Tolkien scholar and author, John Garth, is to be the after-dinner Guest Speaker at the Tolkien Society’s 2014 AGM at Hay-on-Wye on 12th April.

John is the author of the critically-acclaimed work of scholarship Tolkien and the Great War and regularly writes about Tolkien in the local and national press. John has also written a guest editorial for the Tolkien Society’s journal, Mallorn, and has undertaken extensive research on Tolkien’s time at Exeter College, Oxford.

This isn’t the first time John has spoken at a Tolkien Society event: he came to the Society’s AGM ten years ago in Lincoln whilst in 2012 he spoke at the Tolkien Society’s international conference “The Return of the Ring”. Previous Guest Speakers at the Society’s AGMs include Priscilla Tolkien, Rayner Unwin, Michael Tolkien, Brian Sibley, Ted Nasmith and Tom Shippey.

About the Author: Shaun Gunner

Shaun is the Chair of The Tolkien Society. First elected in 2013, Shaun has overseen the Society's expansion from 600 to 3,500 members. Shaun regularly speaks about adaptations of Tolkien's works and the future of Tolkien scholarship whilst passionately believing the Society needs to reach out to new audiences. In his spare time he can be found playing video games and Lego, or on Twitter. He also chairs another charity, Mankind, and is a local councillor.