Old Special Reports | Lord of the Rings & Tolkien News - TheOneRing.net Fan Community, since 1999

The complete Fellowship of the Ring Cardlist! [More]

Complete Fellowship of the Ring Spoiler List! [More]

The Essential Magic team had the opportunity last week to play the new Lord of the Rings trading card game (which releases November 6th). The game is made by Decipher (makers of the Star Trek and Star Wars line of CCGs) and is based on the upcoming Lord of the Rings movie (in theaters December 19) which is of course based upon the books by J.R.R. Tolkien. [More]

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That estimable journal The Sunday Telegraph [UK?] reported here that Auckland, New Zealand was planning to rename itself ‘Middle Earth’ the week the LOTR films were released. Most other papers have reported that Wellington was the city hoping to rename itself while throwing the biggest whopper party to celebrate the release of the film.

I rang both city councils and they confirmed that if anyone’s going to be called ‘Middle-earth’ it ain’t Aucklan. We don’t get a lot of LOTR news in Auckland. LOTR is regarded as a merely Wellington local-interest news item in Auckland, which is a city that probably wouldn’t notice if Wellington invented an interstellar drive powered by cold fusion, installed a spindizzy and went round the solar system, other than to note that the Reserve Bank had been out of action for a week. Certainly LOTR-mania (as the Sunday Telegraph called it) doesn’t get this far north very often.

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Last week my casual mention to Wellington’s Evening Post newspaper concerning LOTR-fan-based tours round NZ caused an unexpected media frenzy. At a time when countless bits of LOTR-related news and interviews are available, I had little idea that that Red Carpet Tours’ plans could make such an impact internationally. Since then I and my colleague on the tour venture, Vic James, have been interviewed by everybody from the BBC to Radio Pacific. If the degree of worldwide media interest in these tours is any measure of the kind of public interest we can expect to see, then we’re onto something. I expect the media do know their listeners, or they’d be out of business, so we ARE onto something.

The media attention (and requests for bookings) have caught us rather unprepared – months of planning and preparation are behind us and we have most pieces of the jigsaw puzzle sorted out, but there is still a good deal to be done before we have a complete tour package to offer to fans. Meanwhile, we’re registering expressions of interest via this flash new “newzealandonvideo” tourism information site. Look for the ‘New Zealand Film Tours’ pic on the right and click on it to contact Red Carpet Tours

The website is full of other good reasons to visit NZ too! [More]

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I recently had the opportunity, at Dragon*Con in Atlanta, to see the complete line of Royal Selangor’s Lord of the Rings pewterware. Their LOTR collection consists of pewter goblets, chess sets and shot glasses. Recently, they launched their new LOTR shot glasses/chess set. This new and exciting collection can be purchased as a complete chess set that is enhanced by using dark liqueur to represent the “evil” side and clear liqueur to represent the “good” side, (handicap chess) – inspiring a game of true wit and sheer bliss!

Also new to the line are wonderful miniature goblets, exact replicas of the full size goblets, tailored for those interested in fine LOTR collectibles. These goblets stand 4″ in height and are of the exquisite quality for which we’ve come to know Royal Selangor.

Royal Selangor is a manufacturer of more than 1000 pewter items. In fact, they are also the official licensee for Tolkien’s LOTR pewter merchandise. The largest and one of the oldest pewter houses in the world, with over 115 years of experience, they have garnered international recognition for their quality of design and excellence in craftsmanship. Their brand name can be found in over 20 countries worldwide, which further re-enforces their commitment to producing a superior product. Harrods of London, Myer of Australia, Mitsukoshi of Japan and Hudson’s Bay of Canada are but a few of the distinguished retailers that carry the Royal Selangor brand.

To see their full line of merchandise, visit their [website].

U.S. customers placing an order can avoid international duties by e-mailing Royal Selangor USA.

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AFP – New Zealand is seeing multi-million-dollar signs as the first film based on JRR Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy premiers, media reported.

The New Line Cinema series made by New Zealand’s Peter Jackson was filmed for more than four years around here and is to premier in London on December 10.

But a rather grumpy farmer, who provided the land for “Hobbiton”, is not about to open his farm gate.

“One thing you can be sure of, I certainly won’t be letting people … on to the farm,” Matamata farmer Ian Alexander told the Waikato Times daily.

“I don’t want tribes of people visiting the farm 24 hours, seven days a week.”

Tolkien’s classic has inspired hard-core followers and during the filming Jackson was obliged to hire extensive security and impose fierce secrecy deals.

New Zealand is used to cult movie followers.

“The Piano”, which took the Palme d’Or at Cannes and three Oscars, has attracted thousands to the beach it was shot at — despite the movie having been mostly of rain and mud.

Indian filmmakers, who have begun flocking to the Southern Alps for scenes showing the hero and heroine singing and cavorting on hillsides, are helping boost New Zealand’s tourism.

“Lord of the Rings”, starring Elijah Wood, Sir Ian McKellen and Liv Tyler, is being touted as several magnitudes greater than all that.

The Evening Post in Wellington last week reported Prime Minister Helen Clark has designated a cabinet minister “Lord and Minister of the Rings”. Energy Minister Pete Hodgson will co-ordinated a multi- million dollar package to cash in on new Zealand’s connection.

This sort of interest has led to some Auckland travel operators and Tolkien fans forming a company, Red Carpet Tours, to cater solely to Rings junkies.

Red Carpet Tours chief executive Vic James, who runs another Auckland-based company, said international interest in the project was so big he had approached dedicated Rings fan Erica Challis to help him and two others set up and develop a tour around New Zealand.

“We have got heaps of replies and interest from people who want to come from all over the world,” Challis said.

The films were shot over a wide area of New Zealand, including Matamata, Tongariro National Park and in Wellington in the North Island, as well as Queenstown (also popular with the Bombay film industry) and Methven, near Christchurch.

The castle sets on Mount Somers near Methven have tended to become the icon for the project here with its bare plains in the foreground and towering Southern Alps behind it.

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