JRR Tolkien blue plaque unveiled at former railway station

A plaque to commemorate an early work by The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings author JRR Tolkien has been unveiled.

The tribute commemorates a visit the writer paid to his aunt, who lived near Gedling Station, in Nottinghamshire, where he wrote a poem called The Voyage of Éarendel the Evening Star.

The plaque said this poem led to the creation of Lord of the Rings.

Resident Paul Farrell said he thought the station setting was apt as it was "the start of Tolkien's journey".

The plaque was unveiled at the former station on Saturday.

Mr Farrell, who lives nearby, said the idea had been forged following a conversation on a local Facebook page.

Tolkien visited Gedling three times between 1913 and 1916.

He stayed with his maternal aunt, Jane Neave, and, at the age of 22, penned the first draft of the poem.

"I thought let's do something for the old railway station," Mr Farrell said.

"It's a fascinating link between the village and one of our most creative writers."

In conjunction with county councillor Mike Adams, Mr Farrell had the plaque made.

Work is ongoing on the former station - which closed in 1960 and is now owned by the Gedling Youth and Community Hub (GYCH) - to restore it as a venue for the area.

Mr Farrell added he hoped the plaque would trigger "a bit of interest" among residents and visitors.

"I think it's quite apt it's on the station because it marks the start of Tolkien's creative journey," he said.

Francis Rodrigues, chair of GYCH, added: "It's well established that Tolkien wrote this poem in Gedling so we decided this plaque would help make that more widely known."

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