Musical director apologises to Tolkien

Matthew Warchus has revealed that he apologised to J.R.R. Tolkien for turning The Lord Of The Rings into a musical.

The director decided to visit the late author's grave in Oxfordshire before the stage show hits the West End later this year, in fear that Tolkien would disapprove of his interpretation of the story.

"I visited his grave a few months ago to kind of apologise and get his seal of approval. It was a magical moment," Warchus explained. "I apologised just in case he didn't like the idea of his novel becoming a stage show."