The first authorised adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 novel The Hobbit was a stage production by St. Margaret's School, Edinburgh in March 1953. Subsequently, The Hobbit has been adapted for a variety of media including stage, screen, radio, board games and video games.
Several of these adaptations have received critical recognition of their own, including a video game that won the Golden Joystick Award, a scenario of a war game that won an Origins Award, and an animated picture nominated for a Hugo Award.
Dramatisations
Film and television
The 1967 short animated film The Hobbit was the first film production of The Hobbit. It was directed by Gene Deitch in Czechoslovakia. American film producer William L. Snyder obtained the rights to the novel from the Tolkien estate very cheaply while it was still largely unknown, with the proviso that he produce a "full-colour film" by 30 June 1966, and immediately set about producing a feature-length film, with a screenplay by Deitch. The project fell through, but after the explosion in the novel's popularity, Snyder realized that his contract had not required the film to be of any length: he, therefore, instructed Deitch to create a 12-minute film based on his earlier work so that he could retain his rights. He later sold the rights for around $100,000 (not adjusted for inflation). The final project has very little to do with the source material. The Hobbit, an animated version of the story produced by Rankin/Bass, debuted as a television movie in the United States in 1977. Romeo Muller won a Peabody Award for the teleplay. The film was also nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, but lost to Star Wars.Kask, TJ. NBC's The Hobbit, Dragon Magazine, December 1977. The BBC children's television series Jackanory, for its 3000th programme, presented an adaptation of The Hobbit in 1979. It was narrated by Bernard Cribbins, Maurice Denham, Jan Francis and David Wood. Internet Movie Database: Jackanory, "The Hobbit" (1979) According to Wood, the release of the production on video has been repeatedly stopped by the Tolkien Estate.David Wood Guest Book at Stiles and Drewe A Soviet 1985 television play Сказочное путешествие мистера Бильбо Беггинса Хоббита ("The Fantastic Journey of the Hobbit Mr. Bilbo Baggins") aired on the Leningrad TV Channel. A 1991 unreleased Soviet-Russian cartoon Treasures under the mountain by Argus International studio (with English subtitles) The Finnish live-action television miniseries Hobitit, from 1993, is an adaptation of The Lord of the Rings rather than The Hobbit (although it shows a flashback to Bilbo's encounter with Gollum). The name, literally "The Hobbits", reflects the fact that it follows only the storyline of Frodo and Sam (large battles and other events were beyond the means of the relatively simple TV series). A live-action film version was announced on 18 December 2007, to be co-produced by MGM and New Line Cinema, and produced by The Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson. The narrative of the film was expanded and split over two parts. Guillermo del Toro was originally signed on to direct both parts but withdrew from the project in May 2010, leaving Jackson as director. It was announced on 22 October 2010, after months of speculation, that Martin Freeman would play Bilbo Baggins. The casting had been uncertain due to the unexpected success of the summer BBC adaptation of Sherlock and Freeman's subsequent filming commitments for the second series. Filming began on 21 March 2011. The adaptation includes a new character that did not appear in the original book, Tauriel, who is the head of the Elven guard, and played by Evangeline Lilly."Evangeline Lilly Reveals Her Fears About Her ‘Hobbit’ Character", Access Hollywood, 3 October 2011. On 30 July 2012, Jackson revealed that there would be a third Hobbit film due to there being so much unused material from Tolkien's novel and appendices. The third and final film in the Hobbit series was released in December 2014.
Radio
A BBC Home Service series in 1961, adapted and abridged by Barbara Henderson and read by David Davis in thirteen twenty minute episodes as part of their BBC Children's Hour programme. It is considered lost. A BBC Schools series in 1961, adapted and abridged by Sam Langdon under the Adventures in English banner in four twenty minute episodes. It is considered lost. A BBC Radio 4 series The Hobbit radio drama is an adaptation by Michael Kilgarriff, broadcast in eight parts (four total hours) from September to November 1968. It starred Anthony Jackson as narrator, Paul Daneman as Bilbo and Heron Carvic as Gandalf. The series was released on audio cassette in 1988 and on CD in 1997.Bramlett, Perry C. I Am in Fact a Hobbit: An Introduction to the Life and Works of J. R. R. Tolkien, Mercer University Press, 2003 p. 239 American radio station KPFK produced an unabridged reading of The Hobbit, broadcast in October 1968, narrated by Harold Innocent. The American radio theatre company The Mind's Eye produced an audio adaptation of The Hobbit which was broadcast on National Public Radio in 1979 and released on six one-hour audio cassettes. Hobbitten eller Ud og hjem igen, a Danish language reading by Ove Sprogøe for Danmarks Radio produced in the late 1970s. Music by Bo Hansson and Mike Oldfield. Der Hobbit, a German language radio drama was produced in 1980 by Westdeutscher Rundfunk. Voice actors included Martin Benrath as narrator, Horst Bollmann as Bilbo, Bernhard Minetti as Gandalf, and Jürgen von Manger as Gollum. Hobit aneb Cesta tam a zase zpátky, a Czech language 3-part radio drama produced in 1996 by Český rozhlas. Voice actors included Lubomír Lipský, Jaroslav Moučka, and many others. Script by Eva Košlerová, music by Petr Mandel, dramaturgy Ivan Hubač, directed by Jiří Horčička.http://zpravy.rozhlas.cz/praha/tyd_vysilani_sobota/_zprava/hobit-aneb-cesta-tam-a-zase-zpatky-14-dubna--1041608 Radio Zpravy Hobbitten, a Danish language retelling by Rune T. Kidde produced for Danmarks Radio in 1998. Music by The Tolkien Ensemble, Hedningarna, Sorten Muld and Kim Skovbye. A BBC Radio 5 series The Hobbit radio drama is an 15 part adaptation abridged by Brian Sibley, produced by Dickon Reed and read by Michael Hordern, first broadcast Monday 6th Jan 1992, 19:15 on Radio 5. Transmitted again on 4th Mar 1997 00:30, for BBC Radio 4 The Late Book.
