John Hasler (born 21 April 1974) is an English actor who is best known for playing T-Shirt in the children's television series T-Bag from 1985 to 1992, and for voicing Thomas in the UK dub of the children's television series Thomas & Friends from 2015 to 2021. Hasler was the only cast member on T-Bag to remain with the show for its entire television run, starting as a young boy and leaving as a teenager.
Career
Hasler began his career in the mid-1980s. He played T-Shirt, a prominent character in the T-Bag TV series, between 1985 and 1992, being the only character to star in all nine series and in all four Christmas specials.
He has appeared in Renford Rejects and Casualty and provided voices and additional dialogue replacement (ADR) for a number of film, radio and television productions. He also appeared for an old TV advert for Persil washing powder in the 1990s.
In 2012, he joined the voice cast of Fireman Sam as James Jones, taking over the role from Steven Kynman and Arnold McKinley.2
From August 2012 to February 2015, Hasler was cast in the United Kingdom tour of Disney's The Lion King, performing as the meerkat Timon.3
In 2015, he became the replacement voice actor of Thomas in the UK and Rheneas in the UK and US narrations of Thomas & Friends, replacing Ben Small after he left the show, until the series ended in 2021, however Hasler continues to voice him in Youtube shorts.4 He also voices the lead character Trafalgar on Teenage Fairytale Dropouts, protagonist "Toot" in Toot the Tiny Tugboat and Foz in Go Jetters.
In 2021, Hasler provided the British English voice of Hugo the Jungle Animal in all three films.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Breakout | Stephen | |
| 1998 | Vincent and Doug: Let's Do It | Vincent | Voice |
| 1999 | Vincent and Doug: The Movie | ||
| 2000 | Vincent and Doug 2 | ||
| 2011 | 10 Arenas of Marwood | Irving Clifford | |
| 2012 | Brave | Additional voices | |
| 2014 | Fireman Sam: Heroes of the Storm | Arnold McKinley, James Jones | UK voice |
| 2015 | Thomas & Friends: The Adventure Begins | Thomas | |
| Thomas & Friends: Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure | |||
| 2016 | Thomas & Friends: The Great Race | Thomas (UK)Rheneas | Voice; uncredited in the US |
| 2017 | Fireman Sam: Alien Alert | Arnold McKinley, James Jones | UK voice |
| Thomas & Friends: Journey Beyond Sodor | Thomas | ||
| 2018 | Thomas & Friends: Big World! Big Adventures! |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985–92 | T-Bag | T-Shirt | 94 episodes |
| 1991 | Doctor at the Top | Alec | 1 episode |
| 1994 | Harry's Mad | Access | Episode: "Mad Macaw" |
| Against All Odds | Paul Cheatle | Episode: "The Horse and His Boys" | |
| 1994–2002 | Vincent and Doug | Vincent | Voice; 22 episodes |
| 1995 | The Legends of Treasure Island | Jim Hawkins | Voice; 13 episodes (Series 2) |
| 2000 | Casualty | Lee Carter | Episode: "Not Waving But Drowning" |
| Renford Rejects | Jack | Episode: "Best Laid Plans" | |
| 2002–2004 | Heroes Delight | Vincent | Voice; 10 episodes |
| 2008 | Get Squiggling | All male characters | Voice |
| 2012–present | Fireman Sam | James Jones, Arnold McKinley | Main UK voice role |
| 2013–14 | Teenage Fairytale Dropouts | Trafalgar | Main voice role |
| 2014–2015 | Toot the Tiny Tugboat | Toot | Main voice role; 51 episodes |
| 2015–2021 | Thomas & Friends | Thomas / Narrator (UK)Rheneas (US) | Main voice role, succeeding Ben Small |
| Go Jetters | Foz | Main voice role | |
| 2019–present | Think about Lesson | Pet | Supporting voice role |
| YooHoo to the Rescue | YooHoo | UK dub5 | |
| 2019 | Thomas & Friends: Steam Team to the Rescue | Thomas / Narrator (UK) | Main voice role |
| Thomas & Friends: Digs and Discoveries (All Tracks Lead to Rome / Mines of Mystery) | |||
| Robozuna | Zeve, Superfan, Dr Naron | 1 episode6 | |
| 2020 | Thomas & Friends: The Royal Engine | Thomas / Narrator (UK) | Main voice role |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Vincent and Doug: The Video Game | Vincent | Voice |
| 1999 | Vincent and Doug: The Movie Game | Voice |
External links
References
"John Hasler – 5 Character Images". Behind The Voice Actors. https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/John-Hasler/ ↩
"John Hasler – Actor and Voiceover Artist". www.johnhasler.co.uk. Retrieved 27 June 2019. http://www.johnhasler.co.uk/ ↩
"The Lion King Roars Off On First-Ever U.K. Tour". Encore Tickets. Retrieved 27 June 2019. https://www.encoretickets.co.uk/news/the-lion-king-roars-off-on-first-ever-uk-tour ↩
"John Hasler – Actor and Voiceover Artist". www.johnhasler.co.uk. Retrieved 27 June 2019. http://www.johnhasler.co.uk/ ↩
"John Hasler – 5 Character Images". Behind The Voice Actors. https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/John-Hasler/ ↩
"John Hasler – 5 Character Images". Behind The Voice Actors. https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/John-Hasler/ ↩