Microphones in Middle-earth...the BBC Lord of the Rings

[davem]

Originally Posted by zxcvbn

A question; how many adaptations of LOTR did the BBC make? I believe there was another made in Tolkien's lifetime. It seems the good Professor didn't like it much(he was criticising it in the Letters of JRRT).

There have been two BBC adaptations. The first (which Tolkien didn't like) was in 1955 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lor...adio_series%29 ). The second, from 1981 - which we're discussing here - he obviously wouldn't have gotten to hear, but knowing his attitude to adaptations of his work he probably wouldn't have liked this one either! As I stated, Christopher approved the scripts, but whether he liked (or even heard) the adaptation I don't know. What I can say is that those who have heard it consider it to be the best adaptation of the book yet produced.

There's also another radio adaptation, made for American Public Radio in 1979 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lor...adio_series%29, which I haven't heard, but doesn't have a good rep - though it did include Bombadil/Barrow Downs. As I stated earlier, Sibley adapted the Bombadil/Barrow Downs episode seperately some years after this one as an hour long drama, using different actors (but with Michael Hordern who plays Gandalf in this adaptation) as the Narrator. What some who dislike Bombadil may find surprising is how effective the episode is when presented dramatically.