An RA viewer's perspective from 33°0'S of the equator ..... AKA "the other side of the planet"

Fire at Marlborough Mills location - 2011 not 2012 as I originally thought! Preparation for FanstRA3

Starting my research for posts for the upcoming FanstRAvaganza 3 in March, I have been looking into the locations used for North & South. The exterior shots for the Mill and the Thornton's house (above) were filmed at Dalton Mills in Keighley, Yorkshire. You can see the building and courtyard in the third image on the site's Workshop/Industrial Space page.

Browsing through a google search an hour or so ago, I was upset to find an article in the BBC News dated 2nd January stating that some of the Mill buildings had been partially destroyed by fire.  It was only on reflection that I realised the date was 2011 and not 2012! A post on the Dalton Mills website written on January 12th 2011, mentions that the fire affected  a relatively small section of the mill, and the Workshop/Industrial Space (used in N&S) had been undamaged. Interestingly, the site was up for auction in December 2010. I discovered this article  on the auction with a picture of RA as John Thornton. There are a number of forums featuring more recent photos of Dalton Mills, sadly many of the interiors look derelict, but another article in BBC news December 2011, states that despite the fire (thought to be caused by copper thieves), the current owners are renovating the site.

Thanks to Bccmee over at Richard Armitage Vids & Graphics for banner

BBC Classic Drama Collection: North & South - casting Richard Armitage.

 

BBC's North and South was broadcast in Australia on Saturday 8th May 2005 on ABC 2. Promotion reads as follows: 

 "Politics meets passion in the BBC’s dramatisation of the Elizabeth Gaskell 

(Wives and Daughters)classic novel, North and South. The four-part drama 

is set against the backdrop of Victorian England’s industrial north. The cast 

includes  DanielaDenby-Ashe, Richard Armitage and Pauline Quirke."  

Starts 7.30pm Saturday 8 May

In March/April 2008, Australian news-agents stocked the BBC Classic Drama DVD Collection featuring the adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell's novel, North and South. The collection contained both DVDs and magazines with features related to the series.

  

       

  

Following is the feature entitled "A Northern Tale - The Story behind Richard Armitage's casting as mill owner Mr Thornton".

Richard Armitage and Daniela Denby-Ashe in BBC's North and South

FanstRAvaganza 3 is coming!

With thanks to the amazing Bccmee over at Richard Armitage Vids & Graphics for the amazing graphics!

WHEN: March 12-18, 2012.

FACEBOOK LINK: https://www.facebook.com/FanstRAvaganza 

FOLLOW #FanstRA on twitter

This blog will be one of the anchor blogs for the event.

INVITATIONS to participate are going out as I write this. If you have not been contacted and would like to join us please contact Servitus over at Me+Richard

HISTORY of the FANSTRAVAGANZA: The Fanstravaganza was first proposed and started by Nat over at RichardArmitageFanblog in 2010 with seven participating blogs. We each chose a subject and conducted polls, fan interviews, and fan-made creations all based around the work of Richard Armitage. In 2011, the FanstRA grew to 17 participating blogs, and this year, while there will be seven anchor blogs, we hope that many might join us in hosting one or two posts relating to the work of Richard Armitage.

IMPORTANT NOTE: We are not talking about this Richard Armitage:

 

(although I'm sure he has had some memorable moments in his career .... )

No, we are talking about this one .........  

 

The anchor blogs are as follows:

1. RAFrenzy:   "RAFrenzy"
2. Servetus:    "me + richard armitage"
3. Judiang:     "Confessions of a Watcher"
4. CDoart:       "CDoart: Richard Armitage & History & Spooks"
5. Nat:            "Richard Armitage Fan Blog"
6. Traxy:         "The Squeee"
7. Bccmee:       Richard Armitage Vids & Graphics
8. This blog.

This year I am hoping to look into some "behind the scenes" topics relating to RA's career such as locations of the various works he has been in, props he has used, and preparations he has made to bring some of his characters to life for us onscreen. 

New interview with RA on MTV site - The evolution from Actor/Person to Thorin Oakenshield, Son of Thrain, Son of Thrór, King Under the Mountain.

