The Bird and Baby Inn and the Tolkien Connexion

The Bird and Baby Inn is the first entry in my blog that seeks to highlight interesting sights and hidden references to Tolkien's work off the beaten path in Lord of the Rings Online

     The Bird and Baby Inn, in Michel Delving, is the site of a quest given by Carlo Blagrove (33.3s, 75.4w) who sends you to find a prize-winning recipe so he can enter a contest. You can find the recipe at the Great Smials in Tuckborough (33.6s, 71.1w) and upon returning it, Blagrove will reward you with a tankard of Blagrove’s Brown Ale, your coin and xp.

     Take a sip of your ale and wander into a back room where you will come upon three hobbits in a room furnished with several bookcases having a discussion. This scene was inspired by Tolkien’s real life book club, The Inkling’s Literary Discussion group, which regularly met at The Eagle and Child Tavern, in Oxford, England. The Inklings here include C.S. Lewis (Jack Lewisdown), Owen Barfield (Owen Farfield) and Charles Williams (Carlo Williams), who were some of the regular members who would meet to read and discuss each other’s writing, focusing primarily on fantasy writing. The NPCs mention a character named Ronald Dwale, who represents J.R.R. Tolkien, whose middle name was Ronald.

by Gabriele^ on 2015-07-07 04:44:05