This weekend, Saturday April 14 at 6.00pm EDT, Hall of Fire returns to our chapter-by-chapter read-through and discussion of Fellowship of The Ring.
“Flee them! Speak no words to them! They are deadly. Ask no more of me. But my heart forbodes that, ere all is ended, you, Frodo son of Drogo will know much more of these fell things than Gildor Inglorion.”
FoTR Book 1, Chapter 3: Three is Company
Gandalf warns Frodo he must leave the Shire soon. Yet Frodo is reluctant, delaying the sale of Bag End to the Sackville-Bagginses and his departure (purportedly back to Buckland) for several months.
It proves a fateful decision.
When Gandalf is drawn away to investigate disturbing rumours, Frodo is forced to set out with only Pippin and Sam for company. Mysterious and frightening riders garbed in black dog his footsteps, and only a chance encounter with a travelling company of High Elves saves Frodo from a confrontation.
Who are these mysterious and fell riders? Why is Gildor so cagey about them? What conclusions (if any!) can we draw from the fact that they disappear when the elves draw near? And should the elves have done more for Frodo?
And what of Frodo’s and Gandalf’s long delay? Why does Gandalf allow Frodo to wait so long? And is it reckless or unwise of Gandalf to leave Frodo alone with such a great burden when he knows that danger is drawing ever-nearer?
Whether you’re a first-time reader of Tolkien, a first-time chatter who’s never visited TORn’s chatrooms, or an experienced hand who was with us when we began our first read-through back in 2001, we’d love you to join us. (Be prepared for a few spoilers along the way, though!)
So join us this Saturday at 6pm EDT (New York time) when we’ll discuss all this and much more as we continue our Fellowship of the Ring read-through!
Time zone conversions
Not sure what time the chat will be where you are? Check this little conversion table out for some help. Alternatively, head to Time and Date.
America:
6.00pm EDT (New York)
5.00pm CDT (Chicago)
4.00pm MDT (Denver)
3.00pm PDT (Los Angeles)
Europe:
10.00pm GMT (London)
11.00pm CET (Paris)
Midnight EET (Helsinki)
Asia-Pacific
8.00am AEST (Sunday) Brisbane,
9.00am AEDT (Sunday) Sydney, Melbourne
11.00am NZDT (Sunday) Wellington
How long do your topic chats go for?
Our chats usually last 45 mins to an hour, and are very newbie friendly. Simply drop in and join the conversation! However, our main room, #theonering.net is open 24 hours a day. We don’t always talk Tolkien there, but if you have a burning question, you’ll usually find one or two of “the regulars” up for a chat!
Where — connection details
Chat happens on #thehalloffire on irc.theonering.net — the TORn IRC server. You can connect instantly via our embedded Mibbit client that works inside your web browser.
Alternatively, you can install a dedicated chat program such as mIRC on your computer and just plug in the following connection details.
Server: irc.theonering.net
Port: 6667
Channel: #thehalloffire
