Festival in the Shire Interview

Seems to me he's on the defensive about the money he's charging; while at the same time going on the attack against collectors who he perceives as not seeing things his way. Thus bracing everyone concerned in case the event folds perhaps?

Onto another issue:

Q. - "Why did you decide to do this Tolkien festival in Wales?

A. - "Wales is where it all started."

Rot! (as North Polar Bear might say). The reason why Mr Faith wants to hold his event in Wales is because that's where he happens to live! (he also owns a few acres with 'bunkhouses' for tourists).

If Mr Faith had settled in Scotland, then doubtless the area he lived in would then become 'the heart of Tolkien Country' (as he named Macynlleth, the event's original venue).

The BBC news website has just put this up:
"Tolkien festival to recreate Middle Earth in mid Wales"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/10374622.stm

Apparently, "Mr Faith said Tolkien, as a boy, was fascinated with the Welsh place names he saw on a train journey from Birmingham to Aberystwyth."

- wellinghall

He said: "It wasn't an accident that I chose this part of Wales for the festival."

As I said earlier - I fancy that if Mr faith had chosen to settle in Scotland (or anywhere else in the British Isles) then that place -wherever it might be - would suddenly sprout a formerly unknown connection to Tolkien.

And, as I also noted; this venue was not Mr Faith's first choice; accident or not.

(some folk just enjoy making things up about Tolkien, esp. when there's money to be made.)

I agree the whole Wales line is simply Mark with his business hat on, rather than his collector hat; the kind of antics I would have thought he would have objected to, judging by some of his other comments. That said, some of what Mark says is true enough. Unfortunately for him though, as a book seller, he becomes part of the very problem he criticizes. Upon close examination, many of the books he sells are neither rare nor scarce; & are are not, in my opinion, 'worth' what he is charging for them.

I also dislike all this 'true' collector rubbish. In the field of Tolkien collecting, bargains are few and far between; & the ony hope most collectors have of acquiring anything like a rarity are on sites like eBay --where many sellers are unaware of what they are selling. Otherwise everything is expensive & overpriced. You can be as knowledgeable as you like, you ain't going to get anything 'rare' without hard cold cash.

BH

I also think the following comment by him is interesting (I think he has a point here):

I fear a complacency and constraint both due to the global economic environment and from increased fractionalisation from the different Tolkien interests and fan areas. There are too many clubs more interested in “their Tolkien” and not “our Tolkien”. There is a genuine fellowship within these clubs, which is charming, and I believe in, but in their desire to preserve the fellowship of their club, they create an unintentional atmosphere of elitism and exclusion to new comers. This will ultimately destroy and not preserve the future for Tolkien’s works, the essence in which all fans love.

For example, as a long time Tolkien book fan I resented the Lord of the rings Films being made. However, I now see had they not been made, Tolkien fandom and its essence were at risk of dying out one generation to the next. The films have opened the door to millions of new fans, but we have not provided a vehicle of learning and education to develop them as new fans or to perhaps inspire them to create their own interpretations of Tolkien’s great works. There are too many barriers with more going up and not coming down. Their needs to be a one-world Tolkien, but the prejudice must be broken down first.

>>There are too many clubs more interested in “their Tolkien” and not “our Tolkien”. There is a genuine fellowship within these clubs, which is charming, and I believe in, but in their desire to preserve the fellowship of their club, they create an unintentional atmosphere of elitism and exclusion to new comers.

I think that's nonsense - as regards the Tolkien Society anyway. I've been a member for years, and there is no air of elitism. Sounds like Mr Faith is using the old ploy of 'bigging up' his event by attempting to put down others. To my mind, the high ticket prices which Mr Faith is asking for this event might be seen as a form of exclusion.

>>For example, as a long time Tolkien book fan I resented the Lord of the rings Films being made. However, I now see had they not been made, Tolkien fandom and its essence were at risk of dying out one generation to the next.

On what does Mr Faith base this? The Lord of the Rings topped popularity polls four times between 1997 and 2000, without the aid of the movies. And even if 'fandom' were in danger, what grief would that be, ultimately? The novels of Sir Walter Scott were hugely popular in their day; now not so much. These things have a lifespan, and if they are genuinely loved they will last, with or without the hype of 'fandom'. As long as folk are genuinely interested in Tolkien and his writings, there'll be places like this site for us to go; new fans too. As for the Tolkien Society - we've been going for 40 years now (founded 1969). We're not on our last legs yet!

On another note - it seems to me that Mr Faith sets a lot of store in commercial success when it comes to book collecting. I was noodling around with some figures the other day - some time ago Mr Faith corrected the BBC- they'd said he was hoping for dozens of visitors; he said thousands. So, if we take it that the hoped for figure is, what, 2000? At £50.00 each, that would make a sales target of £100,000.

Whereas 2000 tickets at £260.00 would make for a little over half a million. Mr Faith has high hopes of this event - to my mind, taking swipes at folk might be shooting himself in the foot.