Hereinunder is found the invitation and information that the Forodrim published on the worldwide web before its unequalled 36-year jubilee.
A few annotations, marked by red text, have been inserted post festum.
During the jubilee a morning paper, The Jubilee Bulletin, was published. Here it can be read in pdf format:
Pictures from the jubilee:
- Photos by the Lord Picturer
- Photos by the Vice Lord Picturer
- Photos by participants:
- Prince Arathorn
- Fredegar, Grendel and Strawberry (from Mithlond)
- Eruantalon
The hour is drawing close when the Forodrim will have been active for four enneads, reaffirming the glory and grandeur of the ancient Middle-earth in a paled world.
This will be appropriately celebrated with a feast going on for four days and three nights.
May all the Forodrim, and all its kindred and allies near and far, gather to a celebration like no other:
Nárie 20–23 XXXVII
(June 5–8 2008)
General information
Time. The jubilee feast begins Thursday evening, June 5, and ends on Sunday, June 8.
If you intend to stay in Stockholm some nights before or after the jubilee, let us know and we will try to give you free lodging.
Place. The feast takes place in Älvkarleby (Obel Duinedain
in Sindarin), on and around Laxön island (Tol Cablim) in Dalälven river (Nanduin).
On Laxön island there is a hostel, a restaurant building that we will use as dining hall, and also 'the Stable' (Rohadab), a conference building that is at our disposal.
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Across a bridge, on the river-shore, is the Great Hall (Belegrond), which will be used when we all assemble for ceremonies and banquets.
Participants will primarily be housed in the hostel (Sennas; 2 houses) on Laxön, and in the lodge camp (Echad; 32 lodges) a mile and a half downstream (towards the top of the map), a beautiful walk along the river, and across it on suspension bridges. There are some different sizes of rooms and lodges. The most numerous size is for four persons.
Click the map
for a larger and
more informative
version!
There and back again. Älvkarleby is on the railroad line between Upplands Väsby and Gävle (a couple of stops from Gävle). Arlanda Airport is on the same line, so it is possible to go directly from there. The brand new train stop in Älvkarleby is conveniently near to the Great Hall.
There is roughly one connection per hour. At hours when you cannot go all the way by train, the stage between Tierp and Älvkarleby is served by busses.
In order not to miss any part of the jubilee, the latest train to take on the Thursday, June 5, leaves Upplands Väsby at 16:49 (take the commuter train from Stockholm at 16:20), and arrives at 18:19.
At the earliest, go back on the Sunday, June 8, by bus 838 to Tierp 13:25, and change there to a train that arrives in Upplands Väsby at 15:10 (the commuter train from there arrives in Stockholm at 15:40). Or go back quicker and more comfortably by train at 14:47 and arrive in Upplands Väsby at 16:10 (in Stockholm 16:40).
Here is a PDF-file with timetables showing connections during the jubilee feastdays.
Going there by car, Älvkarleby is on road 291: some 68 miles north of Arlanda, turn eastward from E4 at hotel Dragon Gate (a Chinese building in the Swedish woods). Read a driving guide and look at a road map. Arrive by 18:00.
Regardless of how you go there, it is at our reception desk in the conference building Rohadab (the Stable) in the middle of Laxön that you must call to check in.
Price and registration. For members of invited Tolkien societies the attendance fee is (all alternatives were raised by 25% per 17 March):
| Attendance from | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday | Friday | Saturday | |
| with lodging | 1500 SEK | 1306.25 SEK | 825 SEK |
| without lodging | 1100 SEK | 893.75 SEK | 550 SEK |
The price includes all meals, with drink. These meals are served: (Thursday) dinner, and breakfast the following morning; (Friday) lunch, banquet, and breakfast the following morning; (Saturday) lunch, jubilee banquet, and brunch the following morning.
All prices are 1/4 higher if you are not a member of a Tolkien society (full price thus 1875 SEK).
To pay the jubilee fee you may use the jubilee bonds that were emitted by the Forodrim Treasury, each bond counting as 110 SEK of the fee.
After 29 Lótesse (15 May) you can no longer register. Thereafter, if you are interested you must appeal to the jubilee chief, Earl Beregond, in order to possibly get registered.
| Number of registrants: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous jubilee (May '99) | ||
| 26 Nénimë (10 February) | 54 | |
| 6 Súlimë (20 February) | 69 | |
| 16 Súlimë (1 March) | 94 | 40 |
| 26 Súlime (11 March) | 117 | 62 |
| 4 Víressë (21 March) | 150 | 72 |
| 14 Víressë (31 March) | 153 | 87 |
| 24 Víressë (10 April) | 154 | 138 |
| 4 Lótessë (20 April) | 163 | 146 |
| 14 Lótessë (30 April) | 167 | 153 |
| 24 Lótesse (10 May) | 169 | 153 |
| 4 Nárie (20 May) | 176 | 160 |
| 14 Nárie (30 May) | 177 | |
| Finally | 179 | |
| 2 of the registered could not come because of illness. |
There are now registered participants from Sweden, Norway, Holland, England, Germany, Slovakia and Greece.
Children. For those with small children, there is a children's room to withdraw to when you wish.
Etiquette. If you follow common etiquette you will do quite well in the Forodrim. But to make the unaccustomed feel more comfortable there is a collection of advice and guidelines. The accustomed too may profit from reading it.
Dress. You are expected to wear 'middle-earthly' dress during the entire festival. Any honest effort is accepted. Since the jubilee goes on for a several days, bring more than one set of clothes. (In an emergency there is a laundromat at the lodge camp.)
Events will be spread over a large area, so plan your clothes and shoes to match the weather. There may be quite a few walks, even if you do not intend to take part in any outdoor activities.