I'm very late in posting but I wanted to acknowledge the latest interview with Richard Armitage on the MTV site.

FROM THIS:

TO THIS:

What is learnt of Thorin from the texts:

"Your own ideas are those of a King, Thorin Oakenshield; but your kingdom is gone. If it is to be restored, which I doubt, it must be from small beginnings. Far away from here , I wonder if you fully realise the strength of a great Dragon. But that is not all: there is a Shadow growing fast in the world far more terrible. They will help one another.

.... Open war would be quite useless; and anyway it is impossible for you to arrange it. You will have to try something simpler and yet bolder, indeed something desperate." (Gandalf. "Unfinished Tales" p 429-30. J. R. R. Tolkien).

THE BACKSTORY.

From reading The Hobbit, and also his backstory in "Unfinished Tales" and the Appendices of Return of the King, the character of Thorin evolves for us as follows:

1. As a young lad he was witness to the invasion of his home, Erebor, and the massacre of many of his kin.
2. He was courageous and a good fighter as has been seen in the battle of Azanulbizar where he gained his name "Oakenshied"
3. He lived most of his formative years in exile with his father and grandfather.
4. He lost both his grandfather and father in tragic circumstances. Both had been killed attempting to reclaim their heritage, birthright and wealth which had been taken from them.
5. When Thorin became heir of Durin's line after the death of is father, he was still relatively young for a dwarf. He was a dwarf in exile but despite this, he managed to build a home for his people in Ered Luin, west of Eriador. Many of Durin's  folk who were wanderers learned of Thorin's halls and decided to join him. His people prospered and were comfortable but they continued to remember and sing of the good days of Erebor. 
6. Thorin was hard working, and traded successfully with the people of Eriador. He was considered a "great dwarf of proud bearing". He never forgot his noble heritage and became more dissatisfied with his peoples' situation in exile as the years went by. He felt a strong sense of injustice on behalf of  his people, and a sense of duty to restore them to the Lonely Mountain by defeating Smaug, the dragon. Through this defeat, he would reclaim Erebor and the treasure of his forefathers; and avenge the wrongs brought on his House.
7. He is angry ........

"The years lengthened. The embers in the heart of Thorin grew hot again, as he brooded on the wrongs of his House and the vengeance upon the Dragon that he had inherited. He thought of weapons and armies and alliances, as his great hammer rang in his forge; but the armies were dispersed and the alliances broken and the axes of his people were few; and a great anger without hope burned him as he smote the red iron on the anvil."J.R.R. Tolkien: "Return of the King Appendix A: III: Durin's Folk" p 358.

As I mentioned in a previous post, interviews with Richard Armitage have been few and far between over the past 12 months. I guess he takes the confidentiality surrounding the movies extremely seriously. This is a good thing I think as it will make what we see when Unexpected Journey is released all the more special. I think we will be impatient to see the sequel, "The Hobbit:There and back Again" just as we were impatient to see the Two Towers and Return of the King after watching Fellowship of the Ring.

The MTV phone interview was a treat (apart from the occasional word used that made me cringe i.e. "gotten" - surely RA never said that! Perhaps this grammar snobbery comes from my British/Australian background). I hate being interviewed, but I would imagine it would be so much harder by phone long distance. Grammatical errors can be excused in this case I think.

The points in the interview that stood out for me (I have not managed to read any posts about it yet, so what I have to say is quite possibly repetitive to the reader).

1. RA is clearly enjoying, and making the most of, the experience. (Who wouldn't?). 
2. He is appreciative of the sets and designs, Peter Jackson's vision, and the country that is a temporary home (or will it be a place he returns to once this is all over?).
3. He appreciates Tolkien and knows the text. Guaranteed he has read his way through the Appendices of ROTK, Unfinished Tales, probably The Silmarillion and parts of the History of Middle earth just to get a grip on who his character is, and what background he has come from. 
4. He lives his character as soon as his costume is on. This will make Thorin come alive for us as viewers.
5. He enjoys the ensemble environment, he gives the impression of enjoying team work and the company of his fellow actors. He is no primadonna. I liked this comment:

"There's great camaraderie among all the guys. There is such a diversity of culture and background. We're working with a lot of Kiwis, and there's real mixture of British actors who come from television and theater and film. It's exactly as the dwarves are. When Thorin assembles the quest, he pulls dwarves from all different places to go on this quest. That's mirrored in who we are as actors." Richard Armitage - MTV

Interesting point - all the dwarves have come from Ered Luin, but as refugees, they have varied backgrounds. I doubt if we will get to see the Halls of Ered Luin, but I have to wonder what they might have been like.

