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Today's Tolkien Times

The Prancing Pony Podcasttolkientimes.com
Get your Tolkien every day by subscribing to Today’s Tolkien Times! Alan Sisto, host of the award-winning Prancing Pony Podcast and Rings of Power Wrap-up, hosts a new short-format daily podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever else you get your podcasts! Listeners get answers on Mailbag Mondays; discover more about the Professor on Tolkien Tuesdays; indulge your inner philologist on Word-nerd Wednesdays; learn more about the familiar stories of Middle-earth on Third Age Thursdays; hear from Tolkien fans around the world on Fandom Fridays; and dive deep into Middle-earth history on Silmarillion Saturdays! And on Sundays? That’s what The Prancing Pony Podcast is for! So subscribe to Today’s Tolkien Times and follow us on all our social media channels!
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Episodes

Week 8 - Silmarillion Saturday: Trouble in Paradise

The Man of the West wraps up the first 8-week series of Today’s Tolkien Times by finishing the story of Aulë and Yavanna. Now that the Dwarves are a done deal, what does Aulë’s wife think? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 08, 202311 minSeason 1Ep. 48

Week 8 - Third Age Thursday: Antiquated Information

We rejoin Bilbo as he wraps up his chat with Smaug: something he should have done with four fewer words. But it’s not all bad: he’s caught Smaug monologuing! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 06, 202310 minSeason 1Ep. 46

Week 8 - Word-nerd Wednesday: The Bane of My Existence

A quick study of lingustic dilution: or how Modern English has taken a word meaning “a worker of death” and turned it into a word meaning “that’s annoying”. The Man of the West likely butchers multiple languages in today’s episode, but he’s trying. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 05, 20238 minSeason 1Ep. 45

Week 8 - Tolkien Tuesday: A Real Snorter

Alan wraps up this first series’ Tolkien Tuesdays with a last look at the pre-publication challenges Tolkien faced with The Lord of the Rings. Titles, maps, spoilers, and hobbit hospitality. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 04, 202311 minSeason 1Ep. 44

Week 8 - Mailbag Monday: Dragon Logistics

The Man of the West begins the week with a question about how Smaug might transport treasure. Claws like spears, sure… but what about opposable thumbs? Also, Monty Python. Because. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 03, 20239 minSeason 1Ep. 43

Week 7 - Silmarillion Saturday: Aulë, You’re Grounded

The Man of the West wraps up this week of Today’s Tolkien Times by beginning a two-part look at one of his favorite tales in The Silmarillion: Of Aulë and Yavanna. Can’t keep a secret from Ilúvatar. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 01, 202310 minSeason 1Ep. 42

Week 7 - Third Age Thursday: Bad Guys Always Have the Best Lines

The Man of the West embraces his inner villain with a fun reading of his second-favorite dragon in Middle-earth, as he begins a two-part passage in The Hobbit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 29, 202310 minSeason 1Ep. 40

Week 7 - Word-nerd Wednesday: Archaic and Derogatory — A Halfling at Heart

In today’s Word-nerd Wednesday, The Man of the West looks at the RPG industry’s favorite legal word for hobbit: “halfling”. Also, I’m still looking for tickets to Once Upon a Time in Proto-Germanic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 28, 20238 minSeason 1Ep. 39

Week 7 - Tolkien Tuesday: A Very Bad Time Indeed

A closer look at the conversation between Tolkien and Unwin regarding a problem Tolkien hadn’t had before: titles for all three volumes. Also, the Book of Mazarbul and maps. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 27, 20239 minSeason 1Ep. 38

Week 7 - Mailbag Monday: The State of the Show Address

The Man of the West starts out the week by answering some questions about Today’s Tolkien Times, including whether he’ll ever take time off or run out of stuff. Alliteration answers all. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 26, 20238 minSeason 1Ep. 37

Week 6 - Silmarillion Saturday: SPBMI Explained

The Man of the West wraps up this week’s Today’s Tolkien Times by reading from the Ainulindalë in The Silmarillion and explaining that weird acronym he keeps on using. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 24, 20239 minSeason 1Ep. 36

Week 6 - Fandom Friday: Magic Man, Magic Cards

The Obscure Lord of the Rings Facts Guy takes a few minutes away from TikTok to visit with The Man of the West on today’s Fandom Friday. And, with Magic: The Gathering’s LotR set dropping TODAY, who better to talk about it and show off some cards? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 23, 202317 minSeason 1Ep. 35

Week 6 - Third Age Thursday: Namarië!

