Fireman Samuel "Sam" Jones[1] is the title character of the series. He is a senior firefighter for the Pontypandy Fire Service. He is a competent and brave firefighter, who helps keep the people of Pontypandy safe. He considers his job to be 'the best job in the world' and often helps out in emergencies even on his days off. However, he does have an inventive streak which sometimes gets him in trouble when one of his inventions goes haywire: since the sixth series, he has stopped inventing, though he can be creative from time to time, such as fashioning a barbecue out of an oil drum in the episode Sausages vs. Shrimps. He has been a mascot for British fire services used to promote fire safety to children.[2] In the original series, he lives alone in Pontypandy and his niece and nephew Sarah and James. He mostly drives the fire engine Jupiter, which can hold himself, Elvis, and Station officer Steele (and Penny, sometimes). Has been based on the Bedford TK, later 6x4, then the Volvo FL6 or MAN fire engine. In addition, he has a quad bike called Mercury, as it can be used in situations where other larger vehicles wouldn't be able to reach quickly.
Firefighter Elvis Cridlington is a firefighter in Pontypandy and the station mess manager. He is sort of Sam's sidekick and learns skills from Sam. He enjoys cooking and playing guitar.[3]
Station Officer (Fire Captain in the US dub of the CGI series) Basil Steele (Norris Steele in the CGI series) is the officer in charge of Pontypandy Fire Station.[4] He has a rail fire engine called Bessie and a mobile command unit.
Firefighter Penny Morris was the only female firefighter from 1990 to 2015.[5] Originally from Newtown, Penny moved to Pontypandy in Series 3. She is a trained lifeguard and certified scuba diver. She has a rescue tender called Venus, as currently based on a greatly modified Mini Cooper, and formerly a Range Rover Carmichael Commando.
Firefighter Ellie Phillips is a firefighter in Pontypandy. Like Penny, she is a keen athlete and will stop at nothing to accomplish a task
Firefighter Arnold McKinley is a firefighter in Pontypandy, he is an expert in technology and is often found in the office working on the computer