Clearly, Richard Armitage's Thorin will not be an archetypal gnome-like character with a long white beard seen in many illustrations - he will be a noble, brave, warrior leader, and an angry, displaced King, as portrayed in much of the original text, and later texts written by Tolkien. (See appendices of ROTK and Unfinished Tales)

Filming recommences at the end of January/first week of February it seems. This speculation is based on the comments made in the media by RA and other actors such as Benedict Cumberbatch, Stephen Fry, Martin Freeman.  

There are now 346 days left until the release of 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' in Australian cinemas.

Bid for a Visit to The Hobbit Set, Meet Sir Peter Jackson, lunch with Cast and Crew

Ok ...... confession time ... How many little consortiums in the Tolkien/Hobbit/RA world are there joining together to bid for this special treat? The "Stars Come Out Christmas Charity Auction".

Money is being raised for "Medicine Mondiale" and there are a host of auctions including this one:

“Top Secret” extraordinary chance for two people to visit the closed set of the filming of The Hobbit in Wellington. It includes lunch with the cast and crew and a meeting with Sir Peter Jackson. Because of the confidential nature of the filming, this is a rare once in a lifetime opportunity."  Auction on the Trademe site.

There are conditions however:

1. NO PHOTOGRAPHY

2. NON DISCLOSURE AND CONFIDENTIALITY AGREEMENT

3. Date of visit has to be between February 6th and June 30th 2012.

So .... if any of you go, you can't tell us about it. But wow, this is a once in a lifetime event!

One small factor ..... the cost: As I write this, the bid is up to $5250. Bidding closes on January 9th.

The winning bid for this auction was $14490.

"A Single Dream" - youtube video from Weta Workshop

Two hours ago, Weta Workshop tweeted.

wetaworkshop   

Happy New Year 2012 !!! And what a big year it is going to be !youtube.com/watch?v=T3Kbrf… fb.me/ENw8B1Ok

The links will take you to a wonderful video they have made to celebrate 2012. In it you will see glimpses of the master craftsmen at work creating props/costumes/models for many of their movies including The Hobbit. Enjoy!

Weta Workshop - "A SIngle Dream"

 

From Weta Workshop at http:/www.wetanz.com/

On the road from Christchurch to Dunedin

Continuing on our journey through New Zealand ........ (totally oblivious to the fact that The Hobbit cast and crew were travelling only a few days behind us).  

------------------------------------------

Once leaving Christchurch bus station (whose office was a container with a portaloo), we hit the road in an Intercity bus headed for Dunedin. As I write this, Christchurch has been experiencing more tremors, so our thoughts are with the residents over there. 

The trip to Dunedin took about four or five hours, but as we left early in the morning, we arrived in Dunedin with enough time to walk around and also take a tour out to the Albatross nesting sites on the Otago Peninsula. 

While the Maori people were the first to establish settlements in the area, Dunedin city was founded by free settlers from Scotland and England. The cool wet weather reminded them of home. Driving out to the Otago Peninsula I was actually reminded of northern Scotland .... there were even dry stone walls dividing some of the paddocks.

I've picked out a few photos of the trip down to Dunedin. It was extremely cold, with snow falling south of Dunedin and across to Queenstown. As you can see from the photos, we are rather partial to snow capped mountains as we don't see them very often here. 

Looking towards Aoraki/Mt Cook national park area

First Presbyterian Church of Otago.

Octagon city centre

Otago Peninsula and Royal Albatross Centre.

Dunedin was one place that I never imagined The Hobbit cast and crew would go to, but I was completely incorrect. They arrived about three days after we left. I'm not sure whether they were using it as a base for filming in the local environs. 

