104. The REAL War of the Rohirrim, According to Tolkien

This poem, Noel, was written by J.R.R. Tolkien before The Hobbit was published, and only just discovered in 2013. Here’s how that happened! In 2013, Tolkien scholars Wayne Hammond and Christina Scull ...

25 Dec 20240s

We all had high hopes when War of the Rohirrim was announced a few years ago–particularly since it was attached to Philippa Boyen, screenwriter of the original trilogy. So, Michael and I went out this...

24 Dec 20241h 9min

Once Tolkien finished writing The Lord of the Rings, it became clear to him that The Hobbit needed to change–particularly Bilbo and Gollum’s interaction in chapter 5, “Riddles in the Dark”.  But what ...

17 Dec 20240s

The 2nd half of “Riddles in the Dark” is the most rewritten part of The Hobbit in the 1951 rewrite!  And it’s where Bilbo takes a giant leap (so to speak) into the future of his adventure. In this epi...

10 Dec 20240s

“Riddles in the Dark” is not only the most memorable event from all of Middle-earth — it’s also the turning point that ultimately led to The Lord of the Rings.  In this episode we look at: Tolkien’s ...

26 Nov 202451min

The goblins of Moria grab the dwarves (and Hobbit) who decided to camp out on their “front porch”, leading to some real terrifying moments! Does Gandalf use gunpowder? How Tolkien subcreates his worl...

19 Nov 202446min

The first part of Chapter 4, Over Hill and Under Hill, is unique for it’s direct correlation with Tolkien’s own past.  We discuss: Tolkien’s hiking experience and how it influenced this section of Th...

12 Nov 20240s

When Tolkien attempted to rewrite the Hobbit in 1960, he just gave up halfway through Chapter 3. In this episode we look at: Changes in time and distance Changes in Prose and style Why he gave up His...

5 Nov 202445min