'Antiques Roadshow' guest stunned to find single-sheet 'Lord Of The Rings' letter is worth £10k

Katie Archer
·Contributor
·2-min read

Watch: Antiques Roadshow guest shocked by Tolkien letter value

An Antiques Roadshow guest got some shocking news about the value of an old letter from Lord Of The Rings author JRR Tolkien when it was valued at £10,000.

In Sunday night's episode, contributor Charles brought along a letter he had received from Tolkien that he had received aged 14.

Read more: Kanye West's teenage artwork appears on US Antiques Roadshow

Charles had written to the author in runes after translating the runes on the cover of his book, and got a response telling him that his use of the language was "correct and readable".

The letter was on just a single sheet of paper, with the torn envelope it arrived in, and Charles couldn't believe it when the BBC programme's book expert Clive Farahar told him he would value the correspondence at £10,000.

He said: "Good lord. I'm astonished."

Programme Name: Antiques Roadshow - S43 - TX: 25/04/2021 - Episode: Antiques Roadshow - S43 - Bodnant Garden 2 (No. n/a) - Picture Shows: CLIVE FARAHAR WITH A LETTER FROM JRR TOLKIEN, BODNANT GARDEN - (C) BBC - Photographer: Pamela Parkes
Clive Farahar valued the letter. (BBC/Pamela Parkes)

Farahar told him: "I think it is the top of Tolkien letters. It’s extremely good. Considering the value of the item. I think it’s worth about £10,000."

However, while it was welcome news, Charles isn't about to cash in the letter any time soon.

Tolkien died in 1973 and the letter is a treasured possession.

<p>As a young boy this Antiques Roadshow guest wrote a letter to JRR Tolkien, the writer of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. Now the response he received from the acclaimed Middle Earth creator is worth a huge sum of money.</p> <p><em>Antiques Roadshow</em> / BBC One / BBC iPlayer</p>
The JRR Tolkien letter. (Antiques Roadshow/BBC One/BBC iPlayer)

The surprised guest said: "I regard it as a family treasure. Since it’s addressed to me and has my name on it, I would not dream of selling it. It’s a sort of My Precious.”

The most valuable item to appear on Antiques Roadshow was in 2008, when an employee of Gateshead Council brought along the final maquette of the Angel of the North that the Antony Gormley sculpture was approved from. It was valued at around £1m.

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