiverse children, so it's lovely to see a much-loved TV show representing autism in a positive and inclusive way. For those of you whose children have a classmate who is autistic, it could be a great idea to introduce them to Bruno as a way of explaining some of the struggles their peer may have, in a child-friendly and easily accessible way.

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