The Hobbit

An international contingent of 200 fans of the Hobbit movies jetted into Wellington yesterday to be the first to watch the final episode of the film trilogy. Audio

Playwright and Tolkien scholar Noble Smith believes everything you need to know about how to live a good life can be learned from hobbits. Cherish good food, a warm bed, a good night's sleep, and… Audio

Over the last few years William Kircher been getting up at 3am every day and spending hours in the makeup department at Stone Street Studios in Miramar getting an axe embedded in his skull. Then the… Audio

Waikato University is a stone's throw from Hobbiton, making it the natural home of an international online research project into what people really think about the first of Sir Peter Jackson's Hobbit… Audio

The implications of the Ombudsman report on the Government's handling of the industrial action surrounding 'The Hobbit'. Audio

Gail Pittaway's been reading the beautifully illustrated and photographed, behind-the-scenes, tome of The Hobbit movie's artwork by Weta Workshop. HarperCollins are the publisher. Audio

When Royd Tolkien was nine years old, he started reading a book that sat in the bookshelf at his family farm in Wales. That book was 'The Hobbit' and the boy is the great-grandson of its author JRR… Audio

US entertainment attorney Jonathan Handel looks back on the attempt to unionise NZ actors on The Hobbit and how it became a national crisis. Jonathan Handel is an entertainment attorney and Hollywood… Audio

Sir Peter's Jackson's latest film, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, will premiere in Wellington tomorrow - the first in Warner Brother's $660 million production of JRR Tolkien's fantasy novel. The… Audio

Author Corey Olsen is an Assistant Professor of English at Washington College in Maryland. His new book reveals secrets and insights into 'The Hobbit', which he hopes everyone will fall in love with… Audio

When 'The Hobbit' makes its journey into theatres in December, Peter Jackson doesn't want it to just look like Middle Earth, he wants it to sound like Middle Earth too. 'The Hobbit - An Unexpected… Audio

Jay Rei has just returned from two years working in another world, and he never had to leave New Zealand. He spent his days in Middle Earth, setting up the lights and the green screens for Peter… Audio

General manager of Shire Tours, Russell Alexander: a big day for Hobbit fans as the start date for filming is announced and Sir Peter Jackson goes into partnership with the company that runs tours of… Audio

Many of us read The Hobbit as children, and then let the enchanting story of Bilbo Bagins and his adventures fade from our memories. J.R.R. Tolkien wrote The Hobbit in 1937 and it hasn't been out of… Audio

With Mike Gould - Employment lawyer who represented Lord of the Rings model maker James Bryson in his legal case over whether he was an employee or a contractor. Jane Latimer - Employment lawyer. Audio

Should the government change labour laws to keep The Hobbit in New Zealand? With Paul Roth - Employment law specialist at Otago University. Audio

With the Hobbit saga continuing we attempt to get some actual facts into the discussion. We hear from Robyn Malcolm of the NZ Actors Equity, expat NZ actor and agent Holly Shanahan and crew members… Audio

Dave Brown gives us a technician's and crew perspective on the unfolding drama. Audio

Council of Trade Unions President Helen Kelly, who's been involved in the complex negotiations on the film production, gives Nine to Noon her perspective. Audio

Co-producers and co-writers of the latest Tolkien movie production The Hobbit, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens join Nine to Noon to elucidate their perspective on the latest turns in the Middle Earth… Audio