Many thanks to RichardArmitageNet.com for screencapping The Hobbit filming location map for South Island from Peter Jackson's Producyion video #5.... the video went way too fast for me to pause. Dunedin is just peeping up at the bottom of the page.

Screencap from RichardArmitageNet.com

Timeline of The Hobbit shoot to date (with RA additions). Updates for December

Following is an excerpt from my Thorin blog of the production timeline for The Hobbit for December. For the entire year, please click here. (This blog has a formatting glitch, so apologies - I'm not sure how to amend).

Wk 45:    Week of 28th November    1.  Twizel/Lake Pukaki?/ Tekapo/Queenstown                    

November 28th:  Interview with Elijah Wood who stated that The Hobbit trailer would be shown before Tintin in the US.        

November 29th: Sir Ian McKellen updates his Hobbit Blog with a post entitled "Moving On" where he describes his journey from Wellington to Matamata in order to start location shooting.

November 30th: "Orlando Spins our Wheels in Queenstown" from Mountain Scene. (Orlando Bloom mountain biking). December 1st: "Secrecy surrounds Hobbit filming". Report in the Otago Daily Times about the shoot near Wanaka.

December 1st: First article published on TORn written by Larry D Curtis (Mr Cere) as he travels through New Zealand. "LOTR still found in the fabric of Queenstown".

December 1st: "Actors Journey to Middle Earth". NZ Herald 

December 3rd: Interview with Martin Freeman's partner of 11 years, Amanda Abbington:"Abbington: Hobbit cast like family".

Wk 46:     Week of 5th December    1.  Nelson/Pelorus Bridge 

December 5th: Hobbit cast and crew in Nelson area. "Hobbit cast crew mass for filming" Nelson Mail.

December 5th: "Interview with Howard Shore" Film Music Magazine.

December 6th: Article in Marlborough Express: "Hobbits elude us , but we get to set"

December 6th: Peter Jackson's documentary on West Memphis 3 to premiere at Sundance.

December 6th; Stars arrive in Nelson. Thanks to TheOneRing.net for story.

December 7th: " Stars land in Nelson for The Hobbit" - article in the West Australian.

December 7th: Article in TORn stating that rumours reporting a delay in The Hobbit release were untrue.

December 8th: "Hobbit stars back as movie gears up" - article from The Press NZ and Nelson Mail

December 9th: Article in Timaru Herald "Students get precious Insight" about filming in Twizel.

December 9th: "Hobbit stars touch down" - Marlborough Express. 

December 11th: Report on TORn: "Hobbit Teaser Trailer shown at BNAT13 Film Fest". Description of how Eric Vespe of AICN took the trailer to BNAT for first showing.

Wk 47:    Week of 12th December    Pelorus Bridge. Nelson/Wellington.

December 13th: Article in "Tonight" on Australian Jodie Morrison, shoe and bootmaker for The Hobbit and Phantom of the Opera in Cape Town. She describes her work on the Hobbit production in article: "Shoemaker of the Opera"

December 14th: Filming ceases at Pelorus Bridge/Nelson area because of torrential rain. NelsonMail: "Rain puts early end to Hobbit".

December 14th: ONE YEAR UNTIL THE FIRST PUBLIC SCREENING OF "THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY" (not in Autralia though). Warner Brothers releases official synopsis. From IFC site. "The Hobbit Premiere Countdown begins with release of Official Synopsis"

December 14th: More on The Hobbit teaser trailer at TORn here.

December 15th: @EricVespe tweets: "Only two shooting days left and 6 days remaining in town"

December 16th: Interview with Stephen Fry where he talks about his role as Mayor of Laketown: Digital Spy.

Wk 48:    Week of 19th December   Break in Filming

December 19th: @EricVespe (approx 3.00pm NZ time): "That's a wrap on The Hobbit for 2011. Felt like the end of a school year around the studio."

December 19th: Interview with Martin Freeman in TotalFilm: "Martin Freeman talks The Hobbit."

December 19th: Peter Jackson nominated for Golden Globe award for Tintin.

December 20th: Interview with Martin Freeman in Stuff.co.nz: "Freeman struggles with dirty scenes"

December 20th: "Martin Freeman feels no Hobbit pressure" - Sky News Australia.

