The Return of the King (Dramatized)

By: J. R. R. Tolkien

Narrated by: full cast

Here is the original American full dramatization, as broadcast on National Public Radio.

War rages in the west, a titanic battle of will and strategy between the great wizard Gandalf and Sauron, the dark lord. Meanwhile, eastward in Mordor, Frodo and Sam approach the end of their improbable quest, bearing the One Ring ever closer to the Cracks of Doom, and to a final confrontation with the very essence of evil.

They're precious! Listen to all of our classic NPR dramatizations of J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series:

The Hobbit (Dramatized)

The Fellowship of the Ring (Dramatized)

The Two Towers (Dramatized)

©Christopher R. Tolkien, Michael H.R. Tolkien, John F.R. Tolkien, and Priscilla M.A.R. Tolkien (P)1979, 1994 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

"The best available." ( Booklist)
"This collection...is a masterpiece." ( The Courier)
"Spirited productions...stirring music." ( Washington Post)

Great!

Excellent performance. This is an abridged radio program rather than the full book but an excellent listen

awesome sauce

such an outstanding book. I never have time to read because of work but this was a great experience. 10/10 would listen to again.

An excellent rendition!

"The Hobbit (Dramatized)" and "the Lord of the Rings (Dramatized)" were the first books I bought through Audible. I'd heard this recounting on the radio and owned cassettes of them back in the 70's and was eager to rehear them in this format - which I have done several times.
I've been a fan of the good Professor's books since the mid 60's and account this rendition to be a VERY close "second" to the books, themselves, and the unabridged rendition now available!
They are an excellent telling and well worth purchasing!

The Perfect Ending

Love it! You cant ask for a better ending for all the members of the fellowship

great

I just love the way they do it enjoy it alot and have bin listening to this for years

NOT a reading of the book...be forewarned

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

not if they intended to "read" the book...the cast varies from same...

Who was your favorite character and why?

Gandalf - saved the world of Middle Earth

Did An Ensemble Cast do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

yes, but it plays like a 1940s radio show

Did The Return of the King (Dramatized) inspire you to do anything?

yes, read more carefully the reviews before I buy a download

Well Done! Love the Dramatization!

This was very well done. I keep looking towards my television thinking I would see the action scenes.

Not anywhere near as good as...

look for the BBC version. Ian Holm 1981 I think. Soooooooooo much better than this.

Just awful and inauthentic

Would you try another book from J.R.R. Tolkien and/or An Ensemble Cast?

Poor, cheap production quality. No emotional resonance. Just the worst. avoid this

What other book might you compare The Return of the King (Dramatized) to and why?

having to read an american tragedy in high school english

What didn’t you like about An Ensemble Cast’s performance?

the 'cast' may be okay but the tinny production quality makes it lame.

What character would you cut from The Return of the King (Dramatized)?

not my problem.

Any additional comments?

runaway, a balrog of a performance.

Silly rendition of the story. It was bad.

Would you try another book from J.R.R. Tolkien and/or full cast?

Not full cast

What other book might you compare The Return of the King (Dramatized) to and why?

The book is great. The performances were terrible.

How could the performance have been better?

They could have not done it.

What character would you cut from The Return of the King (Dramatized)?

All

Any additional comments?

Nope.