Celtic Band, ‘The Border Collies’ had plans to release a CD taking the songs within the text of the LOTR and setting them and arranging them in a Celtic style, using their own orginal songs and tunes. However HarperCollins, Tolkien’s UK publisher has clamped down a “moratorium” on ALL new projects. According to thebordercollies.com, ‘[HarperCollins] sound final and indefinite in their correspondence.’ So sadly they have delayed the release of that CD. [More]
Category: Merchandise
This week there are plenty of DVD goodies for you to pick up. Take a look at the list below:
Garage Days
Martson Csokas stars in this comedy written and directed by Alex Proyas. The film focuses on a rock band trying to make it big in the music business. [Amazon.com] [Pre-Order on Amazon.co.uk]
13 Going On 30
Many fans were delighted to see Andy Serkis in a small role in this dramatic comedy starring Jennifer Garner. Take a look at this one for a bit of Andy without the CGI! [Amazon.com] [Amazon.co.uk Region 1 Available only]
Hidalgo
Viggo Mortensen stars in this underrated action adventure film. The film is a mix of Indiana Jones and Lawrence of Arabia, with sweeping vistas and plenty of gunfights and bare-knuckle fighting. Catch this one if you missed it in the theatre. [Hidalgo – Widescreen Edition] [Hidalgo – Full Screen Edition] [Amazon.co.uk]
Sliders – TV Series
John Rhys-Davies stars in this Sci-Fi show that follows a team of people who found a way to open gateways to another dimensions. However they are unable to get back home. Get seasons 1 and 2 in one box set! [Amazon.com] [Amazon.co.uk Region 1 Available only]
LadyGreenleaf writes: I watched a bit of the Antiques Roadshow UK just right now because there was nothing else to watch, and also because I love British accents and I wanted to listen to the people talk. I don’t usually watch the show, so I didn’t know exactly how it worked, but I have heard of it, and I knew enough to know what was going on. There was a man, who was the ‘expert’, and a lady, who was the guest, with a bunch of papers and a book.
The papers turned out to be letters from C.S. Lewis, that had apparantely been written to a family member of hers. There was a five-page handwritten one, and another one that was three pages long, but I didn’t see if it was handwritten or just typed. It was not shown exactly who they were addressed to, but both were ended with very kind, appreciative comments, which I didn’t understand clearly, followed by ‘Yours, CS Lewis’.
But that’s not the best part! They mentioned The Inklings, and the ‘Eagle and Child’, or ‘Bird and Baby’, so I knew that it must have something to do with Tolkien. And, of course, it did. The book turned out to be a copy of The Hobbit, and I just did a bit of research and although I couldn’t find the exact book, I did find a picture of the design that was on the cover (it’s the attachment), and I can tell you that it was hardcover, and a pale, sort of olive green colour, so maybe you know which one of the many it is. The man from the roadshow said that it didn’t have a dust jacket so it was quite dirty and the book itself didn’t excite him too much.
But what did excite him was a very good reason to get excited about! Inside the front cover was a postcard written by the author of the book himself!!! They even compared the script writing on the card to the one on the maps in the book, and you could clearly see that it was almost the exact same, the one on the maps a bit neater. The postcard was signed simply ‘JRRT’, and the man complimented the script, es pecially the ‘T’. After this, he said that the postcard from Tolkien was ‘very rare’, and that the letters from Lewis were ‘extremely rare’, and also that the postcard (or maybe the book and the postcard both, I’m not sure) would sell for 500 pounds. I live in Canada and have no idea how much that turns out to be in Canadian dollars, but the woman who owned the items looked quite surprised, and quite happy also, so my guess is it’s a lot.
All I know is that many people would be willing to pay many thousands of dollars to own something handwritten by JRR Tolkien. I was still in shock trying to figure out how that woman was able to get her hands on something so…. ‘precious’, to hear how much the letters by Lewis would sell for, but she was quite surprised by that too, so I’m guessing some other large amount of money. I tried to go on the Antiques Roadshow UK website when the show was over, to see if I could get all the details for you, but unfortunately there were none. I also do not know if this is a recent show, or if it is just a rerun shown in Canada. It was surprising nonetheless.

Billy Boyd and David Wenham sat down with AICN writer Quint and spoke about the ROTK Extended Edition disk and more! (Adult Content Warning) [More]
The Lord of the Rings – Event Exclusive Merchandise
Cards Inc. are please to announce that we will be attending The Fellowship Festival in celebration of The Lord of the Rings on the 28th – 30th of August at Alexanda Palace in London. Fans will have the opportunity to purchase products exclusively designed for the event. These products will only be available to purchase at The Fellowship Festival so book your tickets today to ensure that you don’t miss out.
Two exclusive edition collector plates will be available at the event ‘Gandalf the Grey’ and ‘Smeagol’. Both plates form part of the character plate series and are a must for those fans who wish to complete their collection.
There are also two lithographic artprints entitled ‘The Shire’ and ‘The Grey Havens’ available to buy, both of which have been produced in a limited edition of only 250 of each. Printed on high quality art paper, each print comes complete with a certificate of authenticity.
Fans will also have the opportunity to purchase exclusive merchandise featuring The Fellowship Festival including a baseball cap, T-shirt and mug. A full colour show brochure will also be available.
Look for more information about The Fellowship Festival or to purchase tickets on www.aaaevents.co.uk!
Mind you, TheOneRing.net will be giving away a pair of Silver Day Passes for the event (valued at £150 each) this friday, so stay tuned!

In the first of a series TheOneRing.net will start auctioning off some really interesting collectibles. First up: a signed 5×10 foot promotional banner for The Return of the King! Not for those with little space on their walls… Click on the picture below for more information!