To bring. You have to bring your own sheets, or rent. (Mark in the registration form or send an email if you wish to rent sheets; this is to be paid separately, on arrival.) NOTE: if you rent sheets, towels are included. It costs 75 SEK.
Apart from sheets (if you do not rent) and clothes you should not forget to bring:
- Medicals that you need. It is far to the nearest pharmacy, and the Council's Surgeon of the Forodrim only has a limited assortment for emergencies.
- Money. It is also far to the nearest teller machine; there is none in Älvkarleby. You may want to shop at the market, or to buy refreshments on top of the included food and drink.
- Umbrella. If the local concentration of umbrellas is sufficiently increased, there should be no rain, and if there is, you have umbrellas.
- The Forodrim songbook Parma Lindion, if you have a copy (else you can buy one on the market). .
Embassies. A society that wants to present an embassy to the Forodrim should inform us as long beforehand as possible. It is during the jubilee ceremonies on the Saturday that the Grand Council of the Forodrim will receive embassies.
Don't. Smoking indoors is not allowed in any of the buildings.
Bathing in the river is not allowed, outside of the prepared beach just north of the lodge camp. Even where the water looks quite calm (as in front of the Great Hall), there are dangerous undercurrents.
Programme
This programme now shows most of what will happen. A few more things will be added. Subject to changes.
| Earenya (Thursday) |
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Rohadab |
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| Valanya (Friday) |
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| Because of drought and fire prohibition there was no campfire any of the nights. | |||
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| Elenya (Saturday) |
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| Anarya (Sunday) |
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The musical Battle.
War and love, and the eternal question: What would have happened if . . .? The newly written musical Battle
— in Swedish Slag — is put on stage on the very first night of the jubilee. By and with members
of the Forodrim, produced by the Forodrim. See the story of the War of the Ring in new perspectives!
Click the poster
for a larger version
with more text!
Talks and panels. Look forward to, among others, these interesting speakers:
- Erik Andersson, known to all as the man behind the prose in the new translations Ringarnas herre (The Lord of the Rings) and Hobbiten (The Hobbit). He has written about his work on the former in Översättarens anmärkningar. He comes to us prepared to answer all our questions about his procedure and solutions.
- Öjevind Lång, a longtime Tolkien enthusiast and now the translator of The Children of Húrin into Húrins barn.
Arne Zettersten, emeritus professor of English at the University of
Copenhagen, who came to know Tolkien because of their shared interest in the "Katherine group" of mediaeval
manuscripts, and who has now written book on Tolkien
(Tolkien: min vän Ronald
och hans världar), drawing on his personal memories. His jubilee lecture is called
"On Communicating and Cooperating with Tolkien".
Market. The market will be an opportunity for jubilee participants and the general public to acquire Tolkien books and much else. If you have anything to sell (handicraft, collectibles or other things), check this option in your registration form, or send an email.
Choir concert. The music guild of the Forodrim, the Mellonath Gléowine,
invites the jubilee and the public to a one-hour concert. The programme includes a setting of words by Tolkien
by the famous composer Jan Sandström, written solely for this
occasion.
Middle-earth fashion show. A colourful dress show is arranged by members of the Mellonath Hithlain, the sewing guild of the Forodrim. See fascinating dresses and hear their creators' thoughts about their work.
You may participate yourelf and display your most beautiful creations! Read the rules and contact Princess Galadriel.
Fencing. The gauntlet is thrown, do you dare to pick it up? A classic duel at dawn is a Jubilee must. The equipment and the opponent are waiting for just YOU, at 3 a.m. Saturday morning (the sun rises at 3:25). Dare you answer the challenge?
If you get thrashed at dawn, or simply wish to try fencing, there will be an opportunity to train and get instruction later in the morning.
Bandobras Cup. It was Bandobras Took, the Bullroarer, who famously won the Battle of Greenfields and invented the game of Golf in the same stroke. A minigolf course at Echad provides an opportunity for applying his invention in a peaceful competition.
Winner: Lothmíril.
Gandalf Cup. Who is the match of Gandalf, "surer of finding the way home
in a blind night than the cats of Queen Berúthiel" (LR 2 IV:148)? In the few hours that the sun is down
between Friday and Saturday, there is a night orienteering competition, arranged by the Mellonath Dúnedain,
the rangers' guild in the Forodrim.
Winning team: Maxatan and Princess Brethil.
Forodrim-Jeopardy. This Jeopardy-style competition will be in Swedish, with answers taken from the 36 years of Forodrim history.
Brandy lecture. Prince Merry Brandybuck speaks about the drink that supplied an English name for the river Baranduin.
Pipe-smoking. "If you have a pipe about you, sit down and have a fill of mine!" (H I:10). Prince Paladin Took will lead a session of practice in this most hobbitish art. There will be extra pipes, if you don't have one about you.
Tea-tasting. "But please come to tea" (H I:21) — Bilbo's adventure
started as a tea party. To widen your experience of the noble drink, go to the tea-tasting, that will be led
by the Guild Mistress of Otornas Tyéva, the Forodrim's tea guild. Attendance is limited to ten persons;
a booking-list will be in the reception.
Middle-earth boardgame. Thanks to the gameplaying guild of the Forodrim,
Mellonath Galabargian, there will be a room with games during the jubilee. On Sunday morning there will
also be a game leader will be in place, if you to play a boardgame based on Tolkien's Middle-earth.
Final revue. When did it all start, really? 1972? Or was it 1973?
How did the story go, now? See the theatre guild embody all 36 years of Forodrim history in only 36 minutes.
The revue Back and here again is performed by a reckless troupe without any safety net whatsoever. The
jubilee revue is going to traumatize not merely ONE generation, but several ones.
