Simon Tolkien

Who is Simon Tolkien?

Simon Mario Reuel Tolkien is a British barrister and novelist. He is the grandson of J. R. R. Tolkien, and the eldest son of Christopher Tolkien. He was educated at the Dragon School in Oxford and then Downside School. He studied modern history at Trinity College, Oxford, after which he embarked on a fifteen-year career as a criminal lawyer.

He was a barrister in London from 1994, where he lived with his wife and their two children. He turned his hand to writing at the age of forty. His first novel, The Stepmother, was published in 2002. His second work, The Inheritance, was published in 2010. Additional novels have since appeared.

Simon Tolkien notably disagreed with the policy of his grandfather's estate in regard to the The Lord of the Rings films. When Christopher Tolkien issued a statement that the "Tolkien estate would be best advised to avoid any specific association with the films", Simon Tolkien broke ranks, offering to cooperate with the filmmakers, stating "It was my view that we take a much more positive line on the film and that was overruled by my father."