Recordings
The Library of Congress, which produces recorded books exclusively for use by the blind or physically handicapped, has produced three recordings of The Hobbit. The first was on vinyl and read by Alan Haines.Library of Congress reference number TB 01654. The second was on 4-track tape and read by Bob Askey in 1978.Library of Congress reference number RC 11497. The third and most recent was on cassette and read by Carole Jordan Stewart in 2001.Library of Congress reference number RC 48978. The readings by Askey and Stewart are available for digital download by Library of Congress patrons.Library of Congress reference numbers DB 11497 and DB 48978 respectively. Nicol Williamson played over 20 different characters, each with a unique voice, in an adaptation directed by Harely Usill. Music by R.J. Stewart. This performance was released on four LP records in 1974 by Argo Records. Rob Inglis performed an unabridged reading of The Hobbit, for Recorded Books in 1990. It contains original music composed by Inglis and music written by Tolkien himself, and Claudia Howard of Recorded Books. Martin Shaw performed an abridged recording of The Hobbit in 1993 for HarperCollins. Andy Serkis, who played Gollum in Peter Jackson's movie versions of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, read and performed The Hobbit during the COVID-19 pandemic and raised more than £283,000 ($351,000) for charities NHS Charities Together and Best Beginnings. He called it "The Hobbitathon". Serkis then recorded a professional audiobook of the story for HarperCollins and Recorded Books.
Stage productions and musicals
The first authorized adaptation of The Hobbit appeared in March 1953, a stage production by St. Margaret's School, Edinburgh. American composer Lila Pradell (1932-2024) also adapted The Hobbit for theatre. A musical production, The Hobbit, was staged in 1967 at New College School in Oxford. It was scripted by Humphrey Carpenter, set to music by Paul Drayton and performed by members of the New College School choir. Among the cast were Simon Halsey and Martin Pickard. The audience included a young Howard Goodall and, on the last night, Tolkien himself."The Hobbit, the Musical", BBC Radio 4. accessed 4 August 2012. In 1968, J. R. R. Tolkien authorized playwright Patricia Gray's adaptation for the stage. This dramatization makes changes to the original plot, removing sections and giving Thorin the role of dragon-slayer, amongst other deviations.Ignatius, Jeff. Don't Mess With the Hobbit, on River City Reader, 6 July 2004. (retrieved 26 April 2008) Many productions of this version have been performed up to the present day. In 1972, The Hobbit was adapted by playwright Ruth Perry into "The Hobbit: a Musical", with score and lyrics by composer Allan Jay Friedman and lyricist David Rogers respectively. This musical was distributed by The Dramatic Publishing Company. Rob Inglis adapted and performed a one-man theatre play of The Hobbit. This performance led to him being asked to record the unabridged audio-book for The Lord of the Rings in 1990. A year later, he read the unabridged version of The Hobbit. The Manitoba Theatre for Young People commissioned playwright Kim Selody to adapt The Hobbit. His version premiered there in 1999. The play is only licensed to be performed in Canada.The Hobbit at Globe Theater Live Various productions have been reviewed as being "whimsical, wild and not too scary"Wilson, Lisa "The Hobbit is Hugely Entertaining" (review), Canoe.ca, 1 December 2001. retrieved 20 May 2008 and "not really that exciting".The Hobbit Media Coverage at Korda Productions Christine Anketell obtained the rights for The Hobbit. As CEO of Anketell Theatrical Productions she and Company Skylark produced a puppetry version that toured Australia in 1997. Christine Anketell was the director, Gilly McInnes the writer, Philip Millar the puppet designer, Mark Thompson the Set designer, Philip Lethlean as Lighting designer, Allan Zavod the Composer and Peter Wilson the Puppetry director. After the collapse of Company Skylark, Anketell Theatrical Productions with Malcolm C Cooke and Associates as Presenters remounted The Hobbit for an extended Australian tour from 1999 - 2000. The production featured 82 stringless Bunraku-style puppets that took about 6,000 hours to make. They were manipulated by 11 puppeteers, with Mike Bishop as Gandalf an actor in full costume. The production toured to outstanding reviews.
Games and toys
Board, war and role-playing games
The Hobbit has been the subject of several games of various kinds.
In the 1970s, TSR, Inc. released two editions of a war game based on The Battle of Five Armies, designed by Larry Smith, using cardboard tokens and a map of the area around the Lonely Mountain as the setting. The game was criticized for a lack of clarity in the rules, and praised for evoking the onslaught of the Warg and goblin army. Iron Crown Enterprises has produced several games based on The Hobbit: Coleman Charlon designed The Lonely Mountain (released in 1985), which features groups of adventurers entering Smaug's Lair to capture his treasure before he awakens. Also in 1985, Iron Crown Enterprises released its version of The Battle of Five Armies, developed by Richard H. Britton, Coleman Charlton, and John Crowell, again taking the theme of a war game and using card counters and a paper map.