The Fat Controller, whose real name is Sir Topham Hatt, is a fictional character in The Railway Series books written by Reverend W. Awdry and his son, Christopher Awdry. In the first two books in the series (The Three Railway Engines and Thomas the Tank Engine) he is known as The Fat Director, and as of the third book (James the Red Engine) he becomes The Fat Controller, as the railway has been nationalised. Sir Topham Hatt's full name is revealed in the foreword to the 1951 book Henry the Green Engine. The Fat Controller also appears in the television series Thomas & Friends, adapted from the books. On television, he was usually portrayed in the form of several different static figures made with either wood or lead during series one, and resin from series two onwards, but has been portrayed using CGI from the twelfth season onward. The term "fat controller" has since been adopted in various contexts in the English language, beyond the sphere of the original stories, usually in reference to someone who runs a railway. Origin of nickname The character is first seen in "The Sad Story of Henry" in the first book in the Railway Series, The Three Railway Engines. When Henry refused to leave a tunnel, the story says that "A fat director, who was on the train, told the guard to get a rope". The character is referred to as The Fat Controller from the third book, James the Red Engine, for the remainder of the Railway Series, due to the nationalisation of British Railways. The name Sir Topham Hatt is first mentioned in the foreword to Henry the Green Engine and also appears on his luggage trunk in the same book in the story "Percy and the Trousers". The first use of the name Sir Topham Hatt in the TV series comes in the episode 'The Sad Story of Henry' when the narrator (Ringo Starr in both US and UK versions and George Carlin in the second US version) introduces him to the audience. Biography (Railway Series) There have been three Fat Controllers. This is not revealed directly in the stories, as they all look very similar and are all known as Sir Topham Hatt. However, the books The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways (written by Rev. W. Awdry and George Awdry) and Sodor: Reading Between the Lines (by