The Man of the West concludes his time in Lórien by waving farewell to the Lord and Lady, and trying desperately to read Quenya like a boss. Diving into Tolkien’s notes helps us understand Galadriel’s Lament more deeply. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 22, 20239 minSeason 1Ep. 34

Week 6 - Tolkien Tuesday: You Want HOW Much for That Book?

The Man of the West continues to tell the story of how The Lord of the Rings finally got published: today, the issue of cost, and a decision by Rayner that I suspect he eventually regretted. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 20, 20238 minSeason 1Ep. 32

Week 5 - Silmarillion Saturday: Tuor Meets Ecthelion

The Man of the West returns to Unfinished Tales to complete the tale of Tour’s arrival to the Hidden Kingdom, as he meets Ecthelion, Lord of the Fountains. Tuor, that is — the Man of the West has never met Ecthelion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 17, 202311 minSeason 1Ep. 30

Week 5 - Fandom Friday: Silmarillieanne

The Man of the West welcome TikTok’s Silmarilleanne to Today’s Tolkien Times to chat about her lore videos, the Tolkien fandom, and cosplay — Star Trek might be mentioned. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 16, 202316 minSeason 1Ep. 29

Week 5 - Third Age Thursday: The Gifts of Galadriel, part 2

The Man of the West reads about Galadriel’s gift to Gimli, bringing to light a bit about Fëanor to help explain its significance. He also looks at her gift to Frodo, including the fastest version of the Eärendil story ever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 15, 202311 minSeason 1Ep. 28

Week 5 - Word-nerd Wednesday: A Fellowship of Philology

Join The Man of the West as he dives into Old English and Old Norse to explore this week’s word: fellowship. Quick question: how many times does the text refer to the Company as “the Fellowship of the Ring”? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 14, 20237 minSeason 1Ep. 27

Week 5 - Tolkien Tuesday: Don’t Drop the Ball

Tolkien is free to take The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion to another publisher: so what happened? How Collins dropped the ball for two years, as The Man of the West reads Carpenter’s biography to get more on the story. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 13, 20239 minSeason 1Ep. 26

Week 5 - Mailbag Monday: Reading Order for All Things Tolkien

Today’s Tolkien Times starts the week off with The Man of the West answering a question about the best order in which to read Tolkien: chronological, published, or only as I advise? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 12, 20238 minSeason 1Ep. 25

Week 4 - Silmarillion Saturday: Tuor and the Orfalch Echor

The Man of the West opens up Unfinished Tales for today’s Silmarillion Saturday, as we journey with Tuor through the first few gates of the Orfalch Echor! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 10, 202312 minSeason 1Ep. 24

Week 4 - Fandom Friday: A Long-Expected Guest

Today’s Tolkien Times welcomes the composer, musician, and engineer behind the incredible project, A Long-Expected Soundscape: Jordan Rannells! For 25% off the entire 3-volume collection, use code PPP25 at checkout at https://jordanrannells.com/soundscapes or use PPP10 for 10% off one title. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 09, 202319 minSeason 1Ep. 23

Week 4 - Word-nerd Wednesday: Tracking Down a Ranger

Track down another word in the wilderness by using all your tracking and hunting skills — because this Word-nerd Wednesday is all about the ‘ranger’! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 07, 20238 minSeason 1Ep. 21

Week 4 - Tolkien Tuesday: The Professor’s Ultimatum

It is 1950, and Tolkien is growing ever more frustrated with Rayner Unwin, thinking that he has another publisher ready to publish The Silmarillion on this week’s Tolkien Tuesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 06, 20239 minSeason 1Ep. 20

Week 4 - Mailbag Monday: When Was the Rammas Echor Really Built?

The Man of the West starts the week with Mailbag Monday and a question about the wall surrounding the Pelennor Fields: when was it built, and who was the steward who built it? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 05, 20239 minSeason 1Ep. 19
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