100_0413Sean Robinson has two passions that have recently found their way together in a most amazing fashion. Sean discovered his passion for pottery in 2007 – a hobby that sprang from his love of several different arts. He is also a huge fan of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien – a love, I think, we can all appreciate. Working from his pottery studio in Jamestown, NC, Sean spends his free time crafting many fine objects.

Most recently, his works have taken on the form of some very recognizable objects
from the lands of Middle-earth. It began in the most unexpected way for Sean – with
his father, Bill Robinson, indulging him in his appreciation for Tolkien’s stories. This
took the form of some intricately constructed wooden signs as seen in Peter Jackson’s films – one for The Prancing Pony in Bree, and the other for The Green Dragon in the Shire.

I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down with Sean and ask him about his work and how his father’s projects led to a collaboration in creating other artifacts from the world of Professor Tolkien. Continue reading “Father and son’s craftwork inspired by Middle-earth”

AUJ Booklet 1
The following comes to us courtesy of TheHutt, chief editor of Henneth-Annun.ru.


After Warner Brothers finally released the Extended Edition of The
Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
on DVD and Blu-ray, several reviewers pointed out one unfortunate thing about the release. Although it was obvious that Warner Brothers made some effort as far as the packaging
of the Extended Edition was concerned, there was a total absence of a booklet of any kind. That was rather annoying, as the stylish booklets included with The Lord of the Rings Special Extended Editions were just the cherry on the top – not only did they feature some nice sketches by Alan Lee and John Howe, but also provided useful information: the chapter list (along with new/extended chapter markings), as well as a navigation path through the intricate bonus menu system. Continue reading “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Booklet”

During the crazy week of the world premiere of “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” we received all kinds of emails telling us that Weta Workshop had put up another amazing display in the Wellington Airport. We are big fans of the workshop and they have been great to help TheOneRing in various times and places. Our organizations are pals. But with everything going on in Los Angeles, we just didn’t have the time among our volunteer staff to post.

Now however, we have this pretty amazing video to share that hasn’t aged a day and is every bit as interesting as ever. It is enough to make us want to grab a plane to Wellington. Sir Richard Taylor, workshop supervisor Rob Giles and the rest of the gang show how they managed to put giant eagles in the beautiful airport.

Enjoy the magicians from the workshop.

HobbitDOSCoin1a4In conjunction with last weeks release of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug our friends at Weta Workshop have released several new products that tie-in to this newest part of the trilogy. These latest products range from commemorative pins for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, No Admittance Sign, to your very own piece of Smaugs Gold Coin. These fantastic items will make a fine addition to any Middle-earth collection. All of these items are in-stock so order today and they will be on their way!

Here’s the full list of the new items from Weta:

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Commemorative Pin $11

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Commemorative Pin $11

No Admittance Sign Prop Replica $15

Smaug’s Treasure Coin #1 of 5 $8

Elves of Mirkwood T-Shirt $30

Bilbo with Sting

I know some people are not happy with The Desolation of Smaug.  I’ll start my review by saying that I have read The Hobbit yearly since 1973.  I’ve read The Lord of the Rings yearly since 1971.  I love the books and the stories.  I also love Peter Jackson’s telling of those tales.  So when I went to see a double-feature of The Hobbit to include AUJ and a midnight, first-time viewing of DOS, I went without the book as my expectation and eager for the adventure into Middle-earth as only Peter Jackson, Philippa Boyens and Fran Walsh can serve.  I was not disappointed!

Continue reading “grammaboodawg’s Review of ‘The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’”

Thanks to all who entered our competition to win the complete set of new Hobbit publications from Harper Collins. We had thousands of entries – but alas, only four people could win, picked at random from all the correct answers. Congratulations to Karen in America, Asimakis in Greece, Liudmila in Russia and Teresa in America!

Continue reading “Harper Collins competition – winners!”