Oxford’s venerable and venerated Bodleian Libraries lecture scheduled for 28 March
This year’s Oxford Literary Festival offers something special for Tolkienists: a lecture and question-and-answer session with the co-editor and contributing authors of The Great Tales Never End: In Memory of Christopher Tolkien: Richard Ovenden, John Garth, and Stuart Lee.
Christopher Tolkien carried the legacy of his father, JRR Tolkien, for decades. With accomplishments like bringing The Silmarillion to publication, Christopher helmed the the 2nd generation of The Professor’s vision and lifelong passion, creating the stories of Middle-earth.
The Secret Fire burns brightly in today’s generation of Tolkien scholars! This trio, moderated by Oxford’s first Tolkien-studies PhD candidate, Grace Khuri, is bound to delight and intrigue.
What is The Silmarillion? Spend 45 minutes with Ms. Khuri listening to her outstanding podcast, What is the ‘Silmarillion’?, for a backgrounder on Tolkien himself, a walk through the ‘story,’ and a scholarly exploration of the many influences on Tolkien’s creation of this masterpiece.
Smith, killed by shrapnel near the end of WWI’s Battle of the Somme, was one of Tolkien’s closest friends from late childhood.
As an alumnus of Corpus Christi College, poet Smith may be best known for his work “A Spring Harvest,” and is a recognized influence in Tolkien’s life and writings. Tolkien and Smith were friends from King Edward’s School days and part of the tight-knit Tea Club and Barrovian Society.
Corpus Christi hosts this two-day series in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Professor’s passing, organized by Doug Anderson, Oronzo Cilli, and Beppe Pezzini. Confirmed speakers include John Garth, Grace Khuri, Mark Atherton, and many more.
Click here for lecture topics and further details, and here for more related reading (from 2016!) over at The Tolkien Society, including a link to “Tolkien’s Great War,” a halfling-sized documentary film published by King Edward’s School, Birmingham.
The saga of the most famousests of pubs for Tolkien enthusiasts continues!
Shuttered during the pandemic, it’s unclear what’s ahead for The Eagle and Child. However, according to this brief from BBC.com, the owners at St. John’s College are back to exploring options.
We’ve posted quite a bit over time about this Inkling’s hangout. Click here and here for some look-backs.
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
129 years ago today, in Bloemfontein Africa, a very special person came into the world: John Ronald Reuel Tolkien. Forty-five years later, in 1937, his book The Hobbit, was published which he had written for his children. Together with its sequel, The Lord of the Rings, it launched generations of readers on adventures through the invented world of Middle-earth; adventure that would impact many of us for the rest of our lives.
One of the greatest ways Tolkien has impacted many of our lives is through the friendships we’ve made from having read Tolkien’s books and/or watched Peter Jackson’s movies of the same. Tolkien himself made lifelong friendships as a result of his writing endeavors, sharing many a pint critiquing yet-unfinished works at the Eagle and Child pub in Oxford with friends C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and others. Today, countless discussion forums, websites, and clubs carry on the tradition of those discussions, sharing ideas about Tolkien and his writings with like-minded fans and, yes, dear friends.
Today, TORn celebrates life of J.R.R. Tolkien and the inspiration and friendships he has given us. To express our thanks, we’re continuing our theme of the day of Tolkien quotes, this time with quotes having to do with friendship from The Lord of the Rings:
“I name you Elf-friend, and may the stars shine upon the end of your road”
– Gildor to Frodo (The Fellowship of the Ring: Three is Company)
“You can trust us to stick to you, through thick and thin – to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours – closer than you keep it yourself. But you cannot trust us to let you face trouble alone, and go off without a word. We are your friends, Frodo.”
– Merry to Frodo (The Fellowship of the Ring:A Conspiracy Unmasked)
“Though all the mighty elf-friends of old, Hador and Hurin, and Turin, and Beren himself were assembled together your seat should be among them.”
– Elrond to Frodo (The Fellowship of the Ring:The Council of Elrond)
“You will meet many foes, some open, and some disguised; and you may find friends along your way when you least look for it.”
– Elrond to the Fellowship (The Fellowship of the Ring:The Ring Goes South)
“Twice blessed is help unlooked for, and never was a meeting of friends so joyful.
– Eomer to Aragorn (The Return of the King:The Battle of the Pelennor Fields)
“I wish we could have a Stone that we could see all our friends in and that we could speak to them from far away.”
In a People Magazine exclusive, the campaign to purchase the Tolkien estate has officially launched!
Lord of the Rings stars Sir Ian McKellen and John Rhys-Davies are embarking on another epic adventure.
Rather than crossing Middle Earth to battle the evil forces of Sauron, however, the British actors have joined a fellowship to save 20 Northmoor Road, the Oxford house in which J.R.R. Tolkien wrote The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, in advance of it being put on the market by realtors Breckon & Breckon.
The initiative, called Project Northmoor, starts crowdfunding on December 2 and hopes to raise $6 million to purchase the home and create a literary center in honor of Tolkien. It is also supported by The Hobbit star, Martin Freeman.
People.com 12/2/2020
You may notice a familiar face in the campaign video. Yes, that is in fact TheOneRing.net’s very own Quickbeam – Clifford Broadway!
TheOneRing.net lends their support to the effort – featuring Quickbeam!
If you are interested in supporting this monumental effort, lend your support visit Project Northmoor.
