Cliff and Justin are welcoming a very special guest to TORn Tuesday today – and they’re going live at an earlier time than usual, so they can have Dwalin himself, aka Graham McTavish, join them at the Scum and Villainy Cantina!

Amongst the many topics the conversation will undoubtedly cover, McTavish will be revealing more about his upcoming directorial debut, horror comedy This Guest of Summer. McTavish has described the film as ‘The Wicker Man meets Withnail & I’, in the style of some of the more camp 1970s Hammer Horror films! Part of the funding for the movie is being raise by crowdfunder, and there are some amazing Hobbit related perks on the Indiegogo campaign. Weta artist Daniel Falconer is creating a new, original illustration of McTavish as Dwalin, which will be mounted and framed along with a golden coin from Smaug’s lair – taken from the set of the movie! This extraordinary, unique piece – which will of course be signed by Falconer and McTavish – could be yours, to hang on your wall and be the envy of your fellow fans!

There are also hardback editions of The Hobbit to be had – signed by McTavish, Adam Brown, Aidan Turner and Ian McKellen! Plus other items signed by Hobbit actors. The campaign only has FOUR days left to run, so head over there now and grab yourself an incredible collectible!

And tune in at 12noon PT today to see McTavish chatting with Cliff and Justin!

Games Workshop, Ltd. will be releasing a new game, Battle of Pelennor Fields, the first new boxed game in their Middle-earth line of tabletop miniatures games since their Escape from Goblin Town game in 2012, and their first self-contained Lord of the Rings product since 2005’s Mines of Moria.

 

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On Tuesday 28th August Graham McTavish sat down with Susan Damon from Sideshow Collectibles, to chat about all things geeky, and about his experiences playing some iconic roles. McTavish describes how, as a geek himself, he had to force himself to stay calm in moments such as knocking on a round, green door and watching it swing open, as he visited Bag End for the first time. He also discusses food fights in Bag End, and shooting the incredible barrels out of bond scene – and how good-looking dwarves often seem to come to a sticky end…

McTavish talked about Preacher, Lucifer, and his upcoming directorial debut, ‘This Guest of Summer‘. The movie, which will co-star fellow ‘dwarves’ Dean O’Gorman and Adam Brown, is being partially financed by crowdfunding. Fans may want to check out the Indiegogo campaign, here – there are some amazing perks to be claimed, including the chance to visit Hobbiton in NZ with McTavish himself!

And here’s the delightful 35 minute interview.

Newsweek:  J.R.R. Tolkien – Celebrating the Professor’s Greatest Creations [Media Lab Publishing] is on newsstands and store check-out lanes now.

This is a beautiful, high-quality, glossy 100-page issue full of articles, information on both books and films, and many full-page photos.  A wonderful collectible opening with an introduction by Shaun Gunner, Chair of the Tolkien Society.

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One of my favorite pieces from Comic-Con 2018 was the amazing Balrog bust that showed up Saturday of the show. I got to see this piece up close both as what you can order now and a pre-prototype. I have to say that I very much prefer what fans will be able to order. The clear resin flames that light up are so freaking cool and well done. Our friends at Weta Workshop have done a superb job of using the right paints to make sure these look just right, which is tough when you go for the clear resin on flames. Jamie Beswarick as usual knocks the overall sculpt of the Balrog out of the park and as a fan of the character I love his work on this creature. Fans can order this piece right now for $699 and with an edition size of 888 he won’t be around too long. As a bonus fans won’t have to wait too long to get him as he’s due to ship in November of this year.
Continue reading “Collecting The Precious – Weta Workshop’s Balrog, Flame of Udun Bust Pre-Order”

One of the new Mini Epics revealed at Comic-Con 2018 last month was my favorite creature within Middle-earth The Balrog. This guy has had me mesmerized ever since I saw it on the big screen, when I first saw The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. I’ve got several collectibles of him in my collection and when it was pointed out that they had this one for sale at the show, I had to have him.

You can get the Balrog for $99 and depending on where you have him shipped from, can get him shipped right now. He’s a massive piece, quite heavy, and super well done. Added with the very cool anime style of this line, its another great piece from our friends at Weta Workshop. Also joining the review as a special guest, is a Mini Epic of the Ring-bearer himself. Frodo Baggins.
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