In the Flying Scotsman, a bicycle plays a major role as a tool to preserve individuality in the face of authority and mental illness. Here are 10 other bikes on film that could have been nominated for a supporting role.
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
In a scene that has the unfortunate side effect of associating the most benign mode of transportation with utmost evil, Dorothy looks out the window of her tornado-spun house to see the sinister Miss Gulch on a bicycle transforming into the Wicked Witch of the East on a broomstick.
The Bicycle Thief (1949)
The stolen bicycle in this most famous example of Neorealist Italian cinema represents not only the loss of two wheels to get around on - it's a symbol of dashed hope, stymied ambition and a failure to uphold one's moral standards. That'll teach you to buy a better chain next time.
Breaking Away (1979)
Five years before Revenge of the Nerds, a group a townie kids use a bike race to show up a bunch of arrogant jocks.
E.T. (1982)
People are said to fly on their bikes, but Elliott actually does fly on his - past the moon, no less - in the iconic scene that was reproduced on a million posters. The dirt bikes in this film also allow Elliott and his friends to escape and humiliate the figures of authority who want to dissect their green friend.
BMX Bandits (1983)
This Australian children's movie features three kids getting chased by bank robbers Down Under on their dirt bikes. It's just a run-of-the-mill PG action flick, but it goes down in history for introducing the world to Nicole Kidman, 15 years old and in her debut role, Australian accent still intact.
Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985)
In Tim Burton's first big hit, child man Pee-wee Herman (Paul Reubens) searches for his lost bicycle, sending him on a journey that includes a ride from a dead trucker, singing rounds with a hobo and the famous bar-top dance to Tequila - you know, all the usual coming-of-age tropes.
Quicksilver (1986)
Kevin Bacon plays a failed stockbroker who regains his confidence by becoming a bike courier, flying through the streets of New York on his Raleigh 10-speed. The disappointed parents of bicycle messengers worldwide can thank Bacon for making the profession look not only viable, but "rad."
Il Postino (1994)
An Italian fisherman learns the ways of love and poetry while delivering mail to exiled Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. The fact of his naiveté in romantic matters is delivered by his daily arrival on a bicycle.
Life Is Beautiful (1997)
Roberto Benigni's ode to the resilience of innocence begins with his character Guido gallivanting around town on his bike - the perfect vehicle for romantic slapstick humour, it turns out, as he crashes and literally falls in love.
The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005)
In the cataclysmic climax of this comedy, Steve Carell's character races on his bike to tell the woman he loves that he's a virgin, all to the soundtrack of Asia's Heat of the Moment. It's an ironic gesture - I'm talking about dramatic irony here - because of course a grown man without a car is a virgin.