懂阴帝

懂阴帝 based author Helen Cross visits one of Tolkien’s homes near Moseley Bog and Sarehole Mill and tells how these locations left a lasting impression on the young Tolkien. Actor Phil Lovell discusses the live performances which take place each year in Moseley Bog, where actors present extracts from The Hobbit amongst the locations where Tolkien played as a child. Brian Gambles from the Library of 懂阴帝 talks about the city’s considerable influence on Tolkien’s writings.

Video Transcription

Helen Cross

My name is Helen Cross and I'm an author living in 懂阴帝, and I'm standing here on a very wet and dreary December day on Wake Green Road, in south 懂阴帝 outside 264 Wake Green Road, which is where Tolkien lived as a small boy and where much of his interest in Hobbiton began.

As an author I think your location you live in as a child stays with you forever it becomes almost like the dreamscape of your mind that you return to when your thinking creatively and Tolkien talked very much about his childhood being the leaf mulch of the mind which is where creative imagination and inspiration comes from, and he talked in great detail about how this area had provided much rich inspiration for him all his life.

It's a very built up area around here now but when Tolkien was a boy looking out of his house you would see directly across rolling fields to Sarehole Mill, which was pretty much unchanged from it is today and was an area where Tolkien and his brother would enjoy playing and behind the house was Moseley Bog. He would also make trips to the Lickey Hills, ride all the way there, he obviously loved being out in the countryside and exploring with his brother.

It's very touching actually to see that there are still places that have been inspired by Tolkien's work just up to the left is the Hungry Hobbit Cafe and there's little things that if Tolkien were to walk down here today he'd be amazed to see how his influence had spread around the area.

Phil Lovell

My name is Phil Lovell, we're in Moseley bog which is one of the playgrounds of the young Tolkien. We present, extracts from The Hobbit in locations that J.R.R. Tolkien would have played and where he got the inspiration from and when we first came to do this we had a look round and it was very obvious that some parts were indeed, there was Weathertop, you can see where Weathertop is, and you can see where some of the delicate parts of the Shire are, and you're just in his realm and it's a fascinating place.