Editing Ivor the Engine (section)

==Background==
Having produced the live ''Alexander the Mouse'',{{efn-lr|Paper puppets, moved by magnets and filmed in real-time.}} and the [[stop motion]] animated ''The Journey of Master Ho''{{sfn|Postgate, Seeing Things|pages=203–204}} for his employers [[Associated Rediffusion]]/[[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] in partnership with Firmin, Oliver Postgate and his partner set up Smallfilms in a disused cow shed at Firmin's home in [[Blean]], near Canterbury, Kent.<ref name="CliveBanks">{{cite web|url=http://www.clivebanks.co.uk/Oliverpostgateinterview.htm|title=An interview with Oliver Postgate|publisher=Clive Banks|date=March 2005|access-date=2008-12-09}}</ref>

''Ivor the Engine'' was Smallfilms' first production, and drew inspiration from Postgate's World War II encounter with [[Welsh people|Welshman]] Denzyl Ellis, a former [[fireman (locomotive)|railway locomotive fireman]] with the [[Royal Scot (train)|Royal Scot]] [[train]],<ref name="CliveBanks"/> who described how [[steam engine]]s came to life when you spent time steaming them up in the morning. Postgate decided to locate the story to [[North Wales]], as it was more inspirational than the flat terrain of the English Midlands.<ref name="CliveBanks"/> The story lines drew heavily on, and were influenced by, the works of [[South Wales]] poet [[Dylan Thomas]].<ref name="Guard1">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2008/dec/09/oliver-postgate-bagpuss-clangers-ivor-the-engine|title=Bagpuss creator Oliver Postgate in his own words|date=2008-12-09|work=The Guardian|access-date=2008-12-09}}</ref>