Tuesday news broke that Hollywood based Saul Zaentz Company has decided to exercise some of its movie rights on The Lord of the Rings in other places around the world by siccing lawyers on any place that makes use of the term "Hobbit" or anything related to Middle-Earth. The company tells the BCC it is exercising its "exclusive worldwide rights to motion picture, merchandising, stage and other rights in certain literary works of JRR Tolkien including The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit."

One of its victims is a Southampton, UK pub called "The Hobbit" that has been around for more than 20 years, pre-dating the movies. The letter is demanding that the pub remove all references to Tolkien’s work, effectively shutting down the pub as they can't afford the costly rebranding costs. As Stephen Fry comments, "Honestly, sometimes I'm ashamed of the business I'm in. What pointless, self-defeating bullying." Sadly the pub is just one of many places worldwide receiving these notices. Today, Sir Ian McKellen offered his own perspective on the controversy in his blog. It turns out "Gandalf" also sides with the pub.

Gandalf's portrait hangs outside The Hobbit pub in Portswood, Southampton UK and has done for the last 20 years and more. I haven't been there but it's clearly not a place to ill-treat hobbits, elves, dwarves and wizards, in any way. So what's the problem? There hasn't been one until recently. Nor at Gandalf's Night Club in District Six CapeTown. Nor at The Hungry Hobbit, "a sandwich bar based near the author's childhood home," according to The Guardian.

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