Michael G.R. Tolkien, poet, children’s fiction writer, and grandson of J.R.R. Tolkien has collaborated with Gerald Dickens, actor and great-grandson of Charles Dickens.
Tolkien is primarily a poet, having published six volumes of poetry in the past. But he was compelled to self-publish his first chidren’s book, Wish after it was turned down by several publishers in the USA and the UK. It is fashioned after the classic fantasy story, The Rose-Coloured Wish by Florence Bone.
According to The Guardian, Dickens entered the picture when Wish was being adapted for its audiobook edition. The Dickens descendant is an actor by trade. He has recorded audiobooks in the past, including ones authored by his famous great-grandfather, most notably Oliver Twist and the Pickwick Papers.
Tolkien explained: “I had heard [Gerald Dickens’] Dickens readings and felt he had great professional stature as an actor: a remarkable range of tones and shades of emphasis both in narrative and in dialogue. That he happened to be, like me, a direct descendant of a well-known literary figure was, I have to say, purely fortuitous.”
The last time news surfaced about Tolkien was when GalleyCat reported that Guillermo Del Toro was leaving the film production for the Hobbit. Del Toro could not deal with the ongoing delays considering that he already devoted two years without having so much as shot a scene. The film still retains Peter Jackson onboard as one of the screenplay writers and several Lord of the Rings actors are rumored to be reprising their roles including Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, and Hugo Weaving.