# The grumpy genius behind Lord of the Rings

An episode of [Late Night Live - Separate stories podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/319622422), 7 Oct 2026, 27 min.

Audio: https://mediacore-live-production.akamaized.net/audio/02/p7/Z/8j.mp3

J.R.R. Tolkien created one of the most intoxicating imaginative worlds of the 20th century, but the man behind Middle-earth remains surprisingly elusive. A deeply religious, conservative Oxford academic, Tolkien was also an obsessive inventor of languages, myths and imaginary histories. • Guest: DJ Taylor, author of The King under the Mountain • Producer: Ali Benton

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