December 20th:  Set report #6 published on AICN. "Good Morning Koro".

December 2oth (Dec 21st: Australian & NZ Time): The Hobbit trailer is released on iTunes Trailers.

Debut of First Trailer

 

December 21st: Peter Jackson up for Auction for charity, Medecine Mondiale. TVNZ 

December 21st: Interview with Andy Serkis in FilmNews.

December 21st: Tintin premieres in the USA. The Hobbit trailer to be shown at the screening.

December 22nd: Peter Jackson Reveals more about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in exclusive interview. The Telegraph.com.au

December 23rd: Peter Jackson publishes Production Video #5 on Facebook.

 December 24th: Message from Richard Armitage sent to RichardArmitageOnline. Of his work on The Hobbit and the year that has passed he states:

"It's been one of the most memorable years I have ever experienced, the big birthday (which I tried to ignore, by sleeping through it!) and the privilege to be in NZ working on The Hobbit has made this year unforgettable. The places we have been to and the things we have seen, have surpassed all my expectations." Thanks to RichardArmitageOnline

via mulubinba.typepad.com

A message from RA ....

..... what a treat!! Here it is on RichardArmitageOnline. Thanks to Annette for posting

So our support is appreciated, but it is going to be a long year of waiting until the first movie is released.  . I'm glad he noticed the Just Giving site as that was a terrific effort and as I was choking over the word "fans" in my last post but one, I guess we could be a "community of friends" .... hadn't thought of that!

Love the typos as I am notorious for them myself.

I blame the Apple Macbook keyboard, RA!!! 

And it is hypothalami 

Happy Christmas from Oz

A few posts ago I mentioned that I would love to heard about what other fans of Richard Armitage do for the holiday season. (Still stumbling over using that word "fan" ... does that mean I haven't come to terms with the idea that at my age I am a "fan" ?). I am now heading into my 5th year of following the career of Richard Armitage ... and with our first sighting of Thorin Oakenshield in action this week, it can only get better.

.... but it is Christmas time, and I am very conscious that Richard A has fans from pretty much every part of the world. I am also conscious that quite a number do not observe Christmas, but I would still like to know about what you might be doing for the holiday season.

Here is a breakdown of what we do.

CHRISTMAS EVE

Raced to shops to get last minute groceries. Dad is 88 today, so we will have a BBQ tonight to celebrate. It is 26 degrees and because we have had rain, the humidity has skyrocketed to 88% now the sun is shining. I have added to the heat by baking the Christmas cakes, but I am just about to knuckle down to make some cassata for the people in my family who don't like Christmas pudding.

Here is the view out of our front window .... lots of green!

At night, we generally enjoy mild weather where we can walk around to see Christmas lights in comfort, attend Midnight Mass in summer dresses, and listen to the singing of the cicadas. Below is a house that used to raise enormous amounts of money for local charities with its Christmas display until ill health prevented the owners from doing so. It gives you an idea of the effort many people go to in order to decorate their houses. There was often even an icecream van parked outside.

 Cicada emerging from its shell on our tree out the back.

Other wildlife we might encounter at this time of year are lorikeets, blue tongue lizards, and of course, the dolphins who enter our harbour often twice a day chasing schools of fish.

 Pod of dolphins with their young catching fish in our harbour

CHRISTMAS DAY.

On Christmas day we have our present opening ceremony followed by a lunch. Cold turkey, ham and salads. We gave up having a hot baked dinner after one Christmas was over 40 degrees C!! Dessert however is my great grandmother's Christmas pudding served hot with cream, and/or icecream. We wash this down with plenty of good Aussie wines .... although I occasionally become unpatriotic and have a Marlbourough Sauvignon Blanc.

CHRISTMAS NIGHT .... generally early to bed

BOXING DAY .... is a big outdoors day for many Aussies ie a big BBQ day. There is also the Boxing Day Test (cricket) ; and the start of the Sydney Harbour Yacht Race to watch while consuming left overs.

That''s all I can think of at this point in time. I need to go and make the cassata now or it will never freeze!!! 

HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE IN THE RA BLOGOSPHERE 

Reminiscing ........

THEN

..... and....

NOW