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

[davem]

Originally Posted by Gwathagor

I, like davem, have been listening to the series for a long time. While some of the voices sounded funny at first (e.g. Aragorn, Black Riders, etc.), I don't even think about it anymore. They sound completely natural to me now.
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This series is very much comfort listening to me. I heard the original broadcasts of 26 half hour episodes back in 1981, then the repeats about a year later, when they'd been re-edited into 13 hour long episodes. I've probably listened to this adaptation as many times as I've read the book, & in a way I see them as complimentary. I'd feel as lost without these cd's to hand as I would if I didn't have the book. I even hear the actors', & especially the Narrator's, voices when I read the book. I remember getting the Radio Times (that's the cover picture in my first post) & reading the article on the series. Sadly that copy has long since disappeared . The artist is Eric Fraser (who, btw, illustrated the Folio Society editions of LotR & TH) - one of the many individuals involved in the production who has since passed away - along with Robert Stephens (Aragorn), Michael Hordern (Gandalf), Peter Woodthorpe (Gollum), John Le Mesurier (Bilbo), Simon Cadell (Celeborn) , Jack May (Theoden) & Stephen Oliver the composer - & possibly others I don't know of....

BTW, I don't know if anyone else has spent a whole day listening to the series all the way through - I've done it twice, & I have to say its a wonderful experience, beginning the Quest in the morning, & ending with Sam's return to Bag End at night.