Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro invite you to a live internet chat about The Hobbit, to be held on May 24th. They want to answer your questions about the upcoming movies. To register for the chat as well as to submit your question(s), please go here. More information can be found if you click Read More.

May 14th is Cate Blanchett's birthday. She was born in Melbourne, Australia in 1969 and is 39 years old today. You can read Cate’s CoE bio here. There are pictures of Cate here and of Cate in the role of Galadriel here.

Many happy returns Cate.

For the month of May the CoE Store will be featuring a great addition to any LotR collection. The Trilogy Film Cell Presentation features mini posters from each of the movies along with hand picked original 35 mm film from the movies. This set is nicely framed and includes a titled and numbered nameplate. Also available in our collectibles section are individual movie film cell presentations. So stop by the CoE Store today.

John Rhys-Davies celebrates his 64th birthday today. John was born in Wiltshire, England, on the 5th of May, 1944. John's cast biography can be viewed here. You can view pictures of John here and pictures of John in the role of Gimli here.

Happy birthday John!

It's official: Ian McKellen will again take up the robes of Gandalf the Wizard in the cinematic adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy classic "The Hobbit," Empire recently reported. We can all breathe a sigh of relief now!

Starting at 23:30pm on 3rd May the BFI IMAX in London, UK, is showing all three of the Lord of the Rings movies. There are further details here.

For a chance to win tickets to the screening enter the prize draw here.

In an interview at mtv.com Guillermo Del Toro talks about his vision for The Hobbit movies including what the second movie is going to be about. He reveals that Andy Serkis, Ian McKellen, Howard Shore and John Howe will be involved and the thing he’s been most excited about are the spiders of Mirkwood

Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh along with executives from New Line Cinema and MGM have announced that Guillermo del Toro will direct The Hobbit movies. Peter and Fran said "We have long admired Guillermo's work and cannot think of a more inspired filmmaker to take the journey back to Middle-earth. We are delighted ‘The Hobbit' is in such trustworthy hands." You can read the full story here.

In an interview with IGN Guillermo Del Toro has revealed that a definitive answer regarding his involvement with The Hobbit movies will be, “coming in the next four or five days”. You can read the full story and watch a video of the interview with Del Toro here.

Andy Serkis celebrates his 44th birthday today. Andy was born on the 20th of April, 1964, in Ruslip Manor, England. You can view some pictures of Andy here and pictures of Andy as Gollum/Smeagol can be viewed here.

Happy birthday Andy!

Shadowfax from the LotR movies, (known as Blanco in real life), will be appearing with his trainer Cynthia Royal from April 25th to April 27th at Merrimount Morgans Stable in Wisconsin. Friday 25th will be a family night with clinics being held on 26th and 27th. There are further details here.

Today, April 17th, is Sean Bean's birthday. Sean was born in Sheffield, England in 1959 and is 49 today. You can view some pictures of Sean here, of Sean in the role of Boromir here and you can read his CoE cast bio here.

Happy birthday, Sean!

Day not going so well? Laugh it up in the Comics Section! We have a variety of original comics that are sure to tickle your funny bone. Remember to check out our newest comic strip, The Silma...What?! by 7hot_feanorians!

Perrott’s Folly in Edgbaston, UK, is said to have been Tolkien's inspiration for one of the Two Towers. Now open to the public you can take a trip up the tower. Reporter Graham Young relates his experiences of climbing the tower in this article at birminghammail.net

According to a recent Harris poll, the second favorite book of American men is Lord of the Rings. Women chose Gone with the Wind for their second pick. Find out the rest of the top ten at reuters.com.