The Thomas the Tank Engine IP has been valued at £1bn (US$1.57bn, €1.38bn), 70 years on from the publication of the first book by Reverend W Awdry.

Since its creation in 1945, Thomas the Tank Engine has gone from a series of children's books, to a television series, to a movie, to a number of attractions worldwide, with the brand visible in more than 120 countries.

In the attractions realm, Drayton Manor recently spent £2.5m (US$3.9m, €3.4m) expanding its Thomas Land attraction, which has gone from strength-to-strength since its launch in 2008. Plans are also in the works for a Thomas theme park in Massachusetts, US, while the IP has been touted as “key” to the survival of heritage railways worldwide.

“No fortune teller could ever have predicted how Thomas would come to be loved by so many all around the world,” said Britt Allcroft, the producer who brought Thomas to television. “Thomas’s is a magical world and my one wish is to meet every child for whom the stories have meant so much. He’s grown into a phenomenon.”