On the 21^st of September 1937 J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit was published to universal and rapturous fanfare from critics and fantasy loving bookworms alike. Initially adapted from the bedside fairy-tales the author recited to his children, The Hobbit would go on to become one of the most enduring and widely loved works of fiction of all time. Tolkien’s first excursion into the realm of his own creation, Middle-earth, introduced readers to a mystical land entrenched in legend yet also exhibiting a painstakingly constructed sense of reality and historical depth. He drew intricate maps of stunning regions whilst establishing timelines in which races flourished through golden ages of prosperity only to descend into the ravages of war. The roots of family trees reached deep into the earth as sons and daughters were embittered by their forefather’s feuds and strengthened by inherited alliances. He built towering cities from their foundations up, whilst crafting complex languages, religions and cultural traits to accompany the many races inhabiting the kingdoms of his imagination. Now, upon its seventy-fifth anniversary, Tolkien’s debut novel will no longer solely reside upon the page but come to life upon cinema screens with a long-awaited trilogy of films – revealing to cinemagoers the origins of one of the greatest stories ever told…

This piece was originally published in Big Screen & Movie Magic magazines. Continue reading here