Tolkien wrote books after Lord of the Rings but never a direct sequel. A letter sold in a charity auction reveals why.
Tolkien originally sent the letter in 1961 in response to fan mail from Chris Gilmore. Decades later, professor Gilmore gifted the framed letter to professor Chick Wilson who lectures at the University of Bath. In turn, professor Wilson gifted the letter to Dorothy House Hospice are who then put it up for auction.
It was expected to raise around £2k to £3k, and so the winning bid of around £4,800 is a good result for the hospice. It’s equal to a few days of running costs for the charity.
Matthew Haley, head of books and manuscripts at Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers and Valuers, told press that;
This letter appears to be the only time that Tolkien categorically stated that there would be no sequel to The Lord of the Rings so it is a significant find.
Why didn’t Tolkien write a sequel to Lord of the Rings
Tolkien explains;
I shall not write a sequel to the Lord of the Rings because, as is clearly stated in the course of the story, it is the end of the kind of world about which I write.”
There’s no sequel to Lord of the Rings because the book itself ruled it out.
You can find out more about Dorothy House Hospice Care and donate to it online.
