Some associate TheOneRing only with Peter Jackson films set in Middle-earth. It is always our pleasure to support fans and all the aspects of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien (except what you are selling on Ebay). Below is a press release sent by The Tolkien Society that we give to you just as it was sent to us. The Tolkien Society (UK edition) was founded in 1969, 30 years before TORn, and it is always a pleasure to alert people to its events. When we post these we can’t help but wish this was the year we would attend. Anyway, here is the release for events taking place this weekend. Spread the word!

“The Tolkien Society has teamed up with the Birmingham Tolkien Group to bring you the thirteenth Middle-earth Weekend this Saturday and Sunday in celebration of 75 years of The Hobbit.

Middle-earth Weekend takes place at Sarehole Mill in an area of Birmingham in which Tolkien grew up and which inspired his writings – the area is credited with inspiring Tolkien’s vision of The Shire and Hobbiton including Sandyman’s infamous Mill. This area has been designated as “The Shire Country Park” in Tolkien’s honour and the park covers the River Cole, Chinn Brook, Moseley Bog & the Dell, and the Dingles – all places J.R.R. Tolkien knew as a child when he lived just across from the mill pool.

Events this year include: mediaeval re-enactments, archery, live performances of excerpts from Tolkien’s works by Shire Productions, guided walks, poetry and music, our Tolkien tent with stalls of goodies, a climbing wall, our popular costume competition, face painting, dragons(!), and, of course, a working mill! It is a full menagerie of events for the whole family that will excite, entertain, amuse and inform. Continue reading “Tolkien Society celebrating 75 years of ‘Hobbit’ this weekend”

The artisans at Weta have introduced a new range of collectibles from The Lord of the Rings trilogy. These new collectibles are some of the coolest magnets you can ever collect. The announced magnets so far are: Bag End Door, The Green Dragon Sign, The Prancing Pony Sign, Red Book, No Admittance Sign, Hobbit Feet, Sting/Scabbard, and of course the Dark Lord Sauron. You can buy each magnet individually for $15 or in two sets of four for $60 each (Set 1 and Set 2). These items are in-stock and should ship very soon after order. Time to start decorating your fridge with The Lord of the Rings!

I never considered myself a tattoo guy.

Until now.

It started innocently enough. I wanted to commemorate what I considered no small achievement: reading all 12 volumes of the History of Middle-earth in one year. I made the pledge and started the trek in January of 2011, and managed to turn the last page in mid-December of that year. (I wrote about the experience here and here)

So what could I do to mark this considerable milestone?

I’d had every opportunity in my younger days to become one of the Inked. Lived with several bands, traveled around with all sorts of characters in a circus-like caravan for years before pretending to settle down and got a “real job”.

But never once did I feel the urge to get a tattoo. Big, small, cool or silly, it never crossed my mind as anything I would ever want to do. “How permanent!” “Do I really want everyone to see and judge me?” “Wouldn’t it affect my job or the impression customers and co-workers would get?” All of that crossed my mind, but not in any sort of huge, conflicting way. I just never wanted one.

So why, when searching for an appropriately Big Sign statement to mark the conclusion of my most recent Tolkienian Journey, was that one of the first things that came to mind?

Mayhap, as some have speculated (myself included), it’s a sort of midlife crisis, only instead of a Porsche I got some ink. (By the way – if this truly is the midpoint of my life, 50% gone and 50% still to come, I’ll take it, say thankee-sai.)

Others have said, simply, “I think he’s lost his mind…”

Possibly so.

Continue reading “Under My Skin: Externalizing Tolkien”

Don’t miss a chance to see Charlie Ross as he performs his ‘One Man Lord of the Rings’ at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, June 2nd 2012 (3pm or 8pm). We are thrilled to exclusively offer you 20% OFF the price of tickets when you use the code ‘ONERING.’ Follow the link below and enter the code during checkout, or call 1-888-go-njpac and mention the code to the ticket agent. If you are not familiar with the show:

The big-screen Lord of the Rings may have had greater financial resources, but Charles Ross’ one-man version has just as much energy! This comedic send-up of Tolkien’s epic fantasy shoehorns 11 hours and 23 minutes of film into a mind-blowing, 65-minute performance in which Ross portrays 42 characters — as well as the theme music and sound effects. “Charles Ross is a winning entertainment machine,” says The Washington Post.

This show has been universally praised by Ringers internationally, so we highly recommend checking it out. If you do go, please send in a report of your experience to spymaster @ theonering.net. [Buy Tickets]

This week’s TORn TUESDAY webcast will be coming to you live from New Zealand. Our own Cliff “Quickbeam” Broadway is in the country right now, and will be chatting with Kiwi actor and radio show host Bruce Hopkins.

Now, you probably know Bruce for his featured role in Peter Jackson’s, Lord Of The Rings film trilogy in the role of Gamling, commander of the armies of Rohan.

However before starting his acting career 23 years ago and riding off to save Middle-earth, Bruce had been at various times a professional dancer with companies such as Limbs Dance Co and Black Grace, and a commercial crayfisherman with his father Bill Hopkins, harvesting the packhorse crayfish off North Cape and Cape Reinga.

Tune into our show at 5pm PDT (that’s LA time folks — click here to see when it is in your city!), by clicking to our Live Event page. We have a built-in chat room (Barliman’s!) or come in via Skype in TheOneRing.net’s Stickam page.

Welcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the past week. If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch the highlights. Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions. Watch this space as every weekend we will spotlight the most popular buzz on TORn’s Message Boards. Everyone is welcome, so come on in and join in the fun!

Continue reading “TORn Message Boards Weekly Roundup – May 14, 2012”