Sir Steven Topham Hatt (born May 16, 1941) is the former "Fat Controller" of the North Western Railway. He held the position from 1984 to 2013.
Bio[]
Stephen was born on May 16, 1941 at Topham Hatt on the outskirts of Wellsworth. His parents were Charles Hatt (1914-1997) and Amanda croarie (1916) and his grandparents Bertram Hatt (1880-1956) lady Jane brown (1876-1960) whom would be known as Dowager Hatt after Bertram's death. Stephen and his sister Bridget were frequent visitors to the railway, which was run by their grandfather and father. The engines enjoyed their company, sometimes letting them ride in the cabs. When Stephen was 10 (1951), his grandfather Charles took him and Bridget on a trip to Arlesdale, where they met Toby the Tram Engine. They both rode in Henrietta for the duration of their trip. Stephen was very pleased when his grandfather brought Toby to the Ffarquhar branch line. In 1954, Stephen's father became the Fat Controller, and throughout his teenage years, Stephen helped with many small jobs on the railway. When he was around 22, Stephen became a steam engine driver, mostly driving Thomas or Percy. By 1967, he was driving Gordon with the express. He soon became an assistant manager, and then was given the role of "Fat Controller" in 1984 when his father retired. One of Stephen's first actions was to hold a celebration of the TV series based on his railway. That same time, he brought a diesel nicknamed "Old Stuck Up" on trial, who crashed through a shed and was sent away due to his attitude. Stephen's tenure saw massive improvement to the railway. Crovan's Gate was given a massive restoration and the Peel Godred Branch was bought by the NWR in 1987. However, not all of Stepen's tenure was productive. In 1998, a dislodged boulder destroyed a newly opened quarry near Peel Godred. Stephen decided not to reopen the quarry and the railway suffered a major loss. However, Stephen was very quick to come up with solutions and the loss had been accounted for in no time. Originally, Stephen was going to retire in 2014, which would mark 30 years. However, he decided to retire a year early, just shy of 29 years holding the position. His official retirement was on January 1, 2013 and his son Richard inherited the role.
Engines Acquired During Tenure[]
- Geoff the works diesel (1983)
- Old Stuck-Up (temporarily) (1984)
- Diesel (1987 and 1957)
- Wilbert (temporarily and re-acquired) (1993)
- Sheffield (1994)
- Derek (1998)
- Stepney (1998)
- Arry and Bert (1998)
- Lady (2000)
- Diesel 10 (2002)
- Splatter and dodge (2002)
- Salty (2002)
- Harvey (2002)
- Emily (2003)
- Arthur (2003)
- Murdoch (2003)
- Spencer (2003)
- Fergus (2003)
- Molly (2005)
- Neville (2005)
- Dennis (2005)
- Rosie (2006)
- Whiff (2007)
- Billy (2007)
- Stanley (2008)
- Hank (2008)
- Flora (2008)
- Hiro (2009)
- Victor (2009)
- Charlie (2009)
- Scruff (2010)
- Bash and dash (2010)
- Ferdinand (2010)
- Norman (2011)
- Paxton (2011)
- Sidney (2011)
- Den and dart (2011)
- Pip and Emma (visited twice purchased in 2011)
- Belle (2011)
- Flynn (2011)
- Winston (2012)
- Stafford (2012)
TV Appearance[]
Stephen always remained 10 years old. His first appearance as controller would be in season 8.